Introducing TechYes! — Greenhouse’s Diversity in Tech Meetup
3 mins, 19 secs read time
As one of its founding members, I am excited to introduce TechYes: Diversity in Tech, a meetup that Greenhouse launched as a safe place for people to discuss diversity issues in the technology space. Our goal is to create a community where people can talk openly about their experiences with diversity and inclusion issues in and outside of the workplace, hear about others’ experiences, and lean on each other for support. We cover an array of topics, including addressing the current state of diversity in tech, identifying diversity issues in and outside of the workplace, and recognizing and confronting unconscious biases that emerge all around us.
We hosted our most recent meetup earlier this month, called “Beyond the Basic Background.” Here, panelists from 2020Shift, Jopwell, and The New York Times joined us to discuss how to share and promote personal narratives to encourage better communication and deeper understanding across diverse groups. Our panel included Janel Martinez of 2020Shift, Katie Sanders of Jopwell, and Elisabeth Goodridge and Julie Bloom of The New York Times.
Read on for unique insights from each of our forward-thinking panelists, giving you an idea of the conversation you can expect at a TechYes meetup:
Janel Martinez / 2020Shift
Janel Martinez is co-founder and CCO of 2020Shift, an organization that helps women and minority professionals find non-engineering jobs in tech. Janel shared that the goal of 2020Shift is to provide resources for its diverse community and give them the opportunity to communicate with each other in real time. According to Janel, it’s important to highlight professionals of color, and 2020Shift works hard to accomplish this by spotlighting stories of individuals in those groups on their blog and on their social media channels. 2020Shift also provides a course called #MoreThanCode, in which students can learn the skills they need to be successful in the rapidly-changing world of tech.
Katie Sanders / Jopwell
Katie Sanders is Head of Content at Jopwell, a site that connects Black, Hispanic/Latino, and Native American professionals with employers. Specifically, Jopwell’s noble mission is to help underrepresented minority groups find jobs they love. The company also works to provide its community with career advice and support. Katie discussed the crucial need for members of minority groups to have safe spaces—like the TechYes meetup—to communicate, share stories, and have their voices be heard.
Elisabeth Goodridge & Julie Bloom / The New York Times
Both Elisabeth Goodridge and Julie Bloom of The New York Times, shared their perspectives as editors on telling stories as accurately as possible, without letting any personal biases interfere. Elisabeth discussed the responsibility of editors and journalists to be transparent to their audience. According to Elisabeth, when a news story breaks out, it’s important to talk to all of the people at the scene to ensure that everyone’s perspective is fairly represented and the story is accurately portrayed. Julie also mentioned that the staff in a newsroom should represent the community that the news covers, to verify that every story is told with an authentic voice.
This is just a sampling of the types of content we cover at TechYes. Each meetup has a different theme and a different format, including panels, discussions, and group activities. But always at the end of each event, attendees gather together in small groups to share their own stories and help each other through their challenges, both inside the workplace and out. Providing this opportunity for everyone to share their experiences openly and honestly is one of the most valuable aspects of TechYes. Greenhouse is proud to host this event, giving people the forum to share their diversity roadblocks and get solutions in return.
If you haven’t yet, we encourage you to check out our TechYes — Diversity in Tech meetup and join us for a future gathering! Simply click the button below!
