Amplify-ing the Underrepresented Voices in Tech

On April 21, 2021, Salesforce will host its inaugural Nonprofit Summit, which is a virtual summit with content designed specifically for professionals in the nonprofit space. 

The summit will offer four content tracks, and I am honored to be speaking with two fearless Amplify members, Jessica Murphy and Rachel Park, during a breakout session in the “Managing and Scaling Your Platform” content track. 

We feel that our session, “Amplify-ing Underrepresented Voices in Tech,” has never been more relevant. The last year has been a major reality check into the current state of inequity in our communities. Our mission at Amplify is to tackle this problem by empowering and elevating underrepresented voices technology. 

We want to share one of the most powerful tools we have leveraged in our journeys to take tangible steps towards achieving that goal – building community. 

Why is building community so important?

We all desire to feel a sense of belonging; this builds community. When we feel connected and represented in the workplace, industry, or the larger community, it may feel less intimidating to speak up and accelerate our own success. Technology is making it easier than ever to build virtual communities on a large scale. This can help 

In our session, we dig deep into our personal stories and discuss how they converged at the intersection of tech, diversity and grit. In sharing our experiences, we hope that you can see yourselves in our stories and provide real-life examples of how these concepts work together to propel success. There is no substitution for hard work and a relentless desire to be the very best at what you are doing. 

Join us on Wednesday, April 21 from 10:15 a.m. to 10:33 a.m. Pacific Time in our breakout session at the Salesforce Nonprofit Summit. We hope to see you there! For more information about this and other events check out the Amplify website. 

Additional Resources Now and Coming Soon!

In collaboration with the Salesforce.org Partner Advisory Board Equity Subcommittee and the DEI Sprint, Amplify recently launched is a Diversity, Equity, and Inclustion Suvey. This was volunteer-led effort and a full report will be published soon. Some initial findings include:

Respondents when asked “Which category best describes your race/ethnicity? Select all that apply.”

• Indigenous 1.3%
• Hispanic, Latinx, or Spanish origin 6.3%
• Black of of Afican or Caribbean descent 5.7%
• Hispanic, Latinx, or Spanish origin and white 3.1%
• Asian 9.4%
• White 68.6%

Respondents when asked “I identify my gender as…”

• Gender Queer/Non-conforming 0.6%
• Female 56.6%
• Male 40.3%

Respondents when asked “Do you consider yourslef a member of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, and/or Queer (LGBTIQA+) community?”

• Yes 21.4%
• No 76.7%
• Prefer not to say 1.9%

Respondents when asked “Do you own, or partially own the company?”

• Yes 17%
• No 83%

Another new resource recently launched is the Amplify Job Board, where Salesforce.org partners enter job opportunties to reach a more diverse pool of candates. This is a fantastic opportunity to expand beyond standard networks within the Salesforce ecosystem. Find open positions.