Facebook’s Civil Rights Audit
training. Facebook also offers a “Design for Inclusion” training which Facebook describes as a multi-day
immersive workshop for senior leaders in the company that focuses on exploring the root causes of inequities
that influence decision-making, and works towards creating a more inclusive and innovative company culture.
While these trainings have been available to all employees for years, Managing Bias, manager onboarding and
Managing a Respectful Workplace are now mandatory.
Along with developing its suite of trainings, in 2019 Facebook created a new tool for anonymously reporting
microaggressions as well as positive examples of allyship or supportive behaviors that have an impact on dayto-day life at Facebook. The tool, called the “Micro-Phone,” provides employees (and contingent workers) an
outlet for sharing these experiences, and gives Facebook insight into common themes and trends. Facebook
states that it includes insights from the Micro-Phone in reports regularly provided to senior leadership (to flag
issues and push for implementation of D & I action plans), and uses Micro-Phone lessons to inform trainings
and help build D & I and HR strategies
(iii) The Integration of Diversity and Inclusion Principles into Company-Wide Systems. The third component
of Facebook’s diversity and inclusion strategy is focused on integrating a D & I lens into processes, policies
and products. That is, building out internal systems to help promote consistent implementation of D & I policies
and practices, and looking for ways to ensure Facebook considers and accounts for diverse experiences and
perspectives in developing policies and products.
For example, Facebook has examined its performance review process to look for ways that bias or stereotyped
assumptions could seep in, and is making changes to the process to try to counteract those risks. These changes
include requiring mid-cycle performance conversations designed to provide more uniform opportunities for
direct communication (rather than presumptions) and more consistent feedback. Similarly, Facebook has
adopted scorecards to better hold department leaders accountable for implementing the company’s diversity
and inclusion policies; Facebook states that department leaders will be given clear criteria (e.g., their team’s
consistent use of the Diverse Slate Approach, consistent and quality career conversations with direct reports,
ensuring that their teams complete the Facebook’s trainings on bias, inclusion, and allyship, etc.), and be
assessed against that criteria.
In addition, Facebook is in the early stages of developing a plan to better integrate into its policy and product
development process consideration of how different policies and products will impact, speak to, or work for
people across a wide spectrum of experiences, identities, and backgrounds. To that end, Facebook has begun
piloting this strategy by inserting the Chief Diversity Officer into product and policy discussions. To begin
formalizing that integration, Facebook recently announced that it has moved the Chief Diversity Officer within
Facebook’s organizational structure so that the role now directly reports to COO Sheryl Sandberg. With this
change, Facebook states that it intends to involve the Chief Diversity Officer in high-level decision-making
affecting products, business, and policy on a more consistent basis. Facebook also recently hired a full-time
employee to focus on this D & I integration work. Facebook indicates its next goal is to determine how to build
up the concept into a systemic and scalable approach, as opposed to more ad-hoc injections of D & I team
members into policy or product decision-making processes.
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