Our story

The ride so far has been incredible, and it’s only just getting started

The Journey

Founded in 2013, innovation is embedded in our DNA. We’ve made bold moves and always been determined to be leaders and game-changers in the world of graduate careers.

2013

Defining our mission

James Uffindell founded Bright Network with one clear mission - to connect the next generation with equal access to the opportunities, insights & advice they need to thrive as the workforce of tomorrow. How we’ve done this has continued to evolve over time. Change has been a constant for us, but our mission has always stayed true.

2016

Smashing milestones

From the early start-up days, we grew and really started making waves in the graduate career space. 2016 marked the year we landed our 100th client, the year we first hit £1million in revenue, and the year we grew our membership to 100,000 diverse & talented students and graduates.

2019

Opening our Edinburgh office

With our CTO & Co-Founder Tom relocating to Edinburgh, 2019 marked an opportunity to launch a new office and build out an incredible team of Edinburgh’s finest Engineers & Product specialists. The technology team has since grown from a team of one, to a team of twelve and counting! We’re proud to have one of the highest hiring bars in Edinburgh for Engineers.

2020

Thriving through COVID

For many businesses 2020 was a pivotal year, and it was definitely a year Bright Network thrived! During a time where we established our remote (then) and hybrid (now) working culture, we secured £3.5million in investment from Maven Capital, hit 500,000 members and delivered the country’s largest virtual internship programme, Internship Experience UK, helping over 60,000 members complete over 1 million hours of online learning.

2021

Launching Bright Network Technology Academy

In 2021, we ran our first free-to-access 12 week software engineering bootcamp, marking the launch of Bright Network Technology Academy. Since then, we’ve trained over 150 students to become Software Engineers, creating the next generation of diverse, talented technology talent.

2022 & beyond

Seizing opportunities

So far, 2022 has been full of excitement. The year kicked-off with the launch of a new three year strategy and the distinction of two clear business units: our digital platform and our technology academy. With our Founder James taking on the CEO role for the technology academy, former Commercial Director Kirsten Barnes was promoted to CEO for the digital platform. This change has set us up to scale even further - so watch out for what’s next!

What’s next?

You’ll have to join us to find out!

We take pride in the work we do for our members and employer partners, and here are some awards to prove it!

See how we’ve led the way to discover better graduate talent.