One Friday in June, the staff at Optimizely spent much of their workday discussing history.
The date was June 19, otherwise known as Juneteenth, a holiday that celebrates the emancipation of enslaved people in the United States. Instead of letting the holiday pass without mention, the Optimizely team paused and spent the day educating one another on the past and its impact on the present. They discussed the significance of that day, the Black Lives Matter movement, white privilege, what defunding the police meant and how to talk to children about racism.
“It was a powerful moment for me personally,” Gabriel Galarza, lead enterprise engagement manager at Optimizely, said. “Our leadership was not only strongly supportive, but active participants in these sessions.”
Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) has become a greater priority for local tech companies in 2020. Many are bringing on dedicated staff or creating employee-led committees to drive DEI initiatives forward in more intentional ways. We interviewed four professionals from San Francisco tech to learn more about what they think the industry needs to do to address its DEI problems, and how they’re making an impact at their organizations.
At online learning platform Course Hero, Emmanuel Matthews, a program manager, said building a more diverse and inclusive environment isn’t just one person’s job. “It’s a collective responsibility of all employees,” he said, which should be visible at the macro and micro level, from hiring practices to how meetings are run.
What's the number one thing every tech company should do right now to improve diversity in their organization?
No single person or group should be solely responsible for building an equitable company. Organizations ignore the fact that while leaders do have a disproportionate impact on the company, diversity (or a lack thereof) is a byproduct of decisions made by every employee every single day. For instance, engineering and product executives must set the mandate of using non-traditional sourcing and hiring methods to build a diverse hiring pipeline into their hiring and product development goals for their teams. All too often, executives overload their teams with stretch goals, requiring the hiring managers to hire as fast as possible to meet demand.
What's the number one thing every tech company should do right now to improve inclusivity and/or equity in their organization?
Principles of inclusion are regularly bundled into a “citizenship” category of performance calibration, which, in practice, tends to be overlooked during the performance and promotion evaluation process. A company or team that is inclusive is not so because it makes proclamations and statements about diversity, but because it consistently demonstrates this commitment at the micro-level. It’s visible in the way they run meetings, communicate, promote and plan. It is a byproduct of the consistent reinforcement of psychological safety, intentional design and follow-through by every member of a team.
Of all the DEI initiatives you've led, which has been the most impactful?
Establishing founding teams within your organization that are intentionally diverse is one of the most effective ways to scale equitably. By doing this, you create an opportunity for new, diverse and inclusive sub-cultures to emerge within your organization. There is also a significant benefit of the inertia of organic growth as diverse teams have an easier time hiring and retaining diverse employees. When combined with the reality that these founding teams tend to be in areas with high growth potential, they create a genuine opportunity to change your organization’s employee composition naturally.
At Optimizely, an experimentation platform that enables businesses to deliver continuous experimentation and personalization across websites, mobile apps and connected devices, actions speak louder than words. Just ask Gabriel Galarza, a lead enterprise engagement manager, who said that actionable steps are the only ways in which a company can truly create a strong environment for DEI.
What's the number one thing every tech company should do right now to improve diversity in their organization?
Step one is to take a look in the mirror as a company and ask, “Are we a diverse organization? What are our diversity metrics?” After taking that hard look, you can identify if there's a problem (data shows that this is likely the case in tech) and how big the problem is. From there, all of leadership needs to be all in on remedying the lack of diversity, and not just leave it to the lead diversity officer. Accountability for each leader’s commitment should be set and transparent across the organization.
Step one is to take a look in the mirror as a company and ask, 'Are we a diverse organization?'”
What's the number one thing every tech company should do right now to improve inclusivity and/or equity in their organization?
Acknowledge the faults of not addressing inclusivity, take responsibility and form a solution. Create open forums to share concern, and when someone is given the platform to share their voice, ensure that there's no repercussions or retaliation. Retaliation, especially by leadership, can amplify the fear and distrust of already unheard individuals, rather than amplifying their voices for speaking out.
Of all the DEI initiatives you've led, which has been the most impactful?
Our Juneteenth Day of Action was a powerful moment for me personally as we were given the day to educate one another on important conversations that often feel like they can’t be had at work. We spoke on the history of Juneteenth, the unequal impact of environmental changes on BIPOC, white privilege, talking to children about racism, Black LGBTQ equality and what defunding the police means. Most importantly, our leadership was not only strongly supportive, but active participants in these sessions. I’m also excited to see Optimizely participate at AfroTech for the first time. AfroTech is one of the largest multicultural tech conferences with a focus on highlighting the Black tech community.
At Clari, a company that helps organizations make better business decisions with access to real-time actionable analytics and predictive insights, job candidates don’t require a college degree. That’s just one action Candi Kennedy implemented as head of talent, understanding that degrees aren’t easily accessible to all people.
What's the number one thing every tech company should do right now to improve diversity in their organization?
Lead with diversity in all areas of the organization: leadership, management, hiring and marketing collateral. Take a data-driven approach to finding weak spots, and constantly ask, “Where are we lacking diversity?”
What's the number one thing every tech company should do right now to improve inclusivity and/or equity in their organization?
Appreciate and truly hear the experiences of the diverse voices in the company. Don’t make assumptions on what equality and inclusion means to them. Ensure promotions, transfers, visible projects and opportunities are made available to those who don’t normally raise their hands. Purposefully take the time to uncover, recognize and reward their accomplishments.
Of all the DEI initiatives you've led, which has been the most impactful?
One of the most impactful things I’ve implemented is removing college degree requirements. As data shows, access to a college degree may be a barrier for diverse candidates. Underrepresented candidates often have unique career paths that don’t always include a bachelor’s degree.
RingCentral, a provider of cloud-based communications, is hard at work putting a greater emphasis on expanding its DEI-focused ERGs, which include groups geared toward LGBTQi team members to military veterans, said Faiza Hughell, SVP of small business.
What's the number one thing every tech company should do right now to improve diversity in their organization?
Work with your talent acquisition teams and establish a process where you have a diverse candidate pool and interview panel for every hire. Be intentional. Leading with intention is the only way to be the change you want to see. Diversity is not just capped at race; we must listen and educate ourselves. There is a huge significance in creating a culture and environment where all voices are encouraged, supported and heard.
Don’t operate in a vacuum.”
What's the number one thing every tech company should do right now to improve inclusivity and/or equity in their organization?
Don’t operate in a vacuum. Involving employees of all levels in key decisions and projects will allow you to have a diverse set of perspectives. Oftentimes, leaders make good-intentioned decisions without realizing it may not always be the most productive for the front lines. Form employee resource groups that give your employees a sense of belonging, community and support from others. At RingCentral, we are expanding our ERGs, forming communities for LGBTQi, Black/African American employees, women, military veterans and more.
Of all the DEI initiatives you've led, which has been the most impactful?
Our RingCentral Lean In group has driven impact throughout the organization, leading to the launch of many women-led initiatives that focus on all employees regardless of gender, including our innovation series, an internal hackathon and more.
