Kathy Martinez: My Journey to Becoming VP, Disability Inclusion at Expedia Group
Interviews
Hi Kathy, please could you tell us a bit about yourself and your career
journey?
I come from a large family of LatinX
heritage. My parents did not have much formal education, and their English skills
were still poor when I was growing up. When I was eight months old, they
discovered that I’d probably never be able to see. Both parents felt an
overwhelming sense of self-blame, guilt, helplessness and fear for their child.
This reaction is almost inevitable given the social stigma, isolation, and
misinformation about disabilities in society. Additionally, like
many parents from communities of colour, my parents knew instinctively that as a
Latina and a person with a disability, I would experience many layers of
barriers to thrive in mainstream society.
While a teenager, I was involved in various political/social movements. Experiences in these social justice environments began to shape my sense of purpose in life – meaning that many of my values were formed, and I learned a lot about working with different types of people daily.
I had the opportunity to live in Japan
for two months as part of a youth exchange program, to travel to Nicaragua to
do organizing for disability rights and to live in Mexico for three years
when my partner and I adopted our son. These experiences exposed me to the
realities of most disabled people in developing countries: few sidewalks, no
transportation, no services, and no awareness of disability as a social issue.
The opportunity to get out of the States and experience different cultural
values, beliefs and approaches to disability helped me understand my own
struggle in the United States where so much emphasis is placed on individuality
and independence, and further developed my commitment to disability rights.
In 1988, I entered college at San
Francisco State University. I became the first
in my family to pursue postsecondary education and graduated with a Speech and Communication Studies degree. Through my
experience in community organizing, I found that I was good at connecting
people and communicating with people, and I enjoyed it. I found meaning in
bringing about change by bringing people together.
Subsequently, I had many jobs where
I was able to advocate for people with disabilities, including leading two
nonprofits, serving as an Assistant Secretary of Labor and leading the
disability/accessibility initiatives for Wells Fargo bank, and now here I am at
Expedia.
What about Expedia Group (EG) appealed to you?
I was very happy in my previous job
position in a disability advocacy non-profit and wasn’t necessarily looking for
another role. But during my interviews with EG, I was convinced I wanted
to work here. I have travelled a lot in my life, and travel is an
experience that is very meaningful to me. I knew that joining EG meant helping
people with disabilities have better travel experiences, and I loved the idea of
contributing to EG’s mission that travel is a force for good.
What impact do you want to have as you step into your role as VP of Disability Inclusion?
First and foremost, I want people in the
travel industry to understand that disability is a natural part of the human
condition and that people with disabilities travel more and more.
Within EG, I want to build a bench of advocates and allies around disability
and accessibility awareness both internally and externally, whether that’s
towards our employees, travellers, or partners.
We are currently at the beginning of
launching strategies to make EG more welcoming to people with disabilities. We
are, for example, streamlining our accommodations/adjustments processes to
offer better interviewing experiences to candidates and equipping our
recruiters and Hiring Managers with the tools to recruit and hire people with disabilities effectively. We are also working on Self ID processes to allow
employees to disclose their disability safely. On the employee side, we know
that the biggest obstacle to disclosing is fear. The more conversations we have
around weaving disability into our consciousness, practices and processes, the
more people will feel comfortable coming out as being disabled and together we
will build a more welcoming workplace and travel experience.
What are your thoughts on the current state of travel for people with
disabilities?
Travel destinations are becoming more
and more accessible due to various laws and rules in countries. But there is
still a lot of opportunity – we have an aging population with a strong
willingness to travel. There is a tremendous opportunity to work with travel
partners to identify accessibility features and share information on
properties that offer specific accessibility options, allowing
travellers to make better-informed travel decisions.
What advice do you have for people with disabilities seeking to advance
in their careers?
My advice to people with disabilities is
to understand that companies are very interested in your point of view and
perspective, and my advice to companies is that people with disabilities bring
so much innovation and creativity to the workforce, which makes us worth
hiring.
Disability crosses every other identity, so it’s essential that we can contribute to and participate in all aspects of the workplace and travel market. As we do, awareness will increase, attitudes will change, and people of all abilities will avail themselves of the opportunity that both work and travel offer.