At Railsware, we believe that diversity and inclusion (D&I) are not just values or policies, but essential drivers of innovation, collaboration, and success.
Personally, D&I it’s about making sure that all voices are heard and that everyone has equal access to opportunities for growth and success. At Railsware, I’ve seen D&I reflected in the way we collaborate across teams, ensuring that every colleague has a seat at the table regardless of background, gender, race, or identity. Also, this is reflected in how we communicate and network offline, everyone is genuinely interested in learning about our cultural differences and similarities while being super respectful of the other person.
What’s D&I, or Diversity and Inclusion? For us, it means creating a workplace where everyone feels welcome and appreciated, regardless of their differences. We know it’s better to have people with different skills and perspectives because it leads to better ideas and solutions. It’s about ensuring everyone has a fair chance to succeed and that all voices are heard.
What’s more, D&I at Railsware isn’t ticking the boxes to follow the trends. We understand clearly what D&I means for us:
❌ Hiring a few people from different backgrounds and calling it a day.
✅ Hiring skilled professionals regardless of age, race, gender, or background.
❌ Lowering standards or giving preferential treatment.
✅ Breaking down barriers that prevent success for people from diverse backgrounds.
❌ Forcing everyone to be the same.
✅ Appreciating our differences and learning from each other.
When done right, D&I benefits everyone. It leads to more creative and innovative teams, stronger relationships, and a more positive and productive work environment.
Inclusive hiring: building a diverse team
We have refined our hiring practices to ensure inclusivity at every stage of recruitment. Our hiring process is designed to attract talent with diverse backgrounds (more details below). We focus on skills, potential, and cultural alignment rather than traditional markers like location or specific academic backgrounds.
Here’s what we emphasize:
- Global talent pool: Our team spans 35 countries and diverse ethnicities and national backgrounds. By hiring globally, we tap into diverse perspectives and experiences, which enrich our work and culture.
- Transparent and fair evaluation: For any position that we hire for, we apply standardized assessments and scorecards to eliminate possible bias. We involve several hiring managers in the process, which also reduces the bias in the hiring decision-making process. You can read our articles like How we hire Marketers at Railsware and How we hire Software Engineers to learn more about our hiring process.
- AI-powered tools: During the interview stages, we use AI tools as note-takers which help us take full and objective notes, as well as provide coaching to prevent possible recruitment biases. While using AI tools as helpers, we don’t use them in the decision-making process to ensure fairness, contextual understanding, and a human-centered approach.
- Continuous improvement: Our development culture promotes open communication, and respecting different perspectives. Throughout our hiring process, we collect feedback from our candidates, adjusting the process accordingly, if necessary.
- University collaborations and internship programs: We collaborate with universities to support them with developing product management curricula and empower more young people to pursue a career in the tech industry. Besides, we regularly open internship positions to diversify our team further and share our knowledge. These initiatives allow rising talents to kickstart their professional growth, learn all the necessary skills, and become a part of our professional culture.
Flexible benefits to support everyone
At Railsware, we believe that a one-size-fits-all approach to benefits doesn’t work, especially in a diverse workplace. That’s why flexibility is at the heart of what we offer.
- We provide fully remote opportunities and a truly flexible schedule, giving Railswarians the freedom to balance their professional growth with personal commitments, caregiving responsibilities, and health management.
- With 34 paid days off per year, there’s no fixed schedule, so everyone can personalize their time off to celebrate holidays and life events that matter most to them. This flexibility respects diverse cultural, religious, and personal traditions, ensuring everyone feels valued and accommodated.
- Our Smart Benefits budget covers health, remote workspace, education, and social activities. Railswarians can choose how to allocate this budget to best suit their unique preferences and needs, empowering them to design a benefits package that truly supports their individual circumstances.
- Childcare Leave: ensuring that all parents feel supported in balancing their family and work responsibilities.
For a full list, check out our Bonuses & Benefits guide.
For me, D&I is about making sure everyone feels welcome and heard, no matter where they come from. At Railsware, you can see it in how people respect each other and how different ideas are actually listened to. I’ve dealt with assumptions based on where I’m from or what I might know, but here it’s more about what I can do and how I work with others. I feel like my ideas are considered and no one is closed-minded here. Gender stereotypes have been there, like people expecting certain things just because of gender. But Railsware doesn’t do that—it’s more about what you bring to the team. People met my gay partner and they treated him like another Railswarian and that was amazing to me it meant a lot.
Education and growth: empowering our people
Education is an important part of our approach to D&I. To achieve this, we offer:
- Professional growth opportunities: We draft Individual Development Plans to cater to the unique needs, professional aspirations, and life circumstances of each team member.
- Feedback-based culture: Through regular and objective feedback, we ensure fair growth opportunities for everyone.
- Internal and external training: Providing opportunities to help Railswarians reach their full potential and keep their professional skills updated.
- Cross-cultural training: Helping our team navigate and embrace cultural differences. This includes raising awareness of different cultures, understanding how people give and accept feedback, identifying key differences, and learning approaches to navigate those within diverse teams.
Tracking progress and staying accountable
We believe in the importance of transparency, especially when it comes to sharing insights into our efforts. Below, we’ve outlined our current numbers and achievements to provide a clear picture of where we stand today:
- Gender balance: Over the last 5 years, the percentage of women in the company has grown by 6%.
- Leadership roles: Gender equality is reflected in leadership, with an equal split of women and men holding these positions.
I joined Railsware as a Community Manager responsible for Recruitment and Employer Brand 8 years ago. Back then, there were only around 10% of women in the company (which is quite typical for a small IT company). As we grew, I never felt left behind because I was “something” – female, too young, whatever else. I saw that what really mattered were my skills and results. These led me to my first role as a People Lead, then Head of HR, and finally, Operations Director
- Age diversity: Our team ranges from 20 to 52 years old, bringing together multigenerational insights and diverse perspectives.
- Global representation: With colleagues from 35 countries, we celebrate the richness of varied cultural backgrounds through initiatives like online events showcasing national cuisines, celebrating Independence Days in dedicated channels, and hosting random coffee meetings to foster conversations on any topic.
One of my favorite practices of these values is the online (and especially offline) engagements and activities organized by our wonderful People Team. One of the highlights of these initiatives is the annual offline weekends, where colleagues come together in person. During these meetups, I feel a strong sense of connection among my colleagues from diverse backgrounds, showcasing our different cultures, perspectives, and even cuisines!
To ensure that each Railswarian feels safe and is treated with due respect and dignity, we have crafted an Anti-Harassment Policy that is aimed at preventing any verbal, non-verbal, or physical harassment or discrimination.
Fostering resilience
While being a global company, Railsware has Ukrainian roots. In the challenging times of active war going on on Ukrainian territories, we have launched Railsware Charity Fund to support people affected by the war, seniors, people and children’s education and well-being, infrastructure restorations, and military efforts.
During the war in Ukraine, Railsware has become an island of stability and strength – a place where teammates feel heard, supported, and empowered. The company has taken tangible actions to adapt to the challenges caused by the war. Railsware provides support for Railswarians, and, beyond that, Railsware actively supports the Ukrainian Armed Forces and creates opportunities for people to contribute through donations and other initiatives, which makes me proud to be part of this team.
We’re welcoming colleagues who have returned from the front lines, making sure our Hiring and Onboarding processes are adapted and inclusive for war veterans.
Read our Railsware Supports Ukraine article to know more about the topic.
As we continue our journey, we take pride in fostering a space where all team members can thrive and bring their unique perspectives to the table. We look forward to continuing to grow and learn together, creating a workplace where everyone can contribute their best.
