For this International Women’s Day, we dove into our data, revealing the undeniable impact of our commitment to fostering equity and inclusion within our organization.
Just a few impactful stats that we discovered?
- Women and people of color are at every level of management, including our Board of Directors
- Women comprise 50% of our Senior Leadership Team
- Women comprise 50% of our Global Staff
As a FinTech (to be more specific, a RegTech) firm, this is no small feat. The mention of the words “financial services” seems to imbue strong preconceived notions from most. So…how did COMPLY do it?
Marian Wright Edelman has a famous quote “you can’t be what you can’t see.” When developing our organization and the core values that would drive it, we focused on creating an environment where everyone could see themselves in their leaders, their executives, and their mentors. An environment that, as a result of seeing such leadership, would develop new growth potential and new opportunities for every individual who joined our team.
But what does it mean to put this principle into practice? For COMPLY, it has meant making decisions on a day-to-day basis that ultimately drive inclusion and equity across our business. Instead of only focusing our efforts on a specific program or initiative, we have woven this principle into every decision we make. And it’s paid off. I truly don’t believe that a specialized program would have had the same long-term benefit for COMPLY.
Specifically, we have taken several approaches across the organization to promote inclusivity and investment in the growth of our employees. Which, in turn, have created onramps for incredible candidates, some of whom might come from non-traditional backgrounds where they may have never imagined themselves at a tech firm, let alone a RegTech firm. And ultimately, our programs are not only enabling the onboarding of new employees, but also help to retain employees as their lives change over time.
Some of these approaches include:
- Respect for Flexibility is one of our core values and is embedded in our decision to be a hybrid/remote work environment. This has allowed us to attract more diverse candidates, especially working mothers and those who might not be best suited for traditional office jobs. It’s also our belief in being flexible that has allowed our employees more opportunities to advance and grow professionally in the ways most suited for them.
- Our High Potential Entry Level Program has allowed us to take non-traditional candidates, often who have had other varied (non-financial services) work experience and train them in organizations like our Customer Support team. These team members have then taken on positions in Sales, Customer Success, and Product Management, to great success.
- We had 36 internal promotions in 2023 alone, of which 56% were women. Thus far, in 2024, we have had 8 internal promotions, half of which were women, with many more upcoming as part of our annual merit cycle. This is driven by significant investments in training programs, continued mentorship, and a push towards employees investing in professional development, where COMPLY provides a stipend. We want to make sure that we continue to train and retain the great talent that comes in the door. We have seen this investment pay off in dividends, not only in staff members who have celebrated 20+ years with us, but in the number of boomerang employees who have left and returned to the COMPLY organization, excited to be on a team committed to career growth.
- Our 12-week fully paid Parental / Bonding Leave policy actively encourages new parents to take the time they need to be with their families. We are proud to see our employees of all genders making full use of this leave and shedding preconceived notions about who should take time off or how to allocate time during this significant chapter in families’ lives.
- Open communication is critical for the entire organization. With team members spread across states and countries, we strive to make open communication an intentional initiative, driving connections and building networking opportunities within and across teams. Whether that’s hosting our biweekly Fireside Chats or Slack messaging between groups, feeling connected helps everyone gain confidence and achieve new successes.
The common theme among the above is that none of these are explicitly “DEI” initiatives. These programs are intricately woven into the organizational fabric, becoming an inherent part of the company’s DNA. This cohesion is the driving force behind the achievement of our 50% gender diversity milestone. And as we continue to grow and develop as an organization, our commitment to inspiring inclusion and driving growth will only continue to grow with us. #InspireInclusion #IWD2024