Command Shift: A Movement Shaped and Led by Women of Color

Every morning, I remind myself that one of Command Shift’s most important commitments is to work with - not on behalf of - women of color from under-resourced areas and non-traditional backgrounds to help accomplish our central goal: Accelerating more women of color in tech sector and tech-enabled industries.

We do this by driving progress on three main fronts:

• Attracting and inspiring young women of color, from non-traditional backgrounds, to explore tech careers and
• Increasing the number of companies and individuals that hire and retain women of color, specifically from under-resourced communities.
• Achieving pay equity for women of color in tech by addressing women’s lack of visibility in and access to tech sector employment.

Our work is guided by our leadership team and staff and we regularly engage NPower students and alumni, to learn about their experiences, challenges and dreams to obtain the tech training and support services they need to step into good paying tech jobs. We also regularly speak with our graduates to learn about the guidance they might need once in the workplace. Their insights help inform and shape our overall goals and programming and are shared with Command Shift’s Steering Committee, advisors and others involved in charting our way forward.

We also conduct annual surveys of NPower alumni to understand if and how our training methodologies, including our curricula, along with the services NPower provides, can be updated or expanded to provide the support necessary to ensure that women of color participate and thrive for the long-term. 

The Command Shift movement centers the young women whose lives we seek to change and we couldn’t be more proud of the opportunity to work alongside these women as we address inequities in the tech workforce and work to double the number of women of color in tech by 2030.

New Command Shift Alumni Council and Looking Ahead to 2023

Last fall, we formalized the Command Shift Alumni Council - a group of dedicated NPower graduates and women of color working in tech jobs that will be actively collaborating with us to ensure our initiatives and programming are focused on advancing our (and their) goal.

They will also advise and support us in the many exciting activities we have planned this year, including Black History Month, Women of Color in Tech Day (March), the unveiling of a new Index that is a follow-up to The Equation for Equality research report from last year (Spring) and, among other milestones, celebrating Command Shift’s two-year anniversary in May!

We encourage you to stay tuned for the many exciting initiatives and announcements we have planned for this year.

Command Shift and NPower in the News

• NPower CEO ☀️Bertina Ceccarelli 's new byline in Forbes : Social Good Investments must Equally Prioritize the Present and the Future and she was recently featured on the Nonprofit Leadership Podcast: How to increase the number of women of color in tech leadership
• NPower featured in CIO Online as one of four nonprofits recognized for fostering diversity in tech: 4 Nonprofits Fostering Diversity and Career Advancement in IT

• Karla Medina-Velazquez , #NPowerMaryland graduate and #CommandShift Alumni Council Member shares her journey in tech with NowThis in partnership with Citi Foundation: New Mom And I.T. Professional
• Candice L. Dixon , Amy Terpeluk , and Megan Keogan connected for a conversation on why the need of building coalitions comprised of dedicated like-minded companies has never been greater: Building Coalitions That Command Lasting Change hosted by PRovoke Media in partnership with FINN Partners