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Access

4 First Ave., Peabody, MA 01960

Company CareersDiversity & Inclusion

Access is the largest privately-held records and information management services provider worldwide, with operations across the United States, Canada, Central America, and South America. From secure storage to document digitization, our end-to-end...Read More

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DIVERSITY

E-Interview

In conversations with Newsweek, Rita Parker, Access' Vice President of Global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion answered the following questions:

1. Can you provide an overview of your company's workplace culture and values, and how they contribute to a positive work environment?

At Access, our culture fosters collaboration, respect, and support among team members, promoting innovation, productivity, and employee well-being. We value the diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences of all team members which helps to create an environment at Access where all employees feel respected and empowered. Our values are centered around our "REACH" principles which guide all our interactions and relationships internally and externally.

Respectful: I treat others the way they want to be treated.
Empowered: I make good decisions.
Accountable: I own my own actions.
Collaborative: I listen and contribute.
Honest: I act with integrity.

2. What kind of professional development and growth opportunities are available to employees? How does your company support career advancement?

At Access, the professional development and growth of our team members is paramount to our organizational success. Our team members can take structured courses that are offered through our learning platform. We also provide scheduled leadership modules to constantly enhance the skills of our leaders to effectively manage and lead their teams. Our Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) provide another avenue for professional development. Members can engage in book discussions centered around professional topics in addition to joining guest speaker and mentoring sessions structured within these groups. Our ERGs are open to any employee to join whether they self-identify with the group or want to be a member who is an advocate.

3. How does your company ensure transparency and open communication between management and employees, fostering a sense of trust and belonging?

At Access, we prioritize reinforcing a culture of trust and employee belonging. To ensure total transparency and open dialogue, we have several different strategies that we deploy including all company meetings led by our Chief Executive Officer which allows open communication on organizational progress and provides a forum for employee Q&A. In addition, we deploy employee roundtables, employee engagement and DEI surveys annually to ensure we get direct team member feedback frequently. These strategies along with constant leadership visibility throughout the organization ensure complete transparency and constant communication.

4. How does your company handle feedback and suggestions from employees? Is there a system in place for employees to voice their concerns or ideas?

Our organization reinforces an open-door policy where employees can share their suggestions or concerns with any level of leadership. If employees want to confidently share their ideas and suggestions, this can be done through our annual surveys or by contacting our Human Resources department.

5. What strategies have you implemented to ensure an inclusive workplace culture?

To ensure an inclusive workplace culture, we have implemented various strategies such as diversity, equity, and inclusion training for all levels of leadership and global team members, created Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), hosted seminars and workshops, and made a commitment to ensure diverse representation in leadership. In fact, leaders play the most significant role in fostering a sense of belonging for employees from diverse backgrounds. When leaders have the emotional intelligence to understand that their experiences are different from someone else who is not like them, they begin to lead with a greater sense of intentionality to ensure equitable treatment and inclusion. This leadership accountability demonstrates to all employees that they are valued and respected.

6. How do you address unconscious bias in hiring and promotion processes?

At Access, our foundational approach to minimizing unconscious bias (in all areas involving people decisions) is through learning and development. We invested in structured learning sessions offered by a leading firm on unconscious bias for all leaders and team members globally. To build upon our approach, we have and will continue to train leaders on targeted selection interviewing processes in addition to building diverse interviewing/promotion panels to mitigate bias.

7. How do you incorporate feedback from employees to continuously improve DEI efforts?

The feedback that we receive from employees on ways to improve our DEI efforts are used to structure our strategic priorities. Annually, we gather this feedback through surveys and forums and use the feedback to determine what the priorities are and work to build a plan to improve, then execute to bring about positive changes.

8. How do you ensure that DEI is embedded in the company's values and not just seen as a checklist item?

We have a consistent DEI communication approach that keeps initiatives and events at the forefront of our organization. Our CEO ensures that DEI is a priority, and this is very visible within our company. We also have a Vice President that leads our DEI initiatives globally whose priority is to ensure that we are continually reinforcing a diverse and inclusive culture at Access.

9. Can you share how DEI has contributed to profitability?

When employees are valued and feel a sense of belonging and physiological safety, they are more productive and committed to the success of the organization through driving innovative ideas. This innovation and creativity contribute to improved business outcomes including enhanced client acquisition and retention and revenue growth.

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