Everyone knows that one of the leading employment sectors in Israel is hi-tech. But for olim, even those who worked in the field in their home countries, navigating the local hi-tech culture and getting a foot in the door can be a baffling experience.
That’s why the Tel Aviv Municipality and, more recently, the Jerusalem Municipality have partnered with Tech It Forward to offer recent arrivals free behind-the-scenes tours of the sector, where new immigrants can pick up practical pointers and start networking.
Tech It Forward, managed by Jessica Rosner and Jennifer Elias (Rosner arrived in Israel from the US as a preschooler; Elias emigrated from France in 2014), connects international corporations and investors with beneficial Israeli technologies.
Their acquaintance with the tech scene led them to conceptualize practical tours for olim. The tours are held in English, accommodating immigrants from a wide number of countries.
“This program started in Tel Aviv seven years ago, when the municipality approached us with a need to help the city’s olim enter the tech ecosystem,” says Rosner. “It’s still going strong.”
She lived in Tel Aviv at the time and more recently moved back to Jerusalem, where she grew up. She pitched the Olim Tech Tours idea to the Jerusalem Municipality last year, which jumped aboard enthusiastically and now offers this service to young professionals in the five-month residential Ulpan Etzion program for new immigrants aged 22 to 35.
“The Jerusalem Municipality wants to help olim find jobs, and offers different tracks on the same tour day. We take care of the tech track,” Rosner explains.
The half-day tours include two or three stops, typically small start-ups or larger established tech companies, in addition to research institutes, venture capital firms, and the Hebrew University’s tech-transfer company, Yissum.
“They [olim] can learn from all the different players,” says Rosner, who is planning the next tour for May. “Our aim is helping them to integrate into the tech ecosystem and get tips about how to find a job.”
She emphasizes that tech companies aren’t only looking for technical-oriented employees such as developers. Many also need personnel in areas such as marketing and customer service. And venture capital firms may be looking to hire market researchers, salespeople, analysts, and financial and legal professionals.
“Participants speak directly to the human resources people, project managers, or product managers,” she says. “They also get tips about building a CV, interviewing, and salary expectations. It’s very interesting to see what opportunities arise from these tech tours.”
What you'll find on an Olim Tech Tour in Jerusalem
Samuel Hass, 28, made aliyah from London last July. He went on the Olim Tech Tour while at Ulpan Etzion. He is now living in Jerusalem and looking for a job while continuing to improve his Hebrew skills.
“I have a background in psychology, but I didn’t want to pursue that path after making aliyah; I was looking to transition,” he says.
Hass notes that when the municipality offered the students job-related tours on the same day – in addition to the tech tour, one geared to education and another to creative arts – he chose tech because he felt it would be most relevant. “Potentially, I’m going into the hi-tech field, although not in a technological role,” he says.
Rosner led his group to the Jerusalem-based global venture capital platform OurCrowd and to OrCam, a company that develops revolutionary assistive devices for people with vision or hearing impairment.
At OurCrowd, delegation associate Elisheva Ben David and account manager-investor relations Yaakov Smukler explained how the crowd-based investment platform got started and how it works.
“They also walked us through the steps of applying for jobs at hi-tech companies, which was very kind of them and very helpful,” says Hass.
At OrCam, the group met with Roi Nathan, CTO of OrCam Hear. “He was one of the most intelligent and knowledgeable people I ever met,” Hass says.
In addition to learning about the evolution of various models of OrCam devices, the group got a sneak peek at a new product Nathan’s division is developing for people with hearing impairment, demonstrated by Maor Elimelech.
French immigrant Rudy Atlani, 28, says the tour provided “a glimpse of the whole Start-Up Nation ecosystem. As far as I remember, France doesn’t give this kind of tour to new immigrants, and so it was a wonderful opportunity for all of us. It was very helpful, and we were able to ask anything we wanted.”
The OurCrowd speakers gave them “a big picture of the market,” such as tips on how the process of recruitment works and how much entry-level jobs pay in certain fields.
“There is an interesting contrast between Israeli and French culture, and this tour helped me learn the code of the Israeli culture; it’s much more informal than in France,” Atlani notes.
He has a master’s degree in economics and finance from Kings College and worked for international organizations in that field. Then he became fascinated with beekeeping and decided to switch gears.
He was happy to learn that Israel is at the cutting edge of bee-related technologies, with at least five companies working to optimize hive health, pollination, and preservation of bee colonies.
“Complex technology is even used in beekeeping,” says Atlani, who is working on improving his Hebrew before beginning a serious job search.
ROSNER SAYS the tours are a win-win-win situation for the immigrants, the companies, and the city itself.
“It’s a very big win for the olim because it shows them possibilities and how to enter the tech ecosystem if they want to, and it’s also a networking opportunity. After this tour, they usually share and exchange their contact information so they can be in touch afterwards directly,” she says.
“It’s a win for companies looking for great candidates – professionals coming with a different mindset from a variety of countries and bringing their specialties with them.
“And it’s a great way also for the municipality to help olim find employment that will enable them to stay in Jerusalem. Sometimes olim working in the companies we visit talk about how they got their job, and how they may have had to change or adapt their mindset to succeed in that environment.”
The tours always include a Q&A session. Rosner says that one of the olim in a group that went to Yissum at the Hebrew University asked about opportunities in spin-off companies in the agriculture sector.
“She had worked on a farm in the past and was interested in agricultural technology start-ups that could use her knowledge,” says Rosner.
“It’s really nice to see excited olim coming and seeing the good, strong aspects of Israel, even at this difficult time. The tech ecosystem is very strong, and it will continue to be strong,” she asserts.
