Culture
The CalPERS culture of DEI is rooted in our mission, vision, and core values of balance, openness, accountability, respect, integrity, and quality.
We strive to continually bring DEI best practices into our culture through compliance with DEI-related laws, policies, and procedures and ask ourselves how we can further increase awareness, build mutually rewarding relationships, and encourage collaboration. Our ultimate goal is to create a workplace where every team member feels valued, respected, and has a sense of belonging.
This year, we focused on creating safe spaces for inclusion through two of our employee resource groups (ERGs) and the CalPERS Diversity Outreach Program (CDOP). One of our two resource groups, the CalPERS Disability Advisory Council (CDAC), was recognized as the Disability Advisory Council of the Year by the Association of California State Employees with Disabilities and the Statewide Disability Advisory Council.
As the pandemic continued to impact our team members mentally, physically, and emotionally, we supported them by providing additional resources for training, development, wellness, and recognition. Finally, we continued to collect data and bolster resources to understand and continuously strengthen team member experiences regarding respect, equality, trust, and inclusiveness.
Key Highlights
- Ensured compliance and promoted a respectful work environment by incorporating updated definitions into the Harassment, Discrimination, and Prevention Policy.
- Administered surveys to assess employee engagement to help us understand team member experiences, including exit surveys, COVID-19 policies, and team member engagement.
- Provided career development and mentoring resources to all employees, regardless of classification, race, ethnicity, gender identity, disability status, or veteran status, at the second virtual CalPERS Career Development Day. The event featured:
- Employee intranet articles, featuring career advice from senior leadership, the Career Services & Outreach team, and education on career development for team members at all levels
- Livestreamed online event hosted by Chief Executive Officer Marcie Frost and Human Resources Division Chief Michelle Tucker, where they discussed their career journeys and answered team member questions
- Informal mentoring videos featuring team members from different career levels, focus areas, cultural backgrounds, and career journeys
- Commemorated Helen Keller DeafBlind Awareness week by offering a free sign-language class to all team members.
- Continued to support team members engagement in DEI at their own pace by providing an updated DEI resource page with books, movies, and ways to get involved in the community.
- Used the CalPERS online DEI newsletter as an engagement tool for team members during the pandemic.
- Developed an online calendar to raise awareness of DEI holidays and observances.
- Provided multiple communication channels to recognize team members’ achievements, length of service, and retirements, resulting in a total of 4,679 team member recognitions.
- Maintained a language fluency list of bilingual CalPERS team members across the enterprise who volunteer their interpreting and translating services in 26 different languages.
- CalPERS Informal Mentoring Program facilitates innovation and strong relationships by supporting learning about other areas of the organization, capitalizing on the breadth of experience in our diverse workforce, and enhancing opportunities for professional and personal development. Achievements this year included interactive virtual speed mentoring and promoting Illuminet, an internal self-service social networking tool to help team members promote their skills, pair with a mentor, and engage in knowledge sharing.
- Working in partnership, CDAC and CalPERS Diversity and Inclusion Group (CDIG), hosted monthly ERG virtual meetings to create a safe space for team members and leaders to come together and increase awareness about disability and inclusion. Average attendance for the year was 59, reaching its high point in June with 72 team members in attendance.
- Increased leadership involvement with ERGs through working groups, service on the CalPERS Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Council, and more frequent communication with the CalPERS Senior Leadership Council.
- Recognized Pride Month through an ERG partnership with the Office of Public Affairs (PAOF) to develop an employee intranet article titled “Out and Proud,” hosted an Out and Proud Pride Panel, and shared additional resources through our employee intranet and CEO communications.
- Hosted a major event to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act attended by more than 600 CalPERS team members. The virtual event included a panel discussion of the past, present, and future of disability rights with key members of the award-winning Netflix documentary Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution. The event was made possible through a collaboration of the Accessibility Compliance Team (ACT), CDOP, CDAC, and CDIG.
- CDAC’s chair interviewed guest speakers Craig Rubenstein and Monica MacNicholl from the Department of Rehabilitation on CEO Marcie Frost’s webchat to discuss challenges of the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing community in the telework environment.
- Hosted an interactive virtual celebration of the three-day Festival of Lights. The celebration focused on the religious aspects of the festival, as well as fashion, cuisine, and finally cultural performances by team members and their families.
- Celebrated the 10th annual Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD), to underscore what digital accessibility means to us as public servants and as members of an inclusive society. More than 400 team members heard from GAAD Co-Founder Joe Devon and Accessibility Compliance Expert Dax Castro on the importance of delivering accessible content to our members and stakeholders.
- Provided consultations to other state agencies and shared best practices to assist in their development of DEI programs, including the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR), the California Department of Transportation, Department of Industrial Relations, Covered California, and the California Community Colleges Chancellors Office.
- Partnered with the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) to host the 2021 Diversity Forum, a free one-day virtual event that focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the investment industry. The session, attended by investment industry and business executives, professionals, and experts, addressed timely issues, including the impact of COVID-19 on human capital and how bias impacts corporations and financial markets.