In a world where diversity is one the highest priorities for companies across the globe, where businesses both large and small are taking steps to attract, hire and retain women in the workforce, one female CEO bluntly lets female job seekers know that women, in particular moms, are not welcome.

In case you missed the interview by the New York Times that went viral, Erika Nardini, the CEO of Barstool Sports, says she “tries to unlock the abilities of employees who are genius.”

I totally get that, I’m a career recruiter who’s seen a lot. I’ve witnessed the interview process at Google and Amazon and plenty of small companies in between. And no, it’s not easy, and yes, the methodologies are controversial. Solving algorithms on a white board ain’t easy and it’s not for everyone.

But it’s when Ms. Nardini goes to say she’ll “text you about something at 9pm on a Sunday just to see how fast you’ll respond” that gives me pause.

As a mom of twins with no background in mathematics, I’m probably more likely to describe the data structure of an algorithm tree than respond to a text on Sunday night.

Of course, interview processes can be built around the kind of candidate that’s right for the company culture. So the idea of rating how long it takes to respond to a text says a lot about working there. However, if that type of hiring practice ever became a standard for more employers, I’m guessing the 75% of the workforce who have children under 18 would drop exponentially. And while I’m making assumptions, let’s just remove moms of multiples completely from the mix.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for texting. I work in tech and offers move fast. I text with my hiring managers to move things forward and with candidates when I have news to share – good news. But NEVER as part of the assessment process.

My intention isn’t to necessarily call–out a female business leader about the way she runs her company but as a female job search advocate, I do believe it’s worth noting how exclusionary and insensitive this type of hiring practice is.

Looking at the site, I’m not sure how many moms (or women for that matter) the company, Barstool Sports, hopes to employ nor how many moms would be interested, but a job is a job, mothers deserve a shot, unconscious bias is real and even female leaders can get it wrong.

 

 

Tracy Saunders is a recruiter, author and job search adviser whose mission is to help women land great jobs, faster. Her 15+ years in recruiting and her work at top-tier companies like Google and Amazon have provided her with a unique perspective and the expertise to empower women
with their job search. She founded Work The Search to equip women across all industries and levels with the tools they need to shift from confused,
stuck or passive, to confident and efficient. By revealing insider secrets, uncovering myths, sharing time-saving tactics and automation resources, she enables women to take control of their job search so they can reach their specific lifestyle and income goals, faster, and with less stress.

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