What is the story of Andela’s Nigerian roots?
Andela started with a mission to transform lives by connecting smart, hardworking people to global opportunities. In 2014, we launched in Lagos, Nigeria, at a time when Africa wasn’t on the map for global tech hiring. While companies were looking to Eastern Europe, India, and Latin America, Africa remained largely untapped despite its deep talent pool.
We opened a training academy for computer science students, many of whom did not know how to code initially. By 2018, we had trained and placed them with top firms like Meta. However, market demand shifted toward mid-to-senior level talent, so we transitioned into a talent marketplace. Now, we're reintroducing a focus on learning and training, but this time powered by AI and technology.
So you started with training, but now focus on matching?
Our bread and butter is to match people with jobs. But a huge part of what makes us successful is our continued focus on training, but not in the traditional classroom sense. Instead, we deliver learning through strategic partnerships with major tech players like NVIDIA, Microsoft, GitHub, and AWS. These companies provide the curriculum or co-develop it with us, and we bring that content to our global developer network of over 150,000 professionals.
Through this model, developers earn certifications, complete real-world tasks, and become equipped to use cutting-edge technologies. It's an embedded, flexible form of upskilling rather than a formal academy, and it ensures our talent pool is always industry-ready.
Are the people who are hired from your platform remote workers exclusively?
Yes, Andela technologists work exclusively remotely. This aligns with our core mission—ensuring opportunity reaches people where they live. Traditional hiring models often lead to "brain drain," where talent leaves their home countries for work. Our model allows them to access transformative economic opportunity while staying within their communities.
The impact goes beyond individuals—it's felt by their families and local economies. Homes are built, hospital bills are paid, school fees are covered. Each job we help create supports micro-economies and reinforces community resilience.
For how long, on average, do these new hires stay?
Our average placement length is 18 months, significantly longer than the industry norm for contract or offshore roles. Many clients face high turnover with other vendors—sometimes as quickly as two to six months. We’ve designed our offering to combat this.
Our technologists fully integrate into client teams, joining standups and collaborating daily. This deep involvement helps them understand the company culture and technology environment, leading to long-term success and consistency for clients.
Can you tell us a bit more about your talent decision engine technology? What does it really do, and how does AI play into hiring?
We believe AI can vastly improve speed, reduce bias, and amplify the efficiency of recruiting. That said, we’re not here to replace human recruiters—we aim to empower them. Our talent decision engine takes data from both sides of the hiring equation: the job and the candidate.
We analyze job descriptions—whether written by clients or auto-generated—and assess candidates using their Andela profiles, resumes, LinkedIn data, and technical evaluations from our technical skills assessment platform, Qualified. We also factor in variables like availability, time zones, and salary expectations to create optimal matches. The future we’re building includes AI that learns from previous successful placements and scans work portfolios to match talent based on real-world output—not just self-reported skills.
What are the main challenges you come across—say, when a match doesn’t work out?
Our first 90-day churn rate is below 5%, which is industry-leading. When matches do fail, it’s usually due to soft skills—not technical ones. Issues like proactive communication or cultural adaptation are common culprits.
We provide continuous support to both clients and technologists. We collect feedback via check-ins and automated surveys, then work with talent to improve. One exciting new initiative is using data to identify strong mentors in our network and pairing them with those needing development in specific areas—like communication. This can be automated and enhanced through AI, creating a real-time, personalized learning journey.
And how exactly will AI help with soft skill training?
We envision an AI learning buddy that gives real-time feedback. For instance, if a developer attends a meeting and struggles with local idioms or tone, the AI can prompt them after the meeting with explanations, pop quizzes, or advice on improving communication.
AI has proven effective as a personalized coach, and we’re using it to make sure our technologists are not just placed in jobs, but continuously growing. Most marketplaces stop at the match. We stay with talent through their journey, building sustainable careers and long-term value for clients.
Where do you picture Andela two years from now?
Two years from now, I believe Andela will be known globally as the leading AI services company. Think of how Coca-Cola became a global beverage leader through world-class distribution, or how Amazon became the top retailer through logistics. For us, it will be our excellence in learning and training AI engineers.
We’re building the best continuous education system for AI talent globally, and that’s how we’ll define the future of work—and of Andela. Come back in two years. I want you to hold me to it.
