Ria Johal

Ria is a Program Manager for Amazon, joining the company in 2019 after starting her career in Investment Banking.

In her role she has worked on several high profile partnerships across the platform, including supporting The Royal British Legion fulfilling their 2021 Poppy Appeal through Amazon.co.uk, earning her a reputation as a trusted high-performer and a safe pair of hands. She also leverages her expertise to drive positive action across the wider business and manages multiple programs; including mechanisms for inclusive meetings and Amazon’s Reverse Mentoring Program, which Ria designed to give junior employees a path to share their unique lived experiences with senior leaders and facilitate authentic conversation outside of employees perspective circles. She has now scaled the program to 6 other countries and runs across all sectors within Amazon.

She is also currently the UK Chair of Amazon’s People With Disabilities Affinity Group. In this role, Ria leads to influence business goals across EMEA and works to drive change internally through awareness and education, improving internal resources for employees and devising strategies to increase inclusivity for Amazon products. She frequently partners with student programs and other affinity groups to participate in panels and share a host of knowledge; ranging from advising students with disabilities how to transition from an educational into a professional setting, accessing workplace adjustments, advocating for Carers rights and balancing chronic health conditions with career progression.

Ria is passionate about giving back to the external community too. Having studied Electronic Engineering at University, she draws on her expertise and experiences to advocate for marginalised groups studying and working within STEM. She volunteers at her local library to run coding clubs for children, founded her own mentor circles to support 50+ young people as they forge their own career paths within Tech and she is an Ambassador and Mentor for Stemettes, a social enterprise encouraging girls and non-binary to understand and consider STEAM. She also sits on the Mentoring Steering Committee for the charity GroceryAid and is a partner for Psalt, a NFPO with Inclusion at its heart, offering opportunities and training to young Black people from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds.

A true trailblazer and rising star, Ria works tirelessly to be a force for good and ensure everyone feels empowered to be their authentic selves.