Dealerware is committed to improving and connecting the world in which we live. We’re dedicated to a vision of a more connected future. That future includes not only the vehicles on our platform, but also the people we work with every day – our employees and our customers. In times of triumph and in tragedy, we come together to support those most important stakeholders.
June 2020 was a moment of reflection for us as a country and as an organization. Following the death of George Floyd, we came together as an organization to have important and meaningful conversations that led to our first Black Lives Matter statement and began the development of our plan forward.
“At Dealerware, we have been working to better understand how we can be part of the solution. How can we learn? How can we empower? How can we facilitate, drive, and implement change; both as voices of the community and voices for the community?”
– June 10, 2020, Dealerware Post: Black Lives Matter
Over the last 12 months, we’ve been committed to making good on our June 2020 promises and our broader vision of a more connected world. Today, the day before Juneteenth 2021, we’re excited to share that progress and our continued commitment with our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives.
Formation of the The Dealerware DEI Council
The mission of the Dealerware Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council is to impact the employee experience by fostering a workplace that celebrates diversity, intersectionality, and multicultural inclusion.
The Dealerware DEI Council comprises a wide range of Dealerware employees across different races, religions, creeds, and teams who help develop and deliver communications and initiatives that connect back to one of our more important company Core Values – “We are attentive, inclusive, and diverse.”
Dealerware Core Value #1: We are inclusive and attentive to the needs of our customers, partners, and coworkers, across all ages, races, genders, and creeds - because the best solutions come from diverse points of view.
Since the Council’s official formation in late 2020 it has been focused on three key areas:
Organizational Infrastructure and Talent Processes
Ensuring that the processes, policies, and programs that support the structure of our organization also adhere to our values, and are rooted in our commitment to inclusion and the removal of barriers that perpetuate inequality and bias. The focus for 2021 has been:
- Recruitment pipeline; recruitment and onboarding processes
- Improving transparency around the demographic data of our workforce
- Ensuring equity in benefits, policies, and programs
Communication and Celebration
Identifying opportunities to celebrate anniversaries and achievements related to under-represented groups, as well as supporting our organization in times of tragedy. We look for opportunities to celebrate and memorialize moments that matter to our most important stakeholders. The focus in 2021 has been:
- Internal and external communication and initiatives around events like June’s Pride Month Celebration
- Resources for education, development, and support for Dealerware employees
- Dealerware Discussions, our new internal guest speaker series that strives to bring diverse perspectives to inspire our work and our daily lives
Organizational Leadership
Creating structures In the Dealerware organization that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion while providing every employee an equal opportunity to grow and succeed in the company. The focus in 2021 has been:
- Engagement with Leadership to directly tackle issues involving diversity, equity, inclusion
- Increased transparency around pay and career development
- Continued access to skills and development training to foster internal growth within the company
Giving the Time and Space to Participate and Grow
The most valuable resource in the world is time. Time to learn, to give back, to be active in our community and in our system of government. While Dealerware is proud to offer employees unlimited PTO, in 2020 we decided to take that a step further. We’ve expanded our company-wide holidays to include Juneteenth and Election Day, while encouraging our team to take time away from work to participate in activities related to progress.
Additionally, we have launched an internal speaker series entitled Dealerware Discussions. Once a quarter, we use this time to welcome diverse, external voices and perspectives to help inspire us to think differently in our work and our daily lives.
Encouraging Inclusive Product Development
Inclusivity and access continues through to how we build our products and features. Our goal has always been ensuring that our Dealerware applications and services are both usable and accessible to all people by fully considering and understanding their contexts and requirements. The focus in 2021 has been:
- A comprehensive baseline assessment of our web and mobile applications for compliance with industry standards for accessibility
- Internal training and awareness regarding goals and strategy for elevating overall accessibility of each product
- Defining internal workflows with measurable objectives to continuously improve our products’ accessibility and usability
We’re proud of our work as an organization over the last year but perhaps even more excited about the road ahead. We come together every day with the hope that we’ll soon realize our vision of a more connected future – connected by the things we build, but also by the work we’re doing to build a more diverse, equitable and inclusive community. We’ll keep you updated on our progress and welcome any ideas from you.
