Diversity is the Key to Unlocking Tampa Bay’s Full Potential

Tampa Bay Wave is committed to the philosophy that the local entrepreneurial ecosystem, and the greater region itself, cannot reach its full potential until all entrepreneurs and their startups are given the opportunity to reach their full potential.

• We are fully committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion in every aspect of our organization and its programs and services
• We fundamentally value and respect experiences that are different from our own and will foster an environment that will tolerate nothing less from all
• We will embrace all who dare to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams and recognize that not all founders come from the same starting point
• We will be intentional in the programs and services we offer so that we can address the barriers that many founders face when launching and growing their companies in Tampa Bay
• We will encourage all startups to build diversity into their companies’ teams and boards from the beginning to increase their likelihood of success
• We will be a champion with visible leadership for the startups with diversity so we can educate the community about the value of these companies.
• We will commit to leading by example by building an organization with a diverse team of staff, board members, and volunteers.

HOW

• We will conduct periodic internal diversity assessments to help the organization leadership identify priorities, recognize strategic opportunities, and enhance diversity performance. These periodic assessments will be include staff and board recruiting practices and composition, marketing and PR efforts, client company recruiting and vetting practices, community partnerships, and vendor and contracting practices.*
• We will continue to run specialized programs for underrepresented founders such as its nationally recognized TechDiversity Accelerator and Women’s Forum.
• We will seek out leadership opportunities on this topic in the community via speaking engagements, digital content creation and distribution, and other marketing and communication efforts.
• We will regularly seek input from our diverse founders and our community partners about our programs and services so we can continue to make progress for all.

*Note: These assessments will be conducted by a sub-committee of Tampa Bay Wave’s board governance committee who will also look for external data for comparison when reporting results and making recommendations. This sub-committee will also seek out peer review partners in the community as well.