We are proud to share that y@W has been named a Top 5 finalist for Startup Service Provider Champion of the Year at the ASEB 2026 Awards.
This recognition celebrates the work we do to help startups and small businesses build the capacity they need to grow, while creating work experience, skills and career pathways for young South Africans.
It also recognises a belief that has shaped our work over the past seven years:
South Africa does not have a youth unemployment problem or a startup growth problem in isolation. It has a connection problem.
Thousands of startups and small businesses have the ambition and market opportunity to grow but lack the financial resources, human capital and HR infrastructure needed to build effective teams. At the same time, talented young people struggle to enter the workplace because they lack the experience employers require.
These are two sides of the same challenge and y@W was created to connect them.
Turning labour into growth
The youth@WORK Labour-to-Growth Model shows how we turn investment in paid youth employment into measurable business growth and long-term economic impact.
The model begins with capital from Enterprise Development, CSI and impact funding. y@W then provides the human resource infrastructure needed to translate that investment into properly managed employment.
This includes paid and contracted youth employment, end-to-end HR and payroll management, labour compliance, COIDA, industrial relations and risk management, and performance tracking, mentoring and workplace-readiness support.
Young people are carefully matched to the operational needs of growing businesses, giving them the additional capacity they need to serve customers, increase revenue, and formalise their growth. At the same time, young people gain paid work experience, build valuable skills and create pathways towards sustainable employment.
Throughout the process, data is captured and translated into evidence giving funders and partners the insight they need to make informed decisions, demonstrate impact and build trust.
In this way, the model connects five essential elements:
Capital → Human resource infrastructure → Supported youth capacity → Business and employment impact → Evidence and leadership
It is a practical system that ensures investment does not end with a placement. It becomes a catalyst for business growth, youth development and wider economic participation.
Building the infrastructure for shared growth
At the heart of the Labour-to-Growth Model is the y@W human capital operating system, which brings together corporate investment, growing businesses, young talent, technology and ongoing support in one integrated ecosystem.
Through our proprietary CoRE and UPLOADER platforms, we manage the complete employment journey from recruitment and onboarding to payroll, compliance, attendance, learning, wellness, performance management and impact reporting.
But technology alone is not the innovation.
Our platforms are supported by provincial teams, a dedicated HR and wellness call centre, WhatsApp-enabled engagement, structured learning pathways, business scorecards and an Alumni Programme that continues to support young professionals and future entrepreneurs beyond their initial placements.
This allows small businesses to access, develop, and retain talent without building complex workforce systems themselves. By reducing the cost, administration and risk of employment, we enable founders to focus on their customers and growth.
Over the past seven years:
- More than 17,700 young people have been supported into meaningful work opportunities.
- Over 2,600 startups and SMEs have strengthened their businesses through human capital.
- More than 134 corporate funders have invested through our platform.
- Close to R1 billion in human capital investment has been directed into South Africa’s SME economy.
- 96% of participating young people are retained throughout the programme.
- 20% secure permanent employment within the SMEs where they were placed.
- 17% of alumni pursue entrepreneurship or self-employment, creating further opportunities and contributing to local economic growth.
- 94% of our corporate partners renew their investment, demonstrating sustained confidence in the model and its outcomes.
These results show what becomes possible when employment, enterprise development, education and corporate investment no longer operate as separate interventions.
The result is a connected system in which paid youth employment strengthens business capacity, growing businesses create more opportunities, and credible evidence guides future investment.
We need your vote
We are honoured to be recognised among Africa’s leading startup ecosystem builders—and now we need your support.
Please vote for y@W for Startup Service Provider Champion of the Year. It is quick and free to do.
Vote here: asebs.com/finalists/youth-work
