My Journey to DEI

My Background

I’d like to start by saying, I have had the unique privilege of experiencing a journey filled with values that have become a big part of my profession today.?

I was born and raised in Izumo, Japan, a city full of historical relevance and natural beauty.?

While I did most of my schooling there, I moved to Tokyo for my tertiary education, then to the UK to gain my first Master’s degree. After having more than a decade's worth of professional experience in Tokyo, I moved to Sydney with my family of five to carry on my role at Google in a full-time capacity and simultaneously pursue my Masters in Labour Law and Relations study.?

When I started at Google, I was in the Human Resources department, my primary focus was on finding the right talent for the organisation. Despite having a default DEI lens when viewing the world, it was not my core role back then.

After moving to Australia with my three little kids, as an immigrant student trying to fit into different cultures, I would question my own identity and the impact it would have on my children. I questioned my sense of belongingness, and the values inherent to me. Over time, I realised that this is a ?common experience for immigrant and international students - integration vs isolation.?

I don’t know how I overcame it, or even if I did ever but I slowly learnt acceptance and pride in the fact that I was different while respecting various value sets and expectations. One of the biggest realisations that came from this was the importance of context.?

I learnt that our lived experiences and our perceptions as people of colour can be used to our advantage. The hardship we have gone through often ends up becoming our biggest strength.?

As Michelle Obama quoted in her final speech as FLOTUS - “Our glorious diversity, our diversity as the faiths and colours and creeds, that is not a threat to who we are — it makes us who we are”?

I didn't realise it then but life eventually unfolded in unexpected ways. Looking back, I can see how each step, and each personal experience, was guiding me towards a deeper understanding of diversity and inclusion.?

Professional Beginnings

It feels like a long long time ago but once I returned from the UK, I started my first full-time career in the field of medical communication and research expertise.?

It fitted perfectly with my needs - it required continuous learning and tested my ability to contribute towards the industry’s challenges. Using my strength in communications and bridging information gaps. I thought I was going to grow in this field for my entire career. I was happy and was doing very well. I co-authored various papers and led multiple medical trial projects through communication and translation perspectives.?

I was so grateful for having the role and the rare opportunity, surrounded by very kind mentors. But after some years, life threw me curve balls - the industry was quickly showing its lack of diversity and inclusion. Incidentally, I became subject to various biases and harassment, not only for my gender but also for being a young individual, with zero in-group networks.??

As I progressed, I felt more exposed to academic harassment, especially since I was in a highly niche academic field where my mentor could start seeing me as a threat. I may have unintentionally behaved wrong that did not fit into the workplace norms, so I tried for additional 2 years to address the gaps by working harder and didn’t work out.?

When I left the world of academia behind, I felt like a complete failure and had felt completely lost. I was super angry and the energy left in me was very limited after years of harassment.?

After some thought, I decided to use whatever energy I had left for something forward-looking and long-term. Having gone through such an experience, I wanted to ensure that no one after me faced such challenges.?

And that is how it began…?

It wasn’t a miracle overnight, the first recruiting agent I contacted told me that I would not get into the HR role nor retain my income level given such a drastic career switch from such extended academic roles.?

As luck would have it, a boutique HR consulting firm was interested in me and hired me as a part of their new international client team that consisted of highly experienced senior consultants. The interesting part was that these individuals had limited English proficiency but advanced HR knowledge and I possessed the opposite. Nevertheless, what we had in common was our eagerness to learn.?

Over time, it evolved into the diverse domain of Human Resources, spanning various industries, including Tech and Finance. Eventually, this path mixed with coincidences led me to Google.?

It’s hard to believe but I was initially very hesitant. Mainly because I had just had my first child and I felt as though my professional commitment would come under question, given the lack of physical attendance in-office and limited hours.?

I still ended up taking the interview and emerged from it very curious as I was going to be measured by impact and not the hours clocked.?

As fate would have it, I joined Google but my hesitation would not leave me. I constantly feared that I would be unable to keep up with the speed and agility of the company. Eventually, my partner encouraged me further, the way he saw it was “Even if you only survive one year, you could earn a cool ex-Googler status”

At the time, Google was under the tenure of Laszlo Bock. We were indeed full of smart and industry-leading HR talent but I remembered feeling like I didn't belong. Little by little I continued my efforts in growing and stretching myself, trying various HR qualifications. I was surprised to see that my legal knowledge and qualifications proved instrumental in designing solutions focused on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion as well as mitigating risks for employees at workplaces.?

Motivated by a strong desire to raise awareness and provide platforms for underrepresented groups, I took up a temporary assignment opportunity, a newly created Inclusion role. I never thought that it would lead to me redesigning a multi-year strategy, staying in that role permanently.

4 years on my team has grown and our scope has been expanding, always aiming to make an impact.?

My current role didn’t exist in APAC and it continues to be evolving, paving the way to realise changes at the workplace that are tangible to Googlers and beyond.?

My biggest takeaway??

I thrive in the zero-to-one phase - nurturing scalable and impactful strategic solutions that lead to behavioural and systemic changes. I also love partnering with people across the world - the true power of diversity with deeper awareness and understanding of difference and common ground.

The inception and acceptance of these works made me find more interests such as Coaching as a means to pay forward. It helped me as well in terms of giving back and paying forward my insights.

Not to mention, how grateful I am for the mentorship I received during my professional growth from outstanding individuals encompassing different genders, races, and backgrounds. It was through these experiences that I found a sense of community within workplaces.?

I wanted the same for others as well. A sense of belonging that can enable others to find their identity within their teams and roles , fostering a culture of inclusivity and mutual support .?

Finding My Approach

I’m fortunate to have had rich cultural exposure through years in Europe and working with international clients Medical and HR in Tokyo to hiring for 13 APAC markets at Google.?

It helped my work on Inclusion and Belonging to be grounded in a multi-faceted approach. As a coach, I took an interest in mentoring emerging inclusive leaders to unlock their potential, and advocate for well-being in the workplace, and sustainable growth.?

While engaging with talents across the world. I gained invaluable insights into people's communication styles and behavioural insights. This equally heightened my level of understanding and empathy allowing me to offer practical advice that empowers individuals to show up authentically and confidently at work.

My aim in sharing the story is to give people the idea that everyone has pushed through their unique path and there is not one right pathway to inclusive leadership.?

DEI is a marathon, not a sprint. More importantly, it’s worth remembering that while it is a business imperative, it is also a personal journey. Real change comes from behaviours which take time.?

Sources

1. Recognizing the benefits of diversity: When and how does diversity increase group performance? - ScienceDirect
2. Project MUSE - Community and Belonging in the Workplace: Examining Nonmonetary Motivators in Talent Management
3. What Does It Take to Build a Culture of Belonging? | Columbia Ombuds ?
4. To Be Both (and More): Immigration and Identity Multiplicity
5. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinesscouncil/2023/07/20/leveraging-differences-tapping-the-power-of-dei-in-the-workplace/?sh=bfef33f3985c ?