Google is making new commitments to diversity with the launch of two startup programs aimed at jump-starting growth for business owners, specifically for women and Black founders.
These are the latest in a long list of programs the tech giant has created to empower businesses seeking adequate resources for success, said Google's head of first startups, Jewel Burks Solomon. Furthermore, she added that the tech giant is specifically adding resources to help companies succeed in the unprecedented business climate brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.
"We think that giving these founders the best resources that Google has to offer is a great way for us to really be helpful and to just also make sure that these businesses succeed and grow," she told Cheddar.
Google isn't just offering help because it's a trend on Twitter, said Jason Scott, head of startup developers ecosystems at Google. The company is committed to ensuring businesses continue thriving in the future.
"One thing we're really, really, really passionate about is continuing to support diverse founders and representations across all of our programs," he said.
Continued support isn't always measured in monetary terms, Solomon mentioned, but it can also be defined by the tools that can be used to make a product or idea more complete. The new programs offer "additional services" that provide unique access to personalized mentorship and technical workshops.
"We're really excited that Google has taken the stand to say, 'We're going to not just do a one-time thing, but we're going to do something that will really stand the test of time and continue to invest in these businesses,'" Solomon said.
Lasting success for the startups is not Google's sole priority, noted Solomon. The company is also committed to ensuring fair business practices so smaller companies are not simply overrun by larger entities.
"This is our entire team mission: to level the playing field for underrepresented startup founders. And it didn't just start this week or last week. It's been something that we've been doing for many years," she said.
For Solomon, participating in the launch of these new startup initiatives is personal and one she's happy Google fully stands behind.
"I started a tech company back in 2013, so I really understood the challenges, frankly, that Black and brown founders faced," Solomon said.
Catching you up on today’s top headlines with Bitcoin falling below $24,000, U.S. gas prices reaching above $5 on average, Tesla shareholders voting on a 3-for-1 stock split, and more.
On this episode of On The Job presented by ADP: Gemma Burgess, CEO of Ferguson Partners, explains what people are looking for in an employer, and how to convey positive work culture to potential employees; Amy Leschke-Kahle, Vice President of Performance Acceleration at The Marcus Buckingham Company, an ADP company, breaks down how encouraging employee engagement and empowering employee voices can benefit every workplace and busts a myth about employee engagement while working from home; Jim Huether, CEO of Hyperice, discusses Hyperice's new employee mental health initiative, known as the Workplace Alliance, with 100-plus companies to combat the ongoing mental health crisis and how they're taking a hands-on, data-driven approach to the mental health crisis.
Amy Leschke-Kahle, Vice President of Performance Acceleration at The Marcus Buckingham Company, an ADP company, joins Cheddar to discuss how encouraging employee engagement and empowering employee voices can benefit every workplace and busts a myth about employee engagement while working from home.
Jim Huether, CEO of Hyperice, joins Cheddar to discuss Hyperice's new employee mental health initiative, known as the Workplace Alliance, with 100-plus companies to combat the ongoing mental health crisis and how they're taking a hands-on, data-driven approach to the mental health crisis.
Consumer prices saw an 8.6 percent jump in May, with fuel prices showing the biggest surge, climbing 17 percent last month. As inflation continues to climb to levels not seen in 40 years, President Biden took to calling out ExxonMobil and other major oil companies, accusing them of holding back production while continuing to collect huge profits at the cost of the consumer. Mark Avallone, the president of Potomac Wealth Advisors, joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss. “They have reduced long-term expenditures. But why? Because the world is going to alternative energy and as consumers, if we thought that that welcome change to alternatives was going to happen without pain, we might have been mistaken," he said. "The less investment they make in oil because they're getting ready for a new world of electric vehicles, the less we're going to be prepared for oil shocks such as the one we got when Russia invaded Ukraine."
Catching you up on the stories you need to know this morning, the U.S. could soon get its first major gun safety law in years, the House Select Committee investigating the January 6th attack on the U.S. capitol holds its second hearing, and today might just be the day the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, and decides on new gun laws.
