BCB Group Partners with Makers to Offer Women More Opportunities in Tech

BCB Group has partnered with tech specialist career launch platform and training provider Makers to help bridge the gender gap in the tech industry and make tech a more accessible and inclusive career path for all.

In a bid to drive more diversity in the tech sector, Makers has over the last 9 years been encouraging and empowering women to learn to code and launch careers in software via its  affordable short-term immersive coding bootcamp and apprenticeships. 

It’s 16-week bootcamp is available to anyone over 18, and at £8,500 it’s an affordable and accessible alternative to an undergraduate course for school leavers and career switches alike. 

Sessions are run by leading tech engineers who prepare candidates for the real world of work and give them the skills and confidence to add value from day one at well-established companies, such as crypto business banking partner BCB Group.

Makers also runs scholarships throughout the year with community partners such as Coding Black Females, Muslamic Makers, Codebar, and free skills bootcamps as part of the Government’s Skills for Life initiative. In fact 67% of Makers Alumni have gained free training with Makers via scholarships, traineeships, and apprenticeships.

Katie Crichton, Head of Partnerships at Makers commented about what they’re doing to help support women who want to get into tech: 

‘Our mission is to make a career in tech truly accessible to all and by doing so really change the face of tech. We empower and encourage women to career switch into tech at any point in their lives and with no prior experience. Working with many community partners such as Coding Black Females and hiring partners like BCB group we offer scholarships and opportunities to women who otherwise would not be able to afford to retrain. We also hold our annual Women in Software Awards to build accessible and visible role models for women within the industry. Currently, 46% of our alumni are women, and 54% are from underrepresented ethnic backgrounds in tech – far higher than the industry standard.’ 

BCB Group, a leading crypto-dedicated payment services provider, has so far hired 6 Makers graduates, and intends to continue to hire more women in the future, including sponsoring 3 new female Makers graduates who will join the software engineering team. The London-based company’s Tech Team currently comprises 18% women, which is a disparity they are working hard to rectify in line with their commitment to diversity, supporting women in technology, and building a more inclusive financial system.

Full Stack Engineers at BCB Group, Florence Bain and Corinne Bösch, share how Makers and BCB Group have allowed them to progress in their careers and be in an environment that’s great for women to work in.

Florence Bain said: 

‘Joining Makers was one of the best decisions I ever made, and I cannot praise Makers enough for their support and focus on wellbeing. The coaches and staff provided me with the tools and knowledge to prepare myself and others for a career as a software developer. The transition from studying to my first role at BCB Group was almost seamless – the morning stand-ups, pairing practices as well as lone working were so familiar. 

‘BCB Group has been great at allowing me to work within a team that offers support and guidance, pushing me to improve my trade as a developer. The transition from my previous customer service-based role has been beneficial and has given me the interpersonal skills to communicate with my team and work with some truly amazing developers. 

‘I feel very fortunate to work for a company that is growing rapidly but is also so focused on supporting its staff to develop by offering access to online courses and time to dedicate to learning and growing professionally.’

Corinne Bösch said: 

‘One of Makers’ best selling points is their extensive career coaching support after graduating. As part of the programme, their team introduced us to a wide range of job opportunities through their carefully selected hiring partners that share their values. 

‘I was fortunate enough that BCB is one of Makers’ exclusive hiring partners, where they went above and beyond by providing continuous support and integrating me in the best way possible. 

‘Once my role with BCB was confirmed, my curriculum was adapted to the specific needs of my role within Labs at BCB, which helped me tremendously acclimate to my new environment.’