Initiative Helps Israelis From All Backgrounds Work In Hi-Tech

A new initiative will help Israelis from Haredi, Arab, Druze and Ethiopian backgrounds find hi-tech jobs.

Place-IL, founded by veteran tech entrepreneurs, says it is launching a pilot project for hundreds of candidates who want to work in software development roles.

Employers will select candidates for an internship program that will provide them with relevant experience and employment opportunities.

Place-IL aims to address a shortage of 20,000 people in Israel’s hi-tech sector by helping underrepresented populations achieve employment. 

It will not only enable companies to find the suitable talent, but will also help overcome barriers that prevent qualified but inexperienced candidates from being hired. 

Keren Halperin-Musseri, CEO of Place-IL, says organizations that spot and train qualified individuals from Haredi, Arab, Druze and Ethiopian backgrounds only manage to get four per cent of them hired at hi-tech companies. 

Place-IL connects all of these qualification organizations for underrepresented populations to the hi-tech industry, enabling large-scale placement and employment. 

“For candidates, the process for enrolling in the platform goes through unique screening sessions conducted by a team of high-tech professionals, psychologists and even representatives of the evaluated population,” said Halperin-Musseri.

“Candidates who successfully complete the evaluation, which includes a professional code assignment, are assigned to a three-month salaried internship program at one of the high-tech companies that pay for the placement and for use of the platform.”

“After three months, where the company chooses not to go on with the hiring process, the candidate can go on to another three-month internship at another company, and so on for a period of one year. If the candidate was hired by one of the companies at which the internship was conducted, the internship process will stop and the candidate will shift to permanent employment.”

Place-IL was founded by veteran tech entrepreneurs, including Idan Tendler, one of the founders of cloud infrastructure security provider Bridgecrew. Its platform was developed together with dozens of leading companies including Google, Monday, and Cisco, and has investors and managers acting as advisors.