In the process of providing career advice for business students, Chris Evans saw that more information doesn’t always mean better outcomes for students, and at the end of the university runway, students didn’t always want it either. What he did notice from this experience was that once students had the theory downpat it was their experiences that nurtured their growth and abilities to contribute to real outcomes.

What higher education students needed was more experience. Driven to help bridge this gap, Chris teamed up with Les Delaforce, experienced cofounder with a HR tech background.

Students are faced with new learning challenges each year. The one thing that remains consistent is the challenge to build a career with little to no experience. Programs like internships have been championed for years, but they’ve also left the door open for employers to mistake students as ‘free labor’ and effectively reduce the value of students in the labor market.

In response, the founding team set out to create a platform that creates a new way for students to work with businesses, and to thrive. With clearly defined outcomes for learning and work, the value and impact of experiential learning can be significant for both parties. While universities have been working towards these goals for years (thank you for all your good work WIL representatives), there hasn’t been a solution provided to support students across the board like Experlio.