Meet Mat Ilic, CEO and co-founder of greenworkx
greenworkx is co-founded by two education sector workers, Mat llic and Richard Ng, who are passionate about the planet and believe reskilling and upskilling UK workers into green jobs is future-proofing the economy. Their mission is to get 10 million people into green jobs over 10 years, supporting job seekers and organisations that need skills to build net zero homes, windfarms, nuclear energy etc.
What inspired the launch of Greenworkx as a climate-focused edtech startup, and why now?
The inspiration behind the launch of Greenworkx stems from our recognition of, and deep concern for, the green skills emergency that stands to become the major solvable barrier to the climate transition challenge that our world faces.
As co-founders, we saw the power of EdTech as a tool for building and supporting the net zero workforce - the frontline technical roles we need to bring about a low carbon future, at the scale and velocity that this challenge demands. By equipping people with the technical knowledge and skills needed for green jobs, we can foster a sustainable and prosperous future for all of us.
The timing of our launch is crucial because we are at a pivotal moment in history, a once-in-a-generation structural realignment in the way that our economies are organised, what energy we consume and how and which products we rely on.
By leveraging technology and education, we want to get ten million people into good, green jobs by the end of this decade and a lot more beyond - with the aim of leading our world towards a more sustainable future.
You recently secured £600k pre-seed funding - what role do you see it playing in the growth of your business?
Securing £600k in pre-seed funding was a significant milestone for Greenworkx. This funding will play a pivotal role in driving the growth and development of our business. Specifically, we will be using the capital to invest in our proprietary learning and matching technology, enhancing our platform's features and capabilities for the benefit of learners and businesses.
The funding will enable us to accelerate our product development and improve the user experience, ensuring that our platform offers a comprehensive and engaging learning environment for our users. Additionally, it will help us scale our marketing efforts, reach a wider audience, and attract more learners to our platform.
Overall, this pre-seed funding will serve as a catalyst for our growth, helping us establish Greenworkx as a leading player in the climate-focused edtech space. We continue to grow in our size and capability, bringing on new colleagues in product engineering, learning, customer success and partnerships.
What advice would you give to entrepreneurs getting ready to raise their pre-seed?
Based on our experience, these are the key pieces of advice at the pre-seed stage:
Build a compelling vision: in the days before product-market-fit, the founding team are the most important asset and the custodians of an audacious long term vision so ensure you come across as compelling and credible.
Validate your thesis: by conducting thorough research of both trends and your key audiences - this is essential to providing that you have a viable business proposition. Show evidence of early traction, such as user engagement, partnerships, or customer feedback.
Network and seek advice: leverage your network to connect with experienced entrepreneurs, mentors, and potential investors. Seek feedback, absorb it and refine your pitch - it will make you better.
Develop a robust pitch deck (and supporting documents): there is a lot of literature on this, but we found that being concise, visual, and persuasive were the most important characteristics. Delivery practice makes perfect.
Be prepared and persistent: fundraising can be challenging, so be prepared for rejection and setbacks. Stay persistent, learn from each interaction, and continuously improve your approach.
What do you think makes Greenworkx approach unique?
We have a unique blend of winning skills in the founding team, spanning and understanding education, technology, social and regulatory policy and business development.
At the heart of the talent portal that we are building - which exclusively focuses on the frontline, technical roles for net zero - is something that seamlessly bridges the gap between candidates, technical education and employment in an emerging sector.
Our approach goes beyond traditional education by providing learners with bite-sized learning in practical skills and knowledge directly applicable to relevant jobs. And before long, the scaling of our product will mean further enhancements to this learner experience, supporting their ongoing growth and development through a wide-ranging curriculum, soft skills development and a network and community of learners across a range of roles and regions.
As founders with an educational background, how do you leverage your expertise to bridge the gap between education and employment with the sustainability sector?
As founders with a strong educational background, we understand the challenges faced by both learners and employers and the unique context demanded by the transition to net zero.
We leverage our expertise in the following ways:
Curriculum design: we know what makes successful learning experiences and how to make these engaging for learners and relevant for industry. Our team collaborates with industry experts and employers to ensure our courses address the specific skills and knowledge required.
Industry partnerships: we have been successful in and will continue to build partnerships with leaders in education (e.g. City and Guilds), industry (e.g. Installation Assurance Authority) and fantastic employers (e.g. Your Energy, Your Way).
Continuous feedback: we are uniquely placed between job-seeking candidates, industry and existing training provision to build the right catalytic learning content. We do this by continuously taking feedback from learners as well as employers and subject matter experts to build something that activates the talent we need for this challenge, at scale.
How did you conquer those moments of doubt that so often affect entrepreneurs – what pushes you through?
To quote Marc Andreessen, ‘a start up puts you on an emotional rollercoaster unlike anything you have ever experienced. You will flip rapidly from a day in which you are euphorically convinced you are going to own the world, to a day in which doom seems only weeks away and you feel completely ruined and back again. Over and over and over.’
This is normal, and in our experience, several things can help through this:
Strong conviction and passion for the cause: We have a deep-rooted belief in our mission and the positive impact our startup can make. This conviction fuels our determination and gives us the resilience to navigate the inevitable obstacles that come our way.
Support system: Surrounding ourselves with a strong support system has been instrumental. We rely on mentors, advisors, and fellow entrepreneurs who provide guidance, encouragement, and objective perspectives during difficult times.
Continuous learning: We embrace a growth mindset and view challenges as opportunities for learning and improvement. By seeking knowledge, learning from failures, and adapting our strategies, we can overcome obstacles with a stronger, more informed approach.
Celebrating small wins: Entrepreneurship can be a rollercoaster ride, so celebrating even the smallest victories along the way helps maintain morale and provides a sense of progress and accomplishment.
What’s the single most important decision you’ve learnt as an entrepreneur that contributed to the growth of your business?
One of the most important approaches we have taken is the power of active listening to investors, learners and customers to ensure that we are continuously iterating our approach and product based on feedback. By truly understanding our users' needs, pain points, and desires, we can create a platform that delivers exceptional value and meets their expectations.
The important decision is to keep an open mind and stay curious as to what the solution that evolves might be rather than trying to force something on the market (market-product-fit rather than product-market-fit!).
What impact are you hoping to achieve by addressing the skills gap on the green job market?
By addressing the green skills emergency we are doing something that will empower individuals with the skills and knowledge needed to pursue meaningful careers in the net zero transition. In turn, this qualified talent will then help businesses thrive as they drive the change in our homes, roads and energy systems. And when this is done, the positive ripple effect will catalyse a widespread transition to a cleaner, more productive future for the UK and the world.
Considering that early users of Greenworkx will most likely include GenZ, how do you plan to engage and attract them to join the platform?
Engaging and attracting Gen Z users to join the Greenworkx platform is a key focus for us not least since they will form the majority of the workforce in the next two decades. To appeal to this generation, we are employing several strategies, including a digital-first approach, personalised learning experiences, interactivity and more than anything an authentic and trustworthy brand that believes in them and wants to enable them to play a heroic part in changing the world.
Greenworkx is becoming the gateway to green jobs and will ultimately be a community that aligns with this generation’s experiences, values and insights.
Why do you think now is the right time for the world to begin exploring and adopting technology that aids sustainability?
This is the moment. We are in a race against time and technology can help us make the transition to a low carbon future less painful at every level, more than anything, in the experience of consumers and workers.
The urgency to address the climate crisis has never been greater for environmental reasons but also because of the need to secure clean energy supply in the context of rising global prices of fossil fuels, some of which have been driven by geopolitical instability.
Consumer appetite is changing fast, too. In order to ease the transition to electrified transport, more efficient homes and renewable technologies, we need millions of new workers to help bring this change in a way that does not create inflation or other disruption.
Technology and its capacity for speed and scale is the right tool to accelerate this change, in our example, connecting talent to the jobs that will be critical in changing the world.
