Discover tangible change.
Discover tangible change.
Discover tangible change.
Discover tangible change.
"Ms. Summers-McGee and the Workplace Change team provided support to our organization during a period of operational transition and culture transformation. They dove deep to understand the nuances of OHSU, and Ms. Summers-McGee provided partnership and guidance as an extension of the executive leadership team. The work they accomplished established a good foundation from which OHSU could continue to grow and evolve to create a more welcoming and inclusive environment.”
Danny Jacobs, M.D. M.P.H., FACS
President - OHSU
"Workplace Change supported the Port of Seattle in an essential component of our work in 2021, which was an assessment of BIPOC women experiences in our organization. The Port of Seattle is committed to working both regionally and nationally to achieve equity and justice for all. The Port recognizes our essential role in building a socially just institution by dismantling the structural barriers that have prevented the full participation of our most marginalized communities. Since 2017, the Port has stepped up efforts to integrate equity into its work including by creating a standalone Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in 2019. In 2021 Workplace Change supported the advancement of our mission by conducting an assessment with women of color by conducting individual interviews, focus groups and a survey. Workplace Change brought a racial equity analysis that helped our project greatly. They earned the trust from BIPOC women in our organization who as a result opened up and shared their experiences with them. Workplace Change offered several sessions in the organization to our leadership and our employees about the results of the survey and their recommendations for the path forward. We are grateful for our work with the firm and the results and the findings and have developed a dashboard to track progress towards these recommendations.”
Bookda Gheisar
Senior Director, Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion - Port of Seattle
“Workplace Change understands how important Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are to our mission. We feel that we have a trusted partner in this work. They have been very responsive when issues were urgent and they gave the tools that we needed to coach our teams.”
Kim McCarty
Executive Director - Community Alliance of Tenants
“Workplace Change has provided us with invaluable expertise on setting equitable salaries. They have conducted market salary surveys for our positions, helped us set cost-of-living differentials by location, and provided advice about annual cost-of-living adjustments. Workplace Change has reviewed our annual salary-setting process and helped us ensure that we are compensating people fairly based on their performance. In addition to their expertise, the staff at Workplace Change have provided excellent and timely responses to our follow-up questions.”
Natalie K. Perrin
President/CEO - Historical Research Associates, Inc.
"Serilda and the Workplace Change team are leaders in their field. She and her team stepped in at a crucial time at OHSU and provided operational and strategic leadership. Her leadership and guidance were instrumental in launching our journey of cultural transformation. I wouldn’t hesitate to bring her in again or to recommend Workplace Change to other organizations.”
Connie Seeley
Chief of Staff. EVP and Chief Administrative Officer - OHSU
“Working with Serilda was great. She took the time to learn about our group, understand our program theme, and tailor her message to our needs. Our attendees were focused on her every word.”
Michael Klein
Retired Association Director -
Oregon Recreation & Park Association
“Serilda and Workplace Change has had a huge, tangible impact on me and my organization. They educated me as a leader, along with our leadership team, on the true meaning, depths and complexities of diversity, equity, and inclusion within workgroups and organizations. I don’t know anyone on the planet with more hands-on experience at the highest levels and most critical, relevant roles than Serilda Summers-McGee. She’s a brilliant leader with a unique ability to be direct and say what needs to be said, without any fluff or pretense.”
Ryan Wines
CEO – Marmoset
"Working with Workplace Change is different than partnering with any other HR firm. The team provides a level of support that feels personal and they ask questions that get to the heart of the need. Any firm can find qualified talent, but the team at WPC spends time with candidates and clients in a way that is meaningful and produces great results. We engaged the WPC in several searches for key leaders and they delivered us slates of great candidates who didn’t just hit the mark on paper, but many of them embodied the values and talent we were looking for. Anytime we meet with WPC team members, they are prepared with thoughtful questions, creative ideas and a spirit of collaboration. It may sound like a commercial for Workplace Change, but they are literally my first phone call when I have HR talent needs.”
Lisa Goren
Senior Vice President | Chief People & Culture Officer - Legacy Health
“Workplace Change has been a strategic partner in guiding our organization on how to operationalize our commitments to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusions. Serilda’s insights and ability to effectively engage employees at all organizational levels have been an indispensable resource. She thoughtfully challenged us to articulate a North Star to direct and align our efforts – and help us move beyond reacting to missed opportunities. Serilda is adept both as a strategist and facilitator for action.”
Suzanne King
VP, People Operations – 3DEGREES
The Equity & Inclusion Director position was a critical hire, both for our organization and community. It was important that we find someone whose approach was aligned with the vision and expectations of our Council, organization and community and help us to build a solid foundation on which to build upon to meet our diversity, equity and inclusion goals. We knew that we did not have the expertise or capacity to do this alone. Workplace Change’s approach, expertise and experience was incredibly valuable not just for this recruitment, but in helping us apply an equity lens to our recruitment process. The City of Bend now has an incredible Equity & Inclusion Director. We are better because of the expertise and insights that Workplace Change brough to our recruitment process. Norberto and Dana were fantastic to work with!
Stephanie Betteridge
Chief Innovation Officer - City of Bend
“Working with Serilda and her team is a true partnership. We had a very difficult recruitment and as much as we tried on our own to fill, we could not. They found us the perfect candidate. I often get just the support I need, and didn't know I needed, even if all we are discussing is a recruitment strategy. They see us as more than a client. Forever grateful.”
Karen Riley
Director of People and Culture - JOIN
“Serilda Summers-McGee provided training for our supervisors on inclusive excellence in recruiting, Her session was excellent and well received. I highly recommend her and plan on retaining her services again.”
Mariann Hyland
VP of People & Culture –
Oregon Community Foundation
“Serilda joined my team at Nike to introduce unconscious bias to my team and help us think critically and work with one another to understand not only the historical constructs we operate within but also the role each of us play within them. We worked on the HOW we can being to break through them and move forward. We dug deep into our personal journeys and shared a lot of very challenging information with one another. Over multiple workshops my team began to break down barriers, see past their own bias and identify it in the world amound each of us. Overall a HUGE win for team building and developing better all-around humans!”
Kati Reardon
Co-Founder – The Nightwood Society
"Workplace Change conducted training for my leadership team and the entire IT shop on how we can better operationalize EDI principles. Serilda’s infectious energy coupled with deep experience and knowledge changed the way we treat each other and our users. The biggest impact was on me when Serilda pointed out that my practice of hiring the best perpetuated the structural bias that shut out a large segment of the potential workforce. This was a huge aha moment for me and I switched to hiring for the best potential which resulted in more successful recruitments with the selected candidates turning out to be superior performers. I can’t thank Serilda enough for this and other epiphanies I gained from her training."
Sam Kim
Deputy, Chief Investment Officer - Washington County
"Serilda and her team have helped us on several projects to advance DEIB at the Portland Timbers and Thorns. They lead us through the development of our equity statement, provided a tool to utilize an equity lens in our decision making, and provided an all staff training on Implicit Bias & Allyship. Now, Serilda is helping build a business resource group to ensure the stadium is a welcoming and inclusive environment. WPC has been instrumental in helping implement a DEIB program that works for our club and staff, and they challenged us to be better every step of the way. We cannot say enough positive things about partnering with Workplace Change.”
Sarah Keane
CFO Portland Timbers & Thorns - Peregrine Sports
“My organization consistently relies on the staff at Workplace Change for clear and dependable HR advice. Their expertise allows them to help our fast-paced organization address problems quickly, providing us with a path forward for every problem we throw at them and the support we need to get to a solution. I feel more comfortable as a leader knowing I can turn to them for essential input and advice.”
Kristen Miller
Executive Director - Alaska Wilderness League
"Workplace Change helped us to assess our culture and determine areas for continued improvement and focus. In addition, they provided a learning and development series to give managers practical tools and advice on increasing diversity and inclusion in our company. Lastly, Serilda has provided some 1 x 1 coaching to assist in developing our strategy.
Serilda is a dynamic and intelligent leader who brings both strategy and practical approaches. She makes difficult concepts accessible to all. Serilda has a very deep knowledge of DE&I and she is a thought leader in the field. She is a trusted consultant who lets us ask difficult questions and provides direct and straightforward answers, while creating a safe place to learn.
The team at Workplace Change is clear and accountable. They are effective communicators and collaborators."
Cindi Polychronis, JD
Chief Administrative Officer; Senior Vice President -
David Evans & Associates
“Workplace Change resonates with all of Modernist’s core values (Invite & Include, Invest in People, Innovate &Iterate, Do Good Work & Do It Well), which why I think of their firm as an extension of our own team. They have helped us recruit and retain diverse candidates, so that we have the talent and tools to build a more productive, creative, and innovative firm. WPC has provided equity and inclusion trainings, individual leadership coaching for our team, and is our go to recruiter for all our hiring needs. WPC had made the time to understand the firm, our mission, and my leadership style.”
Georgia Lee Hussey
CEO – Modernist Financial
"We’ve had the pleasure of partnering with Workplace Change for several years now across a variety of initiatives. They’ve supported us in the creation of our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion work, training initiatives and various consulting projects. Serilda and her team helped us build the foundation that many of our EDI initiatives are still based on today. The Workplace Change team helped us with customizing our EDI council in a way that worked for our team. While this foundational work was done years ago, it’s still work that we reference several times throughout the year as we explore new initiatives or set new goals for the team. I appreciate the candor and direct feedback that WPC provides as a partner. Being able to have honest and transparent conversations helps us identify ways we can improve and provide us with fresh ideas. Her team does a really fantastic job of sharing data, insights and trends while maintaining the confidentiality of their clients. I truly appreciate our partnership.”
Marissa Long
Director Talent Development - The Opus Group
"Workplace Change’s message hits home in the two critical parts of any workshop: content and presentation. I found their DEI content thought-provoking, values-based, hard-hitting and relevant. Their skillful presentation was energetic, entertaining and informative. Nobody falls asleep when Serilda and her team are presenting.”
Susan Blosser
Founder - Sokol Blosser Winery
"I felt incredibly lucky and grateful to have Serilda as my career coach considering I only met her in May. To me, she is like an angel who is watching out and guiding me to avoid potential career missteps/dangers ahead."
Jiangning (Jen) M. Plett, CFA, CAIA
Investmet Officer, Portfolio Risk and Research - Oregon State Treasury
"The expertise of the Workplace Change team was extremely helpful in our deliberations as we imagined a new organizational design. Our design needed to be in service to our newly adopted 10-year strategic vision, so it was imperative that we agree to design criteria and guidelines, as well as catalogue and align core functions of the agency. The expertise of the team aided us in navigating these phases efficiently and thoroughly and I am confident that we have built an organizational design that will see us achieve our vision."
Todd Davidson
Chief Executive Officer - Travel Oregon
“We were introduced to Serilda and the Workplace Change team by our attorney as we attempted to navigate a difficult, emotionally charged fracture in a key relationship on our leadership team. We were desperately looking for someone who could wade in on a deeply polarizing conversation and help us come to a middle ground. During our time together, Serilda worked tirelessly with both parties and while we were not able to come to the resolution we had hoped for, she facilitated the ability to move forward with psychological safety and respect. Serilda’s wit, candor, and confidence quickly built trust with all parties involved and it was a solid learning experience for the Firm and our leaders resulting in policy change and enhanced training.”
Rachel Fazio
Vice President of People, SPHR - Ankrom Moisan
“Serilda and her team helped us find focus and meaning in our approach to DEI at Evolve. Through thoughtful moderation with our leadership and studio teams, they made space for each voice to be heard without judgement, ultimately identifying and prioritizing the areas where we can make the biggest impact moving forward.”
Paul Backett
Co-Founder & Creative Director - Evolve Collaborative
"Workplace Change helped us with a variety of projects. The main one that sticks out was their help with a comprehensive Equitable Wage Analysis and framework. Upon completion we had solid data to help navigate wage adjustments and conversations. This helped our leadership and mid-managers tremendously. It also built trust with the entire team, as they could see that we had worked with an expert source to determine fair and equitable wages.”
Augusto Carneiro
Founder & Chief Friendship Officer - Nossa Familia Coffee
"Partnering with Workplace Change was a complete game changer for our organization. There was nothing too big or too messy for them to handle - they jumped right in with us to sort out our most challenging HR and culture obstacles. They were empowering and uplifting to work with - they make HR fun! Together, we built a foundation of integrity, accountability, and wellbeing in our policies and among our people that remains rock solid years down the line. We cannot recommend Workplace Change enough - what they deliver, and how they deliver it, is unique and unmatched in the HR/DEI field.”
Janice Martellucci
Executive Director - Peace in Schools
"Workplace Change partnered with us to evaluate our workplace culture, make recommendations to improve, and monitor our progress. Serilda and her team were brilliant coaches who helped us to strengthen our workplace culture so that our agency can help meet the community’s most pressing needs. I recommend Workplace Change to others all the time.”
Tony Bernal
Chief Executive Officer - Transition Projects