About Us.
The ASE Group is a community-led and purpose driven business for good that delivers entrepreneurship, employment, life skills and accredited training programs for all Australians.
Our mission is to equip every Australian with the skills, resources and mindset they need to start a business, grow a business or enter the workforce, regardless of their postcode.
Founded by three young Australians in 2020 and reinforced by the expertise of seasoned educators, professionals and governance experts, ASE has demonstrated commitment to driving innovation and positive transformation across education, entrepreneurship and employment. With a unique combination of diverse lived experience and worldly wisdom, we bring a fresh and insightful perspective to industry challenges, rooted in a deep understanding of the issues affecting our community.
The Story of ASE.
The story of ASE began long before the organisation itself.
Co-Founders Taj Pabari and Gabi Parker first met in Grade 4 in Logan, Queensland. Their experiences at school could not have been more different. Gabi was an A-grade student who thrived academically, while Taj struggled in the traditional school environment. Despite those very different experiences, they shared a common realisation: there were important practical skills needed for life, work and business that neither of them had been taught at school.
In 2019, Taj, Gabi and Tionne Young came together through Taj’s first business, Fiftysix Creations, where the three were delivering digital literacy and STEM education programs to young people around Australia. Through that work, they saw the same gap from different perspectives. Gabi and Tionne had performed well academically, while Taj had struggled in the traditional school environment, yet none of them felt traditional education had adequately prepared them with the practical life skills, entrepreneurial thinking and real-world capabilities needed beyond the classroom. Those shared experiences became the foundation for an idea: to build an organisation focused on the practical skills people need for life, work and business.
That idea became The ASE Group in 2020.
Since then, ASE has continued to grow by bringing together organisations with a shared belief in practical, accessible entrepreneurship and life skills education.
In 2022, ASE acquired Breathe, founded by Jahin Tanvir, a three-time TEDx speaker and high-performance coach. Breathe delivered public speaking, communication and soft skills education programs across Australia, helping Australians build confidence and practical skills for study, work and life. As part of the acquisition, Jahin became CEO of the Australian School of Entrepreneurship. Also in 2022, ASE secured a five-year contract to deliver the Australian Government’s flagship Self-Employment Assistance program in partnership with the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations. Through the program, ASE provides practical small business support including 12 months of business coaching, workshops, mentoring and training to more than 1,000 small and micro business owners across Queensland.
In 2023, ASE acquired Generation Entrepreneur, Australia's first youth entrepreneurship education organisation. Founded in 2014, Generation Entrepreneur delivered entrepreneurship education to more than 10,000 Australians and played an important role in building entrepreneurship capability among young people. In 2024, ASE joined forces with the Sydney School of Entrepreneurship, Australia's first school of entrepreneurship. Established in 2016 with $25 million in cornerstone funding from the New South Wales Government, SSE brought together 11 NSW universities and TAFE NSW in an unprecedented collaboration designed to make entrepreneurship education more accessible across the state. Over its seven-year journey, SSE supported more than 22,000 participants, partnered with more than 100 organisations and issued over 2,300 industry-recognised digital credentials and micro-credentials. Its community reflected a strong commitment to inclusion and accessibility, with women representing 48% of participants and approximately 40% of participants coming from regional communities.
In 2026, ASE secured a four-year contract to deliver the Australian Government’s Digital Solutions Program across New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory in partnership with the Australian Treasury. Through the program, ASE will support more than 6,000 small and micro business owners with practical digital skills, mentoring and training to adopt digital tools, strengthen cyber security, embrace artificial intelligence, improve digital marketing and build stronger, more productive businesses.
Together, these chapters have shaped the ASE of today. What began as an idea between three young Australians has grown through the experience, legacy and impact of organisations that helped pioneer life skills, entrepreneurship, employment and small business education in Australia.
Through every chapter of ASE’s story, one belief has remained constant: education should be practical, opportunity should not depend on postcode or academic results and every Australian should have access to the skills they need to build their future. Our mission is to equip every Australian with the skills, resources and mindset they need to start a business, grow a business or enter the workforce, regardless of their postcode.
