About Konexio

Our Story

Konexio began in 2016 as a series of community workshops serving Paris’ immigrant-dense neighborhoods, where the digital divide puts society’s most vulnerable people at high risk of unemployment. ​

Founder and Executive Director Jean Guo, then a migrant health researcher, realized that with the growing labor market demand for digital skills, bridging the digital divide was key in solving unemployment. Together with a dedicated team of educators, IT professionals, and community volunteers, Jean set out to create a streamlined path to employment through digital skills training for disadvantaged people, especially refugees and migrants. Fueled by community demand, these digital skills workshops grew into what is today Konexio, which facilitates the social and professional integration of refugees, migrants, and disadvantaged people through digital skills training.

Jean’s passion for advancing opportunity for marginalized groups stems from her own story immigrating to the United States at a young age, where she experienced firsthand the struggles faced by migrant families. Most recently a Rubenstein Scholar at the Harvard Center for Public Leadership, Jean holds degrees in economics and biology from Stanford University, was a Fulbright research fellow at the Paris School of Economics, and has worked as a consultant in Silicon Valley.

Awards and Prizes

Semi finalist, 2018 
​Social Innovation Competition

Finalist, 2018 Social Innovation Tournament

Finalist, 2019
​ Google Impact Challenge

Finalist, 2019
​ Fondation la France s'engage

Innovation Award 2019
Capgemini Challenge at Vivatech

Winner, 2020 
​Future Skills Innovation Challenge

The Team

​Team Konexio embodies the fighting spirit of diverse members from all walks of life and nearly every corner of the globe. We are refugees, migrants, expatriates, locals, men, women, old, and young, who are committed to using digital learning to highlight the potential of excluded and disadvantaged public to be at the forefront of digital and socio-economic inclusion.

Jean ​Guo

Co-Founder, CEO

Jean-Christophe Vidal 

Deputy CEO

François Dabin ​

Director of Operations

Annelise Ouvrard-Pascaud

Communications Manager

​Elsa Feder

Partnerships and Development Manager

Paul Adam 

Project Manager ​
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Guillaume Blanquet 

Product Owner

Jénaïc Cambre

Lead Instructor and Curriculum Development, DigiTous

Allegra Harrison

International Programs Officer​

Diane Huet

Project Manager

Agathe Konieczynski

Project Manager

​Morgane Mariere

Office Manager

Gaëlle Petit

Project Manager

Denis Robert ​

Lead Instructor and Curriculum Development, Malawi ​

Agathe Roujou

Project Manager ​

THE MALAWI TEAM

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Bienheureux Matete

Local Coordinator

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Serge
​Kisisi

Local Instructor

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Céline Munyerenkana

Local Instructor

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Stany
​Dibwé

Local Instructor

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Josué
​Amani

Local Instructor

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Christelle
​Tulinabo

​Local Instructor

Our Board

Konexio’s advisory board guides and supports the organization’s growth. Our board members each began their journey with Konexio as mentors and advocates. Their formal appointment to the advisory board is a natural extension of their dedication to empowerment and inclusion through digital learning. The board is comprised of individuals with a variety of professional backgrounds from both France and the USA, reflecting Konexio’s diverse and international mindset. Among other duties, board members advise on growth and expansion strategies, while also serving as ambassadors for Konexio.

Guillaume
​Boussard

President

Guillaume Boussard has worked as an IT consultant for over 10 years. Passionate about new technologies, he supports companies in reaching their fullest technological potential.  After graduating from Epitech in 2008, he started his career at Capgemini and then travelled around the world working as a consultant for a software publisher in the retail sector. He now brings his expertise on information systems to both startups and large corporations in France. For the past 3 years, he has worked with Konexio on the technical side - first as a trainer for the DigiStart program and then as Chairman of the Board.

Why Konexio?

"About three years ago, I joined a colleague one night to teach a web development training course. I discovered an organization with a very concrete mission: to promote the social and professional integration of vulnerable people through digital skills development. To be able to share my passion for tech while being useful to the community, gives me a feeling of fulfillment."

Ravi Srinivasan,
Independent Consultant and Entrepreneur
​

Ravi has over 25 years of professional experience in enterprise technology, business process services and consulting. He is presently a consultant and advisor in enterprise cloud procurement, migration, digital transformation and governance application. Additionally, he is the co-founder and current treasurer of Stanford Startups New York, an alumni club focused on building the Stanford-alum startup and entrepreneur community in New York. Outside of the professional space, he is a patron and trustee of the Carnatic Music Association of North America, a longstanding Indian classical music organization in New Jersey. He is also a performing classical violinist. Ravi was a co-founder of OfficeTiger (sold to RR Donnelley in 2007 for 250mm) and Pride BPO - one of the earliest business process outsourcing organizations with large offshore operations. He also managed a multi-year business transformation effort at Bridgewater Associates. He holds a MS from Stanford and BSE from Princeton.

Why Konexio?

"Konexio´s focus is on transforming lives through education and training. Having built and grown teams all over the world, and personally identifying with the challenges of delivering targeted, relevant education for businesses - I found Konexio´s vision refreshing and accomplishments inspiring."

Alex Budak, M.P.P. Changemaker in Residence & Professional Faculty,
​UC Berkeley

Alex Budak dedicates his career to advising and activating changemakers around the world. He co-founded and now advises StartSomeGood.com, which has helped over 1000 social innovators in 50+ countries raise over $10 million to launch and scale new social ventures.  At UC Berkeley, he teaches a newly-designed course, "Becoming a Changemaker," and develops programs on the themes of leadership, entrepreneurship, and innovation. He has a MPP from Georgetown University and a BA from UCLA, and also received UCLA's 2017 Recent Alumnus of the Year award. He lives in San Francisco with his wife, Rebecca. ​

Why Konexio?

"I'm inspired by the bold vision of Konexio, the drive, and empathy of its outstanding team, and the systemic approach it takes to its work."

Tracy Young, M.B.A.
​Data Research and Data Products, Yodlee

Tracy is Manager, Data Research within the Data Products Group at Yodlee where she is working on new product development since 2017. Prior to her current role, Tracy worked with the finance team at Uphold, a cloud-based digital money platform to transact currencies, commodities, and cryptocurrencies.  Tracy has over 15 years of experience in corporate finance and equity research. She also serves as an adviser to startups in the Yodlee Incubator and the ERA. She graduated from Stanford University with a double major in International Relations and History and pursued an M.B.A. in Finance from Columbia Business School. She was co-Chair of the Stanford Community Service in New York, recently becoming the President of the Stanford Association in New York, and was presented with the Governor's Award in 2017.  Outside of her activities with the Community Service Group, Tracy serves as a volunteer at Ronald McDonald House in New York and was a volunteer for the NY Philharmonic for many years. ​

Why Konexio?

"I appreciate the skill building that Konexio offers to motivated individuals. I appreciate the fact that it is a global initiative."