Accessible, Inclusive, Trustworthy and Sustainable — Building the Future of Digital Experiences at Contentsquare

Having a sense of purpose in one’s work is a key contributor to job satisfaction and well-being for 86 percent of Gen Zs and 89 percent of millennials, according to Deloitte’s annual Gen Z and millennial survey. While the concept of “purpose” can be nebulous, for most survey respondents, working for a business serving larger goals than the bottom line and contributing positively toward community and society are key factors for personal success and commitment to a career.

Contentsquare’s leaders agree.

“At Contentsquare, aligning our actions with our values isn’t just a choice — it’s essential for future success. By becoming a purpose-driven company, we committed to defining our purpose beyond just doing business as usual,” Vice President of Sustainability Guilhem Isaac-Georges said. “Our journey as a purpose-driven company is rooted in the belief that profitable growth and positive societal and environmental impact can, and must, coexist harmoniously.”

In the face of the digital industry’s growing CO2 emissions — already accounting for 4 percent of global emissions — finding ways to align Contentsquare’s goals with the Paris Climate Agreement’s objectives for carbon neutrality by 2050 is crucial for Isaac-Georges.

“Regarding climate, organizing your actions and spreading your efforts over time is imperative. That’s why in 2023, we adopted a 10-year trajectory that allows us to visualize the efforts made each year,” he said. “It was a complex and lengthy project, and we’re delighted to have completed it successfully.”

From rationalizing business travel with a climate lens to optimizing cloud infrastructure for energy efficiency, Contentsquare’s sustainability practices are woven into its daily operations as part of a holistic approach to building a greener future. 

“We’ve been working with our global procurement team to introduce environmental, social and governance practices and criteria in the selection process of our providers,” Isaac-Georges notes. “Changing a company’s practices to make them more sustainable cannot be a single person or team’s prerogative.”

“Changing a company’s practices to make them more sustainable cannot be a single person or team’s prerogative.”

The interconnected approach isn’t isolated to sustainability and ESG practices at Contentsquare — the company is also committed to building accessible products and an inclusive internal culture.

Unlocking Potential

In order to ensure full adoption of the company’s new practices, Isaac-Georges said that it’s essential to create a movement that initially relies on the most convinced employees, then eventually spreads to each department. 

“This collective notion is central. It reinforces the feeling of belonging to a company and creates momentum around meaningful issues,” Isaac-Georges said. “This is reflected in performance, thanks to employees who are proud of their company and ready to commit even more to its success.”

“Creating an inclusive culture with a sense of belonging is not only the right thing to do, it’s essential for our company’s success,” Global VP of Talent Acquisition and Development and HR Business Partner Marisa Bryan agreed. “If our team doesn’t feel comfortable at work or doesn’t feel engaged or motivated to do their best, it will impact our company’s performance.”

By creating an environment where employees can “bring their best selves to work,” Bryan believes that Contentsquare is enabling individuals to unlock personal potential and work toward larger goals for the team, its customers and its partners.

Bryan and her team have invested in a wide array of initiatives to support both inclusive candidate experience and employee engagement once new hires join the team.

For candidates, Contentsquare ensures that all job offers are crafted with inclusive language, attracting a diverse talent pool. The company’s hiring practices include continuing to invest in diversity through its interview panels — and to mitigate potential biases, everyone involved in the hiring process undergoes comprehensive training.

For current employees, Contentsquare maintains a strict no-tolerance policy for discrimination or harassment. The company employs a data-driven approach to set priorities, track progress and hold itself accountable. Inclusive workplace training is provided to ensure that all employees are aligned on the expectations for working, speaking and leading inclusively.

To further support an inclusive environment, Contentsquare continuously monitors and iterates its people policies and processes to ensure they are inclusive and provide equitable pay and advancement opportunities.

Investment in employee resource groups — which include ElevateHER, Multiculture, Abilities and Pride — also plays a critical role in driving Contentsquare’s inclusive culture. 

“We invest in our ERGs as critical drivers of our inclusive culture,” Bryan said. “These employee-led communities create safe spaces for groups to connect, support each other and advocate for the issues they care about. As a company, we listen to our ERGs to inform our people strategy and ensure an inclusivity lens is applied to business priorities.”

The ERGs and people team also find room for building community through fun at Contentsquare. Heritage month celebrations and campaigns in particular make room for the team to celebrate its diversity and how it contributes to Contentsquare’s culture and success.

Another standout initiative is the impact objective mechanism, which allows employees to dedicate time to company impact projects and ensures that sustainability and inclusivity are integral to Contentsquare’s operations and extends the efforts of Isaac-Georges, Bryan and their teams.

“Each employee can ask their manager for an additional objective dedicated to a company impact project, guaranteeing them one day of work per month on this project,” Isaac-Georges shared.”

Enhanced Accessibility

Beyond its internal efforts, Contentsquare’s commitment to inclusion forms the foundation of its products and services.

“As one of more than 10,000 purpose-driven companies in the United States, we want to articulate our commitment to creating positive change and help advance an accessible and sustainable digital transformation,” Isaac-Georges said.

This ambitious goal took a significant step forward in 2021 with the acquisition of Adapt My Web, founded by Marion Ranvier, director of the Contentsquare Foundation. Adapt My Web is focused on making digital content accessible to those with visual impairments, dyslexia or any physical condition that prevents them from browsing the internet.

“Adapt My Web’s technology and expertise help make the world’s digital content accessible to those with reading issues, including visual impairment and dyslexia. This was part of an expanded initiative to ensure that Contentsquare’s goal of empowering brands to create better experiences is relevant for everyone,” Isaac-Georges explained. “With our reach and R&D resources focused on optimizing digital experiences, we play a significant role in ensuring equal access to digital content worldwide.”

According to Isaac-Georges, this work is part of building a better future that extends far beyond Contentsquare’s team.

“Our mission is to empower businesses to create a world where everybody gets the experience they love, seek and deserve — an experience that is accessible, inclusive, trustworthy and sustainable,” he said.

“Our mission is to empower businesses to create a world where everybody gets the experience they love, seek and deserve — an experience that is accessible, inclusive, trustworthy and sustainable.”