“As an entrepreneur, if I experience harassment or discrimination, where do I report it and how will I be protected?”

This question emerged at a founders dinner a few months ago. None of us had a good answer, so, true to form, we started brainstorming. We asked our friends in VC if their firms had external policies and/or a reporting channel.

In opening the conversation, we learned that the issue was already top of mind for many VCs. But it was hard to see what individual firms were doing from the outside. So #MovingForward was born.

#MovingForward gathers VC commitments to foster a diverse, inclusive, and harassment-free workplace.

Specifically, our supporters have provided:

• Their anti-harassment/discrimination policies
• Point(s)-of-contact for entrepreneurs to ask questions and report issues
• A short statement on their efforts to nurture diverse, inclusive and harassment-free workplaces

Of note: Oftentimes the discussion of and efforts to address harassment and discrimination have focused narrowly on sexual harassment and gender discrimination. We strongly believe that we need comprehensively and intersectionally inclusive workplaces and policies that consider not just gender but also race, age, sexuality, disability status, family status, immigration status, and many other dimensions of identity and experience.

This directory is open-source. Any firm can add and update their policies and point(s)-of-contact, and we hope that every major venture firm will participate.

Join #MovingForward

VCs #MovingForward

This is a living document, and we value progress, not perfection.

VC Pledges

As supporters, we pledge to share our statement, external policy, and point(s)-of-contact with #MovingForward soon.

Continue to share your progress

• On March 8, 2018, 42 firms made a public commitment to nurture diverse, inclusive and harassment-free workplaces. Another 16 firms pledged to make their commitment public soon.
• We’re inviting additional VCs to commit to share their policies, statements, and points-of-contact.
• If you’re a founder, and your investor isn’t on here yet, please share the #MovingForward project with them.

Join #MovingForward

Not sure where to start? Check out our resources.

Why #MovingForward

• Value for Firms: VCs say the process of making their policies public and establishing reporting lines has sparked conversations and aligned the firm’s partnership internally around this matter. We hope this movement further motivates that process.
• Value for Founders: #MovingForward strives to make it easier for founders to review policies, find supportive investors, and identify a reporting contact. If you don’t see your investors here, share this project with them.

But really, why are you doing this?

A small group of entrepreneurs came together with three goals:

1. Launch a public, collective step forward for the venture industry. We aim to highlight each firm’s approach and commitment so that we can learn and move together. Crafting external anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies is just a first step––there’s much more do to, and a number of organizations are launching initiatives to catalyze real change.

2. Facilitate transparent reporting channels and information routes. Entrepreneurs facing harassment or discrimination are often unsure where to go to report. It can feel like going public is the only choice, and as such, our community faces a large issue of under-reporting. One way firms can address this need is by providing formal point(s)-of-contact for entrepreneurs. Some VCs are working with third-party HR consulting groups to nail down the proper templates/policies or reporting channels for raising concerns. We also support having internal point(s)-of-contact contact who can answer questions about the firm’s policy and provide further information if need be.

3. Provide a universal, open-source, and evolving wiki for continuous updates. As policies and supporting strategies evolve and the industry continues to iterate, we want to provide an open forum for any firm to self-report their efforts. We’ve hosting this directory on GitHub.

Resources

For those thinking: “We don’t have anything yet, where do we start?”

Templates and example policies:

• Project Include, a non-profit focused on building meaningful, enduring diversity and inclusion within tech startups and as well as their broader ecosystem (e.g., guide to writing a code of conduct)
• NVCA recently published resources to help address harassment in the venture ecosystem, which includes (1) sample H.R. policies for addressing harassment & discrimination; (2) sample H.R. best practices for addressing harassment & discrimination; and (3) a sample code of conduct
• Anti-Harassment Policy Template for Startups (Greylock Partners)
• Venture Inclusion Network hosts a curated directory of experts and services, initiatives in the industry, sample policies, best practices and more
• A template for investor/founder harassment policy (TechCrunch)
• Level classifications of harassment and assault (Cheryl Yeoh Sew Hoy)

Organizations, consultants, and tools:

• Check out Venture Inclusion Network for a list of D&I experts, consulting firms, and service providers.

• Coming soon: We’re also developing a Product Hunt Collection for tools that support diverse, inclusive, and harassment-free workplaces.

Press

CNN - “She spoke out about harassment in tech. Now, she’s helping VCs ‘move forward’” (March 8, 2018)

Recode - “Some venture capital firms are publicizing their sexual harassment policies for the first time” (March 8, 2018)

Pando - “Beyond #MeToo: A new initiative #MovingForward seeks to hold a newly shaken Silicon Valley accountable” (March 8, 2018)

Bloomberg - “Next Steps for #MovingForward and #MeToo” (March 22, 2018)

Institutional Investor - “Venture Capital Has a ‘MeToo’ Problem. Have Investors Been Ignoring It?” (March 26, 2018)

From Our Supporters

• Homebrew Blog - “Human Resources Policy at Startups” (March 4, 2018)
• First Round Capital - “Questions we get all the time” (March 8, 2018)
• 500 Startups - “500’s Commitment to #MovingForward” (March 8, 2018)
• True Ventures - “3 Women Founders Share Career Obstacles They Overcame” (March 8, 2018)
• Bowery Capital - “Announcing Our Involvement In Project #MovingForward” (March 8, 2018)
• Costanoa Ventures - “Our Berlin Wall Moment: How Venture is #MovingForward” (March 8, 2018)
• Upfront Ventures - “Why We Have Zero Tolerance for Sexual Misconduct” & “Upfront VC Inclusion Clause” (March 8, 2018)
• Zetta Venture Partners - “Moving Forward Together” (March 8, 2018)
• Laconia Capital Group - “Moving Forward and Beyond: Our Statement on Diversity, Inclusion, and Anti-Harassment” (April 6, 2018)
• Ellen Pao / Project Include - “#MovingForward Together” (March 8, 2018)
• Cheryl (Yeoh) Sew Hoy - “#MovingForward: Highlighting VCs Committed to Action” (March 8, 2018)
• Mark Suster - “The VC Inclusion Clause #MovingForward” (March 8, 2018)
• Aydin Senkut - “Reflections on #MovingForward” (March 8, 2018)
• Brad Feld - “International Women’s Day #StartWithEight #MovingForward” (March 8, 2018)
• Rob Hayes - “Making Diversity Core to Community” (March 26, 2018)

This open-source directory was built in collaboration with the VCs listed above and …

Thank you to all of the entrepreneurs, VCs, and larger community for sparking positive change in our industry. 2017 was a period of sharing, listening, and processing. 2018 is the time for action and #MovingForward.