Startups

‘We’re working together to help DC be cool’: 1776’s Dominique Taylor on hiring in DC

After discovering the D.C. startup scene a few years ago, Taylor is all in.

Startups working at 1776. (Photo by Tajha Chappellet-Lanier)

Before Dominique Taylor found out about EverFi, she had no idea there were startups in the District. “It honestly didn’t occur to me that startups could exist in D.C.,” she said. But now, five years later and in position as Managing Director of talent and culture at 1776, Taylor is all in.

Taylor started her career in strategy consulting, working in Boston before moving back to D.C. for a job at the Advisory Board Company. There she worked on “workforce fulfillment” — attracting and retaining talent at healthcare organizations. But when she heard about local edtech startup EverFi, her interest was piqued. She found her way into a recruiting role there and worked her way up to senior vice president of talent and culture. In October 2016 she jumped ship for 1776 — attracted to the opportunity to share her expertise with startups around the world.

We sat down with Taylor to ask about the good, the bad and the inspiring of attracting talent and building culture within startups in the District.

In terms of the good, Taylor said, “you have incredibly smart people” in D.C., and candidates tend to be looking for a specific kind of opportunity — the fast pace of startup life with a healthy side of doing good. This is attractive to Taylor from a talent-retention standpoint, as there tends to be less hopping between opportunities than she sees in Silicon Valley.

The downside? “Engineers are always hard to find,” she said, with a shrug that suggests this may be more status quo than anything. And then there’s the more challenging issue to address — the fact that D.C. can struggle to be seen as an innovative type of place. The city’s close ties to the federal space — its brand as a government town, if you will — mean D.C. has to overcome any negative feelings one may have toward a federal administration.

Changing this image is a constant work in progress.

But at the end of the day what Taylor really appreciates about D.C. is the fact that it’s a collaborative environment. Two or three years ago, she told Technical.ly, she started going to HR events in the area. At one of these events she connected with the head of HR at Optoro, and the two decided to start a group of their own — a group aimed at sharing best practices and lessons on hiring in this city. “We don’t really see ourselves as competing with each other,” Taylor said. The more good talent is attracted to D.C., the better for everyone. “It’s sort of like we’re working together to help D.C. be cool.”

Speaking of which, Technical.ly DC has its own “cool” jobs fair coming up. Check out NET/WORK on March 29.

Get tickets
Companies: 76 Forward

Before you go...

Please consider supporting Technical.ly to keep our independent journalism strong. Unlike most business-focused media outlets, we don’t have a paywall. Instead, we count on your personal and organizational support.

3 ways to support our work:
  • Contribute to the Journalism Fund. Charitable giving ensures our information remains free and accessible for residents to discover workforce programs and entrepreneurship pathways. This includes philanthropic grants and individual tax-deductible donations from readers like you.
  • Use our Preferred Partners. Our directory of vetted providers offers high-quality recommendations for services our readers need, and each referral supports our journalism.
  • Use our services. If you need entrepreneurs and tech leaders to buy your services, are seeking technologists to hire or want more professionals to know about your ecosystem, Technical.ly has the biggest and most engaged audience in the mid-Atlantic. We help companies tell their stories and answer big questions to meet and serve our community.
The journalism fund Preferred partners Our services
Engagement

Join our growing Slack community

Join 5,000 tech professionals and entrepreneurs in our community Slack today!

Trending

19 tech and entrepreneurship events to check out before the holidays

EDA officials are ‘hopeful’ Tech Hubs program will live on under Trump

DC’s year in tech: An interactive timeline for 2024

AI is being used in more and more of the hiring process, especially at high-volume companies

Technically Media