In a work environment where diversity, culture, and transparency can often feel like buzzwords, there is an app that is putting them into action: Blind.
Blind is an app where users discuss topics like company culture, honest perspectives, and relevant career advice, without fear of judgment or retribution.
The anonymous community in Silicon Valley is tearing down the barriers and breaking ceilings for those difficult to access conversations. Where an employee once felt limited points of entrance, there is now an entire network of support.
The Obstacle:
It may sometimes feel that there is bureaucratic tape around questions employees most desperately want to be answered, leaving the information inaccessible to the rest of the company. During a time where transparency is being celebrated, Blind is helping mitigate the power struggles, fear of retaliation, and organizational inefficiency that silos to communication inherently brings.
Even if Human Resource Departments are actively looking for the root causes of what isn’t working, turnover, and general discontent, the solution will never be fully effective because employees are not honest. More than half of employees at Uber, Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon fear backlash based on their responses on internal employee pulse surveys. In the words of co-founder, Kyum Kim, “We bring more communication to a place where there’s a lack of communication — the workplace”.
The Solution:
Have you ever asked yourself “Am I being properly compensated?”, “Was that an appropriate remark?”, or “I wonder if other companies are facing this exact issue?”. It is with that intention that the Founders of Blind decided to create a third party and anonymous platform for employees to frankly communicate with each other in order to create large changes in the workplace. What would you ask your colleagues, boss or human resources department if you could be guaranteed anonymity? Although some companies are attempting to facilitate this kind of unrestricted dialogue internally, the lack of anonymity and its consequences prevents how effective the conversation can be.
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The Community:
Blind is a powerful platform for comparing deliverables across companies, getting direct feedback on new company policies and changes in resources used. As an anonymous professional network, verified professionals connect to discuss what matters most. Professionals anonymously communicate in private company channels and openly with users across industries. This patient and supportive community is attempting to make macro-level changes in the workforce by addressing the micro-level needs. Ultimately, this results in Blind being a platform for change.
Globalizing Blind’s impact:
Could an app that is disrupting the statuesque of the Silicon Valley benefit countries suffering from a brain drain? With Blind’s open conversation, perhaps the large numbers of educated and skilled people who leave their own country to live and work in another one where salaries and conditions are better would have an opportunity to start disrupting the causes that drive them away.
When employees feel valued, they perform at their best. There is no trade-off in doing well and doing good. Investing in a platform where your employees are freely addressing their reservations has the potential for incredibly positive payouts. What could bosses, companies, and governments accomplish when there is a platform empowering informed decisions and inspiring productive change in the workplace fueling them?
