Hosted by Mass. Bay Brewing Co. & the Mass Brewers Guild
Monday, April 25
BOSTON | In an effort to encourage more diversity within the craft beer community, Mass. Bay Brewing Company’s Harpoon Brewery and the Mass Brewers Guild, the state’s trade association that exists to protect and promote the industry, are bringing back the Hop Forward Equality Career Fair on Monday, April 25, 2022.
In October 2019, the inaugural event drew more than 200 candidates to Harpoon Brewery’s taproom and brought together job seekers from underrepresented populations, connecting them to local breweries seeking to expand their talent pools. The event was intended to be yearly, and replicated regionally statewide, but those plans were unfortunately sidelined due to the pandemic.
Determined to not lose all the momentum gained, the two organizations pivoted to launch a diversity and inclusion resource center for the brewing industry - HopForwardEquality.com. The site is home to HR resources, tool kits, terms glossaries, suggested reading, training opportunities and the pilot episode of Black Brew Dialogues, a new travelogue series about the craft beer industry. Now, a year later they’ll team up once again to bring back the signature event that’s at the heart of the collective effort to diversify the trade and help to break down barriers.
“What we hear most often from brewery owners and their recruitment teams is that they’d like to diversify their employee rosters, but they aren’t seeing the applicants come through to apply for their open positions,” says Katie Stinchon, executive director of the Mass Brewers Guild. “Through this career fair we hope to bridge together key partners, diverse candidates, and breweries that are actively working to expand their workforce.”
The groups are working with MassHire, the Massachusetts Association of Community Colleges, Amaru, the Veterans Collaborative, Best Buddies and the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce to attract candidates to learn about the many different career paths available within the state’s breweries. Positions are available from all levels ranging from taproom staff, sales cellar/packaging operators, to marketing roles, graphic designers, operations directors, quality control specialists and brewers – candidates are welcome to come and learn more about the ins and outs of working in a brewery. They’ll hear more about the work environment, how to get started in the field, skills that are valued, opportunities to grow and advance and salary and benefits offerings.
Participating breweries include Aeronaut Brewing Co., Boston Beer Co./Samuel Adams, Castle Island Brewing Co., Democracy Brewing, Jack’s Abby Brewing/Springdale, Lord Hobo Brewing Company, Mass. Bay Brewing Co./Harpoon, Night Shift Brewing, Thirsty Robot Brewing Co., Timberyard Brewing Co. and Trillium Brewing Company.
KeyAnna Schmiedl, global head of diversity at Wayfair
The recruiters and HR executives from these breweries -- as well as any brewery interested in this work -- will have the opportunity to learn from special guest speaker KeyAnna Schmiedl, global head of diversity at Wayfair, before the career fair begins.
Schmiedl is responsible for creating the global DEIB strategy at Wayfair and for weaving inclusivity into critical functions across the organization. This has enabled Wayfair to develop a diverse and engaged workforce. From Intention to Impact, Schmiedl will share her best practices for transforming work environments into places where diversity, equity and belonging become a vital part of the fabric of our company. She'll share that by observing the landscape, creating customized strategies, implementing the plan and adjusting accordingly - results in success for all of us.
This training is one of many being offered to the Massachusetts brewing community throughout the year. Other topics include active by-stander Intervention, de-escalation, sexual harassment and how to effectively respond to employee issues.
“It was important for us to add an educational element to this event. Continued education is critical to ensure that once we attract top talent, that we can retain them on our teams,” says Rich Ackerman, AVP of Human Resources at Mass. Bay Brewing Co. “Our industry is missing out on diverse hands, minds and hearts driving our industry forward. We hope to change that with this concerted effort and by continually reaching into our communities.”
The Hop Forward Career Fair is made possible thanks to the generosity of the Brewers Association, and is open to the public from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Harpoon Brewery located at 306 Northern Ave, Boston, Mass. Free parking is available onsite with numerous overflow options available in the area, including metered parking on Northern Avenue and a parking garage across the street from the brewery (also on Northern Avenue). Public Transportation is provided by the MBTA Silver Line.
Registration is strongly encouraged. Walk-ins welcome. Those interested in attending the career fair can register at Hopfwdcareerfair.eventbrite.com. To learn more, visit HopFowardEquality.com.
Those interested in learning more about how to partner and support Hop Forward Equality or its career fair can reach out to Rich Ackerman at rackerman@harpoon.com or Katie Stinchon at katie@massbrewersguild.org.
*Hop Forward Equality has zero tolerance for racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, discrimination, violence or harassment. We do not tolerate any aggressions or microaggressions against one another. The group utilizes Speakfully, an anonymous third party reporting system to help monitor its events. If you see or hear something, you can locate a poster throughout the venue, scan the QR Code and let us know.
