Month: January 2024

Originally published in Dow’s 2022 INtersections Progress Report

By focusing on improving representation across multiple dimensions of diversity, we are cultivating an innovative workplace driven by a wide range of experience, ideas and expertise. Our talent attraction, recruitment and selection processes are designed to ensure a fair process and attract the best and brightest people to Dow. Below are examples of programs and practices aimed at attracting diverse talent.

Global Inclusive Hiring Standards Deliver Diverse Outcomes 

Equitable practices include:

Posting all open rolesDiverse candidate slate for open rolesDiverse interview panel for hiringStructured interview process

2022 Outcomes: 93% of all required open roles posted internally 

78% gender diverse slates; 

79% U.S. ethnic diverse slates 

89% gender diverse panels; 

90% U.S. ethnic diverse panels 

98% of interviews used the structured interview process

The Dow Diamond Symposium offers U.S. minority undergraduate students the opportunity to network with Dow leaders and gain professional career advice. In 2022:

58 students attended31 internship and full-time offers were extended26 students accepted job offers – a 40% increase compared to the 2021 offer acceptance rate

The BEST Symposium introduces Black, Hispanic and Native American U.S. doctoral and postdoctoral scientists to careers in industrial research and opportunities at Dow. In 2022:

30 participants attended20 full-time job offers were extended15 job offers were accepted

Dow Partners with Manufacturing Institute’s 35×30 Campaign 

Dow sponsored and supported the Manufacturing Institute (MI) in launching the 35×30 campaign, focused on increasing the percentage of women in manufacturing from 29% to 35% by 2030. The program is designed to change perceptions by engaging face-to-face with students and teachers with more than 1,000 female mentors connecting into four-year universities, community colleges, high schools and middle schools. The 35×30 campaign also broadens the talent pipeline by supporting women throughout their studies by creating an alumnae-funded scholarship, with management supported by an alumnae council and executed by the MI by 2025.

Developing Diverse Talent 

One of our top priorities is developing diverse talent and equipping leaders and employees with the tools they need to succeed. We have a wide range of professional development programs that support the growth and meet the career aspirations of our employees, including the following:

EMEAI Female Sponsorship Program

Dow launched a second wave of the Female Sponsorship Program in EMEAI. This program is specifically designed to help accelerate Dow’s female talent for senior management levels and to take on critical leadership roles. The self-nominated candidates are evaluated based on various criteria, including career aspirations, commitment to professional growth and demonstration of Dow’s cultural attributes: Trust, Transparency, Empowerment and Accountability. During each wave of the program, 60+ women from the EMEAI region are matched with senior Dow leaders (sponsors) for engagement and coaching sessions for two years. The program also includes two online professional developmental components: INSEAD Executive Education Program and the SWE Advance Learning Center. This program is playing a significant role in increasing female job satisfaction and retaining talent in the region. Results for Cohort 2 (2020-2022) included1 :

28% of participants were promoted43% of participants increased their scope of responsibilities42% of participant subset said that the tools available to them directly support their development

Advocacy-inAction (AiA) Sponsorship Program

AiA is a 15-month program that pairs Black protégés with senior leader advocates to help them achieve their fullest potential in the workplace. The program completed its second cohort in 2022. In total across two cohorts:

77% of all (47) participants received at least one promotion7 participants accepted people leadership roles for the first time87% of participants are still with Dow

Champions for Change (C4C) Sponsorship Program

C4C is an 18-month program for Asian talent that pairs each participant (sponsee) with senior-level leaders (champions) to provide coaching and guidance to overcome systemic and personal barriers and to foster advancement into leadership roles. The first cohort results included:

12 participants received at least one promotion or role change97% of participants feel their champion is equipping them for the next career level 94% of participants are still with Dow

Dow’s Connector Programs

Our connector programs help employees expand their networks, inspire professional growth and foster diverse connections to build cross-functional and cross-business relationships. In 2022:

1,400 participants were attracted to our Peer Allies program at all job levels in the United States and Canada120 new connections were built through PRISE Connections – a collaboration between RISE and PR!MEWe launched the Wazobia Program, a peer-to-peer mentoring program pairing African-heritage participants with mentors across the EMEAI region

1 This data reflects the numbers for the employees as part of the INSEAD-SWE streams

Read more

The Problem

In an era of environmental accountability, businesses face a pressing challenge: the imperative to monitor and manage their emissions.

Yet while most people – and organisations – are striving to reduce their CO2 output, the reality is often less impressive than the intention. Take High-Performance Computing (HPC): a significant tool to help tackle humanity’s greatest challenges – yet one which simultaneously produces emissions on a par with the widely demonized aviation industry.

Look north, however, to the windswept reaches between the Greenland Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, and you will see a glimmer of hope. Not the Northern Lights (though they can be seen in all their splendour from there) but a company which has not only reduced emissions –it is on the cusp of that elusive ultimate goal of being completely carbon neutral.

Responsible Compute

Responsible Compute is a groundbreaking collaboration between Icelandic IT solutions provider Origo and Borealis Data Center. The company offers world-class HPC hosting services underpinned by a 100% renewable, low-cost infrastructure. And as the company’s CEO, Kristján Hafsteinsson, puts it: “While some of your HPC may need to be localised to your premises, in most cases there is no need for it to be in the same location.”

“I like to believe that every time we have a chance to let people know of us and how we work, it helps them realize that there are almost always greener options for their compute.”

As alternatives go, nowhere stands in comparison to Iceland, where CO2 emissions per kWh are a mere 2.8g (LV reported carbon footprint per kWh in 2022), in stark contrast to the global average of 440g – and a mere fraction of the 100g emissions rate which is regarded as “green” energy generation by the European Union.

“Our HPC and AI services are not just carbon-neutral; they are a harmonious blend of nature’s best offerings and cutting-edge technology,” adds Kristján. “What truly sets us apart is our holistic approach to sustainability, which begins with tapping into Iceland’s abundant renewable energy sources, like geothermal and hydropower.”

But the innovation doesn’t stop there. Instead of relying on heavily mechanical cooling systems utilising polluting coolants, Borealis Data Center harnesses the natural, cold Icelandic environment to keep its servers at optimal temperatures and further reduce energy consumption.

Tech partners

Helping to drive this mission forward is Responsible Compute’s partnership with Lenovo. One of the biggest challenges that companies face lies in being aware of their emissions. This is especially important in the European Union, where the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive demands that SMEs and larger companies must report their emissions from 2024.

“The XClarity Energy Manager (LXEM) from Lenovo plays a huge role for us here,” says Kristján, allowing the company to identify both its own usage and that of its customers, along with a dashboard and portal where all the information is accessible.

By encouraging businesses to move elements of their HPC workloads to data centres powered by natural resources, Responsible Compute is part of a wider movement to make huge strides towards reaching ESG goals.

And amid the growing focus on Artificial Intelligence, it is all too easily forgotten that its advancement is only as good as the hardware and software which powers the process. And that this comes with the potential for a significant increase in energy consumption.

So, if AI is to be sustainable, it needs the right partnerships. Hence Responsible Compute’s collaboration with the Icelandic European Digital Innovation Hub.

“This collaboration enables us to aid universities, institutions, and businesses in leveraging high-performance computing in a sustainable manner, ensuring that the future of technology is not just powerful, but also environmentally responsible,” concludes Kristján.

“In a world that’s rapidly evolving, we’re proud to offer a service that looks ahead, ensuring the next generation of computing doesn’t come at the cost of our planet.”

Read more about Responsible Compute and Lenovo in the full case study.