Our History
Diversifying Group was founded in 2015 as BAME Recruitment.
Cynthia Davis began her business, with a new baby in tow, determined to make the world a fairer place. With her own experience as a woman of colour, BAME Recruitment was named due to the historic marginalisation of Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities in the UK.
Since its inception, BAME Recruitment have gone from strength to strength. In 2016, we partnered with our first high-profile client, the House of Commons, and supported the hiring of the first ever woman and person of colour to the Speaker’s Counsel. The BAME Recruitment team began to expand to support the growing demand.
In 2017, BAME Recruitment became an exclusive partner to the Mayor of London
…a huge milestone and a relationship we still maintain today. We were quickly recognised for our new, inclusive approach to recruitment, and were awarded the Rising Star award by the Sunday Times. Many more exciting clients joined our vision in these early days, such as Comic Relief, The Guardian and The Museum of London.
In 2019, BAME Recruitment launched the tech platform Diversifying.io
… a job board that puts diversity initiatives and workplace wellbeing front and center. Diversifying.io met the needs of a more discerning job market, where candidates were ready to hold organisations accountable for the values they hold and the type of workplaces they foster. The platform has grown rapidly, now attracting over 40,000 visitors a month and boasting vacancies across all sectors with employers from NBC Universal to Macmillan Cancer Support to Virgin Atlantic.
As our client list grew rapidly and in increasingly diverse areas, our own journey developed and adapted too. As BAME Recruitment, our mission was to support organisations to welcome diversity of all kinds into their teams and cement inclusive hiring practices. In the years since, we’ve been on a journey, adapting and evolving to be the most inclusive and authentic organisation possible.
Our services grew and expanded far beyond recruitment
It became clear that organisations needed help in addition to the recruitment stage to make a long-lasting impact, and we knew we had the expertise to help. BAME Recruitment’s services grew along with this demand to encompass Consulting, Training, Events, Recruitment Marketing and Diversity Partnerships. Happily, we outgrew BAME Recruitment to become the destination for comprehensive and authentic Diversity and Inclusion Services: Diversifying Group.
The expansion of our services falls on very fertile ground. Society is ready for change and we truly believe that most organisations have the good intentions to improve their diversity and inclusion strategies, they just need a little help. Expanding on BAME Recruitment’s services allows Diversifying Group to be that critical friend on every step of the journey; from inclusive job adverts to recruitment drives, from training programmes to running events. Our Diversity Partnership offering, developed over the last couple of years, now allows us to nurture long-term holistic partnerships with a comprehensive package of Diversity and Inclusion Services available to clients. Organisations such as eBay, Diageo and Metro Bank are currently taking advantage of this offering.
We welcome in a new age as Diversifying Group
Ultimately, we felt that BAME Recruitment was no longer a name representative of our mission, and with the increasing rejection of the ‘BAME’ acronym, it no longer felt appropriate to perpetuate its use. The conversation for us regarding the label and our application of it has been ongoing for some time, and we’ve been listening closely to feedback from you and the changing world around us. Cynthia originally named BAME Recruitment in response to her own lived experiences, however, we understand that the acronym may well have outgrown its relevance in our society today. Now, and always, we strive to be truly representative of the people and communities we serve.
We have always, and will always, welcome candidates from ALL backgrounds and characteristics. We’ve come a long way, as has the world around us, and we’re thrilled to welcome in a new age as Diversifying Group.
