Our values drive the culture we create.
At Pax8, our people always come first! Our team is made up of people with diverse backgrounds and life experiences that uniquely shape how they think and operate — and that increasing diversity is critical to our growth and success
As an organization with zero tolerance for social injustice, we stand together against prejudice and hate. Pax8 is committed to driving positive change and exemplifying our core values that support diversity, representation, and belonging for all, no matter race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, or disability. We have a mission to uphold our values for our neighbors, communities, and all minority groups.
Our embrace of these differences is embodied in our core value “Advocate” (or as we like to put it in Pax8 terms, Advoc8).
Coming Together
We know that we’re greater than the sum of our parts and when we come together, there’s nothing we can’t accomplish.
With so much compassion and drive to support important causes as diverse as our people, we created employee-led engagement groups and company-wide initiatives, including a new team solely dedicated to inclusivity and empowerment. These groups and initiatives provide opportunities for Pax8ers to create valuable programs internally and work externally with various nonprofits and organizations that are making a difference in their communities.
Community Involvement
We get involved with our communities in two primary ways — official community partnerships with employee volunteer opportunities and employee-identified nonprofits through our Celebr8 Community Program.
Currently, Pax8 partners with these local nonprofits, helping them continue the great work they do in our community:
– Special Olympics Colorado — building a more active, healthy, and inclusive world
– We Don’t Waste — recovering quality, unused food to reduce hunger and food waste
– Dumb Friends League — ending pet homelessness and animal suffering
Our UK team partners with Ecologi to plant trees and fund climate projects to help offset our carbon footprint. Robert Belgrave, the CEO of Pax8 UK, is a co-founder and acting chairman of Ecologi.
Employees can also solicit help for their preferred nonprofit through our Celebr8 Community Program, which brings together Pax8 employees and partners in support of a local nonprofit. Through this program, we recently had the honor of working with our partner, Castle Rock Sky, to help the Black American West Museum & Heritage Center breathe new life into their organization’s technology.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Our Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) employee engagement group is about embracing, appreciating, valuing, and encouraging every voice within the Pax8 community. This group helps ensure that everyone is included and represented in a safe, supportive, and welcoming environment. They hold company-wide, employee-led events, such as townhalls, to hear each other’s stories, learn facts, and get exposed to new perspectives.
We are determined to affect real change, and the Pax8 Empowerment team is helping make it happen. We assembled this team at the start of 2020 with the mission of building an inclusive culture that encourages, supports, and celebrates diversity. The team is focused on promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as rural empowerment.
In their first year, the Empowerment team has:
– Changed Pax8 recruiting and hiring processes
– Hosted internal education events
– Launched unconscious bias management training
– Established a successful rural empowerment pilot program
– Initiated employee demographic goals and reporting
They are also leveraging partnerships with Microsoft Career Connector and skilling nonprofits, and working with Canvas — the leading diversity recruiting platform — to host events. Thanks to the work of the whole Empowerment team, Pax8 was recently recognized by Canvas as one of the 2021 DE&I Remarkable Achievements Award Winners.
Environmental
There’s only one Earth, so we must take care of it. That means we each have to do our part. The Pax8 Environmental group provides employees with a way to channel their collective compassion for preserving Mother Nature. They put their passion into action through initiatives like Summer River Cleanups, as well as through employee education around sustainable practices.
Additionally, with our partnership in the UK with Ecologi, we’d like to encourage business owners to join Ecologi in their mission to restore forests and create climate positive workforces.
Health & Wellness
There’s no one thing that a person can do to ensure their health and wellbeing, and no one should have to walk the path of self-improvement alone. Our Health & Wellness group lends a helping hand to every Pax8er looking to make positive changes in their physical, mental, nutritional, and financial wellbeing.
Two of the biggest challenges for anyone looking to improve an area of their health and wellness are knowing how to start the journey and finding a support network that’ll be there to encourage you every step of the way and help pick you up if you fall. That’s why the Health & Wellness group hosts educational events, such as cooking lessons and financial literacy classes, as well as yoga and meditation sessions — and let’s not forget about creative expression groups, like Pax8 Poets.
WingWomen
While 50% of US jobs are held by women, they only make up as little as 28% of the total workforce at major US tech companies. Pax8 is working diligently to increase the representation of women in our company. Our Sr. Director of People Operations, Veronica Setzke, told Built In Colorado that she hopes to see us reach 37% women employees by the end of 2021, and we couldn’t agree more!
Our WingWomen group is dedicated to ensuring that not just the women of Pax8, but all women in STEM have a seat at the table in the future of tech. They host fireside chats on women-specific challenges in tech, giveback events for women-focused nonprofits, and social events. Additionally, they have professional development trainings, and through Operation Sidekick, they provide mentoring to new women hires to help them transition to Pax8.
We’re honored to say that we were named Employer of the Year at the 2021 Women in IT UK Awards. Additionally, some of our women leaders are already getting recognition for leading the charge in the IT channel:
– CRN 2021 Rising Female Star: Jordan Saylor, Director of Channel Programs
– CRN 2021 Women of the Channel: Jennifer Bodell, Senior Vice President of Global Channel; Sophie Merrifield, VP of Vendor Product Management; Jordan Saylor, Director of Channel Programs; Nicole Faletra, Director of Channel Events; and Hayley Marshall, Manager of Productivity Solutions
Moving Forward Means Giving Back
When it comes to Advoc8, as with each of the Pax8 core values, the central theme is investing in, and giving back to, our people and communities. As a company and global community, we will never succeed if we don’t come together and support each other. If we want to see real change in the future, we need to do the work in the present to make sure the obstacles and inequalities of today are things of the past tomorrow.
If you’re a Pax8 partner who would like to get involved with any of our initiatives, please schedule a call or reach out to your account manager to learn more. If you’re interested in joining us in our efforts to effect positive change, while also growing your career in IT, we’d love to have you join the team!
