I Was There – March on Washington 1963 My First Diversity Step This week is the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. I’m so glad that I was there and part of history. That’s where my diversity journey really began. I wish I could say that it was because I saw Martin Luther King, and…
Diversity and Inclusion Leaders Need to Know How to be Diversity and Inclusion Allies By Simma Lieberman, The Inclusionist At some point in our lives, everyone needs an ally, a person who supports our ideas, encourages us to follow our dreams, or defends us against naysayers. At some point in our lives, we’ve probably all had opportunities to be an…
Employee Resource Groups or ERGs, are organized networks of employees in organizations who have similar demographics, interests, or life experiences, i.e,, veterans, women, Gen Y, people over 40, African-American, people with various religious affiliations, South Asian, etc. Early on, many ERGs began as a affinity groups formed to provide social and career support for their members. As diversity and inclusion…
A key component of any diversity and inclusion culture change initiative is to develop a process to educate and include hourly and front line employees, the ones that actually deal with customers. If not, any culture change will stay stuck at the corporate office. The great programs and policies won’t make a difference if an employee is inappropriate, and offends…
1- Understand your biases and don’t make assumptions. Most of the time you don’t know who is an LGBT person unless they tell you. LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) people span many dimensions of diversity in your workplace; generation, ethnicity, religion, work function, communication style, etc. 2- Know that LGBT people are not looking for special treatment but want the…
A friend sent me the article, from the Harvard Business Review “Diversity Training Doesn’t Work,” by Peter Bregman and asked my thoughts. Here they are This is not a revolutionary revelation. The article was based on one diversity class. I don’t know where or when he took diversity training, but it sounds like it was an old model of “good…
As the Inclusionist, with a life and passion for diversity and inclusion, I know that there are three changes that must take place in this country to get us on a sane, rational road regarding race. 1- –Acknowledge that racism, bias and discrimination exists, that it is often unconscious, and that everyone with a bias is not a racist, and…
Five Reasons The Term “Employee Engagement” Makes Me Feel Disengaged1- Employee engagement has become a buzzword with no meaning in some workplaces. What some managers really mean, is that they are engaged in theoretical discussions. They seem to think that if they loudly declare that their whole workforce is engaged, even if few people are, they will be considered a…
Once again, an well-meaning executive told me that they had met all their diversity metrics for the year. When I asked her what she meant, she told me that they had hired a Black woman as head of HR, and a Hispanic male as senior director. When I asked her, how this was going to help her organization be more…
Diversity: Ignore it at Your Own Risk I would be remiss as a diversity and inclusion consultant, if I didn’t comment on the asinine statements that I’ve heard from certain politicians and their supporters. Carl Paladino, who is running for governor in one of the most diverse states, with a large LGBT population, thinks it’s ok to send racist and…
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