This news has little to do with technology, but in the end, large companies are made up of people. These people consider themselves to be above good and evil at times and problems can occur. At Microsoft, with the goal of don’t do like Activision-Blizzard they have decided strengthen your stance against sexual harassment and they will have a law firm for it.
Microsoft will fight against sexual harassment and gender discrimination in the company
In the wake of a resolution of the shareholders, Microsoft’s board of directors has agreed to undertake a review of the effectiveness of the company’s sexual harassment and gender discrimination policies and practices.
The reality is that Microsoft has already had a delicate situation with Bill Gates himself. He had sexually harassed lower-ranking employees and had an affair with a female subordinate that lasted several years. The review will be carried out by the law firm Arent Fox, which will do the following work:
- It will lead to the publication of a transparency report evaluating the effectiveness of the company’s workplace sexual harassment and gender discrimination policies, training and related policies. This will include a review of concerns raised by employees in 2019 in the “In Need of Assistance” email thread, steps the company has taken to address these concerns, and additional steps that could further strengthen these safeguards. The review will also include an analysis of the policies, practices and commitments to create a safe and inclusive work environment.
- The report will summarize the results of any sexual harassment investigations during this same time period against members of the company’s Board of Directors and Senior Leadership Team, including allegations that a Board committee investigated from 2019 and implicated Bill Gates.
- It will assess the measures that have been taken to hold employees, including executives, accountable for sexual harassment or gender discrimination.
- This will include data on the number of sexual harassment cases investigated and their resolution.
Satya Nadella turns to the proposal
For your part Satya Nadella, chairman and CEO of Microsoft, has stated that “Our culture remains our number one priority, and the entire Board appreciates the critical importance of a safe and inclusive environment for all Microsoft employees. We are committed to not only reviewing the report, but learning from the evaluation so that we can continue to improve our employee experiences. I accept this comprehensive review as an opportunity to continue to improve.”
We should not take this as a joke, it is a situation that carries great seriousness. We hope that this action by Microsoft serves as an example to other companies and changes the situation in all companies in the sector.