Stema, a career copilot platform for engineers, announced it has secured €1.6 million in funding from United Ventures, the Milan-based venture capital firm focused on investing in technology startups. United Ventures invested in Stema via its UV III and UV III Lombardia funds, the latter backed by the regional “Lombardia Venture” initiative for high-potential tech startups. Eden Ventures, Club degli Investitori, and Octopus Ventures also participated in the round.
Stema is developing a B2B solution to automate STEM recruitment. This investment comes at a time of significant growth for the company, which has built a thriving community of qualified engineers in Italy in just a few months, attracting over 300 new users daily and securing contracts with 15 of the country’s top technical employers. The new funding will be used to further develop its technology platform, expand its team, solidify its market presence in Italy, and prepare for expansion into Germany.
The demand for STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) professionals is set against a backdrop of global economic competition. Today’s evolving industrial landscape requires an unprecedented number of STEM talents, creating demand not only for new graduates but also, and more importantly, for the optimal allocation of existing professionals within the job market. Geographical concentrations of talent and often outdated recruiting tools make it difficult for companies to attract and hire the engineers they need.
Companies need a new infrastructure to connect talent with opportunity. By focusing on career paths rather than individual job openings, Stema builds trust with professionals and is creating a large community of STEM talent around its platform. AI empowers engineers to navigate the job market and identify companies where they can thrive. Similarly, companies can pinpoint the engineers best suited for each role, ensuring a stronger fit between talent and position. This is crucial for fostering creativity and innovation in the workplace.
Stema’s founding team combines complementary skills and extensive experience across various sectors. The team comprises Vito Lomele, a serial entrepreneur who has built successful and innovative companies like Fiscozen and Jobrapido; CEO Davide Bodini, whose background is in human resources; and CTO Matteo Gambera, an automation engineer.
“We’re at a turning point in how we access talent. Until now, HR departments have had to rely on a multitude of undifferentiated platforms, incapable of effectively reshaping the interaction between talent and companies. With Stema, we will guide the careers of 10 million European engineers, making the continent’s businesses more competitive on a global scale,” said Davide Bodini, CEO and Co-founder of Stema.
“For the first time in recruiting, new AI-powered tools allow us to offer professionals the same level of personalized attention and guidance previously reserved for executives, who are used to working directly with headhunters. By empowering millions of European professionals to pursue their career aspirations more effectively, Stema will drive innovation within businesses and ultimately strengthen our continent’s competitiveness,” commented Vito Lomele, Co-founder of Stema.
“The rise of artificial intelligence and its integration into businesses is creating fertile ground for innovation in HR,” added Paolo Gesess, Co-founder and managing partner of United Ventures. “Coupled with this is the strong demand for STEM professionals, who are difficult to attract and place using traditional approaches. This presents a clear market opportunity: to tap into this talent pool and innovate the model to better match supply and demand. Stema, led by an exceptional team, stands out as one of the few companies with a vertical focus on STEM profiles and a community-based approach. It has all the ingredients to build a significant competitive advantage in the HR tech sector.”
Read the orginal article: https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/10/milan-based-stema-nabs-e1-6-million-to-address-europes-stem-talent-shortage/
