Insights

How to be a better ally in the workplace

Author: Beyondsoft Recruiting

Building an inclusive and respectful workplace culture benefits everyone. One of the best ways we can help foster this culture is through allyship. Being an ally means actively supporting the rights of a marginalized group. This article highlights actions each of us can take to be a better ally in the workplace.

Educate yourself

As the saying goes, you can’t know what you don’t know. As allies, we must commit to identifying and mitigating our own knowledge gaps by learning about privilege, bias, and identity. This means seeking out others’ stories to gain insight into their world and their challenges. Additionally, we must ask ourselves tough questions to identify our own blind spots and then hold ourselves accountable for addressing them through learning.

Exercise empathy

The ability to understand and share the feelings of another person can make us better allies. Practicing empathy helps us feel more connected to others. As part of the education process, we must learn about perspectives that differ from our own. We must challenge our viewpoints and attitudes and exercise humility as we seek to understand others. Furthermore, we can practice active listening, giving the speaker our undivided attention and asking for clarification when needed.

Practice respect

Practicing respect means treating people with courtesy and kindness and honoring others’ identities, opinions, and concerns through verbal and nonverbal communication. We can encourage praise and recognition and ensure criticism is constructive and comes from a place of kindness and empathy. Additionally, practicing respect means using others’ preferred pronouns and avoiding assumptions around gender identity. We can make it easy for others when we add our own preferred pronouns to our email signature, introductions, or online bios.

Foster inclusion

To be a better ally in the workplace, make sure everyone has a seat at the table by ensuring meetings, events, projects, and conversations are inclusive. Actively encourage all attendees to express their views and ideas.

Speak up

Speaking up means standing up for what is right. But it doesn’t mean we speak for others. One of the best things we can do is to give a platform and voice to others. Create space to allow people to speak for themselves. Take time to amplify and promote underheard voices and give credit where credit is due. When you see something wrong, take action. If you hear a comment or observe behavior that might be offensive, speak up and explain why it is wrong and will not be tolerated.

Beyondsoft values a diverse, equitable, and inclusive culture

Allyship is essential to building an inclusive culture where employees thrive, a priority here at Beyondsoft. Taking the time to be a better ally in the workplace benefits everyone. If you’d like to learn more about how Beyondsoft approaches diversity, equity, and inclusion, visit Diversity at Beyondsoft. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for your next role, check out our latest career opportunities.

Business Development Manager (Remote): We’re seeking a senior leader to grow our managed services business, overseeing end-to-end, go-to-market strategic planning, generating business opportunities, and closing sales with new and existing enterprise accounts. 

Full Stack Developer (Remote): Work with our client to build backend services and APIs for a world-class payments platform that moves billions of dollars, in 191 countries, with 75 currencies.

Senior Data Engineer (Remote): In this contract role, you’ll build, implement, and maintain high-functioning data pipelines to provide actionable fraud-prevention data. Running and writing SQL queries will be critical to your success.

Sr. Project Manager (Plano, TX): Define project scope, objectives, and approach to support our clients’ business objectives, driving efficiencies and coordinating activities across teams and projects.

Mechanical Engineer (Fremont, CA): In this role at one of our top clients, you’ll handle end-to-end product design and manage projects from concept through fabrication. You will create and own design documentation, including CAD models, BOMs, design packages for machine shops, test requirements, and final release for production.

Applications Developer (Remote): Support one of our leading clients in Redmond, developing a platform and tools to enable data scientists to deliver AI and machine learning solutions.

Technical Systems Analyst / System Admin (Remote): In this role, you’ll support and track high-visibility incidents, high-traffic websites, and consumer-facing web applications reported by internal customers, business partners, and vendors. An AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate is desired.

Mobile Software Automation Engineer (San Diego, CA): Work onsite at a high-profile technology client. Responsibilities include planning and implementing test automation standards and strategies, building test cases using Python and Jenkins, and creating an automation framework.

Senior Backend Developer (Remote): In support of the Compliance Finance team, you will design creative solutions using skills in Service Oriented Architecture, real-time systems, data processing pipelines, machine learning, graph algorithms, feature visualization, and payments technologies.

Sr. Full Stack Engineer / Architect (Remote): We are looking for an experienced engineer well versed in architecture, cloud, and networking to handle full-stack development and envision entire systems end-to-end. This role requires a solid development background with front-end and back-end technologies.

Associate Business Development Manager (Remote): Drive growth within assigned territories, working closely with solution consulting and delivery. Chief responsibilities include analyzing the client’s business operations, determining strategies for meeting goals, and ensuring products and projects are ready on time.

Software Engineer (Boise, ID): Oversee enhancement development and maintenance of existing web-based programs in support of data analytics. You will support database connectivity, data loads, and reporting and collaborate with customer assurance team members. You will also integrate data, train users, and participate in quality meetings.

Test Engineer (Boise, ID): Set up computers and printers and run print quality and system performance tests on print devices in the customer’s lab environment.

Dynamics Technician (Vancouver, WA): Work onsite at a high-profile technical client to maintain and troubleshoot equipment and systems. Responsibilities include interpreting mechanical drawings, schematics, and test procedures and performing testing tasks and defect characterization. You must be familiar with Technician 1 and 2 activities.

Manufacturing Tech (Corvallis, OR): Perform manufacturing assignments in a clean-room environment, processing manufacturing jobs using automated tools, performing quality control inspections, and reporting on any issues encountered.

Printer Test Technician 1 (Vancouver, WA): Break into the technology field! In this role, you will perform tests to determine the functionality of mechanical equipment. You will run test scripts according to guidelines, observe printer behavior, and compare results with predetermined parameters.

Printer Test Technician 2 (Vancouver, WA): In this position, you will perform tests to determine mechanical and computer equipment functionality. You’ll also ensure instruments are calibrated and verified regularly and work with engineers to test, debug, and troubleshoot equipment and products.

Mechanical Printer Technician (Vancouver, WA): Work onsite at a high-profile technical client, running test scripts, observing printer behavior, collecting test data, maintaining accurate logs, troubleshooting equipment, interpreting drawing and schematics, and more.

How we do it

Our success factors over the years are a testament to driving your return on investment. Singapore is our global head office and we have 15 regional offices around the world.

Nearly 3 decades of strong IT consulting and services

Global presence across four continents

Certifications* in CMMI 5, ISO 9001, ISO 45001, and ISO 27001

~30,000 global experts

Microsoft Azure Expert MSP

ISO 9001 and 45001 (certificates issued to Beyondsoft International (Singapore) Pte Ltd). ISO 27001 (certificates issued to Beyondsoft International (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Beyondsoft (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., and Beyondsoft Consulting Inc., Bellevue, WA, USA)