At Wizeline, we believe diversity makes for stronger teams and better business. New research shows that companies with the most ethnically diverse boards worldwide are 43% more likely to experience higher profits. A landmark report by the McKinsey Global Institute finds that $12 trillion could be added to global GDP by 2025 if the gender gap is narrowed.

We work with companies in Latin America, Asia-Pacific, and the U.S. It is paramount that our team reflects the diversity of our clients and their customers. Corporate social responsibility aside, there are many compelling reasons why diversity gives businesses a competitive edge.

Diversity as a catalyst for profit and innovation

This year, McKinsey released Delivering Through Diversity, which suggests that diversity in management positions increases profits more than previously thought.

“Companies in the top quartile for gender or racial and ethnic diversity are more likely to have financial returns above their national industry medians.”

Companies in the top quartile for gender or racial and ethnic diversity are more likely to have financial returns above their national industry medians. Companies in the bottom 25 percent of gender or racial diversity are less likely to achieve above-average returns. McKinsey stated that “diversity is probably a competitive differentiator that shifts market share toward more diverse companies over time.”

Intuitively, this makes sense. Companies with diverse teams tend to make fewer mistakes because of the diversity of perspectives. If everyone has the same background or world-view, you get a limited set of solutions to problems.

Top talent seeks diversity and inclusion

At the simplest level, if businesses aren’t good at hiring a particular group, it limits the number of people in their hiring pool. A diverse and inclusive organization attracts a more diverse talent pool and creates an inspiring work experience that increases morale and retention rates. Research by Glassdoor found diversity to be an important factor for two-thirds of job applicants surveyed. Women, minorities, and veterans all reported a desire to be a part of a diverse workforce.

Turnover is expensive and time-consuming. Hiring for diversity is great, but retention is also important. Your company’s marketing and messaging should align with your hiring process and cultivate an inclusive culture beyond hiring.

What can companies do to ensure diversity and inclusion?

Communicate executive commitment to galvanize the organization. Commitment to inclusion and diversity starts at the top, with your CEO and seniors executives. This commitment should trickle down throughout the organization, particularly to management. Encourage role modeling, hold executives and managers accountable, and ensure all efforts have sufficient resources and support.

Plan inclusion and diversity initiatives based on business growth. Top companies invest internally. They do their best to research and understand what strategies support business growth. Business growth strategies include attracting (and retaining) great talent. Identify the traits and values you want to prioritize, and pursue them consistently.

Customize an inclusion strategy to maximize local impact. Companies serious about diversity recognize the need to adapt—to different geographies and sociocultural contexts. Strive to make an impact on the communities your company serves.

What is Wizeline doing?

In our culture

We have an inclusion council dedicated to creating and fostering a diverse and inclusive environment in which all employees can thrive. We believe in an open environment of support, equal opportunity, and well-being for all our employees, irrespective of gender identity, religion, or sexual orientation. We put this belief into action in our hiring and compensation practices. On average, our female engineers make slightly more than their peers, and we ensure pay equity between our male and female engineers.

“We are committed to hiring candidates that reflect the statistics of the population at technical universities. This commitment means hiring more women in technical roles…”

In our hiring

Wizeline is growing rapidly. It’s an exciting time, and also the perfect time to set the precedence for our organization. We are committed to hiring candidates that reflect the statistics of the population at technical universities. This commitment means hiring more women in technical roles, and balancing our recruiting efforts, so we don’t lag behind the demographics. As part of this initiative, we committed to hiring 50 percent women into our software engineering trainee program this summer.

In our community

From the beginning, we created Wizeline Academy to help us live our mission to make technology accessible to all. In June, we hosted an “Introduction to JavaScript for Women” course, which was taught and mentored exclusively by women engineers at Wizeline. This supportive atmosphere brought over 70 women to the course when typically we see only 2-3 women in a 70 person course.

Our Academy also sponsors Code GDL, an initiative to teach local high school students programming skills, with the goal of accepting 50 percent female students, to get women in technology supported at the earliest stage. 50 percent of students who graduate from Code GDL go on to pursue science and technology degrees in college.

“50 percent of students who graduate from Code GDL go on to pursue science and technology degrees in college.”

In May, we united ten of the most prominent tech startups in Guadalajara to sponsor the Race for Inclusion 5k, an event to raised funds for Laboratoria, a non-profit devoted to closing the gender gap in tech. Our inclusion council also participated in the Guadalajara Pride parade this year.

Wizeline is committed to creating opportunities across the world for the best talent, no matter where they are from or what they believe. Making sure that we are not just geographically diverse, but represent all types of people is a core component of our mission. We’ve heard many times that Wizeline’s diversity was a deciding factor for people to join.

Companies will find that too much is at stake. They must make diversity a business priority to be competitive in hiring and succeed in today’s market.