Bridging the Gap: How Slalom aims to improve employment for Indigenous Australians

Welcome to Chapter 2 in our series exploring diversity in the Salesforce ecosystem. Today we’re featuring Slalom and the actions they’re taking to acknowledge and support the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community in Australia.

Operating in 40 markets worldwide, Slalom has one key purpose which is to help clients reach for and realise their vision. The company sees inclusion, diversity, and equity as integral to its work and embraces a diversity of people and views.

“To achieve our purpose and do meaningful and impactful work, it’s important for us to understand the communities in which we serve,” said Simon Hedt, Talent Acquisition Manager at Slalom. “Within Australia, this means building strong relationships with Indigenous communities and doing our part to facilitate reconciliation.”

Closing the employment gap for the Indigenous community is a priority for Slalom, and it’s taking action in three ways:

1. Creating an environment where every employee feels culturally safe and can bring their authentic selves to work
2. Developing a strategy to identify, recruit, and upskill Indigenous candidates
3. Partnering with Indigenous organisations like Indigitek and Career Trackers

Here, we profile a few of their initiatives to inspire others on their journey towards equality.

Educating and enabling employees

Slalom launched in Australia just over one year ago. The company developed its ’Reflect’ Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) almost immediately, outlining several commitments to the Indigenous community, including cultural learning.
“We‘re educating and empowering employees in a number of ways, starting on their very first day when we hand them a copy of ‘Growing up Aboriginal in Australia’,” said Riley Smith, Talent Acquisition Manager at Slalom. “We also engage organisations like the Koorie Heritage Trust and Wingaru Education to facilitate cultural competence training and talk to us about the history of Indigenous people.

“One thing that has stuck with me from these conversations is that we often talk about Australia as a young country, but in reality, the First Nations People have been here for over 60,000 years.”

Other educational activities have included a discovery tour and talk led by Dreamtime Southern X. Held as part of National Reconciliation Week, the tour provided employees an opportunity to learn the history of Sydney’s foreshore.

Jacqui Lillyman, Operations Manager at Slalom, participated on the tour, taking away a better understanding of the local Aboriginal community.

“I think it’s important for any business committed to diversity and inclusion to lead with empathy and curiosity and that’s exactly what we’re doing. We’re learning every moment we get and it’s making us think differently about how we hire and about the culture we’re creating in our workplace,” said Jacqui.

Creating community partnerships

Throughout its journey, Slalom has enlisted the help of Indigenous experts and leaders. One of these is Liam Ridgeway, co-founder of Indigitek. The organisation aims to increase the participation and success of Indigenous people in the tech industry, with a goal of 300 jobs created by 2025.

“Liam helped set us on the pathway of educating ourselves and creating cultural awareness. We’re now starting to work with Indigitek and CareerTrackers to bring more people from the Indigenous community into Slalom,” said Simon.

Lache Birkett, Consultant, was the company’s first recruit with Indigenous heritage. An alumnus of the CareerTrackers program, Lache worked at one of the big four consulting firms before joining Slalom. Part of what attracted him to the role was the company’s culture and within his first two weeks, Lache was able to get involved with Slalom’s First Nations Advocacy Network, helping them plan for NAIDOC week and brainstorm other ways to make a positive impact within the Indigenous community.

"I joined Slalom because of the people. The interviewing process was refreshing because it was the first time I felt like an organisation wanted me to work for them based on who I was as a person, including my interests and personality, and not just my past experience and whether I was able to perform well in a case study interview," said Lache. "Since joining Slalom I've been amazed at how supportive and interested the whole team is, particularly when it comes to Diversity and Inclusion. Through Slalom's openness and mission to foster awareness and respect regarding the meaningful impact First Nations culture has on the way we operate in business today, Slalom has already shown me it cares."

Parting advice for job seekers

While Slalom develops its own strategies to increase Indigenous employment, there are many current opportunities within the broader Salesforce ecosystem. Asked for his advice on pursuing these, Riley recommended people start by using Trailhead which is a fun and free way to learn Salesforce and other digital skills. He also highlighted the importance of networking which the virtual world has made slightly easier for those outside major cities.

“Virtual events and community groups are a great way to connect with others and start up a conversation,” said Riley. “Alternatively, you can reach out directly to recruiters and others in the Salesforce ecosystem on LinkedIn. It can be daunting, but the vast majority of people are happy to help or at least connect you with someone else.”

Don’t wait to take the next step in your Salesforce journey!
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