Shaping the Future at Veratrak

Embracing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

As Veratrak embarks on an exciting phase of growth, we’re expanding the team and seeking to fill several key roles. At the heart of this expansion is our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). We recognise the immense value that a diverse team brings to our organisation, fostering innovation, creativity, and greater productivity. 

To learn more on the topic, we’re sitting down with Tal Hadas, VP of Engineering at Veratrak, who joined the team last October.

Q: We think it's fair to say that you've been a passionate advocate for DEI for quite some time. Can you tell us a little bit more about why we’re here to discuss the topic today?

DEI is something that both the leadership team and myself are incredibly passionate about and I wanted to use this session to announce my pledge and commitment to diversity at Veratrak. We’re a growing business that’s scaling up, and I’m going to challenge myself and everyone at Veratrak, to promote and champion diversity at all levels of the company, which I believe will contribute to a more vibrant and resilient workplace setting us up for long-term success. 

Q: What will be your approach to ensure that everyone in the team understands the importance of the role that DEI has to play?

I think education is the key here. Giving everyone an understanding of what Diversity is and relaying its benefits as well as the impact that diverse workforces have in companies is critical. We’ve begun our journey with implementing unconscious bias, DEI pillars, and interview training to ensure everyone has the foundations to be able to get on board with this philosophy.

Q: How do you think hiring for more diverse teams will contribute to Veratrak’s success and benefit the tech industry as a whole?

Hiring people with different backgrounds means a differentiation in perspectives and opinions which ultimately creates more ideas. The more ideas you have on the table as a team, the higher the chance there is to innovate. I'm a big believer of having multiple ideas and choosing (as a collective) which path is the right one to take. I also think that it encourages happier and healthier teams which leads to higher employee happiness and retention.

Q: What would you say have been the main challenges that you've faced when there's been a lack of diversity within a workplace before?

I guess it’s the opposite of your last question, I’ve worked in companies in the past that have been heavily male oriented which has led to less debate and resulted in landing on ideas that can be below the expectations of what you originally set out to create. I’ve also found that when communicating with customers and partners, you need this level of diversity to be able to better communicate with them too.

Q: Which initiatives is Veratrak looking  to be implementing this year to cultivate inclusivity throughout the company?

One of our core values is that “We have an owner’s mindset’ this means that we take shared accountability of delivering our goals with integrity and respect, so, DEI will become part of our annual OKRs to support this which will tackle topics such as recruiting for diverse talent, diversity training attendance, promoting wellbeing & inclusive culture, establishing performance and promotion success.  

As we grow and hopefully succeed on this journey, we’ll also be exploring setting up Employee Resource Groups to provide a sense of community and offer advice to our leadership team on how we can improve on this topic combined with implementing other ideas. For example, having diverse interview panels, gender neutral job descriptions, inclusive policies (we already have a remote-first approach and super flexible working schedules which is favourable for a lot of parents with young children) and fostering inclusive language that respects and includes all employees.

Q: So what are the long-term goals and the future plans for diversity within Veratrak? Where do you want to be in a year? 

We believe that a diverse workforce brings a variety of perspectives, innovation, and specialist skills, which are essential for driving innovation and winning in the market. Our inclusive work environment offers opportunities for growth and achievement to a broader range of individuals.

By the end of this year, one of our goals is  to be in a position where 50% of all our new hires will be from different backgrounds. We know it’s not going to be easy, however, we recognise the importance of diversity in driving innovation and success, and believe that by having team members from different backgrounds, we can ensure that multiple viewpoints are considered, leading to greater productivity and innovation. 

Q: It's fair to say that there’s often cases when businesses begin to scale, hiring for diversity can often be forgotten along the way; are there any steps that you and Veratrak are going to take to ensure that this pledge remains a strategic priority at all levels of the company?

Of course and I agree, we’re committed to this mission, we’re walking that road and we’ll take the time to ensure it happens. We’ll be regularly monitoring our activity and results on these initiatives we’ve been talking about and we are investing in resources and time in order to ensure that we keep our fingers on the pulse of the topic.

Q: The tech industry is finally starting to listen to the drum beat that not enough is being done about hiring diverse workforces. As that dial does begin to move, how do you see the role of diversity playing a part at Veratrak and the industry as a whole?

I think just hiring diverse people is not enough. Growing people from diverse backgrounds and getting them into leadership roles is the way to go. If not now, then soon, we need to be moving in that direction. Hiring junior candidates from diverse backgrounds is super important, but being able to show people from protected characteristics that becoming a leader within a business is achievable, is also important, as it inspires more people to do the same.

At Veratrak, we believe that diversity is not just a buzzword, but a fundamental pillar of our success. By fostering an inclusive recruitment process, we aim to provide a supportive and empowering environment for all our employees.

Interested in joining the team? Browse our latest open roles here and apply online.