In today's conversation I interview former tech executive and founder of Kadima Careers, Alan Stein. We discuss all the ways in which the hiring process is biased, along with strategies any underrepresented individual can use to overcome these obstacles. Alan spent several years at tech companies like Google, Facebook, Amex and Salesforce, and witnessed first hand the efforts companies made to promote diversity and inclusion, which often fell short. Using this experience, Alan decided to take matters into his own hands and start Kadima Careers, a business that equips underrepresented talent with the tools and confidence to accelerate their career and increase compensation.

You can connect with Alan on LinkedIn here, and get coaching and career support at Kadima Careers here. https://kadimacareers.com/

Show notes and highlights

[4:20]  Alan's story and why a pasty white dude is passionate about diversity
[7:00] What Alan tried to do to decrease hiring bias at tech companies like Google
[8:57] The main inputs for talent acquisition/hiring and all the ways they are biased

[15:00] What is a "good" outcome for diversity in a company? How Alan thinks about this issue
[19:00] Having a difficult to pronounce name and bias in screening resumes
[21:30] Where the funnel is broken, the sourcing of candidates and why incentives for recruiters and hiring managers are often skewed

[24:30] What is the "Rooney Rule" or Diverse Slate Approach, and why are the advantages/disadvantages?
[29:30] The recruiter stage vs. other stages and where the worst bias is
[34:00] Why Alan decided to start his own business to solve this problem vs. do this internally

[42:00] Reasons to aim for big tech companies instead of smaller or mid size firms
[43:20] The Growth Framework Alan teaches to find a job
[46:00] The importance of 'tenacity' and how to handle getting rejected from interviews - 295 rejections later

Comments, questions or feedback?

Email me at misha@carrus.io!