Women in 3D Printing (Wi3DP) – a nonprofit organisation dedicated to promoting, supporting, and inspiring women working in the AM industry recently announced the appointment of Sarah Goehrke as the new Director of DEI Initiatives, creating a new organisational role designed to drive actionable initiatives and programming targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
Goehrke will lead the formation and operation of a variety of initiatives focused on strengthening the workforce of the AM industry.
Introducing Sarah Goehrke
With experience in AM since 2014, Goehrke is a well-known leader both in industry media and within Women in 3D Printing. Goehrke is the founder of editorial services company Additive Integrity and has led editorial work at dedicated 3D printing publications Fabbaloo (Managing Editor, 2018-2021) and 3DPrint.com (Editor-in-Chief, 2015-2018). She has contributed to publications including Forbes.com, 3D Printing Media Network, and All3DP, and worked directly with dozens of high-profile clients within the AM industry for their content needs. She has also frequently appeared on international and virtual event stages as a keynote speaker, panelist, and moderator.
at the AM Cluster of Ohio/Image Source: Wi3DP
Within Wi3DP, Goehrke spearheaded the creation and authored the first editions of the Wi3DP Diversity for Additive Manufacturing (DfAM) reports. She has been on the Wi3DP Board of Directors since 2018. She is part of the executive team that developed the AM industry’s first-ever all-female speakers conference, TIPE 3D Printing by Wi3DP, for which in 2021 she was the People track leader.
DEI Initiatives at Women in 3D Printing
In her new role as the Director of DEI Initiatives at Wi3DP, Goehrke will be forming and leading volunteer teams to develop resources for the entire AM industry. Data collection, benchmark studies, analytical industry reports, corporate value statements, interviews, virtual panels, company workshops, speaker training, and other projects will offer companies in the AM industry access to information and actionable resources to shape the future of their workforces.
“We are thrilled to strengthen our collaboration with Sarah,” said Wi3DP Founder Nora Touré. “Not only has she been a very vocal advocate for more gender-based diversity in the industry for years, she also has a very clear position in making the AM industry more inclusive of all diversity.”
“We, at Women in 3D Printing, are aligned with Sarah as we believe our mission should go beyond gender-diversity. Like every other Wi3DP initiative, the new DEI department we are building is aimed at being shaped and owned by the industry,” added Nora.
Industry needs and responses will drive the creation of these initiatives and offerings. Wi3DP DEI is working directly with new and existing Wi3DP corporate members to develop a new partnership structure for companies dedicated to enhancing their internal structures. Work with a select few pilot companies will pave the way for more widely-available partnership opportunities in 2022.
Companies with more diverse workforces have been shown to generate higher revenues and more innovation, while reporting higher employee satisfaction and retention. As the AM industry continues to see rising growth, including a quickly expanding workforce, those companies with DEI strategies in place will be poised for success with higher-performing, committed employees.
“DEI is a growing focus, with more companies across the AM industry establishing roles such as Chief Diversity Officers and internal DEI teams,” Goehrke noted. “At Women in 3D Printing, our vision has always been to promote, support, and inspire women interested in and working in the 3D printing industry. Through these new initiatives, we look forward to partnering directly with companies to help develop their ideas as well as to facilitate broader conversations and actionable initiatives.”
“We’ll be looking beyond our foundational focus of gender parity — which remains a priority — to ensure that this industry continues to develop as a welcoming professional environment that celebrates the individuality and identity of everyone in the workforce,” added Goehrke.
As a new initiative, Wi3DP’s DEI work is evolving in real time. Goehrke is actively working with and looking for more volunteers to join the Wi3DP DEI team to help shape initiatives.
“We’ll be working alongside existing Wi3DP initiatives like our Next Gen group and with our regional and local chapter ambassadors to bring together the AM workforce,” Goehrke further added. “Our corporate members have been incredibly supportive of our work, and we look forward to offering further benefits for these companies as well as the industry at large.”
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