Diversified Communications’ Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Mission Statement

As a leader in the global expositions and conference industry, Diversified Communications recognizes its responsibility to drive discussions and actively advance the principles of racial equality, social justice, and inclusion. We believe that our communities — the DC organization, Maine, and the global events industry — are richer, stronger, and more dynamic when they are diverse, equitable, and welcoming.

Our mission is to:

Acknowledge that change begins from within. We will educate ourselves to champion diversity, equity, and inclusion. We will be staunchly anti-racist, pro-LGBTQIA+, and accommodating to all abilities and circumstances. We stand against bias, intolerance, and discrimination of any kind.
Foster work environments that are welcoming to and inclusive of everyone. Employees will feel comfortable and represented at offices and events. Equitable opportunities for success will exist for everyone. We will actively recruit candidates of diverse backgrounds to broaden and strengthen our employee population.
Ensure our external work reflects our beliefs and our mission. We will position our marketing to represent our diverse industries and customer base. We will foster diversity, equity, and inclusion discussions at our events and within industry associations.
Create community partnerships. We will actively partner with community organizations who lead the way in social justice work to affect necessary changes where we work and live.

Through these efforts, we aim to influence and encourage an ecosystem for the open exchange of ideas and the ongoing pursuit of best practices.

Overview

At Diversified, we believe that we all have the responsibility to speak out against injustices, spark conscious conversations, and foster inclusion. When we take these actions, we not only impact our communities at home but also in the industries we serve globally. We encourage all employees, vendors, and customers to bring their whole, authentic selves to all aspects of our business. Our goal is that all who walk through our doors feel welcome and comfortable knowing that they will be treated equitably regardless of their background and identity.

Although this has always been our priority, we have committed ourselves to having these conversations and making necessary change happen where we live and work. Our dedicated committee and four active subcommittees work on a variety of important and meaningful Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives.

We recognize that this work will continue to evolve and will be ongoing as an important part of our culture. We are ever-evolving and continuously learning how to better serve all individuals who walk through our doors.

Project Categories

Community Partnerships

Events & Industries

Inclusion & Retention

Attraction & Recruitment

What Our Employees and Interns Are Saying About DEI at Diversified

Nearly 20% of our employees are active members in one or more of these committees, while 100% are committed to backing these initiatives. Click on our featured employees and interns below to learn more.

Maddie Kearns

(she/her/hers/they/them/theirs)
Editorial Project Manager
Inclusion and Retention, Events and Industries

Beth Schultz

(She/her/hers)
Account Executive
Community Partnerships

Ana Satir

(she/her/hers)
Intern on the Seafood Team
2023 Internship Program

Hilda Chang

(she/they)
Marketing Coordinator
2022 Internship Program

Our Community Partners

We support local community organizations doing compelling work aligned with our greater DEI mission.

Our Products

See what our products are doing to support our DEI efforts.

Learn More

Careers

Read about our volunteer time and other benefits

Connect with us on LinkedIn

What is your WHY for joining our DEI committee?

An expansion occurs when people with diverse identities and experiences finally gain access to collaborative spaces and are given the platform to speak and be heard. Empathy grows. Fuller ideas bloom. Stronger communities, subsisting on many roots, form, and flourish. It’s important to continually appraise my privilege and apply it to nurturing this expansion – to elevate marginalized voices and actively listen to them; to be accountable and ready for repair. Participating in this committee is one of many ways I intend to show up to this lifetime of work.

Maddie Kearns
she/her/hers
they/them/theirs

What is your WHY for joining our DEI committee?

I joined the DEI committee because I knew I needed to grow. I knew the best way to do that was to immerse myself in a team that was committed to making the positive changes our company wanted to enact. Working with a group of people that passionately cared about diversity, equity and inclusion meant I could not only contribute to the conversation, but I could learn so much in the areas that I had blind spots. I’m excited to be a part of a group that is moving our company forward in ways that truly matter.

Christopher Campbell
He/Him/his

What is your WHY for joining our DEI committee?

I am very proud of my company for starting this committee. I joined to try to help to make a more inclusive environment within our organization and our state of Maine. Our committee discussions have been rich and open. I am excited to work on projects to create partnerships that will help foster our mission statement promoting racial equality, social justice, and inclusion.

Beth Schultz
She/her/hers

Testimonial From Our Internship Program

“I learned how to successfully create marketing campaigns catering to diverse audiences. I accomplished this through advancing my research skills, which also expanded my knowledge of the tradeshow industry. I appreciate learning what I have at Diversified because these skills are transferable to any job I undertake in the future. As someone who is relatively new to the marketing sector, Diversified has laid the foundation for my personal and professional development by providing a positive environment and encouragement to hone my creative mindset. Above all, this internship has served as a role model for my future career endeavors in its ability to make me feel welcomed, valued, and empowered.”

Ana Satir
She/her/hers

Testimonial From Our Internship Program

“Diversified Communications’ internship program provided a supportive learning environment to familiarize myself with various aspects of the organization and event industries we serve. Not only did I acquire new professional skills, but I also gained the confidence to advocate for my ideas. Everyone I worked with was friendly and supportive, allowing me to gain collaboration and communication skills that supported cross-departmental projects with customer service, sales, and marketing teams. I was also provided the freedom to use my recent graduate degree and past work experience to conduct marketing audits for seven company brands and present my findings to respective managers and leadership. Lastly, the most important skill I learned during my internship was using my unique DEI perspective to identify and propose solutions for making event venues more accessible and inclusive. Overall, the internship program was an essential stepping stone in my career, allowing me the freedom to learn new skills and the confidence to find my leadership style. I recommend this internship to anyone seeking a supportive learning experience and a collaborative organization where they feel valued.”

Hilda Chang
She/They

Attraction & Recruitment

A more diverse team creates an environment that enriches new ideas and promotes meaningful collaboration. We strive to ensure our hiring processes are equitable and without bias. We embrace continuous training, expand our recruiting network, and evaluate every step of our hiring process to make sure it supports our DEI mission and purpose.
Currently, we are removing college degree requirements from positions where related work experience will qualify. We are removing bias in the candidate screening process by removing details (like name & graduation year) that could allude to someone's gender identity, race, or socioeconomic background and influence the hiring decision.
We are also attending local events like the Maine Inclusion Conference and regular Diversity Hiring Coalition meetings to expand our recruiting network.

Inclusion & Retention

We are invested in ensuring our workplace environment is inclusive. When employees have a sense of belonging and connection in the workplace, it changes everything: It fuels deeper connections, it drives innovation, it spurs collective understanding and propels personal and business growth. We want you to come to work each day as your authentic self, knowing you are seen, safe and heard for the unique perspective you bring to the table. We are dedicated to continuously build and expand on inclusive spaces at work.
We are conducting internal surveys to continuously improve our inclusion efforts in our physical space.
We offer comprehensive and affordable benefits that include paid parental leave and gender-affirming care.

Events & Industries

Diversified produces events, digital products, and publications for numerous industries. In this capacity, we have the platform to promote Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion not only in our own work, but in the wider industries we serve. Our goal is to provide resources, metrics, and a central hub of ideas for our product teams to use as they work towards making our products more inclusive and influencing the industries we serve.
Currently, we are working on a Code of Conduct to set behavior standards for professionals attending our tradeshows and conferences.
We are also working with Clusivity to obtain an Inclusive Events Certification for our events and conduct thorough assessments that cover the key areas of Promoting diversity and inclusion at events, Speaker diversity, Inclusive marketing , Inclusive experience, and Data-driven research.

Community Partnerships

We are interested in seeking opportunities for the company and its employees to support local community organizations doing compelling work aligned with our greater DEI mission.
Each year we ask our employees to nominate two new organizations for a financial contribution and support through volunteerism for a 2-year term. Beginning in 2023, we have become an annual sponsor for the Maine Inclusion Conference.