Patchwork Hub: Building our Technical Innovation

贝丝·库姆-霍兰德是Patchwork Hub的创始人兼首席执行官，这是一个由残疾人、女性领导的社会企业和科技平台，致力于创造一个更无障碍、更包容的未来工作。Patchwork Hub是在哈佛大学担任肯尼迪学者期间的亲身经历发展而来的，自那以来一直在颠覆科技和招聘领域，通过其招聘和咨询服务引领一场无障碍工作革命。正如联合国可持续发展目标所指出的那样，“人人都有体面的工作”是我们这个时代最紧迫的社会和经济挑战之一。在英国，有100万残疾人愿意并有能力工作，但由于传统实践中的障碍而无法工作。这不仅仅是残疾人--照顾者、父母和每个能够在适合他们需求的工作环境中更好地成长的人都是如此。当人们被不必要地边缘化时，受到惩罚的不只是他们：作为一个社会，我们都错过了。与我们的需求相适应的工作可以为每个人带来经济和社会效益。这一核心目标支撑着拼凑中心的社会使命。大流行后，世界发生了变化，但我们的工作模式并没有跟上。在我们的“新常态”中，有机会重新评估我们的主流工作方式和中心的可达性，引入一个“隐藏的人才库”。这就是拼凑中心的创新之处。在其原型成功的基础上，该项目将开发拼凑而成的Hub强大的、可访问的就业平台和技术基础设施，并为雇主设计更多经认证的服务。它将定位拼凑而成的Hub来颠覆该行业，并迅速扩大其增长规模。在疫情大流行期间，照顾者、父母和残疾人失业的可能性是前者的两倍多，而残疾人就业缺口为28%。现在，我们比以往任何时候都更需要创造一个包容的、可进入的未来工作，把以前被排除在外的群体引入进来。打破这些障碍的拼凑中心将是第一个这样的中心，它将引领隐藏人才库在工作和无障碍方面的文化变革。贝丝最近被Shaw Trust Power 100评为“英国最有影响力的残疾人之一”。有了这个奖项提供的平台和她作为榜样的工作，贝丝希望鼓励更多的女性和残疾女性参与创新和创业，将这个项目的影响扩展到拼凑中心本身的工作之外。

Beth Kume-Holland is the award-winning founder and CEO of Patchwork Hub, a disabled-led, female-led social enterprise and tech platform working to create a more accessible and inclusive future of work.Developed out of her lived experience while a Kennedy Scholar at Harvard University, Patchwork Hub has since been disrupting the tech and recruitment sector, leading an accessible working revolution through its recruitment and consultancy services.As noted in the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, 'decent work for all' is one of the most pressing societal and economic challenges of our time. In the UK, there are 1 million disabled people willing and able to work, but who are unable to because of barriers in conventional practice. And it's not just disabled people - it's carers, parents, and everyone who could thrive better in work environments fitted around their needs. When people are needlessly marginalised it's not only them that are punished: as a society we all miss out. Fitting work around our needs can unlock economic and societal benefits for everyone. This core aim underpins the social mission of Patchwork Hub.Post-pandemic, the world has changed, but our model of work has not caught up. In our 'new normal' there's an opportunity to re-evaluate our mainstream ways of working and centre accessibility, bringing in a 'hidden talent pool'.This is where Patchwork Hub's innovation comes in. Building on the success of its prototype, this project will develop Patchwork Hub's robust, accessible job platform and tech infrastructure and devise additional accredited services for employers. It will position Patchwork Hub to disrupt the sector and rapidly scale its growth.Carers, parents and disabled people were 'more than twice as likely' to lose their job during the pandemic, while the disability employment gap stands at 28%. Now more than ever we need to create an inclusive, accessible future of work that brings in previously excluded groups. Breaking down these barriers, Patchwork Hub will be the first of its kind, leading a culture change in work and accessibility for the hidden talent pool.Beth was recently named in the Shaw Trust Power 100 as one of the 'most influential disabled people in the UK'. With the platform afforded by this award and her work as a role model, Beth hopes to encourage more women, and disabled women, into innovation and entrepreneurship, extending the impact of this project beyond the work of Patchwork Hub itself.