Zwift Update on Our Anti-Racism Commitments

 

On June 5, 2020, as a response to the growing unrest in the United States after the murder of George Flyod in Minnesota, Breanna Taylor in Kentucky, Ahmaud Abrery in Georgia – and many more Black Americans killed across the country – we made a series of long-term commitments and contributions to fight racism and are committed to being transparent about how this work is progressing.

Below is a series of highlights of what we’ve achieved to date through our Social Impact and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) initiatives.

Social Impact

We have continued to invest in Black-owned and Black-supporting organizations that provide assistance to Black communities and promote racial equity. We are committed to continuing to broaden our cohort of international and national nonprofits that work directly with historically underrepresented groups.

In 2021, we increased our social impact reach from three to nine nonprofit organizations.

For Black Celebration Series:

• Through our partnership and $25,000 donation to LA Bicycle Academy in 2021, LABA added 6 new youth to its program, hosted 11 free bike repair events in the community, and supported 25 community races and charity events.
• Over 200 Zwift employees participated in race conversations and workshops led by our partner The California Conference for Equality and Justice (CCEJ), an organization dedicated to eliminating bias, bigotry and racism through education, conflict resolution and advocacy.
• 20 new Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic (BAME) youth joined a leadership program through Sporting Equals, an organization that empowers organizations, individuals, and communities to promote an active and healthy lifestyle.

This year, our 2022 grants to our partners will help secure 1 community bike shop for LA Bicycle Academy youth, continue our understanding of race as a social construct through CCEJ’s workshops, and break the barriers for ethnically diverse communities through Sporting Equals’ programs.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB)

We’ve made progress in each of our three DEIB pillars below:

External & Brand Presence (Our Marketing & Brand)

• We are working with USA Cycling and Black teams to break the barriers for underrepresented groups in cycling.
• We are forming a Brand Advocacy map to identify how our brand can create meaningful change through our policies, approach and language.
• We have partnered with an external agency to help our Brand & Marketing team better understand the inequitable systems that impact Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) and underserved communities and limit bias in our collective brand voice.
• We have updated our talent engagement processes with an eye towards removing all forms of bias and have begun partnering with relevant diverse community organizations like 100BlackMen and Latinas in Tech to increase diverse hiring at all levels of the organization.

End-to-End Experience (Our Game & Content)

• Zwift’s newly founded Inclusion Council has been able to infuse inclusive product design thinking into Zwift’s Product Development process so that every new concept is approached using DEIB considerations. We are committed to addressing the unique challenges many underserved groups face on Zwift.
• We launched in-app game features including natural hairstyles, branded road art and cycling kits to show our solidarity with our Black Zwifters and build more representation within the game. We continue to host monthly Black Celebrations Series and Major Taylor Cycling Club group rides.

Watopian Experience (Our Internal Workforce Practices)

• We are prioritizing employee education and promoting a culture that values DEIB through monthly internal events.
• Our newly launched Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) are providing educational opportunities for anti-racism learning, supporting the development of our diverse employee base and helping us celebrate the diverse identities of our employees.
• We have updated our hiring practices, including updating our job postings to include our DEIB commitments, and have updated our interview practices to increase diversity in our candidate pool.

Our Social Impact

We recognize that we still have a lot of work to do, and this is in no way the end of the road for us in our journey towards driving true inclusion and belonging. We are aware that building Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) at Zwift is a long-term commitment and that it will require continuous work, but our commitment remains strong.

We want to hear your thoughts and additional suggestions in the Zwift forum. We value your point of view and are convinced that there is only one way to solve this issue: all together as one.