Biography

Sara Sanford wants us to move from shared stories to shared data to eradicate inequities. She is the founder of GEN and the architect behind the GEN Certification, the first gold standard for intersectional equity in U.S. businesses, which has expanded to certify businesses globally. She is also the author of Inclusion, Inc: How to Design Intersectional Equity into the Workplace.

Sara has managed the discovery, launch, and change management processes for products and programs in a range of dynamic environments. She has managed research programs focused on customer-centered digital banking transformation, reducing e-waste in software product-development lifecycles, and CX strategy for information management systems in the legal tech space.

Sara has also brought her passion for data-smart strategy to finding evidence-backed solutions to systemic problems. In 2017, she founded GEN, because she saw well-intended employers pursuing DEI approaches that failed to make a real impact. To identify the mechanics and processes that catalyze progress toward meaningful equity at work, her organization developed the GEN Certification.
Sara’s consulting services and research now focus on the intersection of equity, ethics, and data, partnering with businesses to audit algorithms for bias and optimize their product development processes with inclusive customer journey frameworks.

Guided by the maxim, “You get the behavior you measure,” Sara believes we now have the tools for all businesses to be equity-centered, if they choose to be.