My All-POC Team Set The Standard For Inclusive Workplaces

Everyone in my team is a person of color (POC). Before joining this company, I had unconsciously dimmed my ideas, opinions, and a huge part of myself. Working in an industry that’s 94% white, I’d absorbed the belief that stories about race and identity didn’t always need to be told— or perhaps I was making too big a deal of them.

My all-POC team changed that for me. It set a new standard for what I expect from the workplace.

Feeling Like I’m “Too Much”

As a journalism student at university, I often felt like a burden for regularly pitching stories about race and societal issues. No one explicitly said it, and my ideas were usually approved, but as a mixed-race woman and the only person of color in my class, I carried that sense of being “too much.”

That feeling followed me into my internships, early jobs in hospitality, internships, and even  my first “big girl job” at a magazine, where, again, I was often  the only person of color on the team. Then, I came across a tech reporter role for a company that worked to amplify the stories of  people of color.

I didn’t know at the time that the entire team was POC, but their name and work stood out to me, and I thought, Could I really write about the things that truly mattered to me? After getting the role, I realized I could—I absolutely could.

The power of belonging

Two years later, while working on an all-POC team isn’t a requirement for every job, it has set a standard for what I seek in future workplaces. And here’s why.

As a Black journalist, I feel a responsibility to represent and tell the stories of those who are marginalized or underrepresented in mainstream media. That’s one of the main reasons I entered the industry, and I try to reflect this in my work every day—whether through my day job, freelance work, or podcast.

When I first graduated and began interviewing for jobs, I was already feeling apprehensive about how often I could “speak my truth” in a predominantly white field. I remember one interview in particular. I was sitting in a stuffy room with two white male tech journalists when they asked the standard question: “Why did you want to be a journalist?”

I answered honestly, explaining my passion for storytelling and my desire to make a difference—yes, it might sound cliché, but I meant it. I shared that I understood I was a beginner and would need to build my career, but I was open about what drove me.

You can imagine the punch in the stomach when they laughed at my answer. They asked me, “But why did you really want to be a journalist?”

That moment stuck with me. A recent study showed that 52% of young Black people see the lack of diversity in leadership as a major barrier to employment, and I experienced that firsthand. At the time, I laughed along awkwardly and gave them a generic answer to save face. Today, I would stand by my original response with confidence.

Being part of an all-POC team has allowed me to bring my full self to work. I get to fulfill my daily responsibilities while also exploring my passions and interests in journalism. I’ve never been laughed at for caring about making a difference. Not every pitch I make gets accepted, but there’s always constructive feedback and an understanding of why these topics matter. There’s respect all the way around.

Wellbeing and support in the workplace

Working with an all-POC team has shown me that diversity isn’t just about representation—it’s necessary for mental well-being, too. There’s a sense of shared understanding and compassion that’s crucial in navigating difficult times.

In previous jobs, I struggled with boundaries and often found myself people-pleasing due to low self-esteem or feeling like I wasn’t good enough for the role. This led me to overcompensate.

Take, for example, the racist violence that broke out across the UK this summer. For people of color, it was an incredibly frightening and triggering time. But for journalists of color, the pressure was even more intense, with the added responsibility of covering these events while personally processing the trauma.

On the day the main riots were expected to reach my city, my manager sent out a message, urging us to be vigilant, stay indoors, and prioritize our safety. It felt different from similar messages I had received in previous roles from non-POC colleagues. Not because those people didn’t care, but because they didn’t fully understand the depth of fear I was feeling. When my manager, a Black man, sent that message, it felt like there was a level of solidarity and shared experience.

Later that day, my editor checked in on everyone through our group chat. When I admitted that I was feeling distressed—something I was able to do because I felt emotionally safe within the team—I was met with empathy. She responded with a list of resources, tips, and strategies she was using to cope. The fact that she, a Black woman, acknowledged her own struggles was comforting in itself. We were also encouraged to take time to decompress, with extra break time offered, and our mental health was prioritized during that extremely triggering period.

This experience gave me the confidence to set boundaries in my freelance work. I let my other gigs know that I needed additional time to complete assignments because I was dealing with anxiety and fear, with my immediate priority being my safety while moving around London. Before my role at POCIT, I would never have had the confidence to speak up for myself in that way. I would have likely sidelined my mental well-being to people-please.

A New Standard for Inclusive Workplaces

Working in an all-POC team didn’t just shape how I handled that role—it transformed how I view myself as a professional and what I expect from the workplaces I join. It set a new standard for how teams should operate: with empathy, understanding, and respect for the mental well-being of their members, especially during difficult times. A truly inclusive workplace isn’t just about hiring diverse talent—it’s about creating environments where people can thrive, feel understood, and have their voices heard.

I no longer feel the need to people-please or compromise my mental health for a job. I now seek out workplaces where I can bring my full self to the table, and I’ve learned to recognize when an environment doesn’t meet the standards of care and inclusivity I know are possible.

This experience has also given me the confidence to use my voice and own my passion unapologetically. I no longer dim my ideas or downplay my beliefs—I stand by them, knowing they have value.