Wirkn Raises Seed Round, Hires RedFlagDeals Founder as CEO
Wirkn, an end-to-end mobile employment solution designed to help youth join the workplace and to help employers better connect with the mobile generation, is making a splash.
It simultaneously announced a $400,000 seed round and the hiring of a chief executive officer. The round was led by Kinetic Companies and a group of private angel investors. The CEO is Derek Szeto, who founded RedFlagDeals.
“Helping today’s youth kick-start the earliest stages of their careers and develop their skills in a mobile-first format is an inspiring mission,” says Szeto. “We’re also tackling a major problem that businesses around the world face today with recruiting, retaining and engaging today’s young mobile-centric workforce.”
Wirkn is aimed at youth, targeting the retail and hospitality industry, which represents more than 15.4 million employees in North America, where at least 70% of all retail jobs are part-time. With 39% of retail employees being under the age of 28, mobile is the perfect platform to help youth find opportunities to develop their skills and explore the workforce, according to the Toronto-based company.
“Having an engaged workforce increases productivity, improves customer service, and reduces turnover,” says Jobin. “Wirkn makes finding, training and engaging youth simple, fast, and mobile.”
