Mentorship, discussions of lived experience, programming that fosters a sense of belonging: these are all crucial aspects of workplace diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, according to research and experts in the field.
Often, this happens through employee resource groups or business resource groups — which the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and U.S. Department of Justice cited as potentially illegal in guiding documents published March 19. As DEI initiatives face increased scrutiny, the power of affinity groups remains irreplaceable, sources told HR Dive.
One case study exists in Rewriting the Code, a non-profit that provides mentorship and networking opportunities to early-in-career women in tech.
or Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, HR Dive spoke to two Asian American women who belong to Rewriting the Code about the distinct challenges they face in a male-dominated field — and what HR can do to champion Asian American women at work.
The challenge of speaking up
Rejoice Hu, a machine learning engineer at Morgan Stanley, said due to her upbringing, her main challenge is speaking up — “just putting myself out there, and being bold and a lot more vocal about my thoughts.”
Business researchers have long highlighted the challenges associated with women speaking up at work. Previously, SHRM Inclusion included programming on the particular challenges women face in the workplace. Likewise, some women executives are taking note of how terms like “rockstar” or “aggressive” are dog whistles tailored to men in business, especially when assertive women face the brunt of double standards.
HR professionals and managers looking to help Asian workers take up space can potentially encourage workers to log their big accomplishments: “What really helped me is keeping a document or tracker that outlines all of my wins and achievements. I like to send weekly or bi-weekly updates to my manager to make sure, if I do have trouble speaking up or vocalizing about what I’ve accomplished so far, that I have it all in writing,” Hu said.
She added that this approach to sharing her wins gives her time to think about how she brings value to the team each day, and how she wants to present her accomplishments to her manager.
The Asian diaspora is not a monolith
Hua Szu Yang, a software engineer at Uplight, also said her challenge has been “learning to adapt to different workplace norms,” but that looks different from Hu. Yang said that how she spoke with her family and community growing up was more direct.
“Passive-aggressive communication is not uncommon in the workplace, at least in American companies that I’ve worked at,” she said, adding that this “additional cognitive overload” has created a learning curve for her.
Yang emphasized the importance of individuality when discussing Asian talent. Acknowledging that the Asian community is not a monolith “would probably increase feelings of belonging and acceptance,” she said.
Part of this means not just sending an email saying “Happy AAPI Heritage Month.”
“It checks the box of, ‘Sure, you should say that,’” Yang said, but it’s not the same as acknowledging what’s “within ‘AA,’ within ‘PI.’”
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Source: https://www.hrdive.com/news/asian-american-women-tech-aapi-heritage-2025/747342/
