BehaVR is one of 43 companies nationwide that made it on Parity.org's 2022 list of the Best Companies for Women to Advance, also known as the ParityLIST.
This is the third time the Elizabethtown, Kentucky-based digital therapeutics startup has been recognized in the small company category on the list that highlights the organizations that are creating the culture and conditions in which women and people of color can rise. Parity.org is a nonprofit organization that aims to eliminate the racial and gender gap in corporate leadership.
BehaVR, founded CEO Aaron Gani in 2016, has two women in its four-person C-suite: Chief Strategy and Product Officer Shannon Hooper and Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Rita Weisberg. The company has raised $12 million so far, including capital from several local investor such as Chrysalis Ventures, Thornton Capital, Keyhorse Capital and Poplar Ventures.
Companies on the 2022 ParityLIST regularly measure and report to the executive team on gender equality metrics (88%), communicate their gender-equality values to employees (86%), offer flexible working hours (98%), encourage men to take their full family leave (95%), have a zero-tolerance harassment policy (98%) and provide a safe complaint system for employees (100%), among other supportive benefits, according to a news release.
About a third of the companies have an executive team that is at least 50% women — up from 21% of companies on the list last year. Ninety-one percent of the companies require recruiters to include at least one qualified woman on candidate slates for executive positions reporting to the CEO, and 84% of the companies conduct an annual assessment for managerial women's career progression.
"Intentionality is crucial in driving change and making progress toward a more diverse slate of leaders across the corporate landscape," said Cathrin Stickney, Parity.org founder and CEO, in the release. "Last year, 93% of honorees reported that they had a specific equal-pay plan in place — and 45% had already successfully reached pay parity. This year, there's cause to celebrate — roughly the same percentage had a plan in place, but a full 72% have now reached pay parity. We have seen that being intentional pays off! "
Other large companies that made this year's list include: Airbnb, Best Buy, Blue Shield of California, Domo, Nasdaq, PepsiCo, Ralph Lauren Corporation and The Clorox Company.
