Edtech as a benefit: how JustSchool and JustSmart are building a “family” educational ecosystem for IT companies

Why IT companies are looking for alternatives to classic benefits

The IT job market is a constant competition for people. Salaries are leveling out, standard benefit packages are becoming the same. HR teams are looking for what really matters to employees. And here comes an unexpected insight: IT parents are primarily concerned about their children's education. Especially after 2022, when many teams have become completely remote or relocated.

Classic offline English or programming schools are not suitable for distributed teams. You need something online, high-quality, with the ability to learn from anywhere. And companies have started looking for providers who can provide this.

We saw this demand. And we started building not just a school, but a system that meets the needs of an entire family.

Who are JustSchool and JustSmart: a brief profile

JustSchool is an online English school for children and adults.

• Over 14,000 students, over 600 employees, and over 1,300 teachers (according to open course ratings data).
• Own platform and mobile application with materials and tools for self-training.

JustSmart is an online school for children and teenagers aged 6–17.

• Areas: mathematics, programming (Scratch, Python, Roblox, web development, game design), Ukrainian, Polish, preparation for the National Technical University.
• Individual and group formats, selection of a teacher according to the level and age of the child.

All this is united under the brand JustTech - a Ukrainian edtech company that develops several products in the field of education, including AI solutions for learning English.

From a B2C product to a business solution

JustSchool has always been a B2C school. People came on their own, paid for themselves or for their children, and studied. Everything worked, but at some point we noticed a pattern: many of our students work in the same companies. IT specialists advise each other, share contacts in corporate chats.

Then we took a logical step: we offered several companies a structured solution. Not just a discount for employees, but a full-fledged corporate package with administration, reporting, and flexible formats.

The result exceeded expectations. In two years, the B2B direction has grown to:

• 120 client companies that have already integrated our programs into their HR packages
• 2200+ students currently actively studying with us
• 140+ children of employees attending classes in English, programming, and mathematics
• 80% is the average attendance rate for corporate classes (for comparison: in B2C this figure is usually lower)

Approximately one in five employees at partner companies uses the program, a high rate for a voluntary benefit.

What is an edtech ecosystem for an IT company?

When an HR manager looks for a training provider, they usually have one specific need in mind: English for the team or courses for employees' children. But life is more complicated than that.

An employee wants to learn English for work. His wife also wants to brush up on her language skills. Their child dreams of taking programming courses. The second child is falling behind in math at school and needs extra classes.

The classic solution: look for a separate provider for each need. Different platforms, different administrators, different quality. Our solution: one ecosystem for the whole family.

English for adults

JustSchool has been working with adult students for almost eight years. During this time, we have developed a methodology that is specifically suited to IT professionals:

• Emphasis on real communication, not grammar exercises.
• Flexible schedule (lessons can be postponed if there is a deadline).
• Instructors who understand the context of the IT industry and have experience working and teaching a business course.

Education for children

JustSchool and JustSmart cover a wide range of:

• English (from 4 years old).
• Programming (Scratch, Python, web development).
• Mathematics (school curriculum + Olympiad preparation).
• Other items upon request.

All courses are online, which is critical for distributed teams and relocators.

Flexible formats

The company can combine:

• Group classes for employees.
• Individual lessons for children.
• Mixed formats (e.g. group lessons for adults + preferential conditions for families).

We adapt to your budget, team size, and specific needs.

How it works from the HR side

The biggest question from HR managers is: "How long will it take? Do we need another admin for this?" The answer: a minimum of time. We take care of the administration ourselves.

Startup process:

1. Diagnostic meeting - we discuss the company's needs, number of participants, budget
2. Format selection - groups, individual lessons, combined solutions
3. Level testing for participants (if it is English)
4. Forming groups or assigning teachers
5. Launching training with full support

What HR gets:

• Regular reporting on attendance, progress, and activity
• Direct contact with the project manager (no need to deal with multiple people)
• Ability to scale the program without additional complexity

One of our HR partners said: “We just give a list of employees, and then everything works itself out. Sometimes we even forget that it requires some kind of control - it's so painless.”

Iryna, People Operations Manager: “Before JustSchool, we had an agreement with another school. Every month I spent hours coordinating: who came, who didn’t come, why attendance was dropping, whether everyone had access. When we switched to JustSchool, we noticed a huge difference. I get a monthly report, see all the metrics, and can write to the manager at any time. I do my job, they do theirs. It just works.”

What HR managers say about influencing the team

Numbers are good. But what actually changes in companies that implement such training?

Candidate recruitment

According to our HR partners, approximately every third candidate during an interview asks about English learning opportunities. When HR talks about the JustSchool/JustSmart ecosystem, it arouses real interest, especially among parents.

"Most often I hear from HR: 'We're tired of competing only on salaries,'" shares Yulia Zubkova, Talent Acquisition Specialist. "This is especially true for medium-sized companies that cannot pay like giants. They need something that will set them apart in the market. And when I tell them that we cover not only the employee, but also his entire family — English for the wife, programming for the son, mathematics for the daughter — I see a reaction. This is not just a benefit. This is a signal: 'We see you as a person with a family, not as a resource.'"

One company found that mentioning the education of employees' children in a job posting increased response rates by 15%. This is not a large-scale study, but it is a case study.

Retention and loyalty

Family benefits work differently than standard benefits. When a company invests in an employee's child's education, it is perceived as a deep concern, not a formal checkmark.

According to internal observations, employees who use the program together with their families are less likely to be fired.

Culture and values

For many companies, it's important not just to keep someone on for a year longer, but to build a culture where people feel like they're part of a community.

One of the companies we work with has included JustSchool/JustSmart in their employer branding narrative. They don’t just list the benefits—they tell stories about how employees’ children are learning to code or how their parents finally spoke English.

Challenges we faced

Building an edtech product for B2B is not the same as working with individual clients. We faced several serious challenges.

Unique requests from different companies

One company wants group lessons for the whole team. Another wants individual lessons with a flexible schedule. A third asks for preferential terms for families, but without full payment.

We had to develop a modular system that allows us to adapt the offer to any needs without losing quality.

Administering large groups

When 50+ people from one company participate in the program, operational difficulties arise: who attends, who misses, who needs to change their schedule, how to keep engagement at a high level.

We created an internal CRM system that automates reporting and allows HR managers to see the picture in real time.

Maintaining motivation

When the company pays and the employee trains "for free," there is a risk that people will perceive it as something optional. Attendance may drop.

We solved this through a personalized approach from our instructors and regular feedback and progress tracking. The result is an average attendance rate of 80%, which is higher than industry standards.

In addition, we have a payment-sharing offer, where the company pays for the employee 80-70-50%, and the employee covers the rest on his own. It does not so much affect the company's costs as it does the motivation to attend and progress on the part of the student himself.

EdTech as an HR strategy tool

Education is one of the most powerful motivators. When a company invests not only in an employee but also in their family, it creates a deep bond that is hard to break for a few thousand dollars in salary difference.

In eight years, we have trained thousands of students. In two years, we have built a B2B direction that is used by 120 companies. We continue to learn, adapt, and improve the product.

If you are an HR manager, CEO or COO of an IT company and are looking for a benefit that really works, let's talk. Maybe what we have built is exactly what your team needs.