Makeda Hope-Crichlow - Nominee for Exceptional Leader Award

Makeda Hope-Crichlow is a Manager of Programs for the Early & Emerging Talent Team at Zillow. Makeda gained degrees from Colorado State University and the University of Washington before landing at Zillow. In her current role, she is responsible for ensuring the equitable application of strategies to ensure all intern programs are intentionally designed, thoughtfully executed, and demographically reflective of the communities Zillow serves, whether that is through internal programming or external partnerships. Makeda is deeply passionate about DEIB work, and is also the co-chair of Billow, Zillow's Black employee network.

Career Highlight

In 2021, Makeda led a cross-functional working team to develop and launch Zillow’s first hackathon for students attending a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). Under Makeda’s leadership, the team launched this initiative by creating program guidelines, a hackathon challenge, workshops, and more! Due to these efforts, there were more than 180 registrants for the inaugural event. A big part of what made the program successful was how the team cultivated synergistic relationships with leadership at HBCUs and external organizations like the UNCF, who have a shared goal of engaging Black students interested in tech careers. The HBCU Hackathon was just one endeavor to display Zillow’s continued commitment to empowering HBCU students to live out their dreams and purpose in technology.