Tech Inclusion: Progress Made, More to Do

Kodi Foster Senior Vice President Data Strategy at Viacom explained the importance of Viaocm hosting an event like thisamp160 quotViacom is a place where you don39t have to leave part of yourself at the door when you come into workquot he said quotInclusion is in our DNA It39s why we hosted this event to amplify our voice create strong partnerships and to demonstrate our support for work cultures that value openness and encourage a diversity of experiencesquotDaisy AugerDominquez Senior Vice President of Talent Acquisition at Viacom added that the goal of the event was to have the attendees walk out inspired and energized knowing quotthat together we can solve these problemsquotFoster spoke of the need for organizations to amp8220go beyond the press releaseamp8221 to strengthen inclusion and diversity in the workplace and promote compelling stories that will drive the conversation toward solutionsInclusion Increases Business SuccessInclusion can also drive business success especially for a media company with the breadth of content of Viacomamp160 Sharon Cohen Executive Vice President of Nick Experiences was very clear about thisamp160 quotAt Nick our audience is kids and they39re the most diverse generation yetquot she explainedamp160 quotIt39s important to us that our teams reflect the broadest approach possible and imperative that we provide a forum for all of those diverse people to speakquotWith Viacom content in over 180 countries they also understand the need to have a workforce that matches that diversity to build the right content That thought was echoed by Niels Schuurmans CMO of Paramount Network TV Land and CMT who told the audience that the quotbest ideas come when you have people from different backgrounds coming togetherquotBryson Gordon Viacom39s Executive Vice President Advanced Advertising gave a presentation on quotWhat does it mean to be a white male and straight executive in the conversation on diversity within an organizationquotamp160 Gordon told the audience quotgreat marketers have a superpower empathyamp160 Today we39re seeing a failure of empathyquotamp160 One of the interesting stories he told us is that while he and his wife were on the same career paths at different companies the stories she brought home were very different than the stories he was bringing homeamp160 It helped him understand the difference genders experience in the workplace and what he needed to do to have an impact on the changes neededAs he explained quotIn our hiring we need to start rejecting the idea of finding people who 39fit39 into the culture and create a culture of learningamp160 39How will this individual expand the collective mind of the groupamp160 What will this person teach us39quotamp160 One of his career insights has been that quotwe need to understand the power of the language that we use that it shapes behaviorquotNeed to Start SoonerMany of the speakers talked about the need to start teaching children about tech at an earlier ageamp160 quotWhile technology is being introduced at the high school level I think we need to push it down even furtherquot said Paul Sartain Executive Vice PresidentChief Media Technology Officer for Viacom quotIt needs to be introduced at grade school level because the further down we go the more diverse group we can reachquotOne of the most interesting aspects of the program was the inclusion of a panel of Gen Zers who talked about their experiences learning about technology at a young ageamp160 Olivia Ross a junior at Phillips Exeter Academy talked about the importance of being able to quotsee someone who looks like you in the tech worldquotSeeing girls in Black Girls Code who are now successful was very important for me to see when I was growing upquot she explainedamp160 quotWithout that sense of belonging I may not have been as inspired to do what I39ve been doingquotAnother student on the panel Boubacar Diallo who will be a freshman at Hunter College told the audience that it was critical to connect with many schools and programs in minority communities to get them exposed early on and help them to see what they could doInclusion an Industry TopicInclusion was also a topic of discussion at Cannes this year where Fast Company and Ketchum hosted a panel surrounding a study they released showing that working alongside similar people to themselves limits creative potential and teams must be comprised of varying socioeconomic educational and geographic backgroundsMichael Roth Chairman of IPG was quoted in a Holmes Report piece from Cannes saying quotGender equality has become a common topic at Cannes and at industry programs around the worldamp160 But when you look around these rooms even at IPG39s own events you see that women of color are underrepresented in the conversationsamp160 It39s a business imperative to change the status quo and that39s the process we want to begin with this summitquotMuch More Needs to be DoneShaun King Senior Justice Writer at the New York Daily News was direct with the audience asserting quotThe primary voices speaking out against something are the people being impactedamp160 You39ll see change when the people who cause these problems accept them as their ownquotamp160 King39s message was clear We all need to speak up if a change is going to be madeRefinery29 also talked about its study on gender equality which showed that 70 of women do not believe their workplace is diverse but only 22 of those surveyed agreed that woman of color should hold more positions of leadershipamp160 Only 24 said they would speak up if they witnessed anything directed at their colleaguesAs Viacom39s Daisy AugerDominquez said quotI have a wish for my daughter that she can walk anywhere in the world and feel that she belongsquotEditor39s Noteamp160 MyersBizNet and WomenAdvancingorg will be hosting the Advancing Diversity Honors in Las Vegas during CES January 10th from 48 pm saluting those who break out of their corporate and individual comfort zones to foster diversityClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Tech Inclusion: Progress Made, More to Do

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David Polinchock

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