Inside Tech Hiring with Black Professionals - Oluwatosin Anifowose

Inside Tech Hiring with Black Professionals - Oluwatosin Anifowose

Diversity and inclusion are crucial elements in building a successful and innovative tech industry, yet the reality is that Black professionals remain significantly underrepresented in the field. To gain a better understanding of the hiring process for Black professionals in tech, we continue our series Inside Tech Hiring with Black Professionals. In this article, we speak with Oluwatosin Anifowose, a Tech Recruiter at Amazon with a scientific background in geoscience, who shares her valuable insights on how tech companies can make their hiring process more inclusive, red and green flags for Black candidates, and her personal experience as a Black professional in a predominantly white industry.


As you will notice, Oluwatosin Anifowose has an analytical mindset and a structured approach to problem-solving. She is very active in the Berlin Tech space and has built a global Slack community as well as a podcast and website where she shares job search tips and career support. Take a look at the short yet very valuable interview with Oluwatosin Anifowose below.

What is one way Tech companies can make their hiring process more welcoming & inclusive for members of the Black community?

1. Clearly define why diversity is important to you and create a mechanism to transfer that understanding to everyone that will be a part of the hiring process.
2. Set up a diverse hiring panel: basically, try to mirror (as much as is reasonably possible provided you have the resources or to the extent you can) the type of candidate pool you want to create.
3. Interviewers should be properly trained particularly in the area of ‘interviewing biases’ and how it influences hiring decisions.
4. Lean on your Employee Resource Group’s or Affinity groups (or members of the Black community in your organisation where this is absent) to help you in your pursuit to create welcoming & inclusive hiring processes.

What is one red flag/ one green flag Black candidates should be aware of when applying to a Tech role?

• Red flag: 0% diversity in the company
• Green Flag: A diverse team and a diverse interviewing panel.

What kind of learning or insights can you share from your experience as a Black professional in a predominantly white industry?

• We need to place more emphasis on what connects us rather than what differentiates us.
• Understand the power of an informed mind and how it influences our perception.
• Bring an ‘open mind’ to conversations and in the cultivation of work place relationships.
• Understand that you are responsible for how you ‘choose to respond’ to any situation.

Which modern or historical figure would you like to celebrate/honour this BHM?

• Martin Luther King Jr.

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As a Black professional in a predominantly white industry, Oluwatosin Anifowose emphasizes the importance of focusing on what connects us rather than what differentiates us. She encourages bringing an open mind to conversations and cultivating workplace relationships with this mindset. Tosin also emphasizes the power of an informed mind and how it influences our perception. Understanding that we are responsible for how we choose to respond to any situation is also key. As we celebrate Black History Month, Tosin honors Martin Luther King Jr. for his work and legacy. Ultimately, it is up to all of us to work together towards a more equitable and inclusive Tech industry by taking responsibility for our own behavior and encouraging our colleagues to become more informed.

In conclusion, we all have an important role to play in working together towards a more equitable and inclusive Tech industry. To achieve this, it is important to focus on what connects us, keep an open mind, and take responsibility for our own behavior and how we respond to situations. If you feel comfortable doing so, encouraging your colleagues to become more informed can contribute significantly to lessening the impact of biases in the recruitment process and the workplace. Remember, it’s never too soon to start!

Check out www.dearcandidate.org to read Tosin’s articles and to listen to her podcast!

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