about us
Welcome to Hop Ahead
We built this company because the first rung of the career ladder is broken. Today’s entry-level talent faces an impossible “experience trap,” while businesses struggle to retain the people they need to grow. Fixing this requires more than just good intentions: it requires rigorous, data-driven standards.
As a founding team, we bring two distinct areas of expertise to solve this problem:
- The Standard & Partnerships: Will drives the operational framework and commercial partnerships. Drawing on his background in local government policy, B Corp assessment, and environmental systems, he builds, tests, and implements the rigorous auditing criteria that define the Hop standard for employers.
- The Platform & Architecture: James leads our product infrastructure. Leveraging his track record of scaling global data marketplaces and building applied AI products for the public sector, he ensures our certification platform is robust, automated, and built for seamless enterprise adoption.
Together, we are bridging the gap between ethical hiring and commercial reality. We aren’t just certifying good employers; we are providing the exact operational blueprint they need to unlock the next generation of talent.
Welcome to the new standard.
Will Jackson-Nichols & James Jackson-Nichols
The Academic Foundation
I am a First Class Graduate in Human Sciences from the University of Oxford.
My academic background wasn’t just about theory; it was about understanding how complex systems – biological, social, and environmental – interact.
This rigorous training taught me to look at the “big picture” of how organisations function and where they fail their people.
The hardest challenge I faced wasn't academic but finding an entry-level role that offered fair pay, genuine mentorship, and a future.
The "B Corp" Epiphany
My journey into certification began while working as a B Corp Certification Consultancy Intern. I spent nearly a year helping a major company navigate the complex standards required to prove their social and environmental impact.
While I believe deeply in the B Corp movement, I noticed a critical gap in the certification landscape. While we measured carbon footprints and governance structures, there was often a “blind spot” regarding the specific, day-to-day reality of entry-level employees. I realised we needed a standard that specifically validated junior career progression and access to opportunity.
The Job Market Reality
I know firsthand how difficult it is to find a junior role that offers genuine growth. I currently serve as a Climate Emergency Support Officer for Devon County Council, a role where I support a partnership of over 30 organisations to achieve net-zero.
Securing this position was a rare victory in an extremely competitive market. It highlighted a stark reality: roles that offer a living wage, meaningful responsibility, and mentorship are the exception, not the rule. I founded Hop Forward to make these “gold standard” junior roles the norm across all industries.
From campaigning for student welfare to setting industry standards, my mission is the same: to open doors that have been closed for too long.
A Commitment to EDI
Hop Ahead’s “Open Door” policy isn’t just a business metric; it’s a continuation of my advocacy work. During my time at Oxford, I held multiple roles promoting Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion, working with the Student Union’s LGBTQ+ Campaign and “It Happens Here”, the anti-sexual violence campaign.
Whether working in Student Engagement at Oxford SU or supporting student campaigns, my focus has always been on breaking down barriers and creating spaces where everyone has a fair shot at success.
The Academic Foundation
I hold an MA in Law from Cambridge University and an MBA from Warwick Business School.
My academic background trained me to combine rigorous legal analysis with high-level commercial strategy. It taught me how to look at complex organisational structures, identify inefficiencies, and build scalable frameworks to solve them.
My focus is on combining strategic vision with technical fluency to deliver measurable growth and solve real-world problems.
The Scaling & Product Journey
I know what it takes to build a product from the ground up and scale it globally. I spent nearly a decade at FINE+RARE, working my way up from their Graduate Scheme to Managing Director of Product & Technology.
During my time there, I was the business lead for a new global online marketplace, taking it from inception (£0) to £15m in annual turnover. I led cross-functional technology teams across the UK, Europe, Asia, and the USA, overseeing major digital transformations and the integration of international acquisitions.
The Intersection of Tech & Social Impact
As a product and innovation leader, I specialise in data-driven marketplaces and AI-powered products. Recently, my career has focused heavily on how we can use this technology to create genuine social impact.
As the Managing Director of Journi, I led a digital transformation studio supporting SMEs and start-ups with AI-enabled product development. Currently, I’m working in Product and AI at Beam, a UK social-impact scale-up. At Beam, we use applied AI to transform the workload of social care professionals, successfully launching products now deployed across 70+ local authorities.
Technology and data are only as powerful as the human potential they unlock.
Why Hop Ahead?
At Hop Forward, I bring a data-driven approach to career progression. The job market is fundamentally a marketplace, and right now, it is failing its newest entrants.
Building a transparent, verifiable standard for junior talent requires the exact same architecture as building any successful tech platform: it needs clear metrics, scalable data infrastructure, and a relentless focus on the end-user. Together with Will, I am ensuring that the framework isn’t just an ethical ideal, but a rigorous, market-ready standard that businesses can easily adopt and trust.