Boston’s otherwise thriving tech economy suffers two seemingly opposite ailments: jobs going unfilled and potential talent going undeveloped. The result for businesses is a strikingly non-diverse yet understaffed tech workforce. Enter Hack.Diversity, a new social enterprise that bridges those gaps with intentional recruiting, training and mentoring. Computer science or engineering students from two- or four-year urban colleges can apply. Selected students receive career and interview coaching, bond as a network and, once they graduate, are paired with mentors and start paid internships at some of the fastest growing companies in Boston. Hack.Diversity is starting with a focus on black and Latino tech workers, but hopes to expand to include other underrepresented populations. Its leaders aim to make Boston a national model for other cities. In late 2016, the Boston Foundation and the SkillWorks Funders Group co-invested $50,000 in support of Hack.Diversity’s launch; further funding comes from a donor advised fund at the Boston Foundation.
