Access and belonging have always been at the heart of Onfido’s mission. From helping underbanked populations have greater access to the world’s economy, to building best-in-class solutions with accessibility and anti-bias in mind.
It’s no surprise that our dedicated Onfidoers organically came together to form our first ever Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) squad Together we Rise in 2020. Though the passion was evident, and the ideas were actionable, it was clear that the squad needed more support in order to truly thrive.
Fast forward to 2023 and we’ve just published our first Diversity and Impact Report. It not only outlines our values and initiatives that Onfido participates and invests in – such as Women in Identity, Women in Tech Festival, and nurturing our leaders with a DEI focus – it also dives into the data behind our burgeoning Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) framework.
Read our DEI report to find out details about our Onfidoers' diverse backgrounds, our community activities, environmental commitments and governance guidelines.
What we stand for
Though it was tempting to boil the ocean, we knew we needed to start simple. We spelled out an impact statement by Onfidoers for Onfidoers, as we understood that it is important for us to have a touchstone to ground ourselves. Everything we do (and will do) is firmly anchored around this. We’re even adding the statement to a plaque for all to see in our London office.
Impact statement: What we stand for, built by Onfidoers
What we stand for at Onfido, according to Onfidoers
The focus areas
So now it’s about putting those words in the statement to life. We’ve created a framework focusing on three key areas:
- Accountability and outreach
- Education and awareness
- Development
Accountability and outreach
This is where we cross the t’s and dot the i’s. We’re aiming to get a full picture of our employees and their corresponding experiences. This is also one of the more complicated areas for an international company as we’re contending with different cultural norms and geo-specific laws. We’re only just scratching the surface with this area, but we’re planning to publish a Diversity Report that will serve as our baseline and inform future initiatives. Stay tuned.
Education and awareness
There is a wide spectrum of DEI awareness, and it’s important to realize that everyone is at a different stage of their journey. Some people are just learning the alphabet while others are reading epic novels. This is why we’ve partnered with Mix Diversity Developers to get us all speaking the same proverbial language across the company.
We’re also creating learning experiences on Allyship with LeanIn. Our goal is to bridge the gap between intention and impact with tangible, evidence-backed strategies for every type of ally.
Finally, we curated a company-wide events and awareness calendar, with employee input. This will ensure we’ve got a range of opportunities to interact with awareness dates while working with subject matter experts, such as HelmLife for Black History Month and UPFRONT for International Women’s day.
Development
Access to development opportunities is paramount to a successful DEI initiative. We’re ensuring that employees of all types have the tools they need to be successful and grow their careers at Onfido through the creation of Fido Resource Groups. A Fido Resource group is an official, employee-led, Onfido-sponsored group that creates meaningful value by:
- Fostering a diverse, inclusive, and engaged workplace
- Aligning with Onfido’s mission and values
- Providing a space for employees to engage with culture and feel a sense of belonging on a more personal scale
We’re kicking off with 9 Fido Resource Groups. They are: Parents, PrideFido, Women, New Grads, Mental Health, Multicultural, Neurodiversity, and Allyship.
We’re also investing in our talent. One such way is through our partnership with Women in Identity (WiD) as a platinum sponsor. WiD is a global, non-profit membership organization whose purpose is to promote parity with respect to opportunity, reward, recognition, and professional mobility.
We chose WiD because they speak to what our women Onfidoers have told us is important to them – encouraging a more diverse workforce in the industry and being inclusive of all intersections, allowing them all to enter and work in the identity industry.
The access that WiD will provide us will help to further elevate the talented women at Onfido (and across the identity industry) via development, research, education, and events.
We're working with Women in Identity to create access across four areas:
The road ahead
We know we have a long road ahead of us. We’ve only just started to chip away at the iceberg. But the goal is sustainable progress and not a quick success story. This is closer to becoming a reality with the company-wide commitment we have – we’re building the infrastructure and we’ve got a plan. We’re planning to bring you along with us on our journey, so stay tuned for updates and learnings.
Head over to our careers page to see our latest job postings.
