My name is Jaclyn Ling and I'm the co-founder/CEO of Hatchways YC S19 (https://hatchways.io). Last summer, we launched our product that promotes internships instead of interviews (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20578850). Since then, we’ve worked with hundreds of engineers, and if there’s one thing we’ve learned it’s that talent can come from anywhere.

One of the most interesting parts of my job is having conversations with software engineers who face a variety of barriers breaking into the tech industry, and trying to understand how we can improve the hiring process so talented people don’t get overlooked.

Today I’m excited to share our podcast, Dear Hiring Manager (https://anchor.fm/dear-hiring-manager), which is our attempt to further disseminate the learnings we’ve gained from speaking with hundreds of software engineers. The podcast is a space where individuals from non-traditional backgrounds can share their stories and experiences of the barriers they face breaking into the tech industry. I’ve had conversations with a wide range of engineers, from those identifying as non-binary to working mothers, from those battling ADHD and depression to college drop-outs and mid-career shifters.

Even more importantly, I’d like to open up a conversation about how traditional interview processes fail many who fall between the cracks in the system, and discuss how we can make the future of the tech industry more inclusive to those facing barriers and coming from non-traditional backgrounds.

Here are a few insights from real software engineers that hiring managers need to take note of:

- Resume screens don’t work for self-taught engineers or college drop-outs. Even with impressive side projects, it’s hard to fight the bias of no-degree, and their resumes are often discarded on principle.

- Phone screens don’t work for engineers with hearing impairments. For those that rely on lip-reading or caption-enabled videos, audio-only phone calls are nearly impossible to understand.

- If an employee is pregnant or a new parent, don’t assume they won’t have time for more responsibilities. Present the opportunity, be willing to provide support if needed, and respect the answer they give.

- Behavioural interviews don’t work for those with speech impediments or those who suffer from interview anxiety. Rather than evaluating technical skills, the process instead focuses on presentation / interviewing skills. When behavioural interviews happen first, engineers can be disqualified without ever having a chance to show their skills.

- Leaders should not delegate the responsibility of increasing diversity and inclusion in the workplace. A woman of colour working in SF shared her experience working with a team of all white men and how the leaders of the company lacked accountability, asking her (the only female engineer) to think about how to increase diversity.

- A non-binary engineer indicated they would feel more comfortable if interviewers introduced themselves with their names and pronouns.

- Many engineers prefer take-home assessments as it gives them a chance to stand out and prove their skills. There’s been the suggestion to replace resumes entirely with assessments.

We’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas on a) how we can use these stories to help change the hiring process and b) what other voices you’d like to hear! Better yet, if you are a software engineer who would like to share your story, we’d more than welcome it! Thank you!