Women’s Forum - Activity Report

Hello,
This is Sakamoto, an Order Analyst. Within Akamai, I belong to the Finance department and am responsible for creating and approving contracts. 

D&I and ERG

Akamai promotes Diversity & Inclusion. There are many employees around the globe with various backgrounds including: nationalities, religions, and cultures. The ERGs (Employee Resource Groups) at Akamai are groups that really understand and respect each employee's background. There are several ERG groups and I am a part of one in particular, the Women’s Forum.

Women’s Forum

Women’s Forum is a community that holds a variety of seminars and exchanges of opinions for the assistance of female employees. As diverse employees often have a lack of support in IT companies, this group focuses on empowering individuals to utilize their strength and extend their careers while maintaining a work life balance.

The Ranch Experience

Recently, I got the opportunity to visit and “experience” a farm as a part of a collaboration program between the Akamai Foundation (an internal social contribution group), and the Women’s Forum. 

The “Ranch Experience” is a program specifically designed for children within the foster care system. We got a chance to participate in this outdoor event and act as role models for these children.  The program aims to build their self-confidence, improve their communication skills, encourage independent acting and thinking before they leave the system at age 18. As role models, we (the Akamai employees) support these children by respecting their independence and helping them develop essential life skills. 

The program is structured like a game, with some English used. The children were able to explore around the farm as we challenged them to think about some themes for the day. For example; in the future, if you were a farmer, what kind of farm would you like to run? How would you manage the business? What kind of concept would the farm have? Etc.  Towards the end, the children gave group presentations in front of everyone. They came up with future farm plans that had a lot of unique features. 

Happy Time’s Ranch’s lunch included a special white curry, ranch rice, freshly squeezed milk, and a yogurt drink. Everyone, both adults and children, had seconds!

In the afternoon, each Akamai employee was interviewed by the children. What kind of company is Akamai? What do you do for work? Etc. Then each child summarized this information and shared what kind of company Akamai is in their own words. It was incredibly moving to see these children, who initially knew nothing about Akamai, skillfully summarize and explain what they learned about the company in such a short period of time. I felt compelled to share this experience with everyone.

Milking cows, making butter from fresh milk, and tasting the freshly made butter was an unusual and fun “farm experience” for Akamai Employees.

Reflection! As a group, we looked back on what we experienced throughout the day, such as,  New / Impact / YAY moments / etc. It was a very well designed program and one that I would like to participate in again.

Farm experience program sponsored by: NPO Mirainomori

Please continue to look forward to more fun activity reports from Women’s Forum!