Lin Grensing-Pophal, Contributing Editor at HR Daily Advisor 

Jan. 6, 2025 | Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Terilyn Juarez Monroe didn’t plan for a career in HR, let alone leading people strategies at a cutting-edge healthcare company like Guardant Health. But her story is one of adaptability, purpose, and finding ways to bring people together to drive meaningful change. As Chief People Officer, Monroe combines her deep understanding of human dynamics with her commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB), helping to shape a culture that thrives on purpose-driven innovation, empathy, and wide compassion.

“I never expected to end up in HR,” Monroe admits with a smile. “I was the first in my family to go to college. My parents didn’t know anything about corporate America, so I was figuring things out as I went.” She graduated from San Jose State University with a degree in journalism and a minor in business, thinking she might pursue a career in teaching or business law.

Then an internship in employee communications changed everything.

“I didn’t know what employee communications was when I started, but I quickly fell in love with the field as it enabled me to listen to stories about the business, products, services, customers, and employees, and then finding ways to amplify those stories to help people better understand what we did and what made us special,” Monroe recalls. That internship set her on a new path, one that would take her from tech companies like Amdahl, Nortel Networks, and Intuit to life science companies like Varian and Guardant Health.

During her 13 years at Intuit, Monroe explored every corner of HR, including an influential stint as the company’s first Chief Diversity Officer. “That role was eye-opening,” she says. “It forced me to think holistically about the employee experience and how we could integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion into everything we did—not as an afterthought, but as a core part of our culture.”

Monroe’s decision to join Guardant Health was deeply personal. “After my mother passed away from cancer, I felt drawn to work and volunteer opportunities that connected somehow to patient journeys,” she explains. Guardant Health, which focuses on innovative cancer diagnostics, offered just that opportunity.

“What drew me in was the opportunity to be part of a company driving real transformational change with breakthrough technology across the cancer care continuum,” Monroe says. “Guardant is at an exciting point in its journey, and it’s incredible to be part of such a purpose-driven team with employees so passionate about putting patients first.”

But the transition wasn’t without its challenges. Monroe joined during a time when many employees were working in labs, remotely or in hybrid setups. “The post-COVID world is complicated,” she says. “How do you create a sense of belonging for people who may never come into an office? How do you balance performance and accountability with the empathy and wise compassion we all leaned on so heavily during the pandemic?”

These are questions Monroe has been grappling with alongside her team. “It’s not about having all the answers immediately,” she says. “It’s about listening to employees, experimenting, and using data-driven insights to continuously improve. And, always with balancing getting right business outcomes with creating the best possible employee experience.”

Looking back, Monroe says her time at Intuit shaped much of her approach to DEIB. “When I started as Chief Diversity Officer, we knew diversity leads to better solutions, so we leaned heavily on Employee Networks, also called Employee Resource Groups (ERGs),” she recalls. “We started with a women’s network and eventually grew to 13 networks representing multiple dimensions of diversity, including military veterans, faith-based communities, and race and ethnicity.”

While the networks were successful in many ways, Monroe realized they were being overburdened. “We asked them to help with recruiting, product ideas, and community outreach—all while expecting them to create inclusive cultures internally,” she says. “It was too much.”

That experience led her to rethink how organizations should approach DEIB. “I realized it needs to be a partnership with a two-pronged approach. Leaders and HR teams need to focus on embedding diversity and equity into systems and processes, as employees concentrate on fostering inclusion and belonging through community building experiences,” Monroe explains. “When those two pieces work together, that’s when you see real change.”

Monroe’s current strategy focuses on making DEIB an integral part of how Guardant Health operates. “When I joined, Guardant already had a foundation established with networks and unconscious bias training,” she says. “We have been leveraging that foundation and infusing things like unconscious bias into our talent and pay practices. Diversity training is not a separate event for employees or leaders to sign up for; it’s now part of how we lead and make decisions.”

This approach helps that DEIB doesn’t feel like an add-on. “When inclusion is woven into the fabric of the company, employees don’t even think of it as a separate initiative—they just see it as how we operate,” Monroe says.

Her personal background adds another layer of authenticity to her work. “Growing up as the daughter of a Central American immigrant, I’ve experienced both inclusion and exclusion,” she shares. “That perspective informs how we think about the end-to-end employee experience.”

At Guardant Health, Monroe relies on company values, external leading practices and especially employee feedback to guide her strategies. “We’ve incorporated a DEIB index into our twice-a-year engagement surveys,” she says. “It helps us understand how employees are feeling related to belonging, feeling heard, and treatment. It’s not just about collecting data—it’s about using those insights to make tangible improvements.”

The response has been encouraging. “While there is much more to do, we are headed in the right direction as we have seen an uptick in our overall company DEIB index score.”

For others in the field, Monroe has practical advice. “Start with alignment. DEIB needs to be tied to your company’s values and culture and embedded into your year-round talent and pay processes—otherwise, it will lack context and always feel like an extra box to check,” she says.

She also encourages leaders to embrace experimentation. “Our workplace and worker expectations continue to evolve, especially with on-site, hybrid, and remote work. We’re all figuring out what works, and it’s okay to try things and adjust as you go.”

Finally, she emphasizes the importance of empathy. “At the end of the day, organizations are made up of people,” she says. “When we focus on helping employees thrive and the experience they are having, the whole company benefits.”

As Guardant Health continues to push the boundaries of cancer diagnostics, Monroe is focused on building a workplace culture that mirrors the company’s innovative spirit. “This is an opportunity to create something truly special,” she says. “A culture where every employee feels they belong, and know their work connects to something bigger than themselves.”

For Monroe, this work is as personal as it is professional. “When I think about my mom and the patients who rely on what we do, it reminds me why this matters,” she says. “It’s not just about the policies or the metrics—it’s about creating an environment where people can do their best work, so together we can make a real difference.”

Lin Grensing-Pophal is a Contributing Editor at HR Daily Advisor.

Classes

Conferences

Research

Resources

Webcasts

Contact 1-866-538-1909

Human Capital Institute © 2025     Privacy Policy