S3E10 | Outcomes at Scale: Carl Madi on Stepful's Mission to Close the Healthcare Skills Gap

Sep 3, 2025

Carl Madi, the innovative founder and CEO of Stepful, shares his journey from companies like Uber to revolutionizing healthcare training. He discusses Stepful’s unique model combining bite-sized learning with AI simulations, drastically improving completion and job placement rates. Carl dives into the urgency of addressing the healthcare skills gap, the role of employer-sponsored apprenticeships, and how AI can enhance training. He even predicts a bold future where education is employer-driven and accessible, reshaping career pathways in healthcare.

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ANECDOTE

From Cleaners To Healthcare Careers

Carl noticed cleaners on Handy lost work during the pandemic and asked how they could move into healthcare jobs.
That observation sparked Stepful's creation to provide faster, affordable pathways into allied health.

INSIGHT

Hybrid Learning Built For Competency

Stepful combines cohort-based interactive online learning, AI simulations, and in-person externships for skill validation.
This hybrid model accelerates competency attainment while preserving hands-on clinical practice.

ADVICE

Design For Working Adults

Reduce both cost and time barriers to scale workforce training effectively.
Design programs for working adults with bite-sized content and flexible schedules.

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In this powerful episode of An Educated Guest, host Todd Zipper sits down with Carl Madi, the founder and CEO of Stepful. Carl shares his journey from Uber and Handy, where he developed a passion for creating career mobility for workers, to building a company that is radically transforming how the healthcare workforce is trained. He explains how Stepful's innovative model addresses chronic shortages in allied health, providing a more affordable and time-efficient alternative to traditional trade schools and community colleges.

Carl delves into the core of Stepful's success: a tech-enabled, outcomes-based model that combines bite-sized, interactive learning with hands-on externships and AI-powered feedback. He reveals how this approach is leading to incredible completion and placement rates that are well above the national average. The conversation also explores the future of healthcare jobs in the age of AI, the power of employer-sponsored apprenticeships, and Carl's bold prediction for a new education system driven by employers. This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in EdTech, workforce development, or the future of healthcare.

Key Takeaways from this Episode:

Stepful's Unique Model: A deep dive into Stepful's hybrid learning approach that combines online courses, AI-powered simulations, and real-world externships to deliver exceptional outcomes.
Solving the Healthcare Skills Gap: How Stepful is directly addressing the chronic shortage of allied health workers by removing key barriers to entry like cost and time.
The Future of AI in Healthcare: Insights into how AI will augment or eliminate jobs in the healthcare industry and the new roles that will emerge.
Apprenticeships & Employer Partnerships: A compelling case study on how Stepful's partnerships with health systems are dramatically cutting time-to-hire and improving employee retention.
A New Vision for Education: Carl's bold prediction for a shift to an employer-centric, debt-free education system that is modular, flexible, and tied directly to career pathways.
The Power of People: A discussion on the vital role of human instructors and coaches in the learning experience, even as technology evolves, to ensure students feel supported and nurtured.

About Our Guest:

Carl Madi is the founder and CEO of Stepful, a company he launched to provide a fast, affordable, and effective pathway into high-demand healthcare jobs. Carl's background includes leadership roles at Uber and Handy, where he developed a passion for creating career mobility for workers. Stepful was recently named the number one EdTech company by Time magazine.