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Discussion on: The Unbearable Whiteness of Coding

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Mike Talbot ⭐

What worked for us in the UK (specifically South Wales, which is very "white") was have a black recruiter internally. This guy was a rock star at recruiting anyone, one of the best recruiters I've ever worked with, and yep, he attracted the best black talent. Sadly his family life moved him away and we haven't replaced him. The last few weeks have me thinking about just how the latest few hires have all gone back to being white. I need a diverse team not only for social justice but also for the benefit of the other team members and the products we build.

I think having a black recruiter made us feel like a safe place to apply even though our tech team is only around 50 people.

To agree with @ben 's point there is a massive social disparity and only recently a growing feeling that technology is a suitable and possible career for BAME communities. This reduces an already small market to near non-existence in the areas we recruit.