We're building the bridge between graduating and getting hired.
Shape exists because the gap between knowing and doing is where most early careers stall. We started where the gap is widest, in Tunisia, with the companies that actually hire.
Why we started Shape.
Every year, thousands of capable people graduate in Tunisia with strong educations and no clear path into the workforce. Meanwhile, the companies that need them say the same thing in every conversation: "the talent exists, we just can't tell which one is ready."
The problem isn't a skills gap. It's a verification gap. A CV does not show output. A school certificate does not show how someone works in a team. A bootcamp portfolio rarely shows real stakes.
Shape was built to close that gap, on both sides. For talent, a structured way to build real skills on real briefs, with senior mentors. For companies, a way to see how a junior actually works before making an offer.
"We didn't want to be another school or another bootcamp. We wanted to be the part that comes after the certificate."
Three pillars,
one workforce.
Shape is a workforce platform, not a school. Everything we build sits on three pillars, calibrated to make the talent side and the company side meet in the middle.
Build real skills
Programs structured around what companies actually hire for, with output measured every single week.
Verify, don't claim
Every skill on a Shape profile is earned through a reviewed deliverable. No self declared expertise.
Open the pathway
A recruitment pathway with 150+ partner companies, where readiness, not luck, decides who gets in.
Six principles
that shape every decision.
When we hit a hard call, we go back to these. They are the answer to "why does Shape look different from a school."
Output over attendance
We measure what got shipped, not who showed up. A program that rewards presence rewards the wrong thing.
Real briefs, not exercises
Every assignment has a partner company on the other end, with their time, their feedback, and their stakes.
Honest evaluation
Mentor reviews and partner ratings are visible on the profile. If you didn't earn it, it doesn't show up.
No false promises
We don't guarantee jobs we can't control. We promise the structure, the projects, and the pathway access.
Mentors are paid
Senior time has value. Mentors are compensated per session and per review. It's a job, not a favor.
Local first, regionally open
We started in Tunisia because that's where the gap is widest for us. The model travels, the operations stay rooted.
A serial entrepreneur
building the workforce of tomorrow.
Shape is Rahma Ben Abid's fourth venture. Before launching Shape, she built two consulting practices and coached more than 200 women entrepreneurs across North Africa. Shape is what happens when years of patterns turn into one focused bet.
Rahma Ben Abid
Rahma is a serial entrepreneur and a long time operator at the intersection of marketing, talent, and workforce development. Long before Shape, she ran two of her own consulting practices, joined She Starts Africa as Innovation Manager (2019–2021), and coached more than 200 women entrepreneurs through the 2020 pandemic, helping them build personal brands and businesses from scratch.
She launched Shape in October 2021 with twelve candidates and a clear thesis: the gap between graduating and getting hired isn't a skills gap, it's a verification gap. Today, Shape is backed by the Oman Technology Fund and recognized regionally as one of the most ambitious workforce plays in MENA.
Beyond Shape, Rahma remains a marketing mentor at Founder Institute Tunisia, a regular speaker at Esprit School of Business and across the regional startup ecosystem, and a coach to other founders building in education, talent, and impact.
Four years.
One direction.
Shape is founded
Rahma Ben Abid launches Shape with a pilot cohort of twelve candidates in Tunis. The point is to prove the workplace-style apprenticeship model with real partner briefs.
HolonIQ MENA EdTech 50 & first raise
Shape is recognized by HolonIQ on the 2023 Middle East & North Africa EdTech 50 list. The same year, Shape closes its first fundraising round with the Oman Technology Fund, opening the door to expansion across the region. Advanced 3-month program launches with the first wave of senior mentors.
Forbes 30 Under 30 & Shape on the regional stage
Rahma is named to the Forbes Middle East 30 Under 30 (Technology). She presents Shape in Morocco and Jordan, opening conversations with the regional ecosystem about what bringing the model elsewhere would look like.
The hard year. The full rebuild.
The hardest year in Shape's story. We tore down what wasn't working: the process, the platform, the program structure. Everything got rebuilt from the ground up around what we'd learned from three years of cohorts and partner feedback.
Back, stronger.
Shape returns with a new platform, a sharper program structure, and the same conviction we started with. Nine programs across three levels. A permanent talent pipeline for the partner network. The rebuild paid off.
Built with our partner network
Three ways to join Shape.
Whether you're applying as talent, partnering as a company, or mentoring as a senior, there is a path that fits.