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The Pillars of an Award-Winning Program
Affirm was selected as a 2023 Campus Forward Award Winner for their unwavering commitment to seeking out and hiring early career talent, their emphasis on diversity & inclusion, and investments in nurturing and retaining the next generation of talent. Please see below for the highlights of their approach to early career recruitment.
Demonstrated Investment in Early Career Hiring
Affirm recognizes the importance of investing in its talent, as it’s a key point of strength and will define the company’s success for years to come. With a value of “People Come First”, Affirm dedicates itself to creating opportunities and pathways for individuals to pursue their ambition. The company’s commitment to cultivating the passion and potential of early career talent is also evident through the increasing amount of involvement from employees year-after-year — including the CEO who takes the time to speak to students as well as early career folks at Affirm.
Innovative and Multi-Faceted Approach to University Recruitment
Affirm’s University Recruiting team organizes virtual events to make sessions more accessible to students across different schools and regions. To increase engagement, the team asks students in advance what they’re interested in learning about and what they often struggle with during interviews. From there, the team outlines the content of their events based on students’ responses, while incorporating other discussion topics like financial literacy, mental wellness, and imposter syndrome. Affirm employees lead most events and host “office hours” for students to ask questions on how to best prepare for interviews and learn about different career paths at the company. Additionally, employees make themselves available to students for any coffee chats and informational calls. The University Recruiting team also shares extensive resources for candidates to learn about Affirm’s exciting early career programs and its offerings through blog posts, testimonials, and videos.
Overarching Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion
Affirm believes that the financial industry works better for everyone when it’s fair, honest, and inclusive — which is why the University Recruiting team is passionate about connecting with diverse talent. Rather than targeting specific schools, the team engages with underrepresented students through on-campus organizations from schools across the country. The team has been investing in relationships year-round with diversity-focused organizations like Rewriting the Code, the Hidden Genius Project, and CUNY Tech Prep, while engaging its communities with Affirm’s Employee Resource Groups through Hackathons and mentorship opportunities. Efforts have increased in creating a more inclusive and equitable hiring process by reevaluating interview questions, ensuring prep materials and resources are accessible to all students, and connecting candidates with Affirmers of similar backgrounds. In supporting Affirm’s commitment to diverse merchants, interns also participate in a case study where they serve as consultants on how to onboard diverse merchants.
Impactful Internship Program
With the support of managers and mentors, Affirm is a great place for interns to begin their careers as they’re given challenging projects that directly impact the business, merchants, and consumers. The University Recruiting team invests in their growth through a series of professional development workshops to uplevel their skillset, as well as exclusive facetime with executives to gain insight into the strategic direction of Affirm and receive advice on how to be successful in their careers. Despite being remote, interns build their communities through various social programs, including icebreaker events with randomly assigned Affirmers, an Affirm Cares Hackathon, and events led by Employee Resource Groups and Community Groups. There are also intern spotlights and presentations that showcase how much Affirm values its interns. With the amount of time and resources dedicated to different aspects of the program, interns express their desire to return to Affirm full-time.
Growth and Development of the Next Generation of Talent
As a rapidly growing financial technology company, Affirm recognizes the importance of investing in employees early in their careers. Even before joining Affirm, full-time hires are kept engaged through company updates and events, as well as social mixers to build excitement leading up to their start dates. During this time, managers prepare a 30-60-90 day plan to set up their new hires for success. Alongside the company’s onboarding program, new hires also attend onboarding courses specific to their roles to gain a better understanding of what’s expected of them. With an emphasis on developing leadership within, Affirm provides access to Udemy, online learning & development courses, and mentorship programs. Additionally, new hires are encouraged to join Affirm’s Employee Resource Groups and Community Groups to continue building their mentorship and community. Through career-building experiences and clear pathways for upward mobility, Affirm helps drive entry-level hires to reach their full potential.