5 Practical Steps for Advancing DEI in Your Medical Device Company
By Camille Chang Gilmore, vice president, human resources, and global chief diversity, equity & inclusion officer, Boston Scientific
Originally published by Med Device Online
In 2017, our Boston Scientific leadership team found ourselves faced with a dilemma. Poring over our annual employee survey results, we were taken aback to learn — much to our chagrin — that not all of our female employees felt they had equal opportunities for promotion as their male counterparts. We took a collective deep breath to let the realization sink in: A swath of our workforce was letting us know that they felt overlooked. We knew immediately that we needed to do better for them – and not only because diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) align with our values, but because in medtech, DEI is a business imperative.
Why do I say so? Because the medical device industry’s mission, making products to help solve healthcare’s toughest problems, demands relentless ingenuity. But the best ideas don’t emerge in a vacuum; they’re sparked by a deep understanding of the problems faced by patients and customers, then forged by the creative interplay of different perspectives. Creating a workplace that encourages that level of empathetic, collaborative engagement is critical for the innovation that powers our industry.
