BENGALURU:
Recruitment
firm
Kelly Services India
and its joint venture partner for Asia Pacific,
Temp Holdings
, have launched a
venture capital
fund for
startups
focused on human resources.
The Temp Innovation Fund has set aside Rs 67 crore to invest in disruptive startups engaged in staffing and recruitment services in the country. India is the third country where Temp Holdings has launched such a fund, having introduced one in Japan earlier this year, followed by the US.
“The Indian
HR
market is valued at about Rs 40,000 crore, including all
technology
platforms, and is poised for rapid growth. We are looking out for startups harnessing complex algorithms, predictive analytics, patented platforms and digital technologies that can enhance HR and recruitment productivity,” Kamal Karanth, managing director, Kelly Services & Kelly OCG India, told ET.
The company is looking for startups working with employee productivity, recruitment, HR information systems, learning management, assessments, onboarding, employee analytics and engagement, and payroll.
“VCs in India are concentrating on internet, fintech, healthcare, edutech and clean tech startups. The Temp Innovation Fund will invest in HR startups which will make people-related interfaces and transactions more productive,” said Karanth.
Although HR and talent solutions ecosystem is evolving rapidly in India, an exclusively HR-focused fund can help accelerate pace, Karanth said. “We look at this as an angel fund and believe this is how we can make the strongest impact,” he said.
The fund will be used for investing at least Rs 2 crore per startup, Karanth said. “The HR Fund has backed companies like PeopleStrong. There are larger VC firms investing in talent-related startups,” said Arjun Pratap, founder of EdGE Networks.
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