The case for Find My Journey

Why getting career
direction right — early —
changes everything.

For young Australians, the right career match isn't just a personal win. It's a public health outcome, a workforce solution, and a fiscal dividend. Find My Journey exists at that intersection.

288k
young Australians not in employment, education or training (NEET) — May 2024
$46B
projected NDIS expenditure in 2025–26, growing at 10% annually
24pp
gap in employment rates between people with and without disability in Australia
The problem

A generation at a
crossroads.

Australia is investing billions in supporting young people and people with disability — but not consistently converting that investment into employment. The gap between support and participation is where lives, and economic opportunity, are lost.

"Employment for young Australians — particularly those with learning differences, disability or limited career guidance — is not a marginal social policy. It is a high-return economic lever."

10.2%
Youth unemployment rate
Australia's youth unemployment is running at 10.2% — more than double the general rate. Young people are more than 2× more likely to be unemployed than the broader population.
60.5%
Labour force participation — people with disability
Compared to 84.9% for people without disability. The gap persists despite significant government investment — because the system funds support, not pathways.
23%
NDIS working-age participants in paid employment
As at June 2024 — meaning 77% of working-age NDIS participants are not in paid work, despite the scheme's intent to support independence and participation.
The Find My Journey effect

One insight.
Five dividends.

Matching people to work that fits who they are creates a chain reaction.

When a young person finds a career that aligns with their genuine values, personality and strengths — not just their qualifications — the outcomes compound. Better retention. Better wellbeing. Less welfare. More tax. More purpose.

Find My Journey is the intervention at the start of that chain. The earlier the match, the longer the dividend.

For the Explorer: direction, dignity and a starting point that actually fits.
For the institution: better outcomes, lower dropout, evidence of impact.
For the employer: motivated candidates who chose this field, not drifted into it.
For society: more people contributing, fewer people disengaging.
For the taxpayer: reduced welfare dependency, increased tax base, lower long-term service demand.
FIND MY Journey 🧭 EXPLORER Direction & dignity 🏢 EMPLOYER Better retention 💰 TAXPAYER Lower fiscal burden 🤝 SOCIETY Inclusion & cohesion 🎓 INSTITUTION Better completion
Who benefits

The value of
right career fit.

Find My Journey creates measurable value for five distinct groups. The investment is made once. The dividends compound over a working lifetime.

🧭
For the Explorer
Direction, dignity and a genuine starting point
Most career tools ask what someone is qualified for. Find My Journey asks who they are. For young Australians — especially those with learning differences, anxiety, limited work history, or no career role models at home — being seen and understood changes everything. A career that fits your personality isn't just more satisfying. It's more sustainable, more likely to lead to advancement, and less likely to result in early departure.
2.3×
higher unemployment rate for 15–24 year olds vs general population
288k
young Australians currently NEET (not in employment, education or training)
🤝
For society
More participation. Less disengagement. Stronger communities.
Long-term youth unemployment doesn't stay contained. It spreads — into mental health services, housing instability, criminal justice systems and intergenerational poverty. Early career direction is preventive infrastructure. Every young person who finds meaningful work reduces the downstream demand on social services. Employment provides structure, purpose, social connection and identity — things that support systems struggle to replicate at scale.
1 in 7
Australians aged 0–64 live with disability — a proportion growing with each survey
56%
employment rate for working-age Australians with disability, vs 83% without
🏢
For employers
Motivated people who chose this field — not drifted into it.
Employers consistently report that the biggest predictor of early turnover isn't skills — it's fit. When someone joins a role that genuinely aligns with their values and work style, they stay longer, learn faster and perform better. Find My Journey narrows the gap between who applies and who thrives. For sectors facing workforce shortages — health, care, trades, logistics — candidates who chose the field with genuine self-awareness are worth their weight in gold. Inclusive hiring also strengthens customer alignment and brand trust.
1 in 3
Australian occupations experienced shortages in 2022–2024, per AIHW
25%
of full-time workers with disability leave within a year — vs 10% without disability
🎓
For institutions
Better enrolments. Lower dropout. Demonstrable outcomes.
For schools, TAFEs, RTOs and DES providers, Find My Journey solves a structural problem: students and clients who enter programs without genuine self-understanding are far more likely to disengage. Better initial course-person fit means higher completion rates, lower support costs, and stronger outcome data. The dashboard gives pathways advisors real-time visibility into their cohort — who needs to be seen, which students triggered the Sensitive Explorer Protocol, and what career clusters are emerging across the year group.
$5.4B
committed by Australian Government over 5 years to disability employment programs
15–25
the critical window. Early career direction here prevents lifetime disengagement.
📈
The economic case
Employment is the bridge between social investment and economic return.
Australia is spending at unprecedented scale to support people with disability and young people at risk. The NDIS alone is projected to cost $46.2 billion in 2025–26 — a scheme that, by the government's own actuary's estimate, could reach $125 billion per year by 2034 at previous growth rates. The fiscal case for early employment intervention is not ideological — it is arithmetic. Every young person who moves from welfare dependency to sustained employment delivers a dual dividend: reduced government expenditure and increased economic output. That dividend compounds over a working lifetime of 40+ years.
$46B
projected NDIS spend in 2025–26
$125B
projected annual NDIS cost by 2034 at previous growth rates
40+yrs
compounding fiscal dividend from one young person successfully entering the workforce
The fiscal equation

The cost of
doing nothing.

Every young person who doesn't find meaningful work creates a compounding public cost. Every one who does creates a compounding public benefit. The math is not close.

✕  Without early career direction
$
Direct welfare costs — income support, Youth Allowance, Disability Support Pension, JobSeeker payments continuing indefinitely
$
Healthcare & social services — mental health conditions associated with long-term unemployment increase demand on already-strained services
$
Lost income tax — a lifetime of welfare rather than wages represents decades of foregone tax revenue
$
Economic scarring — youth unemployment leaves permanent wage scars; early disengagement lowers lifetime earnings even after re-entry
$
Intergenerational cost — disadvantage compounds across generations, increasing structural demand for public services
$
NDIS growth — without employment pathways, support costs become lifetime expenditures rather than transition investments
✓  With early career direction
✓
Reduced welfare dependency — sustained employment replaces income support with earnings, reducing transfer payments
✓
Increased tax revenue — every employed young person contributes income tax, GST and superannuation to the economy
✓
Lower health system demand — employed people have better mental and physical health outcomes, reducing healthcare costs
✓
Workforce participation — addresses skills shortages across health, care, trades and logistics sectors facing structural supply gaps
✓
NDIS sustainability — employment converts support spend into participation outcomes, reducing long-term scheme growth
✓
Positive fiscal multiplier — employed people spend, invest and pay taxes — multiplying the return beyond their direct contribution
◆

Ready to be
part of the solution?

Whether you're a school, TAFE, DES provider or policy maker — Find My Journey is designed to be deployed at scale, with real data, real outcomes and a genuine evidence base.

Discuss a pilot → Try Find My Journey