They say your network is your net worth, but what does that even mean, really? We’ve all heard the saying, but to truly understand this for your personal journey takes time. When I graduated from college, I thought I had all the answers for my career - once I graduate, i’ll just apply (with a cover letter™!) and all will be fine - but I quickly realized that theory vs reality are two different things. Sure, a great resume can get individuals to take a chance on you, but what if the system you’re applying to rejects that piece of paper? How would they know that you were a great candidate if they had no reference of you before? And with the upcoming developments of AI, it’s going to be very difficult to set yourself apart from the competition.
Enter Jopwell - founded in 2015 as a 21st Century answer to hiring underrepresented folks in tech, they’ve noticed that most black and brown kids do not have this “network” that is often preached about. At best, they’ve been around the same people that they’ve gone to school with and unless those individuals actively had a say within the hiring process, the chances of their relationship leading to a job opportunity were slim to none. And who could fault anyone on that belief, considering how the US economy has been looking for those who are just embarking on their career.
To adult is hard; very hard.
As they’ve built the organization, the focus has morphed from being a simple job portal to providing creative workshops and brainstorming sessions for those who would like to understand where they sit in the job market, while strengthening relationships with top-tier companies like Google and Morgan Stanley. And this worked only up until a few years of the pandemic - as working from home got people comfortable with the digital avatars of themselves. We were all craving more in-person interactions and it was clear that getting back to that was going to help bridge the gap of networking that seemed to have been lost recently. We needed a place and time to get like-minded individuals together and build on relationships, as people were longing a sense of community outside of their computers.
Jopwell heard this and decided to host a mini-conference for a day in January, which was aimed at giving immense value to specific applicants who were not only familiar with the platform, but were actively looking for new opportunities in the job market. Even though Jopwell is inclusive of different individuals having different work experiences, this event had a vetting process that required individuals to apply only if they had a specific # of years of both leadership and work experience - it was assumed that they wanted to bring a specific, curated group to the offering and this definitely piqued my interest.
I took the chance to apply, going through a number of personal questions on the application that helped to remind me of my leadership abilities at work; things like being the point person on projects or coming up with creative solutions in necessary times, which helped to answer what they were looking for as a participant. A few weeks later, I was formally accepted and invited to come out to New York City, where the event was hosted. I was even more excited to find out that they were hosting this at an upscale hotel called at William Vale in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
Day of Event
Walking into the venue, I had asked the front desk about the event and someone guided me to one of the meeting rooms within the hotel. I then met with someone who confirmed my name on the list, which I was then handed a personalized lanyard as well as a gift bag that housed many goodies from some of the companies that helped to sponsor the event (Johnson & Johnson, Piper Sandler and some others). I admired the contents of the bag, then quickly was directed to an assigned table with my name on it.
When I got to the table, I introduced myself to other individuals who were invited to this summit and I have to say - it was really great to see people who looked like me all around, eager to gain insight from this new experience that we were to embark on. I sat down at the chair that had my name on it and saw that there was an agenda that outlined different leaders who planned to speak that day. There were so many topics of conversation that I was truly impressed with the curation of themes and conversations that were had at this event. I can’t remember all of the panels, but I specifically remember hearing Andre Dyer (Managing Director, Deloitte) and Channa Green (COO, True) speak candidly about the themes of knowing your worth in the marketplace and to take advantage of opportunities to connect with like-minded people in the room, no matter the position, which spoke volumes to the amount of respect that they had for the individuals attending.
There were moments for Q & A and I really saw that the Jopwell team made the intention of allowing the participants to truly be apart of the experience, passing around a microphone to anyone that wanted to ask the tough questions to the leaders that were speaking - and trust me, there were some heavy hitting questions that I got to hear. Some had to do with the market and others had to do with clarity on if their shared insights was the truth or if they felt obligated to “show face” at the event. It was refreshing to see how the leaders intently listened and responded to each concern, speaking about diversity in a way that couldn’t be quantified on a spreadsheet. Sharing those perspectives in an honest forum allowed everyone to see the humanity in their situations, further showcasing to me that Jopwell was doing a great job at curating the right individuals from the right companies to further their mission.
In between speaking sessions there were break times, which you could grab lunch or a snack and talk outside of the event room. During these moments, I got a chance to meet with a few professionals from different industries and were open to new connections. One of the guys that I met there spoke to me about the power of networking - I remember I had made this off-handed comment about how I’ve had friends in the past who would feel guilty about offering a work recommendation for an organization they’re currently working in, saying that they’d hate to be labeled as a “bad reference” if it didn’t work out. He then stopped me and said something that I’ll never forget - he said, ”when it comes down to putting your people in a position to win, you should be open to doing that as much as possible. It’s a recommendation for work; we aren’t curing cancer and if it doesn’t work out, that’s not on you. You have the prior relationship; your word goes farther than you’d imagine and as long as you have a general idea of the intentions of that person, why not? It’s not like its money coming out of your pocket.”
And in that moment, the conversation of abundance felt so great to hear that I had to shake his hand immediately. He’s right - there’s nothing bad that can happen if someone simply asks for help in obtaining a job - people would rather go through who they know, instead of through a random job site, to make the better hire. There’s so many applicants and not every job gets posted onto a website, so having someone who can refer you off of mutual interest can help your chances of being seen, which is so much more than not trying at all. Just hearing that really made me change my own perspective on assisting someone if I know that they are interested in a role.
I met a few more people and spoke to many others who represented different organizations throughout that day, eventually going back to my seat to hear more of the panel discussions. As the hours went by, we eventually got to the end of the event and just like that, it was all done. It was a bittersweet experience as I just got to experience what I thought was my tribe here, but the good news was that we were told that we could continue our connections upstairs at the Hotel’s Rooftop Bar. I decided to take that chance and speak to one of the individuals who had a hand in curating this event, which the staff led me to Michela Pennicooke (Senior Director of Marketing) as well as Darryl Shazier (Executive Leader).
I went up to both and asked them straight up - why put on this event? Why do something like this for a day and limit it to the applicants you screened? They were happy to give me a straight answer to my question, basically explaining that the landscape of in-person events have changed (especially after COVID) and it seemed as though the recruitment focus shifted away from genuine networking to just entertainment-based meetups that more, well-established brands were trying to make a dollar off of people (Names were shared, but I’m going to honor the intimate conversation by sparing the details). They simply stated that while that’s a nice thing to have, Jopwell’s focus is to foster real community building and they wanted to make this in-person experience as intimate as possible. And from what I saw, I got the sense that they pulled it off exceptionally well. I thanked them for their time and went up to the rooftop.
Recap on the Rooftop
There I was speaking to a few new friends and we took some time to talk about our backgrounds and our experiences navigating professional spaces. We made constant notes to how exhausting it is at times to have to be the only one to speak about your experience as a minority. It was eye opening to hear the stories that mirror mine, knowing that we are able-bodied individuals in environments that sometimes does not want to honor the full scope of us as people. We also know that we all have bills to pay, so we take it on the chin and do the best that we can.
Just as we were sharing some more information, we had a brother walk up next to us and decided to chime in about a similar experience that he himself had with an organization. He mentioned that in his role, his job is to help bring potential candidates to certain companies. One of the companies he was working alongside knew about his work and wanted to develop a relationship with a diverse talent pool through him. He then had a few candidates that he spoke to prior that would have fit the organization greatly, one who specifically excelled academically and spent time volunteering on hobbies related to the job - showcasing that he was going to be a great fit. The other person wasn’t as strong, but he wasn’t a slouch either as he had direct experience within the same industry that the organization needed. With both in mind, he was sure that either one was going to be great choices.
He sent the first candidate in and expected a call back, but they decided to pass on him for some reason. They didn’t give him a response on the reason, so instead of pressing the issue, he went ahead and sent the other candidate. Again, no response. The thing that was surprising was that they both graduated at great HBCUs and weren’t slouches in their own right - anyone could see that these guys could be a great fit at the right place. This organization said that they were looking for diverse talent, but not only passed on both candidates, they didn’t even reach out with why, so that they could take that feedback to improve. Naturally curious, he asked to speak to the original contact who was helping place individuals and they mentioned to him that the higher ups told them that those candidates weren't a “good organizational fit,” in which he knew in his heart wasn't true - as part of the reason why he decided to work with the company was due to his unique sell of the company. He then decided to confront the issue by asking to speak to the true decision maker who had the final say - the company tried to stall him but eventually gave him the contact number.
When he called him and asked this person to give him an honest reason, the guy flat out told him that the candidates aren’t coming from their traditional hire pool (the Ivy-Leagues they’re used to, for example) and he believes they may not be able to keep up with the demand of the job duties. He had to remind them that both candidates met every description that the organization had outlined and that just because they didn’t go to an Ivy-League, it doesn’t mean that they weren’t worth giving a shot. He then mentioned prior candidates that he’s placed with bigger organizations that are in the same space - he was naming NAMES here - and that if their candidates are good enough for them, what could be the issue about taking the same talent pool? At that point, the point person was more open to hearing the conversation but he was still unsure on how to proceed - our friend then stopped him and basically gave an ultimatum - they can either take a candidate and give it a fair shot, or they can end their placement contract indefinitely. He was even willing to buy out their placement fee that he’d receive, if he chose to do that - bypassing the administrative red tape JUST to have him make a decision. And he wasn't taking no for an answer.
In the end, the person decided to give those applicants a chance and it worked out - but hearing that story, I learned something new that really opened my perspective. It wasn’t so much that he believed in the quality of the candidates he presented, it was also the fact that he’d rather do business with someone who respects his time and perspective (giving up any financial incentive to do so) - which was a full-stop, no-BS take on advocating for talent. That our people aren't just checkboxes or diversity quotas; they are individuals who deserve a chance to be rockstars. It almost brought a tear to my eye because you always think in the back of your head, who's really got our backs? And here was someone who was doing just that. We then found out that someone’s name is Marcus Miller, (Executive Sales) at Jopwell - it then made so much more sense. He has a passion for not only delivering but also believing in a mission that representation truly matters. I loved to see that.
At the end of the day, it was clear this wasn't just a gig for them; it was a personal mission to help with proper representation. Through the narrative weaving through the event—that we are more than our resumes, that what makes us different can truly be a value add that just cannot be quantified in one way. We need to be more inclusive in how we think and do business, which it was great to hear that this company honored that mission through the event. If there is another, you can bet that I will be showing up to it as I believe that Jopwell is doing more than the necessary work to help career-minded individuals find the right places to work. Going to this event made me realize that this is what true networking is all about.
EDIT: I just received word that the