Principal Inclusion Partner at Western Digital

San Jose, California, United States -

Full Time

Start Date

Immediate

Expiry Date

18 May, 26

Salary

227400.0

Posted On

18 Feb, 26

Experience

10 year(s) or above

Remote Job

Yes

Telecommute

Yes

Sponsor Visa

Skills

Inclusion Strategy, Program Management, Strategic Leadership, Employee Engagement, Data Analytics, Change Management, Consultation, Facilitation, Relationship Building, Inclusive Leadership, Cultural Intelligence, Talent Acquisition, Performance Management, Bias Mitigation, Risk Management, ERGs Governance

Industry

Computer Hardware Manufacturing

Description

Company Description At Western Digital, our vision is to power global innovation and push the boundaries of technology to make what you thought was once impossible, possible. At our core, Western Digital is a company of problem solvers. People achieve extraordinary things given the right technology. For decades, we’ve been doing just that—our technology helped people put a man on the moon and capture the first-ever picture of a black hole. We offer an expansive portfolio of technologies, HDDs, and platforms for business, creative professionals, and consumers alike under our Western Digital®, WD® and WD_BLACK™ Professional brands. We are a key partner to some of the largest and highest-growth organizations in the world. From enabling systems to make cities safer and more connected, to powering the data centers behind many of the world’s biggest companies and hyperscale cloud providers, to meeting the massive and ever-growing data storage needs of the AI era, Western Digital is fueling a brighter, smarter future. Today’s exceptional challenges require your unique skills. Together, we can build the future of data storage. Job Description The Principal Inclusion Partner is a key strategic leader responsible for developing, driving, and scaling the company’s inclusion strategy across our fast-paced, global organization. This role partners deeply with leaders, managers, and employee resource groups to build an inclusive culture that brings our values: Customers, Results, Innovation, Connection & Excellence to life, with the opportunity to partner in creating a workplace where all employees feel respected, supported, and connected. The ideal candidate blends vision, operational excellence, and the ability to execute programs that meaningfully impact employee experience, engagement, and belonging. ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Inclusion Partnering& Leadership Develop and execute a multi-year inclusion strategy roadmap aligned with the company’s business goals and values. Partner with senior leadership to embed inclusion into organizational priorities, talent practices, and day-to-day operations. Serve as a thought leader and subject matter expert in inclusive leadership practices and creating safe work environments to enable, belonging, and cultural intelligence. Use data, analytics, and employee sentiment to diagnose needs and shape ongoing strategy. Programs & Initiatives Lead the evolution and governance of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), ensuring they have clear charters, goals, and executive sponsorship. In partnership with ERGs, develop programming aligned with key cultural moments, observances, and heritage months. Build scalable practices that support employee engagement and leadership development through an inclusion lens. Design and manage enterprise-wide inclusion programs, including trainings, workshops, leadership development, and cultural initiatives. Partner with Learning and Development team to design and facilitate learning sessions focused on building inclusive teams, cross-cultural awareness and bias mitigating Consultation & Enablement Advise leaders, managers, and HR Business Partners on inclusion-related workforce concerns, change management, and policy design. Partner with business leaders and HRBPs to embed D&I principles into employee lifecycle, including within talent acquisition, retention, performance management, and career development Coach leaders on creating inclusive environments, facilitating dialogue, and building psychological safety within teams. Training & Education Partner with Talent Development to integrate inclusive topics and practices into management and leadership programs. Evaluate impact and adjust training content for continuous improvement. Compliance, Risk & Best Practices Monitor evolving legal and regulatory requirements related to inclusion and belonging (state and federal), ensuring company practices remain compliant. Maintain knowledge of industry trends, benchmarks, and best-in-class inclusion frameworks. Ensure inclusion efforts are aligned with the company’s values and risk profile. Qualifications REQUIRED Progressive experience in inclusion, diversity, employee engagement, organizational development, learning & development, or related HR fields. Demonstrated experience developing and leading inclusion strategies in a large, culturally diverse organization. Strong program management skills with the ability to lead large-scale initiatives from concept to execution. Exceptional communication, facilitation, and relationship-building abilities. Skill in interpreting data and translating insights into action. Ability to influence without authority across all levels of the organization. PREFERRED Experience supporting global workforces. Background working with ERGs or affinity groups. Experience with People Analytics tools, employee listening platforms, or advanced data reporting. Relevant DEI certifications or continuing education (e.g., Cornell, SHRM, UC programs—optional, not required). Additional Information Western Digital is committed to providing equal opportunities to all applicants and employees and will not discriminate against any applicant or employee based on their race, color, ancestry, religion (including religious dress and grooming standards), sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, breastfeeding or related medical conditions), gender (including a person’s gender identity, gender expression, and gender-related appearance and behavior, whether or not stereotypically associated with the person’s assigned sex at birth), age, national origin, sexual orientation, medical condition, marital status (including domestic partnership status), physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, protected medical and family care leave, Civil Air Patrol status, military and veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. We also prohibit harassment of any individual on any of the characteristics listed above. Our non-discrimination policy applies to all aspects of employment. We comply with the laws and regulations set forth in the "Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal” poster. Our pay transparency policy is available here. Western Digital thrives on the power and potential of diversity. As a global company, we believe the most effective way to embrace the diversity of our customers and communities is to mirror it from within. We believe the fusion of various perspectives results in the best outcomes for our employees, our company, our customers, and the world around us. We are committed to an inclusive environment where every individual can thrive through a sense of belonging, respect and contribution. Western Digital is committed to offering opportunities to applicants with disabilities and ensuring all candidates can successfully navigate our careers website and our hiring process. Please contact us at [email protected] to advise us of your accommodation request. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying. Based on our experience, we anticipate that the application deadline will be 02/26/2026 (3 months from posting), although we reserve the right to close the application process sooner if we hire an applicant for this position before the application deadline. If we are not able to hire someone from this role before the application deadline, we will update this posting with a new anticipated application deadline. #LI-VV1 Compensation & Benefits Details An employee’s pay position within the salary range may be based on several factors including but not limited to (1) relevant education; qualifications; certifications; and experience; (2) skills, ability, knowledge of the job; (3) performance, contribution and results; (4) geographic location; (5) shift; (6) internal and external equity; and (7) business and organizational needs. The salary range is what we believe to be the range of possible compensation for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and this range is only applicable for jobs to be performed in California, Colorado, New York or remote jobs that can be performed in California, Colorado and New York. This range may be modified in the future. If your position is non-exempt, you are eligible for overtime pay pursuant to company policy and applicable laws. You may also be eligible for shift differential pay, depending on the shift to which you are assigned. You will be eligible to be considered for bonuses under either Western Digital’s Short Term Incentive Plan (“STI Plan”) or the Sales Incentive Plan (“SIP”) which provides incentive awards based on Company and individual performance, depending on your role and your performance. You may be eligible to participate in our annual Long-Term Incentive (LTI) program, which consists of restricted stock units (RSUs) or cash equivalents, pursuant to the terms of the LTI plan. Please note that not all roles are eligible to participate in the LTI program, and not all roles are eligible for equity under the LTI plan. RSU awards are also available to eligible new hires, subject to Western Digital’s Standard Terms and Conditions for Restricted Stock Unit Awards. We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid vacation time; paid sick leave; medical/dental/vision insurance; life, accident and disability insurance; tax-advantaged flexible spending and health savings accounts; employee assistance program; other voluntary benefit programs such as supplemental life and AD&D, legal plan, pet insurance, critical illness, accident and hospital indemnity; tuition reimbursement; transit; the Applause Program; employee stock purchase plan; and the Western Digital Savings 401(k) Plan. Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole discretion, consistent with the law. Notice To Candidates: Please be aware that Western Digital and its subsidiaries will never request payment as a condition for applying for a position or receiving an offer of employment. Should you encounter any such requests, please report it immediately to Western Digital Ethics Helpline or email [email protected]. Job Type (exemption status): Exempt position - Please see related compensation & benefits details below Salary Range: 170,600.00-227,400.00 Business Function: Diversity & Inclusion Work Location: San Jose Great Oaks Headquarters--LOC_WDT_USCA23

Responsibilities

This key strategic leader is responsible for developing, driving, and scaling the company’s global inclusion strategy by partnering with leaders and employee resource groups to foster an inclusive culture. Responsibilities include leading the evolution of ERGs, designing enterprise-wide inclusion programs, and advising leaders on inclusion-related workforce concerns.