UK career coaching startup Stay Nimble said it has raised more than £170,000 in its inaugural crowdfunding campaign.

Dubbed the “Headspace” of career coaching, Stay Nimble – a platform supporting individuals to navigate their working lives – exceeded its fund target by 15% with over 230 backers through crowdfunding platform Seedrs.

The funding will allow Stay Nimble to accelerate the functionality of its platform and build on its growing customer base.

It is forecast that more than 800 million people will find their job roles are changed by automation and artificial intelligence by 2030, the company said.

Helping workers understand natural strengths
The mission of Stay Nimble is to help workers across the globe understand how their natural strengths can be matched to new types of work and learn the skills needed to succeed in these new roles.

The technology highlights new, relevant opportunities based on local labour markets with data extracted from jobs boards and is integrating performance coaching techniques from expert sports psychologists at PlanetK2, who previously coached Olympians and Paralympian’s.

These techniques are translated into personal development approaches for developing mindsets in confidence, resilience and motivation.

Stay Nimble was founded in January 2018 and is certified as a social enterprise by Social Enterprise UK. It was recently nominated for the RSA Future Work awards.

Working closely with industry specialists, Stay Nimble has set up partnerships with Burning Glass and PlanetK2, who act as key data and content partners.

It is also embarking on a partnership with the Accenture Corporate Citizenship team to support Accenture’s Inclusive Future of Work initiative, which aims to support mid-career workers who face the double disadvantage of being in routine roles most at risk of automation, alongside having fewer resources to navigate the necessary career transitions.

Access to Stay Nimble’s platform is currently free of charge for seven days with low cost duration-based subscriptions thereafter.

Dominic Atkinson, Founder of Stay Nimble, said: “Headspace is supporting millions with their mental health by creating digital access for learning meditation. Stay Nimble will support millions with their financial security by creating digital access to career management support.

“Our aim is make real, measurable social impact by helping people find work they love and that pays well, no matter how the labour market evolves.

“There is a significant and widening gap in social equality, driven in part by real challenges with occupational mobility. We will empower individuals to re-skill more easily with less uncertainty, no matter what background they come from.”