StartupCafe

BraveNewTalent.com, an online business which connects people to employers via a social network, has secured £350,000 of investment to fuel its development and international growth.

The funds will enable the company to invest further in sales and marketing to attract more subscribing employers and users. BraveNewTalent.com also has ambitious plans for overseas expansion and has the US, India, Australia and South Africa in its sights for 2010.

Founded by Lucian Tarnowski, a University of Edinburgh graduate, EPIS entrepreneur, Global Enterprising Young Brit in 2009, BraveNewTalent.com has also attracted to its board of directors the technological and entrepreneurial expertise of Chairman Alex Hoye, CEO of the Latitude Group, and Adrian Cox, former CEO of Ask Jeeves Europe.

Alex Hoye commented, “Employers are increasingly looking towards social media and networks as a source of potential candidates. This ‘social recruitment’ route offers a number of benefits including reaching a wider pool of talent, reducing the costs of recruitment, and building and maintaining a relationship with recruits in advance of employment. BraveNewTalent.com is perfectly positioned to take advantage of this new trend, by offering a direct channel to a global network of candidates.”

Caroline Lindner, Graduate Recruitment Manager from Allen & Overy and a BraveNewTalent.com client, adds, “We are convinced that social media has an important role to play in our future graduate recruitment programme. Sites like BraveNewTalent.com give us a means of engaging with our potential trainees and applicants via a medium that they are actively involved in and are comfortable with, and at the same time help us build our employer brand.”

Nine angel investors joined BraveNewTalent’s second round of investment, which follows an initial loan of £102,000 from the Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) Scheme via the Royal Bank of Scotland in April 2009 and seed investment round of £120,000. The interest generated through channels such as Cambridge Angels and CMyPitch Live meant that the round was heavily oversubscribed.

Lucian Tarnowski added, “This investment is a great endorsement of the role that social recruitment will play in the future of talent management as well as the strength of the BraveNewTalent proposition. It gives us additional resources and expertise we need to take the next step towards being the world’s leading social recruitment site.”