ASU Enterprise Partners recognized as an inclusive workplace

ASU Enterprise Partners has been recognized as an inclusive workplace by Best Companies Group. The recognition is given to companies that display a clear focus on fostering a sense of belonging and inclusivity.

ASU Enterprise Partners is a private, nonprofit parent company whose mission is to provide an ecosystem of services to create solutions and generate resources for Arizona State University. The company supports ASU through resource raising, realty development, technology transfer, collaborative research and acceleration of ed-tech innovations in support of universal lifelong learning. Its business units include the ASU Foundation, ASURE, Enterprise Collaboratory at ASU, Milo Space Science Institute, RealmSpark, Skysong Innovations and University Realty.

Gina Miller, chief people officer of ASU Enterprise Partners, works to develop and expand the company’s inclusivity, with a focus on creating an environment that cultivates higher job retention and an overall positive workplace culture.

“We have been working hard as an organization to ensure we provide an equitable, diverse and inclusive workplace where employees feel like they are heard, seen and belong,” Miller said. “We assessed our human resources processes and made improvements where we could. This achievement is an extremely important display of how the implementation of programs like JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion) is directly impacting our employees and their work experience.”

Best Companies Group is a workplace culture and employee engagement expert that collected anonymous employee survey responses to assess the overall perception of workplace inclusion and belonging. The data was measured against benchmark data. The recognition is not a ranking or competition among companies.

Consolidated survey results show 85% of the ASU Enterprise Partners' employees who completed the survey believe their workplace is inclusive. The survey assessed the following areas for inclusiveness: leadership and organizational initiatives (85% agree), cultural initiatives (83% agree), supervisor initiatives (86% agree), hiring and career advancement (70% agree) and employee engagement (85%).

"Best Companies Group and COLOR Magazine are proud to recognize ASU Enterprise Partners as an inclusive workplace. This recognition is solely based on their employees’ direct and honest feedback. And they have spoken: ASU Enterprise Partners is truly committed and excelling at creating a workplace environment that makes people feel included, like they belong and as a truly important part of their organization," said Jaime Raul Zepeda, executive vice president at Best Companies Group. "ASU Enterprise Partners is ahead of its peers by putting people first. We are proud to celebrate their excellence."

One of the ways ASU Enterprise Partners focuses on creating an inclusive workplace is through JEDI. This program is a way for the nonprofit to engage in deeper and more meaningful conversations and initiatives. JEDI committee members are reimagining a better future together through actions that will create more equity among employees, provide more opportunities for inclusion and fuel a forum for ongoing conversation on how to make all employees feel welcome.

Ashlee Atkins, diversity manager of ASU Enterprise Partners, oversees the JEDI program. She has helped to implement and communicate new resources and learning resources that benefit all employees of the organization.

“Our employees spoke, and they believe we are a truly inclusive environment where they feel like they matter and belong,” Atkins said. “The majority of the survey comments were focused on our JEDI programming and initiatives. It provides our employees the feeling that they have a voice at the table, and they should not be afraid to use it.”

ASU Enterprise Partners seeks to continue to have an inclusive workplace for its employees.

“While it is an honor to be recognized in this way, it is important to ensure the focus does not shift and we continue to work toward an increase in diversity and inclusion,” Miller said.

Learn more about how ASU Enterprise Partners is incorporating diversity, equity and inclusion into its workplace.

Written by Richard Canas