The Hidden Costs of Pay Inequality, And How Leading Companies are Solving It | Maria Colacurcio (Syndio)
In this episode of The Eric Ries Show, I’m joined by Maria Colacurcio, Co-Founder and CEO of Syndio, a workplace equity analytics platform. Syndio helps companies close pay gaps and build high-trust organizations. Maria has had a long career in leadership, previously co-founding Smartsheet and serving as a senior leader at Starbucks, where she focused on global communications and social impact.
In our conversation, we discuss how to scale with integrity, navigate the complexities of equity, and lead with both data and principle.
We cover:
• The surprising insight that 1 in 5 pay remediations at Syndio benefit white men
• The distinction between expanding opportunity and enforcing quotas
• Why taking bias out of promotions makes companies stronger
• The role curiosity and passion played in opening doors for Maria
• Why “the reservoir of trust” is both the right thing to do and a smart business strategy
• Syndio’s commitment to transparency through annual pay gap and equity disclosures
• Why strategy and culture need to change as you scale
• And much more!
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Where to find Maria Colacurcio:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mcolacurcio/
• X: https://x.com/mcolacurcio
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Where to find Eric:
• Newsletter:https://ericries.carrd.co/
• Podcast:https://ericriesshow.com/
• YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@theericriesshow
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In This Episode We Cover:
(00:00) Intro
(02:19) The executive order against DEI: what's changed, what hasn’t, what remains uncertain
(07:20) The benefits and limitations of DEI programs
(08:37) What is opportunity equity
(10:20) How biases in performance reviews advance incompetent people
(11:22) Syndio’s comp consistency analytics solution for pay consistency and pay equity
(13:18) The importance of pay being tied to the company’s stated values
(18:47) Why some CEOs are eager to abandon DEI
(21:46) How to tell if a company is serious about fair treatment
(25:00) Maria’s path to becoming the CEO of Syndio
(32:09) Tech for solving a problem vs. for the sake of tech
(35:12) Maria’s experience becoming a founder at Smartsheet and Syndio
(38:22) The reservoir of trust and other learnings from Maria’s time at Starbucks
(40:10) How Maria’s curiosity led to meeting Zev and founding Syndio
(49:25) Syndio’s pivot and why Maria hired a lawyer to lead sales
(52:15) An explanation of how Syndio’s software works
(54:46) Syndio’s AI chatbot, Syndi
(55:22) The current state of Syndio
(57:02) How Syndio maintains alignment with its core values
(1:02:14) Lightning round
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Referenced:
- Syndio: https://synd.io/
- Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/ending-radical-and-wasteful-government-dei-programs-and-preferencing/
- Elevance Health: https://www.elevancehealth.com/
- Howard Schultz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/howardschultz/
- National Museum of American History: https://www.si.edu/museums/american-history-museum
- Onyx Software: https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/onyx-software
- Smartsheet: https://www.smartsheet.com/
- Zev Eigen on X: https://x.com/zevdatascience
- Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling Disruptive Products to Mainstream Customers: https://www.amazon.com/Crossing-Chasm-3rd-Disruptive-Mainstream/dp/0062292986
- Rob Porcarelli on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-porcarelli-080ab57/
- Syndi: https://synd.io/syndi/
- What Is A Spot Bonus? Understanding On-The-Spot Incentives: https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecenizalevine/2023/12/11/what-is-a-spot-bonus-understanding-on-the-spot-incentives/
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Production and marketing byhttps://penname.co/.
Eric may be an investor in the companies discussed.
