Insights and Inspiration from the HerKey AccelHERate Event in Pune

Accelerating and Embracing Inclusive Culture Conversations at the HerKey AccelHERate Event in Pune on November 19th, Sponsored by GoDaddy

As a first-time attendee of the HerKey event, I was thrilled to engage in discussions about diversity and inclusion. More importantly, I was eager to learn best practices, as this is a key focus for us at GoDaddy as part of our employer branding strategy.

Murugan (Muru) Arjunan, HerKey’s CTO, presented their annual Diversity Benchmarking report, highlighting that women’s participation in the workforce stands at 34%. It also noted that around 90% of organizations offer workplace flexibility, illustrating the industry’s significant shift toward fostering a DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging) culture. However, it was concerning to see that, outside the IT/tech sector, women’s participation in all other industries remains below 10%, indicating a pressing need for transformation.

Deepali from IAC shared an inspiring story about how IAC increased women’s participation from 5% to 20% by fostering open communication, building accountability and responsibility for DEIB, and developing a future talent pipeline through a sponsored college program.

Pradnya from Johnson Controls discussed the creation of a team of diversity champions at Johnson Controls and their integration into interview panels to help eliminate bias.

Amdocs has initiated a mentorship program for female students, further supporting the growth of women in tech fields.

At GoDaddy, we champion an inclusive culture that goes beyond just an HR initiative. We work closely with our tech and engineering teams in India, and having Mayur and Amrita participate in the event underscored our team’s commitment. We all echoed the sentiment “We Belong Here” as we captured the moment with a photo. :D

It’s always a pleasure to reconnect with friends and former colleagues to catch up and share updates. Zoha, Avantika, Sarmistha, and Rizwana — it was wonderful to see you all, as always.

A big thank you to the HerKey team, especially Pooja and Neha, for organizing such a fantastic event in Pune and providing us the opportunity to partner with you. We look forward to more initiatives like this in the future.