【2017 Archives】

League of Legendsdeveloper Riot Games wants to share what it's learned over the past month.

017 Archivesstudio came under fire after Kotaku's Cecilia D'Anastasio delivered an investigative report on Aug. 7 that exposed what the story referred to as a "culture of sexism" at the company. Riot responded the next day with a statement that pledged to step back and take some time to listen and learn.

"We recognize we still have work to do to achieve our goals, which starts with listening to feedback from Rioters and others, and providing Rioters with the guidance and resources they need to uphold our values," the statement read (in part).

But no statement could halt the conversation that sprung up in the wake of the report. In the weeks that followed other former Riot employees came forward with stories of their own. While it was clear that not every employee at Riot had the same unpleasant experiences, a troubling pattern emerged to reinforce the original report.

Kotaku's article described an environment at the studio that's been dominated for some time by a "bro culture." A lot of it seems to be rooted in the company's emphasis on employing only the most hardcore fans of video games, coupled with the wrong-headed thinking that women somehow can't have that level of interest in such things.

Now, three weeks after its initial statement, Riot is ready to talk again. A Wednesday blog post bears the title "Our First Steps Forward" and it lays out an action plan -- detailed in some spots, vague in others -- aimed at leaving "no room for sexism or misogyny" in the company's "cultural DNA."

"We’re committed to do things the right way, and we know the change we need isn’t going to happen overnight," the post reads, following an apologetic preamble. "We are taking everything we’ve learned from Rioters and leading culture-change experts, and we are starting to develop a plan with substance."

The post then lays out the company's 7-point approach to improving itself. There's nothing revelatory in Riot's plans, though it's important to note that there's no sense anywhere in the post of an expectation that the steps being taken will fix everything.

Riot will be taking steps to expand its Diversity & Inclusion Initiative, and the team assembled around it. That includes key hires at the company leadership level, with a Chief Human Resources Officer and a Chief Diversity Officer.

As an extension of this, Riot will also take a fresh look at its recruiting practices -- one of the stories shared recently by former employees talked at length about how a rape joke made its way into recruiting materials several years ago. The company will also commit to putting employees through training sessions, reevaluating the language in its corporate manifesto, and having its diversity and inclusion efforts evaluated by outside third parties.

The most detailed section of Riot's action plan relates to the companies investigation process. "We understand we lost trust with Rioters, so rebuilding trust is key to making Rioters feel safe and empowered to raise issues," the post reads.

These efforts include a newly established anonymous hotline where employees can submit complaints, a larger internal team -- backed by a law firm -- to work on investigating any reports of bad behavior, and an understandably vague reference to employees who have already been let go.

"No one and nothing is sacred," the post reads. "We are prepared to make big changes and have begun taking action against specific cases, including removal of Rioters, though we aren’t likely to get into those details publicly on a case-by-case basis for legal and privacy reasons."

Of course, actions speak louder than words. We're not here to applaud Riot for laying out an action plan comprised of the steps every company should take to protect its employees. But it's notable that the company has now not only acknowledged the reality that exists internally, but is also laying out for all the world to see how it plans to fix things.