Brilliant Detroit’s office culture is welcoming and supportive. It’s clear that the employees care about each other and people genuinely seem to enjoy and value the work they do. The nonprofit’s flat organizational structure conveys a welcoming message to its employees– the CEO wants everyone to feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and opinions with each other, regardless of their seniority within the organization.
I also respect their culturally sensitive approach to hiring. The organization’s overall plan is to create community centers in neighborhoods in Detroit focused on success for kids aged 0-8. To do this, they make it a priority to hire people from within the neighborhood. By doing so, people in the neighborhoods have a face that they are often already familiar with working with Brilliant, and the nonprofit is avoiding the (many, many) problems that come along with placing an outsider into a neighborhood with the intent of “helping.”
