What do we mean by Disadvantage?
For us, this term is intentionally inclusive
"Disadvantage" can be a very broad term. According to a number of online dictionaries, it is defined as "an unfavorable circumstance or condition that reduces the chances of success or effectiveness."
That seems like a decent definition - and in our context, success or effectiveness means getting the job that fulfills your potential.
So a disadvantage in EquAIty's eyes would be:
An unfavorable circumstance or condition that reduces the chance of getting a job that fulfills your potential.
So what kinds of disadvantage is EquAIty targeting?
Socioeconomic. Racial. Gender-based.
Family-, Health-, or Disability-related.
Given that EquAIty's mission is to address anything in your personal experience of life that has held your career back in some way, we are talking about any type of disadvantage at all. We are not going to select any subset of categories.
What is more important to us is how the person who has experienced that disadvantage handled it.
If they found a successful way to fight it, or if through their own determination they overcame the odds to some extent in a way that others didn't, then that is the spirit EquAIty wants to help empower. That is the spirit that hiring companies and recruiters need to know about. It's the spirit that gives that person employable skills that can help to bolster their "credentials" when it comes to it.
You might be thinking... OK that makes sense, but this is for other people, not for me. I'm not disadvantaged.
Oftentimes, people don't consider themselves as disadvantaged. But:
It might be that you know deep down that you are capable of doing a job, and for some reason actually getting that job is really difficult, or it might even be that it's not possible.
It might be that you have reason to believe you are just as talented as someone else, but for some reason, they are able to get the job you want much more easily than you are.
And there is no justification for this difference - you are just as capable and deserving of that job as the person who was ultimately given it. But something gave them the edge - or there was something specific that the recruiter or hiring manager saw in the other person, in their network or in their credentials, which influenced their decision to hire them.
We will learn about all of the disadvantages that have held our users back as they use our product. But to begin with, here is a very small number of examples, for illustrative purposes only:
Socioeconomic: your parents couldn't afford the costs associated with you joining the sports club you were passionate about as a teenager
The negative effect this might have had: your friends who joined the team became a tight-knit pack, and you gradually receded from the group. That group still helps each other with work-related referrals or other work-related opportunities today.
Some of the desirable skills you may have developed: 1) an inclusivity of people who cannot do all the things most people can do, 2) an appreciation of the value of money and when to spend or not spend it, 3) an ability to network with people who were able to join something you aren't a part of
Racial: you were the only Black African in a team of white people and you experienced microaggressions every day at work
The negative effect this might have had: this made you feel misunderstood, 'other', and lesser than the rest of the team
Some of the desirable skills you may have developed: 1) an ability to sense when someone is feeling left out of a group, and a compulsion to include them, 2) a steadfast dedication to your day to day work, in pursuit of highly valuable outputs that invite higher levels of respect from your team, 3) a tough exterior that can weather difficult emotional situations and show respect even when riled
Gender-based: you have a strong relationship with your husband, but there are unspoken "rules" between you that result in you picking up more of the childcare responsibilities, on balance
The negative effect this might have had: this may have constrained your ability to work specific hours, which in turn has led to either a lower income if you are self-employed, or if you are employed, a less positive perception of your commitment to your work, which has contributed towards delays in your promotion
Some of the desirable skills you may have developed: 1) a preparedness which can mitigate last minute impacts - like preparing in advance for meetings or for deadlines, 2) an appreciation of what your female direct reports are experiencing, 3) a rigour that always ensures there is a Plan B, given the potential for adhoc challenges to Plan A.
Family-related: your brother has an emotional or behavioural instability problem and a heavy reliance on you as a support
The negative effect this might have had: this may have led to you feeling particularly low or anxious on some work days, and has meant you don't feel able to bring your whole self to work sometimes
Some of the desirable skills you may have developed: 1) an ability to maintain a professional composure even during stressful situations, 2) a learned empathy that helps you treat some of your more emotive male colleagues in a way they really respond to, 3) an ability to take control, be decisive and lead in a chaotic situation.
Health-related: you may have a health condition that requires you to eat or drink specific things at specific times of the day
The negative effect this might have had: this might have meant the obligation to join team meals or drinks where you cannot control eating or drinking times has always been a source of stress for you because you want to join and take part, but you have physical responsibilities
Some of the desirable skills you may have developed: 1) an ability to plan strategically, 2) an openness about something that may once have caused you embarrassment - and an encouragement to others to do the same, 3) an acute awareness of your physical state and how it impacts your ability to work.
Disability-related: you may have had to work remotely for accessibility reasons, while your team was together in an office
The negative effect this might have had: you often missed adhoc work meetings and had less opportunity to develop in-person relationships with colleagues - which has stalled your progression because it has meant you have not been in the right place to land new work opportunities
Some of the desirable skills you may have developed: 1) when the world moved to remote work for Covid, you became a big support for the team, helping everyone get set up to work remotely, 2) you have learned how to develop strong relationships only over webcam, 3) you have become a self-researched expert in technologies that help remote workers collaborate much more effectively
The key thing is that the disadvantage that holds our users back could be a result of any category at all. This product is not just for women, or for ethnic minorities, or for any one particular group of people. It is for everyone who has been set back in some way, through no fault of their own, but has a story to tell about how they fought the setback. They may not be the most "successful" person in the room, but they have a personal context that helps to prove their unique value as an individual, in a way that a CV cannot.
And for any type of disadvantage, EquAIty applies the following 3 step process:
understanding and really empathising with what our user has gone through,
identifying any reactive or proactive skills that have resulted from the circumstances (for an explanation of reactive vs proactive, read this blog)
ensuring that that individual's adverse context does not play an unfair part during recruitment processes - and instead creating insights that help empower that individual to be valued for who they really are, and what they really can achieve
Over time, we will learn which disadvantages in general our users believe have had the most impact on their lives - and which disadvantages therefore are most important for us to help our users fight, or overcome. We'll also learn about which disadvantages are most or least common - and therefore which we can help fight fastest.
But for now, the point is, EquAIty is intentionally addressing Disadvantage in an inclusive way, for all types of Disadvantage. It is the individual who makes the choice to fight or succumb to the disadvantage - and the choice to fight is what creates the fuel for EquAIty to empower you further.
I hope you feel as inspired by our mission as we are. We'd love to hear your thoughts or feedback on our approach to disadvantage. We'd also love to hear about your own experience of disadvantage - so please do reach out via the form on this site if you'd like to say something.
Until next time,
C