As a values led company, gap intelligence strives to continue to stay true to our core values by creating a working environment that embraces positive change. 2020 brought a great deal of social unrest that led us to respond by holding open forums for employees to discuss their worries, concerns, and feelings about how we position ourselves during a very difficult time in history. It became clear that we desperately needed an internal team to address issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in order to continue to do great things for ourselves, our clients, and our community.
Goals
After assembling a team of eight, we formed a new culture group within our organization–the DEI Team. The team’s goals revolve around the ongoing commitment to being part of an actionable solution by creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work space and community.
By the end of 2020, our first goal was to provide employees with a greater awareness and empathy around intersectionality. By definition intersectionality is a theoretical framework for understanding how aspects of a person’s social and political identities combines to create unique modes of discrimination and privilege. Intersectionality identifies advantages and disadvantages that are felt by people due to a combination of factors. We held a gapU Lunch and Learn forum that focused on the educational portion of intersectionality and another that focused on real life situations from those who experienced racism and injustice. The overwhelming turnout for these forums gave us more insight about how much work needs to be done and how important DEI is within the workplace. It is not a series of boxes to check off, but an endless journey of careful insight, exploration, and opportunities to tap into potential.
2021 Vision
In early January the team held a Kickoff to determine not only our individual roles and responsibilities within the group, but to write our vision.
It’s January 19th, 2022 and we are a safe and welcoming space for all to show up as the full expression of themselves. We stayed true to our community and were intentional about maintaining a safe space while proactively creating an inclusive and diverse gap intelligence.
We drove change through ongoing education, addressed social uncertainty, and conducted careful reviews of our internal practices.
Progress and change have been both individualized (taking responsibility for our own growth) and communalized (standing shoulder to shoulder to affect the world around us). We emphasize that DEI work is a continual process, and are committed to empowering gappers to stay curious, open and take mindful action.
Long Road Ahead
Our DEI team looks forward to a year of partnerships, forums, speakers, and internal process changes that align with our vision. We are prepared for a long journey and look forward to each step we take closer to making gap intelligence the kind of place that feels like home to all.
