1. Statement of commitment
SmartClover is a founder-led healthcare AI company operating at the intersection of product development, research continuity, and public-interest health technology. We publish this Gender Equality Plan because gender equality is not treated as a symbolic claim or a founder identity trait alone. It is an organisational responsibility that affects recruitment, leadership, culture, research quality, communication quality, and long-term trust.
SmartClover is already led by a female founder and CEO. That matters, but it does not remove the need for documented governance, resources, monitoring, training, and accountability. This plan therefore turns principle into a public operating commitment.
2. Purpose and scope
This Gender Equality Plan covers the period 2026-2028 and applies to SmartClover's organisational culture, leadership practices, recruitment activity, career progression conversations, research-related work, public-facing product and research communication, and internal conduct expectations.
The plan is written for a growing company rather than a large university or hospital system. Measures are therefore proportionate to current scale, but they are still concrete, monitorable, and public.
3. Governance and dedicated resources
Overall accountability for this plan rests with the CEO, Dr. Andreea Damian.
SmartClover commits to:
- dedicating leadership attention to implementation and annual review;
- dedicating staff time to policy communication, annual monitoring, and follow-up actions;
- using external gender-equality expertise when specific support or review is required;
- keeping equality-related decisions attached to named ownership rather than informal assumptions.
4. Data collection, indicators, and annual monitoring
SmartClover will maintain and review, on an annual basis and with minimal necessary handling, the following categories of information where lawfully recorded and proportionate to company size:
- workforce composition by sex/gender;
- recruitment pipeline information where available;
- leadership and decision-making role representation;
- training participation;
- concerns reported through the internal conduct and reporting route.
The company will use these indicators to review progress, identify risks, and adjust actions where needed. SmartClover will publish a brief annual progress update linked from the public GEP page.
5. Training and awareness
SmartClover will provide annual awareness raising on gender equality and unconscious bias for staff and decision-makers. New team members will receive an onboarding-level introduction to the company's equality commitments, respectful conduct expectations, and internal reporting route.
Training will be proportionate to company size, but it will not be optional in principle. The goal is to keep equality awareness current as the organisation grows.
6. Measures and targets for 2026-2028
6.1 Work-life balance and organisational culture
SmartClover will:
- maintain flexible working arrangements where role requirements allow;
- avoid avoidable scheduling patterns that disadvantage caregivers or staff with family responsibilities;
- promote respectful communication, inclusive meetings, and consistent workload discussions;
- review working-culture feedback at least once per year.
Targets for 2026-2028:
- 100% of staff receive a policy reminder or onboarding communication covering equality and respectful conduct expectations;
- inclusion and working-culture feedback is reviewed at least annually;
- flexible-work and leave practices are applied consistently and documented where relevant.
6.2 Gender balance in leadership and decision-making
SmartClover will:
- preserve inclusive participation in leadership discussions as the team grows;
- avoid concentrating strategic decision-making in gender-homogeneous groups when additional leadership roles are created;
- review representation in management or advisory roles annually.
Targets for 2026-2028:
- gender composition in leadership and decision-making roles is reviewed annually;
- if new leadership roles are created, the candidate consideration and appointment process documents equality-minded selection criteria.
6.3 Gender equality in recruitment and career progression
SmartClover will:
- use inclusive, non-discriminatory wording in externally published role descriptions;
- evaluate candidates against role-relevant criteria only;
- keep compensation and progression discussions structured and evidence-based;
- review recruitment and progression outcomes annually for possible bias signals.
Targets for 2026-2028:
- 100% of externally published role descriptions are reviewed for inclusive wording before publication;
- applicant, shortlist, hiring, and promotion data are reviewed annually where available and proportionate to company size;
- career development discussions are documented consistently for staff.
6.4 Integration of the gender dimension into research and public-facing product and research content
SmartClover will:
- consider whether sex/gender is relevant in research framing, user needs, data interpretation, communication, and follow-up context;
- document sex/gender considerations explicitly when a research or product communication topic is health-relevant and those factors matter;
- remain attentive to underserved groups and access barriers in Romanian and broader healthcare contexts.
Targets for 2026-2028:
- active research and public-facing product or research communication is reviewed annually for relevant gender-dimension considerations;
- when sex/gender relevance exists, that consideration is documented explicitly rather than assumed.
6.5 Measures against gender-based violence, including sexual harassment
SmartClover maintains a zero-tolerance position toward gender-based violence, intimidation, and sexual harassment.
SmartClover will:
- maintain a clear internal reporting path;
- handle concerns confidentially and proportionately;
- ensure decision-makers understand escalation and response responsibilities;
- communicate respectful-conduct expectations as part of equality awareness.
Targets for 2026-2028:
- the reporting route and conduct expectations remain published in the GEP and communicated internally;
- an annual awareness reminder is completed;
- any reported concern is documented, reviewed, and handled through a defined response path.
7. Reporting and annual review
This plan is reviewed annually. SmartClover may update the plan before 2028 if organisational growth, funding conditions, legal requirements, or operational learning make revision necessary.
The annual review will assess:
- whether the planned actions were implemented;
- whether monitoring data suggests equality risks or progress gaps;
- whether additional resources, training, or process changes are needed.
8. Approval
This Gender Equality Plan is approved for public publication and implementation by SmartClover top management.
Approved on 14 April 2026 by:
Dr. Andreea Damian
CEO, SmartClover