David Yip's journey into EdTech is not your typical career story. With over 20 years of experience in the tech industry, David has worked across sectors like telecom, banking, and government, leading large-scale digital transformations for enterprise clients. But a few years ago, his attention shifted to education, where he saw a major gap between what universities were teaching and what employers needed. This widening gap, particularly affecting Gen Z, led him to create Alumly, an innovative “earn-and-learn” platform connecting employers to students. In this interview, David shares his insights on the future of education, the critical role of AI in reshaping the workforce, and how he believes the next generation can bridge the "experience gap." Read on to discover how David is rethinking student employability, the future of internships, and why he's betting on a new approach to career-building for Gen Z.
Thank you, Laureano. I’m excited to share my journey and what we’re doing in Australia, as well as the mission we’re on to tackle a major challenge in EdTech. I’ve been in the tech industry for over 20 years, mostly in big tech, with companies like IBM, DXC, and more recently, Salesforce.
I’ve worked across many industries, not just education. I started in telecom sales and later moved into sectors like banking, infrastructure, public sector, and retail. This experience gave me a broad perspective on how technology can solve different business challenges. Over time, I developed skills in large-scale digital transformation, which is now highly relevant for education institutions..
A few years ago as I was completing my Executive MBA, I started reflecting on the next phase of my career. I’d done a lot in sales, business and technical leadership roles, but I wanted to apply my skills to something more impactful. Education stood out as an area where I could make a significant impact.
Education had always been part of my work, though it wasn’t my main focus until recently. Whenever I worked with universities or education departments, I found it incredibly fulfilling. I realized that I wanted to work with clients who were making a real difference in the world, and education fit that perfectly.
But beyond that, there was a big problem to solve: education wasn’t quite fit for purpose. Students were graduating without the skills employers needed. Employers were spending the first few years retraining graduates because they weren’t work-ready. This was a systemic issue, and I thought, “Why does this gap exist between education and employment, and how can we fix it?”
I started thinking about how to apply my experience in large-scale transformation to the education sector. It’s a big vision, but coming from a background like IBM, where we solved big problems for big global clients, I was used to tackling challenges of this scale.
The common thread across all the industries I worked in—whether telecom and internet in the mid-90s, or retail and ecommerce in the 2000s, or finance and the fintechs in the 2010s—was that technology can drive large-scale change. But it’s not just about technology; it’s about aligning people, processes, and culture to create new value.
In education, I saw pockets of innovation everywhere, but the system as a whole hadn’t evolved to meet the demands of the 21st century. There was a clear disconnect between what students were learning and what employers needed. Universities are producing more graduates than ever, but they aren’t necessarily equipped with the right skills for changing business needs, and this will just accelerate in the world of AI. It is a systemic issue, and I saw an opportunity to bring the same kind of digital transformation to education that I’d seen in other industries.
The stakes are higher in education. If a student goes through a system that doesn’t prepare them for the workforce, it’s not just a missed business opportunity—it’s a missed life opportunity. That’s why I believe any transformation in education needs to be done with both care and urgency.
My time at Salesforce was pivotal. I was the inaugural Director for Education in APAC, and I worked closely with universities on transforming the student experience. We provided CRM solutions and helped institutions improve operations, but one gap stood out to me: how universities were managing relationships with industry, and how that translated to student employability.
Universities often focus on providing education, but not enough on preparing students for the workforce. Students go to university to get a degree, but ultimately, they want a job. The gap between their studies and the job market was massive, and it wasn’t being fully addressed. That’s when I started thinking about how to bridge that gap.
About a year and a half ago, I left Salesforce and founded Impactive Systems. I saw an opportunity that wasn’t being solved at the scale and speed I thought it needed. Our mission is to create impactful, proactive solutions to these system-level challenges.
Initially, Impactive Systems started as a strategy consultancy. I advised senior leaders on the impact of AI and emerging technologies—how AI would change their workforce and how to manage that transition. But my goal was always to build a scalable product that addressed the student employability issue directly.
We spent months talking to stakeholders, testing ideas, and refining our approach. The key challenge was how to address employability at scale. There’s a lot of innovation happening in education, but we wanted to focus on how to help this current generation of students—Gen Z’s who are between 16 to 26 years old— as they will become the largest demographic in the global workforce by the end of this decade.
One thing I observed was that there were a lot of startups working on improving the “job board” - ie. the job discovery process. For example there are a lot of companies with great technology that help employers more effectively advertise jobs and find the right prospective employee. However, on the job seeker side, it was clear to me that there was no shortage of job ads - students are routinely applying for hundreds of jobs ads - but the success rate was quite low.
So we decided to look at the problem from a very different angle. What if we made the hiring process far easier, quicker, and less costly, which means less risk? Would that encourage employers to hire quicker, fill more roles, and bring online more new roles as well? After all, isn’t that what Uber essentially did to solve the taxi problem - by making carpooling much easier and less risky, they found a new way to address the taxi demand?
We're creating a platform that simplifies the process for hiring students. We call it a “micro-internship platform”. Instead of students doing traditional internships which are quite long, e.g. six-month or more, where they may not get meaningful experiences over that full duration, they can take on short-term projects—micro-internships—that last anywhere from one day to a month. These projects give them a variety of real-world experiences, and they get paid for the work they do.
The inspiration for this model came from Jeffrey Moss, who founded a company called Parker Dewey in the U.S almost a decade ago. I learned about him through a Harvard Business Review podcast, and the concept immediately clicked. It made so much sense—why make students sit through long internships where it can get quite boring after a while when you can offer them short, project experiences that deliver immediate value to employers while also being more aligned with the way Gen Z works?
Gen Zs want to explore different career paths and try new things, and micro-internships allow them to do that. They can take on multiple projects, build a diverse portfolio of experiences, and develop a better understanding of what they enjoy and where their strengths lie. At the same time, employers get to work with talented students on a project-by-project basis, without the commitment of a long-term internship.
Our platform is employer-centric. We’ve worked closely with students, universities and employers to build a solution that’s easy to use and that provides value to all stakeholders. Employers can post micro-internships and get the help they need right away. Students can apply for these short-term gigs and get paid for their work, while also building their resume and network. Universities can faciliate the connection of students to employers, making the higher education experience more relevant.
Yes, unpaid internships are still a huge issue. Fortunately it’s changing, albeit slowly, but the practice of unpaid internships in Australia has created what’s called “placement poverty.” Students are forced to choose between doing an unpaid internship that might help them get a job later or working a paid job at a café to pay the rent this week. That’s a tough choice to make, and it’s not fair to students who are trying to build their careers. But the main benefit is for employers. By paying for the work that students provide, employers have much better control over quality and performance.
One of the key features of our platform is that it makes hiring and payment of short term work easy and compliant. Students get compensated for their work, and employers get the help they need, everyone wins. Our business model is based on taking a percentage of the transaction when a student is placed in a job, similar to how platforms like Uber operate.
That’s one of the most exciting aspects of the platform. We’re giving students the opportunity to explore multiple career paths early in their university careers, rather than waiting until their final year if they are the lucky ones that get to do a traditional internship. With micro-internships, students can try out different industries and roles to see what they like and what they’re good at.
For example, a student who thinks they want to go into law might take on a few micro-internships at law firms and discover that it’s not the right fit for them. They might then try marketing or IT and find that they’re more passionate about those areas. By offering short-term gigs early, we’re allowing students to experiment and learn through real-world experience.
This also benefits employers when they eventually hire permanent roles from graduates, because they’re getting applicants who are more informed about their career choices and who have already developed relevant skills. It’s a win-win situation that helps bridge the experience gap that so many students face when they graduate.
Yes, there’s definitely a mindset shift that needs to happen. When people hear the word “intern,” they often think of someone with no skills or experience who needs to be trained. But the reality is that students today, especially Gen Zs, already have valuable skills that employers need. They’re digitally savvy, creative problem solvers, and they’re fast learners.
We need to move away from thinking of interns as unskilled workers and start thinking of them as casual temp workers who can contribute to real projects right away. A lot of the simple tasks that employers need done—for example, helping at a conference to set up a booth and following up with customers—can be done by students who already have the necessary skills. They don’t need to be trained from scratch.
By shifting the focus from long-term internships to short-term gigs, we’re making it easier for employers to see the value in hiring students. And for students, it’s a chance to build their network and gain experience without having to wait until their final year of university. It’s a much more dynamic and flexible approach to employability.
That’s a big part of what we’re building into Alumly. We’re using technology to help match students with the right opportunities based on their skills and interests. Students showcase the skills they’ve developed via a digital portfolio linked to their profile —whether it’s through their studies, part-time jobs, or extracurricular activities—and employers can see those skills when they post a job.
We’re also working with universities to help students build their personal brand and develop skills that are in demand. In many cases, students are already doing work that’s relevant to their career path, but it’s not being captured or recognized by the university. Our platform helps bridge that gap by making those skills visible.
We want university employability leaders to think of internships as not just work experience, but also about the networking experience. When students complete a micro-internship, they’re not just gaining skills—they’re also building relationships with employers and colleagues. Over the course of their university career, they can do multiple micro-internships and graduate with a network of 20 or 30 people who know them, have worked with them, can vouch for their skills, and introduce them to new opportunities.
That network is incredibly valuable when they graduate. Instead of finishing university with just one or two professional contacts, they will have a robust network that can help them find job opportunities and advance their career faster. It’s a much more organic and effective way to build a professional network than the traditional internship model.
Our growth strategy is centered around partnerships with universities. We’re working closely with institutions to implement Alumly as part of their student employability offerings. We’re starting in Australia, but we have plans to expand to the U.S. and other markets. Australia is an interesting market because we have large universities by global standards— our institutions have 40,000 students on average. By partnering with just a few universities, we can build a substantial network of students and employers.
Another key part of our strategy is working with governments on skills taxonomies. In Australia, our government has a national skills taxonomy initiative, which will be valuable in creating strategic datasets that connect the workforce to education and training. Once you have a standardized language for skills, it becomes much easier to connect job seekers to job opportunities. I compare it to how HTML revolutionized the internet by creating a common language for websites. A skills taxonomy will do the same thing for education and employment.
It’s early days for the national skills taxonomy, but I think the goal is to make it as granular as possible so that we can match job seekers to very specific job requirements. For example, let’s say a company needs help with social media marketing. They might list skills like content creation, social media management, and basic graphic design. A student who has experience running their own social media account or creating content for a school club could be a great fit for that job.
Another example could be an IT-related micro-internship where a company needs help setting up a website or managing a database. The skills they’re looking for might include basic coding, web design, or data entry. Even if the student doesn’t have professional experience, they might have developed those skills through a class project or personal interest. Alumly helps surface those skills and match students with the right opportunities.
Universities play a crucial role in connecting students with employers, but their current operating model doesn’t scale. One of the things we emphasize to institutions is that Alumly is designed to help them scale their impact between their students and potential employers. By partnering with us, universities can offer their students vastly more opportunities to gain real-world experience and build their professional network, without the significant costs and risks that conventional approaches would otherwise require.
Alumly also helps universities engage with their alumni differently. Alumni are often hiring managers or business owners, and they’re always looking for skilled workers. Unfortunately, many universities don’t engage with their alumni in a way that’s valuable to both sides. Alumni are often seen as a source of donations rather than as a potential employer for current students.
We’re changing that by creating a platform that allows alumni to hire students for micro-internships. This not only helps students build their network, but it also strengthens the university’s relationship with its alumni.
Alumly is currently free for universities as we’re focused on the student-employer transaction. When a student is placed in a paid micro-internship, we take a percentage of the payment, similar to how platforms like Uber or Upwork operate. This makes Alumly sustainable in the long run, and it ensures that students are always paid for their work.
We’re working closely with universities to make sure the platform integrates smoothly with their existing systems and career services. We see ourselves as partners to helping institutions improve their students’ employability outcomes.
When it comes to hiring, I’m a big believer in bringing in people who have a fresh perspective. I intentionally hire people who haven’t worked in education before, especially in product design. I want my team to look at problems with fresh eyes, without the assumptions or biases that come from working in the same industry for too long.
For example, my product designers have backgrounds in other industries, not EdTech. That’s intentional because I want them to think creatively and come up with solutions that might not occur to someone who’s spent years working on LMSs or SISs. I want them to challenge the status quo and think outside the box.
Curiosity is another key quality I look for. I want people who are curious about how things work and who aren’t afraid to ask questions or propose new ideas. We’re solving complex problems, and I need a team that’s willing to dig deep and think creatively about how to address them.
While our focus is currently on Gen Z and student employability, the long-term vision is much broader. We’re starting with students because that’s where the pain point is most acute, but the future of work is changing rapidly, and I see Alumly evolving to support lifelong learning and career development for workers in all age groups.
As the lines between education and employment continue to blur—especially with the rise of AI and automation—we’re going to see more people moving between jobs and industries throughout their careers. Our goal is to create a platform that supports that fluidity, helping people upskill, reskill, and stay relevant in a rapidly changing world.
Ultimately, it’s about creating a system that works for everyone—students, employers, and universities. We’re just getting started, but I’m excited about the impact we can have in the years to come.
