MEMORANDUM

To: Sundar Pichai, Google CEOFrom: Taylor O'Neal, Vice President of Human ResourcesDate: March 16, 2016Subject: Increasing Diversity and Inclusion at Google

Executive Summary

As you requested, what follows is a concise summary of options for Google to implement in order to

increase diversity. Google is struggling to employ women and minorities and needs to increase

diversity and inclusion efforts because Google is a company used world-wide. Google has implemented

the following four options:

1. Expand the ways that Google hires and recruits

2. Ensure that Google is a fair and inclusive workplace

3. Allow students the opportunity to access education in computer science

4. Ensure all communities can access the web

Each of the following options is designed to target a specific demographic and therefore I recommend

Option 3: Allow students the opportunity to access education in computer science. This option will

provide minorities access to computer science programs and allow them to pursue a computer science

degree to become potential Google employees.

Background

The workplace demographic data published in 2014 shows huge racial and gender disparities. Google

acknowledged that the company has a problem and needs to put forth the effort to fix it. The updated

workplace demographic report in 2015 shows us that the efforts that we put forth are not closing the

demographic gap at Google.

The current statistics of workplace diversity are contradictory to the Google mantra. As a company that

prides itself on creating products that can be used globally, the workforce should represent the users.

The current data shows us that 70% of Google's employees are men while 61% of its total workforce is

white and another 30% are Asian, 3% are Hispanic and 2% are African American (McGregor 2014).

Google employs about 56,000 (Kokalitchiva 2015) people around the world. Women hold only one-

fifth of the leadership positions and tech jobs. These statistics have been unchanged since the 2014 data

report after the initial 2015 efforts to increase diversity.

This trend shows the public that the tech world is still needs diversity and inclusion strategies. Most of

the workforce in Silicon Valley is overwhelmingly white and male (Alba 2015). Google has always

been the leader in the tech world and as a company that serves a diverse population, we should

represent our customers.

Objectives

The ultimate objective is to increase diversity at Google. This memo will outline the steps and

initiatives that Google can choose to implement to increase diversity. Google can increase diversity in

two ways: internally and externally. Companies that have fair rules and procedures attract top talent

from all backgrounds. We need to ensure that all of our policies are up to date and comply with all

federal and international laws.

Google needs to ensure that our culture is inclusive of all employees. The Equality and Human Rights

Commission says inclusion is a critical part of the workplace because an inclusive environment ensures

that everyone is treated with respect and dignity. Productivity and customer service improves because

the workforce is happier, more motivated, and more aware of the benefits that inclusion can bring (An

Employer's Guide 2010). The benefits of inclusion include attracting new talent, retaining productive

and committed staff, creating wider customer appeal and access to untapped markets, and creating

culture change that spreads to communities (An Employer's Guide 2010).

Opportunities and Challenges

The workplace today demands diversity. Diversity leads to out of the box thinking and innovative ideas

but it also brings tension and disunity. Some managers and human resources personnel may be wary to

put diversity on the agenda because human nature is often unpredictable.

Diversity in the workplace can be a challenge. Diversity and inclusion has to be a strategic process.

Managers have to oversee and predict possible employee problems rather than react to them. When

there are conflicting viewpoints, people often feel threatened. This is especially true in a competitive

environment such as the workplace where people are vying for promotions and recognition. Employees

can feel threatened by their co-worker's different backgrounds and points of view and constructive

disagreements can spill over into personal battles (Mossvelde 2010).

The opportunities that diversity brings outweigh the challenges as long as managers are properly

trained to deal with diversity issues. Google is a global company and should represent the

demographics of the customer base. Diversity brings fresh ideas that will meet the needs of all

demographics of customers. Diversity creates innovation, increases creativity, makes recruitment easier

by helping to recruit top talent, reduces turnover, and captures the wants and needs of the market

(Abreu 2014).

Options

1. Expand the ways that Google hires and recruits

2. Ensure that Google is a fair and inclusive workplace

3. Allow students the opportunity to access education in computer science

4. Ensure all communities can access the web

Analysis of Options

Option 1: Expand the ways that Google hires and recruits

This option allows us to take a step back and analyze the way that Google recruits employees. By

expanding the way Google hires and recruits we will be able to find more diverse employees. Google

can increased access by giving students from diverse colleges the exposure to technology. Google has

already started a diversity outreach program to historically black colleges in order to increase access to

Google technology. Google employees, the majority of which are engineers, are professors in diverse

colleges and teach students a wide range of topics. From introductory courses to simply sending a

professional email, these Google employees are teaching these students what it takes to become a

Google employee (Bock 2014). Expanding the types of colleges that Google recruits from will also

increase our diversity. Historically, Google has recruited from a relatively small number of schools

which are not very diverse. Google must find colleges that are willing to collaborate to give students

better access to high-quality jobs and to allow Google a wider pool of students to recruit from.

Option 2: Ensure that Google is a fair and inclusive workplace

To be a company that not only attracts top-talent but retains it requires continuing education for all of

the staff. Inclusion in the workplace is one way to bring the staff together and help each other

understand and accept their differences. The workshop Unconscious Bias @ Work is a program that

needs to be taught to all levels of staff, from entry-level staff to senior management (Benefits 2016).

Programs such as these, that Google has used need to become a part of the culture at Google.

Workshops require that employees from all departments come together and talk to one another.

Meetings like these emphasize the advantages that diversity brings such as innovation, cultural

sensitivities, and new ideas and points of view.

Being inclusive means that all employees are treated with dignity and respect. By offering benefits that

allow employees a work/life balance, Google will be able to attract more diverse applicants. Benefits

such as on-site healthcare, travel and emergency assistance, extended maternity/paternity leave,

reimbursement for continuing education, and free legal advice attract diverse applicants (Benefits

2016).

Option 3: Allow students the opportunity to access education in computer science

Google's internal study determined that women and minorities make up only 18% of computer science

degrees. Google is working to increase access to educational opportunities in computer science. Google

has determined the main reason that women and minorities are not drawn to computer science degrees

is because of the media. Minorities are underrepresented on screen and computer science is often

disregarded as a degree women and minorities should pursue. Google has created programs to allow

girls and minority children increased access to computer science and coding exposure by creating after

school programs and community volunteers. By allowing girls and minorities access to the web and

coding opportunities more people will be drawn to the computer science field which will create a larger

potential hire pool for Google and other tech companies.

Option 4: Ensure all communities can access the web

Google has recognized that over 50% of small businesses are owned by minorities. Therefore, Google

has created a new comprehensive program that teaches business owners how to complete business

activities on the web. Google has also committed itself to a mentor-ship program that pairs African-

American and Hispanic students to increase the diversity in Silicon Valley. Initiatives such as these

ensure that all minorities can access the web and gain experience in the tech field.

Implementation

I recommend that Google create a plan of action to formally recruit and hire a diverse workforce. All of

Google director's will need to collaborate and brainstorm the types of people that will fit into each

department. Google should hire more people in protected classes such as age, gender, and race. These

different groups of people will bring a new perspective and will ultimately help Google succeed in this

competitive market.

The four options above are all implemented at Google but we need focus on the recommendation that

will have the most impact. Therefore, I recommend Option 3: Allow students the opportunity to access

education in computer science. This option will impact the most women and minorities in

underrepresented communities. Allowing students the opportunity to experience an introduction to

computer science will lead them to pursue careers in this field. Exposing students in grades K-12 will

give minorities the opportunity and mentor to guide them into computer science degree programs.

Google should create these programs and mentor-ships in communities that are low-income with high

populations in order to reach the highest amount of students. Google should increase the initiatives in

Option 3 and give minorities the opportunity to be earn a degree and become potential Google

employees.

REFERENCES

Abreu, Kim. "The Myriad Benefits of Diversity in the Workplace." Entrepreneur. 08 Dec. 2014. Web. 16 Mar. 2016. <http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/240550>.

Alba, Davey. "Meet the Exec Pushing Google to Fix Its Dismal Diversity." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, 3 June 2015. Web. 16 Mar. 2016. <http://www.wired.com/2015/06/google-diversity-nancy-lee/>.

"Benefits - Google Careers." Benefits - Google Careers. Web. 16 Mar. 2016. <http://www.google.com/about/careers/lifeatgoogle/benefits/>.

Bock, Laszlo. "Getting to Work on Diversity at Google." <i>Official Google Blog</i>. Google, 28 May 2014. Web. 29 Jan. 2016. &lt;https://googleblog.blogspot.com/2014/05/getting-to-work-on-diversity-at-google.html&gt;.

Bock, Laszlo. "You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know: How Our Unconscious Minds Undermine the Workplace." Official Google Blog. Google, 25 Sept. 2014. Web. 16 Mar. 2016. <https://googleblog.blogspot.com/2014/09/you-dont-know-what-you-dont-know-how.html>.

"Diversity - Google." Diversity - Google. Google, 2016. Web. 7 Mar. 2016. <https://www.google.com/diversity/>.

Kokalitchiva, Kia. "Google's Workplace Diversity Still Has a Long Way to Go." Time. Time, 1 June 2015. Web. 16 Mar. 2016. <http://time.com/3904408/google-workplace-diversity/>.