Herstory: My Journey in Corporate America

Hi, my name is Margarita Martinez and I'm a 1st generation college grad, Bay native, Latinx, and a womxn of color.

I work in recruitment and I’ve noticed repeatedly that when teams discuss diversity and inclusion in the workplace, the focus remains on gender and race, with little to no attention given to other adversities (i.e. immigration status, socioeconomic status, housing insecurity, etc) that create a barrier to success, especially for people of color. Frankly, most recruitment is negligent of intersectionality and oftentimes overlooks the search for diverse candidates from a holistic and intersectional standpoint which would allow the creation of a workplace that acknowledges and welcomes diverse experiences. There isn't one way to get to the best solution especially when you take into account all the unique perspectives your team has to offer. We should focus on hiring in instead of out: meaning not basing our assessment on an individuals pedigree from an establishment, but rather to look at a candidate holistically; what barriers have they overcome, what novel experiences do they bring to the table, and how have they demonstrated excellence?. By having more inclusive hiring processes could set precedent that can continue to push conversations forward around the gender and race pay gap and economic mobility.

I've been challenged to figure out "Corporate America" when I didn't necessarily have mentors or an example of what that looked like in my community. However, what I’ve learned about myself and my role that I have is as follows: social impact programs can accelerate and drive change in marginalized communities when they are run efficiently, a desire to leverage the skills I’ve gained in the corporate world to make a lasting impact in the world of social good. I have a passion for building programs that allow for more inclusivity and personal growth in teams. A goal I have for myself this year is to create more ways to empower marginalized groups through innovation such as instead of having a Womxn’s Group at my company how can I push that further. Such as having employees sign up to mentor an at risk youth in our area getting them excited about their future and providing them with an outline of how to get there. Which I would've loved to have a mentor to help me understand how to develop a career pathway. Happy Womxn's Herstory Month; I'm grateful for all the beings I have in my life that have helped shape me into who I am today and who i'm becoming.

All the Best,

Margz