As we start the new year with hope and energy, let’s take a moment to reflect on the year that has passed. It was a year filled with many challenges, yet also one with highlights to celebrate. An important one being Magento’s continued dedication towards diversity, equity, and inclusion.
In our continuing efforts to support diversity across our Magento community, this past May, we held a successful “Train the Trainers” online workshop to teach event organizers how to host Magento Speaker Diversity worships. Led by Jill Binder of Diverse in Tech, the session enabled Magento meetup and conference organizers from 17 cities in 10 countries to offer this workshop that;passes on valuable information to underrepresented groups in their own communities.
Based on testimonials from participants, the workshop provided an excellent opportunity to make a global impact:
It is very important to have a diverse speaker program during all the Magento events. Thanks to this training, I am able to help more women overcome the irritating imposter syndrome. I would recommend it to anyone who is looking to achieve a minimum of 50/50 mixture of men and women for their events.
– Chantal Schinkels, Customer Success Manager, The Netherlands
This is a great training for anyone who is looking to better understand some of the reasons why underrepresented groups aren’t submitting talks and immediately actionable ways to help increase these numbers! And thanks to Jill, I now have the materials and guides to be an effective speaking mentor. I would recommend this workshop to anyone who wants to help improve speaking diversity but doesn’t know how or where to start.
– Eric Hileman, CEO MageMojo, New York, New York
Before I took this workshop with Jill Binder, I was unable to overcome my imposter syndrome and understand why I’d be valued as a speaker. Thanks to Jill, Sherrie, and the support of Adobe, I am able to see the value that I bring to the community and have confidence in myself.
– Thien-Lan Weber, Marketing at OneStepCheckout
A lot of people like me want to help with diversity but don’t know how. They can with your program.
– Anonymous participant
Our other Magento speaker diversity initiatives have helped members of our community reach new heights in their speaking careers. After the Magento Community Speaker Workshop and the Magento Community Diverse Speaker Workshop in 2019 and 2020 respectively, 67 percent of participants who responded to a follow-up survey have gone on to speak at in-person events. These events include Meet Magento New York, MageUnconference, SEOBenelux, and Women In Tech.
After all of this great work, what is next for the diversity of the Magento community? We are taking it a step further by offering a new workshop in 2021: We are going to teach event organizers how to create more diverse and inclusive events that help speakers and participants from marginalized and underrepresented groups feel welcome and glad to be part of the community.
March 4 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. UTC (9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. PT): Creating a Welcoming and Diverse Magento Event Space – Workshop
Do you run a Magento event, but notice only one type of person is attending? You want more diversity in your group, but folks either don’t show up, or attend once and don’t come back. What can you do to foster, promote, and support diversity and an inclusive space?
In this workshop, we’ll cover 5 topics:
1. Mindset shift: Shifting the way you think about diversity
2. Community: How to attract and foster a diverse community
3. Environment: Creating a welcoming environment, both in-person and online
4. Speakers and Leaders: How to encourage more people from diverse backgrounds to step up to be speakers and leaders
5. Allyship: How to be a better ally.
We will work interactively with a workbook PDF. You will walk away with an action list to start making changes right away.
This workshop is not just for event organizers, but for anyone who wants to champion a welcoming environment for diverse groups, now or in the future!
You will get the most value by attending live. If you cannot attend, signup so that you get the recordings and invitations to attend subsequent event organizer support sessions.
Sign up here.
We cannot overstate the importance of presenting events that are welcoming. Building and holding space for members of underrepresented communities helps the whole Magento community grow stronger. Encouraging different experiences and perspectives will lead us to new insights that drive us forward, together.
What else do we have coming up? Keep an eye out for our additional speaker training sessions scheduled in May and September 2021.
Thank you for being part of the Magento community and for joining us in our commitment to diversity and inclusion. Let’s make this new year a successful one for everyone in our community.
