Nvidia

NVIDIA plays for keeps. They provide resources to help support employees in many different ways, including sessions on well-being, Employee Resource Groups, and generous benefits. During COVID, I've been able to have flexibility in my work schedule.

Equally important, they provide resources and tools to help you acquire new skills. There are many opportunities to learn internally (with Tech Talks) or externally (LinkedIn Learning, Udemy, and Stanford, if you're accepted).

NVIDIA also provides opportunities to give back to the community. Employees can volunteer during work hours to update maps or build STEM kits to send to under-represented minorities.

The company culture is important here – it's not just buzzwords to make everyone feel good. They expect intellectual honesty, teamwork, and want folks to speak up and speak out.

It's been a little tough joining a new team when everything is virtual. That said, I've taken advantage of opportunities to get involved with a few Employee Resource Groups to start building connections with folks outside of my team.

The other con is that NVIDIA still has some work to do to improve diversity. It's clear that they are taking steps to improve it, but I hope it continues to receive attention.

If management wants to continue to increase diversity, all groups need to not glorify working at all hours (because you're so excited about the work) or applying lessons learned from side projects (done on one's own time).

The messaging from management needs to acknowledge that one can do one's best work when work is a balanced part of one's life.