In normal times, Vadim Lobarev would spend his day sifting through job candidates’ CVs, filtering out the best from the worst. Today he’s stationed at a Ukrainian military checkpoint, rifle in hand, trying to filter out harmless, civilian passers by from Russian informants who might be sending intelligence to the country’s invaders.
The 41-year-old is the founder of Kyiv-based tech recruitment company Mindhunt, but now he’s put down his laptop to take up arms for his country’s Territorial Defence unit.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, the Ukrainian government has appealed to its citizens to join the defence effort, and many from the country’s growing tech community have answered the call.
- Vadim Lobarev, founder of recruitment company MindHunt, has stopped sifting through job applications and instead taken up arms for the Territorial Defence unit.
- Meanwhile Daria Aleksieieva, marketing manager at no-code startup Popup, is now making more Molotov cocktails than coffees.
This is now daily life for thousands of Ukrainian tech workers. Tim Smith and Éanna Kelly spoke to them to find out how they’re coping – read the stories via Sifted
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There are several other organizations to support:
- Army SOS, which develops drones;
- Everybody Can, an organization that supports internally displaced people;
- Help on the Ministry of Defense website.