Zen Educate, an online marketplace that matches schools with the best available substitute teachers and teaching assistants, has successfully closed a €34 million Series B. It was led by Round2 Capital, with support from existing investors Adjuvo, Brighteye Ventures, FJ Labs, Ascension Ventures, and prominent angels, including Octopus founder and CEO Simon Rogerson. This marks the largest round in European EdTech this year.
The funding will empower Zen Educate to complete several additional acquisitions in the UK and the US and further expand its operations in both markets. Additionally, the investment will facilitate the scaling of the company’s new school workforce management software, which includes SaaS products for credentialing, compliance, and absence management.
Each year schools and nurseries globally spend over $55 billion on temporary staffing due to costly recruitment agency fees, outdated technology, and poor matches. With recruitment agencies charging an average margin of 35 percent per match in a highly fragmented market, Zen Educate offers a modern, algorithm-based solution that directly connects schools with the right set of teachers for the job.
The platform enables teachers and schools to create profiles and match their compatibility based on proximity, skills, and experience. This results in faster and more accurate matches, reducing hiring costs and enabling educational institutions to allocate resources more effectively, benefiting teachers and schools.
Educators working through the Zen Educate platform have delivered over two million hours2 of education in the past 12 months, saving the education system over $25 million that would have been wasted on agency fees through its cost-effective approach.
Slava Kremerman, co-founder and CEO of Zen Educate, said: “We’ve been on a mission to solve schools’ workforce challenges. This investment brings us closer to our goal of helping the education system save over $100 million annually through our fairer, more efficient recruitment model. As we enter into the next phase of our journey, we aim to reach out to more educational institutions across the UK and US.”
Facilitating this mission, Zen Educate acquired Opus Education in February 2023 and, more recently, Aquinas Education which was co-owned by television presenter and former footballer Jermaine Jenas, who will join Zen Educate as a brand ambassador.
Brand ambassador Jermaine Jenas, added: “I’ve witnessed first-hand the transformative impact of Zen Educate. What sets us apart from other tech companies is our simplicity. By eliminating unnecessary costs, Zen Educate empowers schools to prioritize what truly matters: delivering high-quality teaching, investing in better pay for educators, and focusing on the young minds of the future.”
Zen Educate currently operates in 11 regions across the UK and five states in the US, with plans to expand its reach further across the US in the next two years. Through strategic acquisitions in both markets, the company aims to consolidate a fragmented market and transform the educational staffing sector on a global scale.
Christian Czernich, co-founder and CEO of Round2 Capital, commented: “Zen Educate has been successful in solving a significant challenge faced by educational facilities on a daily basis. The team’s deep understanding of the EdTech landscape is evident, and their remarkable growth, nearly fivefold over the last 24 months, is a testament to their effectiveness.”
Founded in 2017 by Slava Kremerman and Oren Cohen, Zen Educate is headquartered in London and has offices across the UK and the US. Kremerman was previously a leadership team member at Nutmeg, while Cohen ran the UK office of Optimizely. With a team of 300, Zen Educate has grown rapidly since its inception and has been recognized on prestigious lists such as the FT 1000, Deloitte Fast 50, and Tech Nation’s Future Fifty.
Read the orginal article: https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/05/london-based-zen-educate-secures-e34-million-series-b-to-connect-schools-with-absent-staff-to-the-best-available-teachers/
