Making mentoring more efficient and accessible, Guider picks up $3 million

The Great Resignation has already affected many businesses. Research suggests that 77% of 25-33 year-olds are looking for a career change in the next year, while 94% of employees admitted they would remain in a role if there were greater opportunities to ‘learn & grow’. To retain valuable talent, companies need to be an attractive place to work and put the employee at the centre of its actions. 

Betting big on the segment, London-based platform Guider is looking at building human connections within large enterprises to make mentoring more scalable and accessible. It has brought in $3 million seed investment from early-stage VC Fuel Ventures. The new cash will enable the startup to expand its operations internationally, especially in the U.S.

Currently working with the likes of M&S, Deloitte, The Guardian and EY, the platform helps grow and scale mentoring cultures to improve employee retention, staff wellbeing, diversity and inclusion, and personal career development. It uses smart technology to match mentoring relationships and delivers real-time metrics to measure the success of the programmes. According to the company, 84% of Guider users have experienced a positive effect using the system.

Going beyond mentoring, Guider claims its clients also use the platform to support their other employee development programmes, such as coaching, sponsorship, buddying, and mental health allies.

Nick Ross, CEO and founder, Guider said: “When mentoring is implemented as a long-term commitment it can have a positive impact on individuals and the organisation overall. The new capital will help us to up the ante on the development of our smart platform and serve companies across the globe. Already, we’ve seen global brands deliver exceptional results when using our platform to anchor their mentoring schemes and build employee connections.”

Mark Pearson, Fuel Ventures added: “There is no doubt that the world of work is changing and organisations, like Guider, are there to help large businesses with big, disparate teams to build better relationships with and between staff.”