QT Blog

THANK YOU!

To everyone who came together to make it a great success! Whether you were with us on-line or in-person, your contribution was truly felt!

Photo Credit: Adam Zivo

Wow, what an amazing past couple of months, and what a tremendous PrideHacks season!

Here’s What we accomplished at both PrideHacks events-

• 200+ attendees at each, the Toronto and Montreal cocktails
• 60 dedicated volunteer hackers attended each hackathon
• 13 nonprofit organizations received tech solutions ranging from websites to data management solutions (6 during Toronto and 7 in Montreal)
• Overall 1400 volunteer hours were contributed to building technology for stronger communities across both events.

Photo Credit: Samuel Villeneuve

THANK YOU to our nonprofit partners, you are the reason why we organize PrideHacks! Thank you to our supporting partners - we could not make it PrideHacks free and accessible to our community without your support!

PrideHacks Toronto

Photo Credit: Adam Zivo

Thank you to our nonprofit partners: 75 Shots Pocket Cinema, FrancoQueer, Gay Men's Sexual Health Alliance (GMSH), Indigenous Friends Association, MAX Ottawa and QMUNITY.

Thank you to our supporting partners: (Unicorn) Wealthsimple (Pride) Google Chrome (Ally) Jobber, Fullscript, Rangle.io, Twitter (Qmunity) Haloo, Pride at Work Canada, Osedea

PrideHacks Montreal

Photo Credit: Adam Zivo

Thank you to our nonprofit partners: AIESEC, AGIR Montréal, Black Executive Leadership Initiative (BELI), Buckskin Babes Urban Moose Hide Tanning Collective, image+nation, Project 10, and The LGBT+ Family Coalition 

Thank you to our supporting partners: (Unicorn) Moment Factory and PwC Canada (Pride) Cloud Chamber, Google Chrome, TouchTunes and Accenture (Ally) Sun Life Financial, Fierté Montreal, Twitter (Qmunity) ORO Health, Osedea and Pride at Work Canada.

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As a part of our program QT Care, we teamed up with Hao Wu Financial Solutions inc. under the Sun Life banner to deliver a 6-part Financial Health Webinar series. We know discussing finances can be tough and confusing, especially in the current economic climate; therefore, we partnered with Jeffrey Wu and Julien Valat, advisors working extensively with members of 2SLGBTQ+ community in QC, ON & BC, to create a safe space to learn about some of these most important financial topics. 

As we are midway in our series, we would like to recap the first 3 webinars already presented, and give you a preview of what is coming next!

To review your specific situation, we encourage you to reach out directly to them since knowing this information doesn’t reliably change behaviour, and is only winning half the battle. You can book their time for a virtual introduction meeting here: https://calendly.com/haowufinancialsolutions/queertech-members-introduction

Most employers want to create a work environment that feels safe for their employees, but the reality of this can often be more complicated than it seems. How do you make sure 2SLGBTQ+ people can be their authentic selves, completely free from all forms of judgement, harassment, or discrimination? 

A properly resourced Employee Resource Group (ERG) with a clear mission and plan is often the most powerful way to create and ensure a safe work environment. While many of the companies QueerTech works with have established at least one ERG for 2SLGBTQ+ employees, it’s not always clear how exactly these groups should be organized and what they should be doing. If you’ve decided that an ERG would be right for your company, but you’re still confused about how it works and how to start one, we’re here to help!

When it comes to ERGs, Accenture sets a stellar example. The company has hundreds of thousands of employees around the world, and it’s dedicated to making sure that all of them feel safe and welcome at work. For example, Accenture’s Pride at Accenture ERG is very large and very active, setting an example for other ERGs at the company, large and small. Here’s how its members do it.

With international borders beginning to open up again, we recognize that some of our readers may be feeling restless and eager to travel. With that in mind, we wanted to resurface the conversation we had with Athena Lam (she/her) about her amazing global professional journey. At the time of our conversation, Athena was a B2B content marketer at Passbase, an identity verification company with offices in Berlin and New York City. Today she is a Senior Content Manager at Pitch where she creates content to help individuals and teams shape, share, and present their best thinking at work. 

She is a board member at Yarrow Intergenerational Society for Justice 世代同行會, based in Vancouver's Chinatown and Planet Ally, a global LGBTQ travel and human rights advocacy platform.

Athena Lam, Senior Content Manager, Editorial, Pitch

QueerTech makes Toronto debut, uniting 2SLGBTQ+ tech talent

Non-profit advocating for diversity, inclusion and belonging in tech expands Canadian footprint.

BIG NEWS: ANNOUNCING QUEERTECH BRAND REFRESH!

ATTENDING THE QAREERS VIRTUAL FAIR? THIS BLOG POST IS FOR YOU!

We are excited to have you join us at the QueerTech Qareers Virtual Fair! We highly recommend that you take a look at all of these event logistics, tips and tools to help your prepare and make the most of your experience.

We can't wait to help you find your newest opportunity as we work to QUEER THE TECH ECOSYSTEM!

CHECK OUT WHO'S HIRING?

Take a moment and check out all of these hiring partners. Click on the link to their website, or check them out on the QT Talent Network. You can also sign right into Brella and find all of the HIRING COMPANIES Virtual Booths.

Hiring companies include: (Presenting) RBC (Pride) Chrome, Loopio, Shopify, Tucows (Ally) AlleyCorp, Chili Piper, Loblaw Companies Limited, Medavie Blue Cross, Moment Factory, Petal, REDspace, Rogers, Sage, Scotiabank, Sun Life Financial, Ubisoft, Unity Technologies, View the Space, (Qmunity) OroHealth, OSEDEA, TouchTunes, Transit, WINK Technologies Inc (Content Partner) Rangle.io

CHECK OUT THESE PARTNERS ON THE QT TALENT NETWORK!

QueerTech Partners with EngiQueers, Providing More Opportunities to 2SLGBTQ+ students in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)

Montréal, March 16th, 2022 - Collaboration is a critical component of increasing the impact of QueerTech’s successful events and expanding their ongoing support for the 2SLGBTQ+ community within STEM. This is why QueerTech is excited to announce that they have partnered with EngiQueers (EQ) Canada, a national non-profit organization that represents over 30 engineering member groups at universities across Canada. EngiQueer Canada's three main focuses are professional development, education and advocacy and education, and building social connections. To achieve these goals, EQ Canada provides equity, diversity and allyship training at all the Canada-wide Engineering Conferences as well as to all our partners. We also host fundraisers to support Queer Initiatives and host networking events throughout the year for students to connect with industry members. 

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QueerTech elects six new Board of Directors to help achieve its mission to “Queer The Tech Ecosystem”

Montreal, February 10th 2022 - Last year was an incredible year of growth for QueerTech and with a new year, comes new opportunities. It is our mission to empower our members to achieve their personal and professional goals by bringing their authentic selves wherever they go, striving to encourage a sense of belonging that comes from both giving and contributing to our communities. We believe in education, in reciprocity, and that everyone has something to teach and learn. By combining all of these factors, we are building strong communities to help Queer people thrive.

QueerTech nomme six nouveaux membres du conseil d'administration pour l'aider à réaliser sa mission : Queering The Tech Ecosystem.

Montréal, le 7 février 2022 - L'année dernière a été une année de croissance exceptionnelle pour QueerTech et, avec une nouvelle année, se présentent de nouvelles opportunités. Notre mission est de donner à nos membres les moyens d'atteindre leurs objectifs personnels et professionnels sans devoir compromettre leur authenticité. Nous croyons à l'éducation, à la réciprocité et au fait que chacun a quelque chose à enseigner et à apprendre. Nous espérons construire des communautés fortes pour aider les personnes se définissant comme “Queer” à s'épanouir.

Looking for a job where you feel safe and secure being yourself can often feel like a daunting task – how do you really know if an employer really comes as advertised? Luckily we’re living in a time when many industries are making diversity and inclusion at work a top priority. Here at QueerTech, we’ve partnered with a variety of companies that have set shining examples with their commitment to making workplaces a safe place for Queer people. One company that’s working hard to blaze the way as a leader in diversity is RBC.