In celebration of Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day (IWD), KLA employees from across the organization joined in a global conversation to discuss advances made in the workplace on gender parity and the work still to come.

Over two hundred and fifty employees across multiple time zones joined virtual sessions, with panels of leaders from across Asia, Europe and North America. Organized by KLA’s Women in STEM, Empowered (WISE) employee resource group, this year’s events featured a diverse collection of voices discussing recognizing and mitigating biases, celebrating diversity and promoting inclusion. Highlights from the panels included ‘getting comfortable with the uncomfortable’ and having the strength and confidence to deliver difficult messages.

This year, KLA’s theme was “What’s Your Superpower?”, which provided a thought-provoking opportunity to explore not just our own superpowers, but those of our colleagues, family and friends. Responses reflected the varied, indispensable contributions we have long seen from our employees, ranging from developing simultaneous innovations in semiconductors and childcare alike, to keeping spirits high across international teams. It was the nature of the engagement, however, that was most remarkable, as our coworkers leapt at the opportunity to recognize each other’s superpowers, sparking honest discourse on how we value each other and what we bring to the table with or without realizing it.

Community favorites included “bamboo-power”: the ability to grow quickly with immense strength, balancing conviction with flexibility, and “loner-power”: the ability to focus inward and exercise one’s personal expertise for the good of the group.

At KLA, we’re tackling some of the most varied and diverse technical challenges the world has ever faced. We believe we are only properly equipped to address them with a team equal in its diversity. We are committed to inclusion and diversity, and encourage driven innovators, problem-solvers and superheroes of all gender identities to find their role at KLA and help us advance humanity.

Here are some of the superpowers shared by our employees!