• Dani Allen is the global director of talent acquisition at Ancestry.
• Allen uses workflow software, CRM systems, and AI to make the recruiting process more diverse.
• Allen also collaborates with nonprofits to attract more diverse talent.
• This article is part of "Talent Insider," a series containing expert advice to help business owners tackle a variety of hiring challenges.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Dani Allen, the global director of talent acquisition for the tech company, Ancestry. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

I've been in recruiting for 27 years, and now I'm the global director of talent acquisition at Ancestry. In June, I will have been with the company for three years, and it has been an amazing experience.

I'm responsible for global talent acquisition from international to product and technology, two very large organizations, and the corporate recruiting and sciences side. We talk about the company's direction and what's on the road map, and then I build the road map for talent acquisition according to where the company is going.

One area the company is focusing on is diversity. The CEO has doubled down on her efforts and commitment to diversifying the workforce, ensuring everybody who comes through has an equitable experience, but recruiting diverse talent comes with unique challenges. Our approved states-to-hire policy sometimes limits the geographical diversity we can tap into. Despite the growing trend of remote work, this restriction can exclude potential candidates who could bring a wealth of diverse experiences and perspectives to the organization simply because of their location.

Another challenge is that when you work in tech, recruiting talent from tech giants may bring proven experience but may also narrow the pipeline for highly skilled individuals from less renowned organizations. This often means missing out on diverse talent that thrives outside the tech-giant ecosystem.

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