Douglas Brown

As CEO and co-founder of a certified minority-owned business, Douglas Brown puts DE&I at the heart of everything his business does.

Founded in April 2020, Halo Consulting is an executive search firm that partners with high-growth B2B enterprise SaaS startups. Over the last four years, Brown has observed his clients’ growing desire to hire leaders from diverse backgrounds — and to partner with a search firm that can help them do that. Overall, diverse candidates have accounted for 47% of Halo Consulting’s placements since its inception. “We approach every search as a diversity search,” Brown says.

Halo Consulting’s DE&I efforts aren’t limited to its candidate sourcing strategies. In late 2020, Brown launched a series of monthly virtual roundtables featuring a diverse group of executive leaders. In 2022, the firm introduced a 1:1 executive interview called The Halo Series. In both, participants discuss trending topics at the intersection of DE&I, HR and tech. Speakers and attendees frequently provide the firm with referrals to other diverse candidates. “It’s something we do that’s a little bit outside of the box from other traditional search firms,” Brown explains.

You have to start somewhere [when it comes to improving DE&I efforts]. The first step is the most important.

Halo’s HBCU partnership initiative is another example of Brown’s commitment to DE&I. The firm hosts career coaching sessions at historically Black colleges and universities to help graduating students prepare for the corporate world. Brown and his team share tips for scenarios such as preparing for a Zoom interview and compiling a résumé. They also help participants understand what to expect from their first job search out of college.

Reflecting on the advice he would give to companies on improving their DE&I efforts, Brown recommends a pragmatic approach. “You have to start somewhere,” he points out. Leaning on the expertise of DE&I practitioners can help you get from point A to point B, he says. As for the future, Brown and Halo Consulting will continue their work in the DE&I space, helping executives, startups and other companies focus on growing their teams through a diverse lens.