Kimberley Denney, Atlantic Executive Vice President, has been actively involved with the NSGIC (National States Geographic Information Council) GeoWomen in Leadership Initiative since its formation in 2017. In 2019, Kimberley and Erin Fashoway, GIS Coordinator of Montana, accepted the nominations to serve as Co-Chairs. Recently, the Chairs were interviewed on @StateScoop’s GIS Addressed podcast hosted by @Jake Williams, Associate Publisher and Director of Strategic Initiatives, to discuss GeoWomen’s progress to date, how hiring practices are changing in our profession, and their efforts to recruit more women to STEM careers, such as GIS. 

“It’s imperative that we understand what workforce diversity means and the role of its importance in how its implemented across the geospatial industry as a whole.”, Kimberley says on the podcast. She continues, “…understanding and implementing and maintaining a diverse workforce goes beyond just checking boxes and being certain of having a mix of gender across one particular organization or agency as a whole.”

In the past several years, Atlantic has done just that.  We have developed detailed job descriptions, personality profiles, and standard interview questions that enable us to select the best person for the job, rather than choosing by emotion, past experiences, or any other potential discriminatory variable. More than just statistics, diversity is about life experiences and it is those experiences combined with our unique backgrounds that have prompted Atlantic’s growth and success. Out of Atlantic’s 75 total employees, we are proud that 21 are women (28%). Out of those 21 women, 14 are in key business and/or technical leadership roles (67%). 

Organizations, like NSGIC, create visibility to our profession.  Visibility improves the opportunity for women and minorities, alike, to strive for a career they perhaps would not have pursued otherwise.  Atlantic is proud to support this initiative through Kimberley’s role as Co-Chair of GeoWomen in Leadership as well as through our continued corporate sponsorship of NSGIC.