At Avanade, we understand that by having a diverse and inclusive workforce in ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, physical abilities, geography, age, skills, backgrounds, experiences, beliefs, ideas and thought process, we are empowered to:
• Connect insights, innovation and expertise to help our diverse customers realize results across the enterprise.
• Drive innovation.
• Improve organizational effectiveness through collaboration, cross-cultural competencies, communication, trust, and
idea and information sharing.
• Encourage respect, consistency and fairness, supporting Avanade’s Core Value, “Act with Dignity and Respect.”
Executive Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion at Avanade
“Avanade is a company where any individual can make a big difference. We firmly believe that we arrive at our best thinking and decisions when we tap the rich experience of our diverse workforce and consider multiple points of view. We celebrate our diversity and are firmly committed to promoting an open, inclusive and positive work environment that provides equal opportunities for all our employees to grow their careers and help shape the future of Avanade.”
- Joseph Mendel, Executive Vice President, Human Resources
“As Executive Vice President and General Manager for Avanade Americas, which includes the U.S. and Canada, I believe our goal is to make Avanade a magnet for the best talent. I want it to be a place where all people can accelerate their professional development. To achieve this, our Americas Diversity and Inclusion committee makes ongoing recommendations that provide a backbone for Avanade’s continuing growth and success.”
- Howard Kilman, EVP and GM of Avanade Americas
The mission of the Avanade Americas Diversity and Inclusion committee is:
• To raise awareness, provide education, and foster a culture of inclusion and accountability to achieve the highest
level of excellence in our shared value
• Act with Dignity and Respect
• To provide thought leadership and representation of our peers and create initiatives and communications to be
delivered within Avanade.
Women in IT
As a global organisation, Avanade is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting the best female staff available, to ensure women remain critical to our business success.
We have launched a European initiative to support women working in IT and encourage upcoming graduates to consider a career in the IT and consulting sectors.
To kick off the efforts, a career workshop aimed at female university students and an internal mentoring programme supporting female consultants were launched:
(1) Recruitment workshop
Avanade held the first European ‘Women in IT Careers’ workshop in Germany earlier this year. 27 female students from ten different countries attended the event and listened to female executives representing Avanade (including Pamela Maynard, general manager at Avanade UK and Anna Di Silverio, general manager at Avanade Italy) and its parent companies Accenture and Microsoft sharing insights about working successfully in IT.
At the workshop, students learned about project management skills, how technology can empower individuals, businesses and economies, as well as, the challenges of working in IT and how to overcome these.
“The event was inspirational: not only did I learn about opportunities for women in the IT industry, but I met some great female role models. They told me how professionalism, passion for technology and respecting human values go hand in hand with continuous personal development and exploring new challenges – and that they found this supportive environment at their current employer,” summarised Marja Ypyä from Finland.
The first event was a successful pilot and we are currently looking into ways to turn this workshop into an annual event.
(2) Internal mentoring programme
At Avanade we understand the needs of female consultants and aim to provide an environment that makes it possible for them to be productive, both inside and outside the organisation.
The internal programme provides a framework for female employees to discuss work-related issues, including objectives and career development, internal processes and company culture. Avanade pairs junior employees with senior mentors, who can relate to their challenges and will be able to provide valuable insight and support.
“This is a great initiative and relevant to all female staff at Avanade, but especially important for those who are new to the sector, returning from maternity leave, or perhaps returning from a longer job absence”, said Vibeke Nyvold, Nordic HR director.
Mentors receive training sessions and supporting documents to ensure they can guide mentees through the programme, and there are regular meetings to discuss progress of the programme.