Who are we?
Skillon is a tool developed by Bridge for Billions. Bridge for Billions is a social enterprise with the mission to unlock access to training and mentoring for early-stage entrepreneurs globally by connecting them to resources and opportunities to impulse their projects.
How Skillon was born
A challenge
Through the European platform Social Challenges EU financed by the European Commission our now partner, TVT Innovation based out of Toulon, France, framed the following challenge:
How can we build the proper stimulus package to initiate, facilitate, and foster entrepreneurial and innovation mindsets among young people and job seekers from urban and rural areas?
TVT Innovation wanted to find a solution to foster entrepreneurial mindsets, innovation, and business creation among people facing difficulties finding employment: unemployed young adults, long-term job seekers, and job seekers in rural areas.
They saw that these target groups are lacking the skills, or in some cases only the sense of entitlement and grit, to create their own job opportunities.
The solution
Bridge for Billions offered TVT Innovation a 3-step solution to their published challenge:
- A free online self-assessment tool that would help test-takers identify their strengths as potential entrepreneurs, and offer them mini-challenges to work on developing new soft skills.
- A 1-day Flash Hackathon with almost 100 youngsters from the Toulon region co-facilitated by TVT Innovation and Bridge for Billions . Read about it here!
- A chance for all the winners of the Hackathon day to do Bridge for Billions’ 3-month online incubation program. Learn more about our incubation program here.
About Skillon
Our goal with this tool is to empower the target groups to realize their potential, act on building new skill sets, and develop their self-confidence. More than just a nudge to start a business, Skillon boosts the entrepreneurial mindset and improves the business acumen & behavioral skills of participants. These transversal competencies are instrumental in accessing employment and building a career.
A user-centered methodology
Bridge for Billions built Skillon with a user-centered approach. We worked with partners like TVT Innovation and used our own experience supporting hundreds of entrepreneurs to identify the top soft skills that make successful entrepreneurs.
With the tool, users can evaluate 20 soft skills in 4 different categories: personal skills, interpersonal skills, critical and creative skills, and practical skills. After taking the Skillon self-assessment, users are able to identify which categories they are stronger in (personal, interpersonal, critical and creative, or practical skills). Then tools, content, and mini-challenges are offered to improve their weaker areas. We tapped into our network and into our research work in innovation management started 4 years ago back at Carnegie Mellon University to find the best resources for early-stage entrepreneurs.
Our partners
