The Proz network of technical and vocational schools, currently present in eight Brazilian states, announced its first M&A since its creation six years ago. The company acquired Resilia, an edtech company focused on technology courses and B2B clients. The value of the transaction was not disclosed.
The plan is precisely to capture this market for shorter courses, aimed at more specific audiences, and to enter the corporate client market more forcefully, offering specific options for companies.
With 25,000 students having graduated since 2020, Proz, which projects revenues of R$100 million by 2026, aims to triple its revenue in two years, precisely because of Resilia's arrival.
“Resilia brings this professionalization perspective to technology, especially in artificial intelligence. And also this direct connection with companies, through more vocational courses. These are the layers that were missing for us,” says Daniel Pedrino, CEO of Proz, in an interview with NeoFeed .
Proz is controlled by eB Capital , a multi-asset management firm founded by Eduardo Sirotsky Melzer . With this move, Resilia exits XP , one of the edtech's investors, which will not remain in the new format.
“Our thesis is that technical education is truly the only remaining frontier to transform society in Brazil,” states Pedrino. A census from the Ministry of Education (MEC) shows that the country currently has 3.2 million students in technical and vocational education, linked to secondary education.
Of this total, approximately one million enrollments are linked to private initiatives and 2.2 million are the responsibility of the public sector. The issue is that, since the government cannot manage the operation of all these places, it outsources part of the courses. And that's where another avenue for growth emerges for Proz.
The federal government created a program called Propag (Program for Full Payment of State Debts), which will take effect in 2027, to reduce state debts to the federal government. One of the conditions is to increase the volume of investments in technical courses.
“The participation that has already occurred from the states will increase the number of job openings by at least 700,000. With the calls for applications that are being opened, Proz sees a great opportunity for growth,” explains the CEO.
Of the students who have already received diplomas from Proz, 30% came from public institutions, 60% from the network's own units, and 10% from partnerships with companies. And it is in this segment that the company is also focusing its growth.
“The goal is to increase students' income. And we can only achieve that by offering a course where, the day after graduation, they can enter a company and produce. In the end, I increase the productivity of organizations, which no longer need to train this employee,” explains Pedrino.
At Proz, the vast majority of graduates are from in-person programs. In this format, courses last between two and two and a half years, guaranteeing professional training. In the healthcare field, over 80% graduate as nursing technicians, with a high rate of employability.
On the other hand, Resilia's courses last from three to six months. Since its creation in 2019, the edtech company has already trained around two thousand students.
Resilia's founder, Bruno Cani, will become a strategic advisor to Proz. Resilia's CTO, Felipe Santo, will assume the same role, now at the new owner, and will also become a partner in the merged company. Pedrino, who is also a partner at eB Capital, will remain in charge of operations.
“Resilia has this more vocational characteristic, but also a vision similar to Proz's, focusing on employability and workforce strength. But we are in unregulated education, which directly addresses the pain points of companies, with teachers who are market professionals,” says Cani.
In this sense, according to Pedrino, there is no chance of cannibalization or direct competition between Proz and Resilia, since the options are complementary and, in practice, do not compete with each other.
“We will see stronger acceleration from now on, helping to reduce company turnover through digital transformation. Students can pursue a Y-shaped education and further their skills in various ways. The curriculum can be combined or separate. There is no set formula,” says the CEO of Proz.
