00:00Hi, Essence family. I'm Malika Jabali, a senior editor here at Essence, and welcome to the
00:13Essence Festival of Culture. I am joined by Cassandra Johnson to talk about the Grow with
00:20Google initiative. Cassandra is an executive VP of customer care and vendor management for
00:25Google devices and services. She is also a member of Leadership Atlanta class of 2015,
00:32a recipient of Uptown Magazine's Corporate Executive Catalyst Award, and a member of Delta
00:37Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated. Welcome, Cassandra. Thank you, Malika. I'm so excited to be here with
00:44the Essence family. Thank you so much. I'm so excited to talk to you. So before we kick things
00:50off, can you tell us a bit about your leadership journey at Google? Yes. As you share with the
00:56Essence family, I am the executive VP of customer care and vendor management office for devices and
01:02services. So basically, our team supports our consumer hardware and services business around
01:07the world, which includes a diverse portfolio of 100 plus products and services, such as Nest,
01:14Pixel Buds, Stadia Gaming, Fitbit, and our exciting new Google brick and mortar store in New York,
01:21which is opening this summer. My leadership journey at Google has been in place for about
01:26three years. But prior to Google, I was the SVP of customer care at Visa. In addition to my remit or
01:34my day job, if you want to say, I also have the honor and privilege to work with amazing Googlers
01:40around the world and amazing communities as the executive sponsor for Google's Black Googler
01:46Network and co-chair for women at ERGs. And I'm also a member of Google's Black Leadership Advisory
01:52Group. So you're involved with quite a bit, but today we are going to talk about Grow with Google.
01:58Can you tell our audience about the initiative and why you decided to bring your trainings here
02:03at the Essence Festival? Yes. Thank you for that question and also allow me to expound and share
02:09some more insights. It really has two aspects, Malika. First, Grow with Google is our economic
02:15opportunity initiative. Over 6 million Americans have trained in digital skills since 2017 through
02:23a network of more than 8,000 amazing partner organizations, including local libraries, schools,
02:30sororities, and nonprofits. In my organization in particular, we work to leverage the Grow with Google
02:36workshops through our partnership with Urban League affiliates to train participating small businesses
02:42in digital skills. Secondly, we truly believe that technology has the power to unlock new opportunities
02:49for growth. When those opportunities are available to everyone, and I mean everyone, then communities
02:57across the country can achieve their full potential. It is critical that we meet Americans where they
03:03are at, but in particular for the program we're going to talk about today, meaning Black women,
03:09where they are at, and that's important to us. Partnering with organizations that are already doing
03:15great work in our communities is a main tenet of our economic opportunity efforts. The Essence Festival
03:21is the perfect place, and I mean the perfect place to reach hundreds of thousands of amazing,
03:28fabulous Black women from across the country. And we're so excited to bring Grow with Google
03:33trainings to your audience and can't wait to see the impact. Now, this year you all launched a program
03:40focused on training Black women on digital skills. Can you share a bit more about that program and why
03:46you're passionate about it? Yes, indeed. My passion, oh, is so amazing. And it's because research shows
03:52that COVID-19 continues to disproportionately harm Black and Latino populations throughout the U.S.
03:59And in recent months, additional studies have shown the economic downturn has grossly impacted women.
04:06As of May, Black women are still experiencing the highest unemployment rate in the past year.
04:13As many as one in six women were unemployed. Now, we launched Black Women Lead with the goal to train
04:20100,000 Black women, let me repeat that, 100,000 Black women in digital skills by 2022. Now, we're not going
04:29to do this alone. We're partnering with The Linked, Dress for Success, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Sigma Gamma Rho,
04:37Zeta Phi Beta, and last but not least, as you already said, Malika, my source of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority
04:43Incorporated to provide digital skills training and resources for Black women, specifically job seekers.
04:51And I'm so excited that Black women across the U.S. will have an opportunity to participate in a curated
04:57set of Grow with Google workshops led by these partner organizations. It's also important to know
05:03that I'm very proud to share that this initiative was created by Black women and women of color at Google.
05:10A key part of its success is Black women supporting Black women. This is truly powerful since it
05:17exemplifies meeting Black women where they are now and supporting them now. Now, on a personal note,
05:24I know what it feels like to have Black women support one's passion and dreams since I was the creator
05:29and founder of TIGMER, which is a sorority fraternity apparel company. And just like the name stands for,
05:36to whom much is given, much is required. That is what Black women at Google have done to step up
05:42on behalf of Black women around the country with the Black Women Lead Initiative.
05:47Along with Black Women Lead and Grow with Google, what else is Google doing to support economic recovery
05:53or opportunity in our communities? And that's both externally and internally. If you consider
05:58that Google, for instance, only has a small percentage of its workforce that consists of Black women.
06:03So what other projects or initiatives have you been working on or the company's been working on?
06:08We have been really busy, Malika. And to your point, at Google, we are constantly, constantly
06:13striving to be a place where everyone can thrive. And now while we acknowledge there's much work to be
06:19done on the topic inside the company, we also understand that there is important work to do
06:24externally, to your point. Now, internally, we're committed to building a workforce that is more
06:29representative of our users and a workplace that creates a sense of belonging for everyone.
06:35We've taken concrete actions to steadily grow a more representative workforce,
06:40launching programs that support our communities globally, and building products that better serve
06:46all of our users. As you may also have heard, we've also committed to increase our investments in
06:52places such as hot Atlanta, Washington, DC, Chicago, Chi-Town, and London to help improve Black Plus
06:59representation. Now, across our sites in Atlanta, Washington, DC, Chicago, Durham, and New York,
07:06we're also aiming to add an additional 10,000 Googlers. Did you hear me? 10,000 Googlers by 2025,
07:14including 1,000 new roles this year. Now, externally to your point, Black Women Lead is just one part
07:22of Google's broader racial equity and economic recovery work. We have long been committed to
07:28making sure underrepresented small business have the digital tools they need to thrive and that Black
07:35job seekers have the skills they need to grow their careers. We're also achieving this through programs
07:41like Digital Coaches, where we have provided trainings to over 60,000 Black and Latinx small
07:48businesses and entrepreneurs from over 1,000 workshops conducted since it launched in 2018.
07:55So, Essence Festival goers, if you haven't yet, you'll have a chance to participate in a number of
08:00the Black Women Lead trainings that we've talked about, and you can do so throughout the show today.
08:04And it's hosted, Cassandra, by one of your North Carolina Digital Coaches, Letitia Byrd.
08:09So, can you preview some of those topics and let us know where we can find more information?
08:14Yes, I think it's simple, Malika. It's really two simple words to help everyone remember. First,
08:19learn. If you want to check out some of the amazing workshops to learn more about Google Docs
08:24or Google My Business, you can visit grow.google.com slash blackwomenlead. Once again,
08:31that's grow.google.com slash blackwomenlead to sign up for some of our upcoming trainings led by the
08:38Divine Nine sororities, The Links, and Dress for Success. And second, and finally, lead. This is a call
08:45to action for those of you who are a member of any of our amazing partner organizations. Please, please
08:52encourage your chapters and leadership to host a Black Women Lead workshop.
08:57Well, thank you so much, Cassandra. And that was very informative. And thank you,
09:02Essence Festival Goers for checking in.
09:04Thank you. And wishing all the sisters out there an amazing festival. And let's do
09:10this together. You're amazing.
Comments