Sydney L. Howell

Global Head of People Standards and Employee Relations, Twitter

Sydney Howell has focused her 20 years as an employment attorney in the technology and emerging growth space, and currently serves as the Global Head of People Standards and Relations for Twitter, Inc.

During her first 5+ years at Twitter, Sydney led the Global Employment Law function, during which she provided strategic employment counsel to senior executives, HR, and business stakeholders relating to the full spectrum of employment legal matters. This coincided with the rapid growth of Twitter from a US-centric startup, through it’s maturation to a worldwide enterprise. She facilitated the launch of Twitter’s growth and operations in more than 25 countries worldwide, establishing country-specific employment protocols, policies, and contracts. She built and leads the Company’s internal investigative function, and was among those nominated to represent Twitter employees in the 2017 #SheInspiresMe campaign.

Last Fall, Twitter created a new role which Sydney assumed on the People team, as Head of Global People Standards and Relations. This was in effort to better address root cause issues, and to be in a position operationalize certain key initiatives. In this role Sydney is charged with continuing to build the Company’s global internal investigation team, and to create and oversee standards, processes, and compliance efforts relating to the employment lifecycle. She and her team create and deliver internal training programs to build core confidence and competencies in a culturally-resonant and effective way.

Before her time with Twitter, Sydney was Principal at Howell Employment Law, during which she also served as Of Counsel to the Kastner|Kim group of firms.  And before that, she was an Associate with the law firm of Brobeck, Phlegher and Harrison.

Sydney has also worked for various human rights causes and organizations, including the South African Human Rights Commission, Planned Parenthood, and WEAVE.  She received her J.D. from Berkeley Law (Boalt Hall) at the University of California, Berkeley.

Related Sessions

Workplace 2018: – Best Practices for Addressing Sexual Harassment, Gender Inequality, and Diversity at Tech Companies Location: Paul Brest Hall - Munger Graduate Residence Date: June 11, 2018 Time: 9:00 am - 10:00 am View session

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