We hire individuals who have experienced significant barriers to employment and are ready to begin or restart their employment journey.

Unlocked Ventures social enterprises are designed for individuals who have experienced significant barriers to employment. A criminal conviction is one of those barriers, and for many individuals it is the most visible one. It is rarely the only one.

The individuals we hire may be older, may have been out of the workforce for an extended period, or may carry a combination of circumstances that make traditional employment difficult to sustain. What they share is a desire to matter. Unlocked Ventures believes that an intentionally designed workplace can create the conditions where individuals know they matter and that they are valued.

Unlocked Ventures works directly with the Ingham County Jail and Ingham County parole and probation offices to identify individuals who are ready to begin or restart their employment journey. These partnerships allow us to reach people at the point where the need is most acute and the opportunity to make a difference is greatest.

The enterprises we build are designed with these individuals in mind from the beginning. The work is real, the standards are real, and the support surrounding both is equally real. We are not offering a transitional program or a temporary placement. We are offering a job, in a workplace built to make that job sustainable.