This social enterprise enables PWDs to find career opportunities

Mr Anders Tan, co-founder of Inclus, knows just how arduous seeking employment is for his brother-in-law, who is on the autism spectrum.

"Some common challenges we faced were that employers were sceptical about his skill sets, and worried about the accommodation required and resources involved," the 36-year-old BS Information Systems graduate of Singapore Management University says.

In the times that his brother-in-law managed to secure a job, it was usually only for three to four months before he would fall back into the whole cycle of searching for a job again.

Realising that other people like his brother-in-law constantly face this challenge, Mr Tan, together with his friends Arudra Vangal and Shaun Tan, founded Inclus in July 2018. It is a social enterprise that helps persons with disabilities (PWDs) find career opportunities.

"Our social mission is to empower PWDs to achieve gainful employment and independent living," says Mr Tan.

Inclus develops career training and placement programmes for PWDs. It also tries to find partner-employers it can work with. Through such partnerships, Inclus helps PWDs find employment as well as educates employers about their social mission, the importance of valuing diversity and inclusion.

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Inclus also aims to build a symbiotic relationship with its partner-employers, by trying to understand the nature of their business and culture. By doing so, it is able to develop specific training programmes to impart skills and knowledge unique to each partner-employers' requirement. Once a PWD has been hired, Inclus continues to provide the necessary support to the employee and the company to sustain a conducive and inclusive workplace environment.

In 2021, Inclus helped 30 trainees find jobs and about 100 have been accepted in internships. To note, they have been partners with Barclays, Singlife with Aviva, Bollore Logistics, PSA International, mDR Limited, TT Innovation & Technology, Sandvik Group, SF Fruits, Qi Ji, Sin Hwa Dee Foodstuff Industries and many more.

For trying to create a more inclusive society for PWDs, Inclus is an Honouree at the Brands for Good 2021/2022 awards, under the Business for Good category.

Given the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the job market, Inclus has worked to ensure the well-being of its team and PWDs.

"On the positive side, the pandemic has also made many businesses rethink their social impact and the need for more resilient teams. There was a growth in demand for inclusive employment and corporate advisory/training work," Mr Tan says.

Thanks to a robust ecosystem comprising Inclus' partners, PWDs, and institutes of higher learning and social service agencies, the company managed to keep to its social mission amid the challenging times.

By digitalising its work processes, products and services, Inclus was also able to weather the challenges of the Covid-19 crisis. Over the past two years, its employment retention even rose to 90 per cent. During the global health crisis, not a single PWD trainee of Inclus lost his or her job. In fact, 25 per cent of currently hired Inclus trainees have progressed to increased job scope and compensation.

How Inclus works

Finding the balance between business goals and social bottom lines is a challenge for some social enterprises.

Fortunately, Inclus has the backing of a pool of international investors and advisors who support its mission, with Katra Group chairman Ramesh Vangal as the initial investor. The main challenge, says Mr Tan, is finding employers willing to integrate PWDs into their workplace environment.

Ultimately, Inclus hopes to educate not just companies, but also society on the importance of inclusivity.

"Every individual is responsible for and can contribute towards creating an inclusive society for people with disabilities," says Mr Tan. "It should not just be the responsibility or work of governments, non-profits or businesses."