How the technological talents of refugees fill the gaps in critical skills via Blue Hope Network

The small boats, build a wall, regain control – eight words that have shaped the story around those fleeing war and persecution in the English -speaking world in recent years. What is never addressed is technical talent among those who enter the United States or the United Kingdom, legally or illegally, which escape war areas and dictatorships-so far.

Blue Hope Network is a community in which digital leaders can exploit to support technologists that have been moved by war, violence or human rights violations.

In 2018 and the worst of the migration crisis in Europe, the entrepreneur with a social impact Leticia Galdón, founder of Blue Hope Network, went to Greece, which houses some of the largest refugee camps on the continent, housing those who flee the civil war which raged in Syria and persecution in Afghanistan. While speaking to those who were hosted in the camps, Galdón discovered an isolated community open to work. Struck by the skills of those looking for a new life and that a significant talent pool has been brown in stasis tents, Galdón and a network of experts began to shape a solution, which would become Blue Hope Network. She explains:

I refused to consider the situation as a problem. You can transform it into a positive. Blue Hope Network aims to move the paradigm so that refugees and migration are considered talent and channel it to the market where the market is located. There are professionals who are stuck. I am tired of hearing people say that I was an engineer and now I am a refugee.

Hope

Blue Hope Network was founded in April 2022 and is the second organization that helped talents from the refugee technology to which Galdón was involved. The name does not immediately lend itself to treat the collateral damage to the conflict. Galdón explains:

Blue Hope is one of the most famous diamonds. The network identifies diamonds in the rocks because the industry looks at these rocks as if they were worth nothing.

To polish these diamond rocks, Blue Hope Network has teamed up with a project supported by the World Bank to provide digital skills to 1,400 refugees in Africa and the Middle East which will allow them to become a remote labor market. In Iraq, 100 women receive a training in digital skills which will allow them to access new jobs. In the United Kingdom, a partnership with the Code Bootcamp supplier Re: coded saw 30 refugee designers for coaching, training and mentoring. Techlink UkraineTrained by the CIOs and recruiters concerned following the illegal invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022, was also part of Blue Hope Network.

Blue Hope Network is not a charity; A social impact organization would be the best way to describe it. According to Galdón:

We equip people on the right network and knowledge on the market so that they can get there. Meet someone gives refugees a chance to shine. They will feel useful and for CIOs, they will exercise their leadership.

Blue Hope Network is organizing a series of online networking meetings that use a speed dating format to allow those looking for new opportunities and digital leaders to meet each other and share expertise, ideas and contacts. Assist one of these events, digital leaders such as Dan Cook, recently of Parliamentary digital serviceFreddie Quek who was the pioneer Join the points During pandemic locking, Adrian WakefieldAn expert in the operational model of the IOC and the target, and Martin Carpenter, CIO of health for the government of Jersey, were present, while the recruiter of technology and digital leadership Simon La Fosse is a passionate supporter.

During the Meetup, we assisted as part of the search for this article, 32 participants participated and presented talents ranging from engineers to product specialists. As a safe space, follow -up is carried out by Blue Hope Network. Galdón Comments:

When you flee war, you don't take your diploma with you, so you don't have references.

By creating a forum, Blue Hope Network offers expert digital leaders the opportunity to speak with potential talents, and they will be able to identify whether those with whom they speak have the required skills. The digital leader Cook says:

Events like these give technological leaders a chance to make something, in a friendly and accessible way. For some, they have experienced a resettlement experience in the United Kingdom, therefore have a deep empathy for the displaced community; For others, the opportunity to help really human is a major traction. A small intervention by one of our experienced and well -connected leaders can be the turning point for someone who tries to gain a foothold in the technology industry, and we have already seen him play.

An employer's experience

Husayn Kassai, CEO and founder of Quinch.aA knowledge management technology start-up based in London has taken a software engineer via Blue Hope Network. Asked if the recruitment in this way is risky, Kassai responds:

Many of the best candidates come from adversity. I call it aq, the quotient of adversity.

Kassai is rifting on Qi and the equation and he thinks that AQ is particularly beneficial for start-ups and the fight against fires and melee existence. He adds:

They have gone through so many challenges and pulled a kick to overcome the challenges. I am looking for a high potential.

History of refugees

Kassai hired a software engineer via Blue Hope Network, which, for their security, will remain nameless. The software engineer shared his trip with me. With their partner, they moved to the United Kingdom in December 2021 from Afghanistan after the Taliban's return to power. In Afghanistan, they had worked for the British government and used the British government's relocation program for those who worked for its forces. The software engineer says Blue Hope Network was essential in his ability to get a job in the United Kingdom, helping them to understand the labor market for British technology. They add:

We were given mentors, and they provided links and advice on the skills we had and what we needed to learn. I needed to know how to navigate the labor market.

The engineer is a WordPress developer and a software engineer at Quench for over three years.

My point of view

The refusal of the Blue Hope Network to stick to the status quo and see refugees and migrants as a problem is inspiring. As those that the organization helps – they do not see their situation as a problem, they seize the opportunity, and no matter our position, it is a skill that we must all sometimes master. If, as a digital leader, you find it difficult to find this diamond to fulfill a role, there may be another way.