On the morning of December 21st, Bryant learned that she could no longer access her work e-mail. She was suspended indefinitely by the board of directors of the nonprofit organization she founded a decade ago.
Bryant said that the organization you created and built from the ground up has been taken away by a rogue board with no notification. Bryant responded to her removal in a formal statement.
The founder and CEO of Black Girls Code has not done anything unethical, immoral, or illegal. The fight for me is about giving rights to founders, especially women in leadership, as a founder who has built something from her own blood, sweat, and tears. We must be treated fairly. Bryant said that the entire process has been dishonest and unlawful.
The Black Girls Code board of directors formed a special committee to review and evaluate complaints made by current and former employees about Bryant. Bryant was placed on paid administrative leave last week to ensure a full and fair review of the complaints.
Bryant identified Heather Hiles, founder of edtech company Pathbrite, as the person who decided to suspend her without fair investigation or substantiated allegations. Hiles replied in a text message that the board has a fiduciary responsibility to protect the organization and the well-being of its staff. The recent activities are a result of following through.
The board wouldn't comment on if there was an investigation, the process of Bryant's suspension, or if the founder was given any notice before being put on leave. The board refused to comment on the review's timetable.
The ad hoc committee of the board of directors requested an attorney to conduct an investigation after the founder approved a payment. The board said in a statement that it has formed a special committee to review and evaluate the complaints and determine what, if any, action should be taken with respect to these concerns. The committee is made up of board members.
Black Girls Code was founded by Bryant in February of 2011. The nonprofit has established 15 chapter cities in the U.S. and abroad and has hosted technology workshops, hackathons and other enrichment opportunities for over 30,000 Black girls.
Senior sources at the company say that Black Girl Code's vice president of programming is serving as interim CEO. Mohammed hasn't responded to a request for comment.
A mix of emotions.
Five former employees of Black Girls Code spoke to TechCrunch out of fear of being retaliated against. The board decided to look into the company culture after a summer of rapid turnover, with many individuals citing Bryant as a key reason for leaving.
Bryant said the turnover was due to distributed work. We had a lot of turnover in the last year mostly from people we hired while virtual in 2020. She said in a text message that they were not spared the great resignation.
Two former employees who spent months at the organization in leadership capacities say Bryant's leadership style was to blame for employee turnover. They say that when Bryant was there, she would berate managers within meetings, calling them incompetent and urging them to go back to school when they couldn't deliver.
Bryant pointed out that she hired consultants to build a compensation policy that weighed the years of experience of employees over the number of degrees. It isn't something I place a high value on as a techie in an industry where not everyone needs a degree.
One employee said that Bryant used to say, "you're not living up to my expectations of what you should be," even though she wouldn't give them independent access to productivity tools. They said that new employees were not allowed to access key information about the community they were tasked with serving, including names, ages and history. Bryant was absent from the daily operations in pursuit of media appearances, as well as the lack of a process for new hires.
One of the former employees said that people stayed because they figured out the workarounds. If you could figure out how to execute your work even without access to specific systems, you would be fine. Bryant said that BGC just completed a five-year strategy plan with the Bridgespan Group that addresses operational concerns and includes strategies around what databases employees have access to. The founder doesn't have control over who can access what.
A recently resigned employee had mixed emotions.
They said that they know how it is perceived to take down a black person. That is not what we want to accomplish. We want the organization to have good leadership that can continue the growth of our work.
They said they left the company due to consulting their therapist. It is a betrayal to work for an organization that is trying to change how you are treated, valued and appreciated.
Bryant said that he is a bit of a perfectionist and that he is driven. I have never abused anyone for the org I built out of love. Don't ever believe that. It is not true.
Checks and balances.
Sources close to the matter say that resignations and a number of negative Glassdoor reviews caused the founder to hire Edgility consulting to do a salary study and address staff concerns. The consultation was launched in June and finished in December according to a document obtained by the website. The findings were not made public.
Bryant hired an executive coach after complaints against the nonprofit's culture surfaced, according to a report.
Monterroso said that she and Bryant met for 90 minutes every other week to discuss culture and operations at the company. Before the leadership change, Monterroso was not contacted. The board has yet to confirm if it has hired an external firm, reviewed salary structures or brought in a board consultant.
Monterroso believes that the story is about systemic complexity that is popping up for leaders of color. Poor conditions for our leaders and our teams to succeed with their dignity intact is not about any one organization or individual.
Bryant is still employed at the nonprofit, but she doesn't have access to her company e-mail or internal platforms. Bryant says current employees and contractors were told that they would be fired if they communicated with him.
Bryant said in the statement that he believes in proper board/corporate governance and that checks and balances of power and support have been put in place at BGC. I have not been treated fairly or justly, and there is nothing about how this matter was handled that is appropriate.
Current and former Black Girls Code employees can reach out to Natasha Mascarenhas by e-mail at natasha.m@techcrunch.com or by using the secure messaging app Signal.
