To celebrate International Women's Day 2021, the Veritas Employee Resource Group, WAVE—Women at Veritas Empowered—encouraged all Veritas employees to join the global #ChooseToChallenge pledge. Veritas SVP, Chief Human Resource Officer, Sophie Ames, started by sharing what the #ChooseToChallenge means to her and how we can be intentional about driving progress.
Additionally, Greg Hughes, CEO of Veritas, shared his challenge to all Veritas managers to read the Women in the Workplace study, a joint effort from the Lean In organization and McKinsey. The most recent report, based on a 40,000 person survey, points out some of the unique challenges women are facing during the pandemic.
Our colleagues have started to share their own #ChooseToChallenge pledges about how they will help contribute to the gender equality efforts and continue Veritas' goal of a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workforce. Read a selection of these pledges below and check back and more are added throughout March 2021.
Veritas supports diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) around the globe
The WAVE employee resource group continues to support International Women's Day and women in technology. Each WAVE team at Veritas offices organizes and provides different opportunities for women locally, along with on-going global offerings. Veritas partners with Watermark which provides monthly trainings and webinars to support, encourage, and advance women. These are available to all Veritas employees.
Locally, WAVE Santa Clara is planning a happy hour event with Sophie as the guest of honor, WAVE Roseville is coordinating a book delivery to their members, and Manasi Phadnis, the India WAVE chapter co-lead, recently shared a Veritas initiative that has quickly gained traction–the Veritas Technology Certification Program for Women. As a member of the WAVE India group, there is the opportunity for continuing education, including technology certifications in Project Management Professional, Cloud Computing, Kubernetes, Oracle Database 12c, Python, and more.
At Veritas, it is exciting to have this day to celebrate the professional and cultural achievements of women but also pledge to continue the company’s diversity commitment. Not just about gender, but also about diversity in thought, experience, and skill – all of which are important in shaping company policies and driving success.
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Sophie Ames | United States My pledge is to encourage everyone to look around you and if you do not see the diversity that truly reflects the community in which you live and work then I believe everyone should feel empowered to ask questions, share ideas on how to bridge gaps, refer colleagues from your network, and engage in conversations. I believe Veritas is a place where employees can feel safe to engage in these open dialogues. I want the women to ask for what they want vs. letting people make assumptions on their behalf. And I want them to know that they bring more to the table, not less. |
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Manasi Phadnis | India I'll keep an open mind about equality and inclusion. |
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Shilpa Singh | India I’ll encourage all women to dream multiple dreams and make it all happen. |
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Aine O'Dwyer | Ireland I will celebrate women’s achievements. |
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Leucadia Milly Sandeep | India I'll mentor a woman and help her build her networks. |
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Mugdha Vaidya | India I'll keep an open mind about equality and inclusion. |
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Rashmi Accha | India I'll reflect on how fair and equal my actions and comments are. |
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Pragati Natekar | India I'll donate time or resource to a charity. |
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Shweta Singh | India I'll respect and empower merit in teams irrespective of gender, ethnicity, or culture. |
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Pankaj Gugale | India I'll value women's contributions and achievements more. |
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Jody Digrazia | United States I #ChooseToChallenge bias and inequity of underrepresented groups. |
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Deepak Tanksale | United States I #ChooseToChallange mindset that women are primarily responsible for daily chores.
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Dean Volkert | United States #ChooseToChallenge I act on this from G. D. Anderson, "Feminism isn't about making women strong. Women are already strong. It's about changing the way the world perceives that strength." |
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Julie Urban | United States I #choosetochallenge myself on my unconscious bias and try to look at things from all perspectives. |
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Karin McEwan | United States I #ChooseToChallenge bias and inequity of underrepresented groups. |
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Joann Neve | United States We #choosetochallenge ANY limiting preconceptions. |
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Annika Arnholt | United States #ChooseToChallenge bias and inequity of underrepresented groups. |
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Gillian Smithies | Canada I will try to influence other’ beliefs and actions. |
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Judy Lannuccilli | United States I will celebrate women's achievements. |
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Leena Sankaran | United States I will call out gendered actions or assumptions. |
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Lize Morimoto | United States I will celebrate women's achievements. |
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Marie Batista | United States I will forge positive visibility of women. |
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Melanie Greene | United States I pledge to call out gender bias, lack of diversity inequity, and inequality. |
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Niti Trimbake | United States I will call out gendered actions or assumptions. |
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Samina Shetty | United States I will forge positive visibility of women. |
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Sarah Byrne | United States I will help forge a gender-equal world. |
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Soney Jones | United States I will help forge a gender-equal world. |
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Vidya Deshmukh | United States I will help forge a gender-equal world. |
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Dorota Gonzalez | Ireland I'll note and question when women are not equally represented on a team. |
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Mindy Mansdoerfer | United States #choosetochallenge – I will celebrate the achievements of the women I work with and help to pave the way for my two young daughters, in hopes this will not be an issue when they join the workforce. |
Thank you to everyone that shared your Choose to Challenge pledges. Learn more about how Veritas cultivates diversity and promotes equity, and inclusion: http://vrt.as/30d5b5b
