Ashley Oliver

Civil rights attorney Ashley Oliver (she/her) was brought into Staffmark Group in March 2022 to build a DE&I program from the ground up. She got started by doing a virtual walking tour and talking to people around the company. “My work is led by curiosity,” she says.

Oliver then set out to raise awareness of people’s differences. “Diversity is not just color and gender; religion, ability and other cultural identifiers are also important,” she explains. To that end, she published an annual calendar recognizing 400 significant days and events, such as Islamic New Year, Black History Month and International Lesbian Day. She also produced a glossary of 300 DE&I terms and concepts, including diversity, equity, privilege, power and the ADA.

Oliver also developed educational events such as inclusive-leadership training, the Anti-Racism Allyship live webinar, the Black History Month live session, and a Pride month speaker panel of employees who identify as LGBTQ+. She then kicked off the company’s first three business resource groups: Black Alliance, Prism (LGBTQ+) and Operation Hired: Military and Veterans. In the first four months, 14% of Staffmark employees joined at least one group. “Last year we didn’t have any programs, so to have three programs now is incredible,” Oliver says. “And people are hungry for more.”

She continues, “People have been so excited. They want to know how they can be more intentional.” Staffmark Group’s 2022 employee engagement survey received high scores in feelings of inclusion, acceptance and DE&I satisfaction.

Last year we didn’t have any programs; to have five programs now is crazy — and people are hungry for more. They want to know how they can be more intentional.

Another source of pride for Oliver is her social media content; she created a platform called Yoga and Mahogany after a yoga studio reached out to try to train more Black yoga teachers in 2020. “I looked at the yoga training program and I didn’t see a lot of Black people, people my size, people with big hair,” she explains. “Not that I’m particularly flexible or anything; I just wanted to show people of color, queer creators, people with body diversity. I wanted to bring people together, impact microaggression in the wellness space, and show that you can modify poses for bigger people and people with limitations.”

In addition to this, Oliver authored a book, The Manifestation Journal for Black Women. “I’m proud of my day job but also my other job as a content creator,” she says. “Being curious transcends everything.”