At Public Media Company, we value a diverse and inclusive culture and are committed to diversity in all areas of our work. Taking this commitment as the guiding principle, Public Media Company created a DEI Committee consisting of five PMC team members. We, the committee members, volunteered to share our experiences openly and help move the organization forward. We were charged with three key tasks:
- Review the current practices and processes at Public Media Company from a DEI lens
- Provide recommendations and a roadmap to help create a work environment that is more inclusive, diverse, fair, and impartial
- Monitor the progress on our roadmap and provide ongoing perspective on the implementation of our recommendations
We focused our work on a few key areas that we felt needed strengthening:
- Internal Policies and Processes
- Recruitment, hiring, new employee orientation (job descriptions, hiring process, orientation)
- Onboarding, coaching, inclusion, and engagement
- Employee evaluation and promotion
- Harassment and whistleblower policies
- Professional development and career advancement
- Data (diversity of the staff, diversity of the board, diversity of the clients/ client projects)
- External communications (marketing materials, website, and client communication)
For a small organization with the majority of its staff working remotely, it is not always easy to address and meet the expectations of the employees regarding their professional growth plans and aspirations. We are currently mapping out a process to help create an environment that empowers staff, offers training opportunities to all employees, and shares/monitors their progress.
Another area of interest is onboarding and new employee orientation. PMC team members only meet in person two to four times a year; the remaining internal communication is conducted via email, phone, or video conferencing.
Starting a new job is stressful; working for a remote organization can be even more challenging for a new staff member. Having received valuable insight from the seasoned staff and those who have been hired more recently, we developed tools and principles to make onboarding more inclusive, informative, and fun.
Our work is not done, and we look forward to continuing this journey to elevate Public Media Company to maximize its human capital through diversity, inclusivity, and empowerment.
Public Media Company DEI Committee Members:
Ashley Swindall
Colleen Sibthorp
Evran Kavlak
Kimberly Campbell
Mythili Sathish Kumar