Rising 2024, India’s premier conference on diversity and inclusion in technology, brought together leaders from the tech industry to discuss and collaborate on innovative strategies for building inclusive workplaces.
Providence India, one of the event partners at Rising 2024, exemplifies how fostering inclusivity and diversity in the workplace can drive equity-centered leadership, both within healthcare and beyond.
Headquartered in Hyderabad, Providence India is the engineering, operations, and innovation hub of Providence, a not-for-profit health system in the US. Providence operates 51 hospitals and 1,000 clinics across seven western US states. Founded 170 years ago by the pioneering Sisters of Providence and the Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange, Providence today is one of the largest health systems in the U.S., committed to providing world-class, equitable, affordable and accessible healthcare to diverse communities.
Making Diversity a Priority
Providence India has made significant strides in promoting gender diversity, with women comprising 38% of its workforce. Shortly after its inception in February 2020, Providence India formed a 12-member diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) council comprising of a business leader as its executive sponsor and members from various parts of the organization, to fully align DEI initiatives to strategic business priorities, and to ensure that goals were effectively achieved.
The council has a charter that covers well-being, gender, education and awareness, and hiring and retention, each owned and run by a dedicated working group. Overall, these initiatives have earned Providence India multiple industry recognitions. The organization has been benchmarked against some of the best-in-class organizations, making them a preferred employer among prospective talent pool while improving retention significantly.
One of the many major initiatives of the Council is the creation of the women’s Employee Resource Group aimed at easing the way for women, by creating empowering spaces for women to thrive in their professional and personal lives, through best-in-class flexible benefits and workplace opportunities that enable professional learning, networking and mentoring.
Well-being:
Providence India has acquired WELL Health-Safety RatingTM and the international LEED Gold certification for meeting best-in-class building standards for physical, occupational, emotional, and mental well-being and for providing healthy work environment with ergonomic furniture, accessible health services, and biophilic design. Aimed at supporting its workforce physically, emotionally and across all dimensions of well-being, including special amenities for women, Providence India has built a holistic work environment for employees under its ‘Total Well being’ priority. ‘My Mental Health Matters’, a progressive initiative launched by Providence in 2021 helps support Providence employees globally with actionable resources, tools and techniques, education and support on mental health. The initiative includes comprehensive toolkits and an anonymous-by-choice mental health assessment that helps employees understand areas they are struggling with, reassure them that help is available along with where and how to seek help.
Best-in-class Benefits and Perks
Health insurance plans cover immediate family, in-laws, and parents, supporting women responsible for their parents’ care. Providence India’s unique Parenthood Made Easy program supports expectant and new parents by pairing them with experienced parents, who provide advice and guidance on balancing work and family life before and during their new parenting journey.
For expectant women and new mothers, Providence India provides dedicated parking spots, accessible seating, generous childcare reimbursements, maternity benefits, a private mother’s room, footrests on demand, ergonomic furniture and accessories.
Events, Networking and Learning
Events, such as International Women’s Day, Mental Health Awareness Month and Pride Month, play a significant role in promoting gender equality, reinforcing the importance of gender diversity and allyship. Providence India hosts quarterly panel discussions called Diversity Dialogues, a unique forum for leaders, external experts and employees to discuss real-life experiences around inclusion.
Initiatives like the Apex Desk Connect, a periodical face to face connect session with the leadership, provide employees with a platform to speak with Providence India’s country head. These sessions include dedicated segments for women to freely share their thoughts, promoting transparency and inclusivity. Providence India mandates Microaggression and Unconscious Bias at Workplace training for all employees to sensitize them to known and unknown biases that can influence behavior and decision-making, helping create a more empathetic and less judgmental workplace.
Building healthier communities
As part of its larger global Mission, Providence India is focused on building healthier communities and working towards the health and safety of women. In collaboration with the Government of Telangana, the organization supports two SHE Shuttle buses—an exclusive, free transport service for women professionals in Hyderabad’s IT corridor, to enhance transit safety and ease-of-access for women. To ensure that every employee feels aligned to their larger purpose, Providence India provides a personal hygiene and nutrition kit to an adolescent girl in a rural area of Telangana for every employee who joins. The organization also conducts mental and emotional well-being workshops and essential project management skills workshops for female students in local government schools.
Inclusive Hiring
According to a 2020 report by the United Nations, approximately 43% of STEM graduates in India are women, but only about 14% of this group holds STEM jobs. To address this disparity, Providence India emphasizes hiring women engineers across all career levels, including those just entering the workforce, experienced professionals and those on a career break. A good percentage of the hiring panel comprises women – both for lateral and campus hiring.
Providence India’s ‘Thrive return-to-work program’, welcomes qualified women returning from a career break of 1 year or more with upskilling opportunities that make them workforce-ready. As a result, many women, including those in leadership roles, have resumed their careers successfully in the organization.
Providence India’s commitment to diversity, inclusion, and employee well-being has been widely recognized. The organization has received several prestigious accolades, including Zinnov’s Excellence in Employer Branding (2024), BusinessWorld HR’s Excellence in Employee Experience, Diversity & Inclusion (2023), ETHR World’s Best Diversity & Inclusion Learning Initiative (2023), and Zinnov’s Emerging Pioneers of Inclusion & Diversity (2022).
Future Goals
In 2025, Providence India aims to expand and enhance its diversity initiatives by expanding focus on the LGBTQIA+ community. Through events like inviting LGBTQIA+ speakers and hosting interactions with the community, Providence India is committed to doubling up its efforts for creating a truly inclusive environment.
Collaborating with Great Places to Work (GPTW), Providence India conducted LGBTQIA+ awareness sessions for their leadership and established a dedicated employee resource group (ERG) for LGBTQIA+ employees. The group convenes every month to explore ways to establish a secure and supportive work environment for the community, including safe zone training for better awareness, and a Pronouns campaign tailored for India to emphasize the importance of using preferred pronouns.
Vasudha Bommireddy, VP – Engineering and business sponsor for the DEI Council at Providence India, shares, “Providence India prides itself on having established a culture of true inclusivity. By fostering an environment where every individual feels valued and respected, Providence India is not only paving the way for a more equitable and thriving workplace but also setting a benchmark for others to follow.”
