Resources
2023 Racial Equity Baseline Report
WERE is committed to measuring and reporting on collective progress toward our ultimate goal of advancing racial equity in the workplace. Data collected in 2021 and 2022 provide a baseline from which to catalyze efforts to advance equity in the workplace.
Spotlight Report: Equitable Hiring and Onboarding Practices
Our coalition aims to better understand and address the barriers Black talent face in the workplace. This report highlights a selection of practices employers of various sizes can explore to support hiring and successful retention of Black talent, including the use of intentional recruiting processes, objective selection criteria, and personalized onboarding.
Spotlight Report: Access to Capital
National data and direct insights from Black business owners spotlight the challenges they face accessing capital to start and grow businesses in Washington state. In this report, WERE highlights practices that private sector employers are deploying to increase access to capital for Black business owners, including expediting payments, making strategic equity investments, and investing in mission-driven banks.
CEO Conversation: REI & Seattle Storm
REI President & CEO Eric Artz and Seattle Storm Co-Owner Dawn Trudeau share their experiences engaging employees at all levels of the organization as well as their customers and fans in efforts to advance racial equity.
RACIAL EQUITY DIGITAL RESOURCE REPOSITORY
We are grateful to our partners at Central Washington University for curating and hosting a repository of links to websites, podcasts, videos, and other resources that leaders can use to support equity and address the unique challenges Black and other employees of color face in the workplace.
Spotlight: Equitable Contracting Practices
This report catalogs feedback from Black business owners across Washington state about their experiences with private-sector contracting and the barriers they face to growing their businesses in Washington state. Building off that feedback, the report presents nine potential practices that employers of all sizes can explore to increase equity throughout their contracting processes and support increased investment in Black-owned businesses.
Spotlight: Advancing Black Talent
Equitable advancement requires increased access and representation for Black workers across the business enterprise. This report explores employer practices aimed at supporting the advancement of Black talent, including effective use of Employee Resource Groups, executive-specific racial equity training, and equitable promotion policies.
Spotlight: Minority-Owned Business Certification
Certification is one tool used to help direct corporate spend to minority-owned businesses. This report outlines existing and emerging certification strategies and details how – as part of a supplier diversity program – firms can use certification to increase relationships with Black-owned suppliers and offer broader access to development tools and contracting opportunities.
CEO Conversation: Seattle Kraken & T-Mobile
Seattle Kraken CEO Tod Leiweke and T-Mobile President & CEO Mike Sievert share their learnings and experiences working to advance racial equity within their corporate culture and workplaces.
CEO Conversation: Black Business Leaders
Craig Dawson, Mack Hogans, and Mary Pugh discuss the inequities they faced in their careers and strategies CEOs can use to advance Black talent and support Black businesses in Washington.
Foundation Report: An Equitable Future for Washington State
Since forming in December 2020, WERE has been on a journey to listen, learn, and better understand the causes and impacts of racial inequity. We began by gathering data and speaking to Black community and business leaders, data and research experts, and racial equity specialists. The findings are not new. Rather, they reconfirm that Black Washingtonians experience racial inequity in multiple facets of life, including the workplace.