Diversity Plays Key Role to Success

Dan Koval, corporate initiatives manager at Bentley Systems, stands by a sign at the global company’s Exton headquarters.

Photo by Natalie Smith

Courtesy photo

Employees in Bentley China jointly organized the China STEM program -- Be an Online Teacher, with a local not-for-profi t organization, Share the Care. Bentley sponsored online class equipment for Tibetan students in Qinghai Chengduo County Wenle Center Boarding School, and 23 employees volunteered to give Tibetan students three-month online learning to help broaden their horizons and gain more knowledge of STEM.

By Natalie Smith Contributing Writer

Like businesses across the nation, Bentley Systems has committed to forming the makeup of its engineering-software firm to more closely reflect Chester County and the world at large. With its dedication to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices, this Exton-based global company is underscoring to its employees, customers and community that all are intrinsic and welcome.

Recognizing and appreciating differences has long been a practice of Bentley Systems, according to company Corporate Initiatives Manager Dan Koval, which makes sense considering it now does business around the world. The infrastructure software company, started by brothers in 1984, has more than 4,600 full-time employees and operates in 186 countries.

The company’s website states some of the ways it’s working toward providing a better workplace: “Building a diverse workforce -- Diversity empowers creativity. We are broadening our professional and internship programs, along with revising our hiring

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processes, to ensure that our workforce reflects the world in which we live. We’ll only grow more diverse, more inclusive, and more innovative in shaping the world’s infrastructure.”

Koval said as an example, recruitment has progressed beyond the traditional engineering schools, such as the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel, Lehigh and Carnegie-Mellon universities. “[For instance], we’ve expanded to the historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).” Graduates of those schools who are working for Bentley are spreading the word, he said. “We have some very, very dedicated African-American female engineers who are saying, ‘My school is awesome. I want to see more colleagues (employees) and co-students come in and be part of this great company!’ So now they’re going back [to their schools] and they’re personally bringing the ‘Bentley banner’ with them and saying, ‘Hey Lincoln University, hey Howard University. You need to come and check out Bentley Systems’.” Also from the website: “Promoting Inclusivity -- Recognizing each other not just for the work we do but for who we are is essential to our success. We’re working to make sure all colleagues feel seen, safe, and supported in ways big and small, from auditing our policies for inclusive language to

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Courtesy photo

Future City is a program and competition through the engineering organization DiscoverE, in which more than 45,000 middle school students around the world “imagine, research, design and build cities of the future.” Bentley sponsors the fi nals, the fi rst-place prize and provides mentors and judges. The program underscores the importance of STEM studies.

expanding our healthcare options.” The company states it’s, “Reaching Out -- Our colleagues aren’t only looking for leadership for answers—they’re suggesting solutions. In 2020, colleagues formed the Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Alliance (IDEA), which is built of four employee resource groups -- OpenAbilities, OpenPride, People of Color in the U.S. (POCUS), and Women at Bentley -- to further Bentley’s efforts. Like other initiatives, including the Bentley Network of Women mentoring program and outreach to communities underrepresented in tech, colleagues are at the heart of IDEA’s success.” Community engagement, both financially and through volunteerism, goes to the heart of Bentley, according to Koval. “We’re approaching our 40-year anniversary and there are organizations we’ve been funding for over three decades, predominantly in the education realm and most specifically in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) outreach.

“One of the flagship partnerships we have is with the Future City competition, part of [the organization called] DiscoverE. Their whole purpose is to educate the next generation of engineers, and they focus primarily on Title I schools and inner cities, and helping to engage with girls coming into the STEM careers.

“So when people ask me why we have partnered with DiscoverE and Future City for so long, it’s because they check every single box and what we think what engineering is going to like in 2030 and 2040. We understand it’s going to look a lot different than it did in the 1950s or the ‘90s or even today.

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“We do a career exploration over the summer through Downingtown’s STEM Academy. So for three days we’ll have about 20 students coming in, and the group is about 50/50 males and females. It’s kids from all over the district, which itself has become much more diverse in the 15 years I’ve been here.”

Koval said Bentley’s financial support has a global view.

“A large portion of our giving goes into STEM education because we recognize the need for that next generation of engineers. And so, whether they work for us or not, or whether they use our software or not, we need folks that are going to solve the world’s problems. “And if those students don’t get access to understanding what opportunities are there, we’re all in a lot of trouble. So we’re making sure as many students in as many places from as many backgrounds know that they have opportunities, and the world needs them.”

The initiatives manager said that Bentley Systems has always had an open door. “I don’t think there’s ever been a hesitation from our company to welcome anyone at any point,” Koval said. “We need people with different perspectives and we know that we need people that are passionate [about] and talented at what they do. We’ve been very fortunate to find those folks at every step of the way.” Natalie Smith may be contacted at natalie@ DoubleSMedia.com.