prepared by: Shelly Ni

updated: March 21

Website: http://upwardlyglobal.org

Mission:

Upwardly Global is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit that seeks to connect qualified immigrants with professional job opportunities, allowing immigrants to reclaim equivalent jobs in the US, and employers to gain a more diverse employee pool.

Inspiration/History:

After working with immigrants and refugees for an extensive period of time, Upwardly Global founder Jane Leu noticed the disparity between the past education and experience of recent immigrants and their current jobs. Though immigrant job assistance organizations do exist, none of them targeted immigrant professionals or higher-paying careers. In 1999, she began counseling and connecting immigrants out of her kitchen. In 2000, UG received its first official grant.

Business Model:

UG links together jobseekers and employees so both benefit. The free job services (networking, resume workshops, mock interviews, etc) it provides are partially funded from its corporate partners. Employers wishing for UG to provide recruitment services must sign an annual contract promising they will donate to the nonprofit.

Theory of Change:

A significant proportion of qualified immigrant workers do not find or take on equivalent jobs in the US. It is a loss for both the workers themselves and for our country's economy. The potential of these qualified individuals is lost -- doctors, lawyers, scientist, engineers, and businesspeople cease to fulfill their old roles. A steady influx of new minds, cultural viewpoints, and energy is important for economical growth. Indeed, high immigration rates are correlated with bullish performance of the US economy.

UG seeks to help these qualified workers overcome culture shock, underdeveloped professional networks, job seeking skills, and employer prejudice against foreigners. In this way, everyone wins, from employers to new employees to, in the big picture, entire economies.

Core Programs:

On the jobseeker side, UG seeks to resolve problems in 4 key areas: lack of networks, resume presentation, self promotion, and misconception. It achieves this by providing free educational services for jobseekers that fit certain professional requirements. UG activities and programs include workshops (networking, interviewing, cultural, and socializing skills), resume and cover letter assistance, submission of resumes to partner employers, mock interviews, and mentorship from volunteers.

On the corporate side, UG seeks to educate and engage partner employers about hiring immigrant professionals. Education entails outreach and correspondence with corporate HR departments to encourage cross-cultural hiring. Company employees are invited to volunteer with UG, consequently raising awareness within the company for the potential of immigrant professionals.

Recent Developments (if applicable):

Biography of Jane Leu:

Jane graduated from Tufts University and holds a master's degree from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs. Jane has spent a considerable amount of her career helping immigrants and refugees improve their job outlooks. She worked as the Assistant Director for Resettlement, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, and the Assistant Director of RefugeeWorks, providing technical assistance to refugee employment programs. Additionally, she worked to implement seven refugee Welfare-to-Work programs. Her social change interests are broad as well as deep, as she has contributed to the social entrepreneurship landscape as a whole by co-founding a craigslist nonprofit venture forum with Conrad Asper, to connect donors to organizations. She was a member of the Going-To-Scale Project, spreading awareness about venture philanthropy. As well as serving as Harvard's Kennedy School of Government's Program Coordinator of the Nonprofit Program, she has also been involved in research on nonprofit organizational strategies.