WITI - Driven by Integrity, Ethics and Honesty

WITI Perspective
WITI - Driven by Integrity, ethics and honesty - above all else.
Editorial by Carolyn Leighton, Founder/Chairwoman

As WITI approaches our 30th anniversary next year, I want everyone who touches and participates in the WITI Community - our members, our partners, our Network Leaders - to clearly understand what WITI stands for, since, from the beginning, we knew we were committed to building a values driven global community.

As a rapidly growing global organization, it is important to me personally that everyone who represents our 30 years of dedicated work in WITI understands and shares our commitment to our central values.

Here is what WITI stands for:

NO RACISM, GENDER DISCRIMINATION, BULLYING, or SEXUAL HARASSMENT will be tolerated. If you ever experience this by a WITI representative, at a WITI event, in any article or newsletter or anything associated with WITI, I want to know about it. Contact me immediately to schedule a confidential call. carolynleighton25@gmail.com. It's bad enough that so many members of our community continue to experience this humiliation every day they go to work - we never want any person walking into a WITI event to experience anything less than equal respect, regardless of their title, ethnicity, or gender.

INTEGRITY, ETHICS, HONESTY. We are living in an environment where many of our public leaders are out of integrity, have no ethics and apparently do not value truth and transparency. We see the huge negative impact this has on our relationships with allies, and citizens. It is up to each of us to make it clear that we stand for integrity, principle, ethics and honesty Success will never be measured by how many awards we win, titles we have, or money we make. We will ultimately be judged and measured by our commitment (or lack of commitment) to honesty, integrity, and ethics.

HEALTHY FOOD SERVED AT WITI EVENTS. I know my stand about not serving food or beverages that are harmful to our health is often unpopular. But why would anyone who says they are committed to our success serve any food or beverage known to contribute to a lack of wellbeings?

COLLABORATION, NOT COMPETITION. I know we will all win more if we collaborate, not compete. We work with a spirit of making decisions that are wins for everyone involved. In the end everyone wins more when this commitment to fairness, win/win and collaboration exist.

SOCAL CONSCIOUSNESS. As developers and leaders in technology, we are often faced with decisions around developing a program, technology, or a product that can be harmful to thousands of people. It is up to each of us to stand for our principles and understand the enormous responsibility of making choices for the common good.

WE VALUE AND BENEFIT FROM DIVERSITY. I have never understood why any company or person committed to innovation is so resistant to diversity. I believe the ultimate winners in innovation and technology will be the companies committed to diversity of gender, ethnicity, and ideas.at every level of the organization.

It is so easy to fall into the wrong choices when you work and live in environments that conflict with your own belief system. I am constantly checking myself to make sure I am true to my principles. Please share your experiences, thoughts and perspectives about these issues. We are committed to deepening our understanding and helping you make better choices as you face daily challenges.

Especially now when we are seeing on a daily basis, the assault on the ideals, values and principles upon which America was founded, I want to inspire all leaders to take a stronger, public stand for the values their organization represents and make it clear about what will and will not be tolerated.

Opinions expressed by the author are not necessarily those of WITI.