When Diversity is Not Just a Policy: An Equal Opportunity for Everyone
By Thitikarn Kanchanachat, Solution Ownership Intern, Denver Build Center
In September 2019, I had the chance to visit the Slalom Build Denver office as part of a school-organized trip. I remember walking past a chessboard and a big ping pong table where they had a company-wide ping pong tournament going. People were dressed casually and walking around with smiles on their faces. Later, I attended an interactive discussion panel consisting of six employees. It was a diverse group of people representing a variety of ages, backgrounds, and service years. There were an equal number of men and women, including one international woman on the panel. Looking at the people coming to share their experiences with students like me, I felt Slalom Build would value my personal development.
The panel talked about how the main reason they enjoyed working for Slalom Build was not only because of the fun and challenging work, but also because of the people and their shared values, including authenticity. They told us they believed that diversity makes them better and means better outcomes for their clients. As an international student myself, this experience made me feel Slalom Build would be a great place to work as they shared my values, specifically embracing diversity. So, when I start looking for an internship, Slalom Build was one of the first companies I applied to.
I found the Solution Ownership Intern job posted on Slalom website. The application process was simple and pleasant. However, I did have to answer a mandatory question that I’ve encountered every time I’ve applied for a job in the United States, “Do you now or in the future require sponsorship to work in the job location?”
Job searching in the US market is more complicated and challenging for international students for various reason. I believe my international status can put me at a disadvantage. If there are two candidates, one local and one international, that have a similar skillset, the international candidate could be in a less competitive position as they would require an additional step to get hired in the long-term. I thought that some companies might recruit based on my status as an international student, even though I don’t require any sponsorship and am eligible to work under the CPT (Curricular Practical Training) program. But it wasn’t like that with Slalom. Within 12 hours of filling out my application, a Talent Acquisition Manager reached out to me with a follow-up question, “When will you graduate?” I was passed onto the next step in the process. Fast forward through three rounds of interviews, I received a phone call from Slalom Build that they were very excited to offer me a position! I was very delighted, especially during this unprecedented pandemic situation during which international student’s ability to stay in the United States is more uncertain than ever.
In June 2020 when the internship started, I met my internship teammates for the first time. I found that our team, made up of interns from the Denver and Seattle Build locations, consisted of a great, diverse group of people. Six out of the thirteen people on my intern team are international students from three countries, and more than half of my team are female. My other international teammates and I have talked about how impressed we are regarding the variation of people in the group. As the project went by, we built a strong rapport within the team even though our program was entirely virtual for the whole 10-week internship. Our team was recognized for our great collaboration and teamwork. We focused on delivering outcomes, taking ownership, respecting each other’s opinions, and supporting each other to get to our goal together.
All of the above experiences during the internship at Slalom Build have shown the Slalom talent acquisition process to be deliberately focused on finding candidates who can add value to the Slalom Build community, regardless of race or gender. I’ve personally experienced how a diverse group of people helps build a rich and fulfilling workplace culture for everyone. Diversity and inclusion are not just statistics or token gestures at Slalom Build. They’ve shown they truly hold diversity as a value by giving equal opportunity to all candidates, and believe that this is the right way to find great candidates to deliver great outcomes. Because of all this, I am very proud to be a part of the Slalom Build family!
Thitikarn (Thi) Kanchanachat was an intern in our 2020 Slalom Build Internship program, where she built real software for real Builders. We’ll be sharing more stories from Build interns as we continue our series of Slalom Build Internship experiences.
