The Diversity Pivot

With this summer’s SCOTUS ruling against affirmative action, it is predicted that enrollment of students of color will decline at universities, leading ultimately to declines in workforce participation. This is problematic because younger generations are increasingly more diverse. The lack of representation in the workforce creates a disconnect between the population and employment where organizations will struggle to reflect the very communities that they are trying to serve.

Despite this concern, only 36% of Americans perceive affirmative action positively. There are some common misunderstandings about affirmative action that people need to understand for these perceptions to shift.

Learn what misunderstandings can help narrow the gap in this episode with Julie Kratz.

Learn more at https://www.forbes.com/sites/juliekratz and at https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliekratz/ 

Political division and anti-woke legislation have backed many C-suite leaders into a corner related to DEI efforts: forcing them to walk a fine line between accommodating employee expectations and addressing customer needs while still avoiding controversy. 

Yet, ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) mandates will further establish a need for DEI strategies and metrics.

Learn more at https://www.forbes.com/sites/juliekratz/ or at https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliekratz/ 

Chéla Gage is back on the Diversity Pivot Podcast by popular demand. Chéla is responsible for developing and creating the strategic long-term hiring plan and initiatives to advance diversity, equity, inclusion & belonging for Reformation. Together on this episode, we discuss how:

• Industry and organization size influences DEI work and how to pivot to changing needs

• Changing 2030 demographics are a reality and what to do now to prepare for a much more diverse workforce in the future 

• To set up a robust DEIB certification program and hold all leaders accountable

Meet Chela at https://www.linkedin.com/in/chelagage/.

Zenica Chatman is a certified personal and executive coach, helping women rediscover their inner strength and confidence in the aftermath of workplace-related trauma. On this episode, Julie and Zenica discuss:

• Zenica's own personal story of trauma that led her to DEI work

• What bullying behaviors to look out for and how to intervene as an ally

• How to set up an anti-bullying policy to prevent it, respecting all leadership styles

Connect with Zenica at https://www.zenicachatman.com/.

Catarina Rivera is a public speaker and DEI consultant with over 14 years of experience in the public sector. Catarina works with companies to improve accessibility and inclusion, retain employees, and design better products. She is the founder of Blindish Latina. On this episode, Julie and Catarina discuss:

• Why captions are critical to accessibility

• Non-obvious ways to be more inclusive

• Tropes to watch out for about inspiration or victim 

Connect with her at https://www.catarinarivera.com/ and get her free e-book, watch her TedTalk and get tips in your inbox!

Celebrating the LGBTQ+ community needs to happen year-round. Turquoise Peart joins the podcast to share:

• How religious beliefs shape DEI work and how to respond to different spiritual perceptions
• Intersectionality and how it builds opportunities for allyship
• Finding your path as an ally to communities you are not a part of

Connect with Turquoise at https://www.linkedin.com/in/turquoisepeart/.  Join our Pride program at https://www.eventbrite.com/o/julie-kratz-8595765091 

For the last 15 years, Chris Clarke has provided inclusive leadership expertise to organizations in the public and private sectors. He is passionate about issues related to belonging and is skilled in the areas of organizational assessment and evaluation. Chris has been recognized twice as a 40 Under 40 by the Congressional Black Caucus Health Braintrust and Legacy Magainze South Florida. Chris has a Bachelor's degree in Educational Studies and Justice and Public Policy and a Master of Public Administration degree with a concentration in nonprofit management. He recently completed his Doctor of Education in Higher Education Leadership from the University of Miami. On this episode, Julie and Chris discuss:

• Why young people will not retreat on the conversation about diversity
• How to ensure your organization is not performative with diversity
• A key question to ask about any DEI initiative - How do you know that works?

Connect with Chris at https://www.allenclarkeconsulting.com/.

Dr. Parker is the Co-Owner of Epic Leisure Management LLC., the Owner of Parker Personal Training LLC., and the co-founder of a podcast host and guest connector platform, F.EM. Dr. Parker is a featured writer and presenter for national fitness organizations. Dr. Parker is also the host/creator of Dr. D's Social Network, a podcast devoted to genuine, open, and honest conversations with people from all over the world. He shares:

• When to use the tailing method of building off of what others are saying
• Why the words “how” and “what” lead to more inclusive conversations
• How to save your anger for when it matters the most

Connect with Dr. Darian Parker at https://doctordarianparker.com/. 

Staci Hegarty is the VP of Equity and Inclusion for Envision RISE. Envision RISE creates paths and programs for lasting inclusive and equitable workplace cultures. On the show we discuss:

• Why intentions are not enough, DEI execution is what matters
• What woke really means and how to address backlash associated with the term
• How to reward organizations for their inclusive behavior

Connect with Staci at https://envisionrise.com/ and here is the article Staci mentioned: https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/woke-companies-broke-profits-1234710724/. 

Carice Anderson has been doing diversity work for over two decades and is the author of Intelligence Isn't Enough. She shares how the conversation has changed in DEI over the decades of her career, including:

• 3 practical strategies to elevate your DEI efforts
• How to proactively engage with underrepresented groups before they quit and questions to ask
• Why it is important to ensure your sponsee base mirrors the population you hope to serve and attract

Connect with Carice at https://cariceanderson.com/ and on LinkedIn.

Kenji Yoshino is the Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law at the NYU School of Law and the Director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging.  He is the author of the new book Say the Right Thing. We discuss how to:

• Shift from a cancel culture to a coaching culture
• Apologize in a productive, respectful way when you make a mistake
• Prevent identity threat when calling someone in on non-inclusive behavior 

Connect with Kenji at http://kenjiyoshino.com/KY/books/ and  https://www.law.nyu.edu/centers/belonging. 

Eman Rimawi-Doster is a DEI thought leader in intersectionality. She is a good troublemaker bringing multidimensional social justice and humor to every conversation. We discuss how to:

• Effectively use humor and anger in DEI work
• Speak up with allies to advocate for change beyond ADA compliance 
• Believe the lived experiences of folks with intersectional identities  

Connect with Eman at Hilc.org or on LinkedIn.

Kurt Landon is the Founder and CEO of Enspira. Enspira is an LGBTQ+-owned HR services, talent acquisition and technology consulting firm. He joins us to share:

• His own experiences struggling with belonging growing up as “different”
• Why DEI conversations need to be focused on paradox rather than binary extremes
• How to be a better ally to the LGBTQ+ community and well-intentioned mistakes to avoid
• How to ask good proactive check-in questions as a leader

Connect with Kurt at https://www.enspirahr.com/ and on LinkedIn.

Stephen Graves is a Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI), Workplace Culture, and Health Equity Consultant, Facilitator and Strategist. He has over a decade of experience, partnering with organizations of all sizes across sectors to add value and return on investment through his work and leadership in DEI, Health Equity, Talent Management, and Organizational Development.

Together, we discuss:

• How he found his calling for DEI through early childhood experiences and the church
• Why connecting DEI leaders is critical now more than ever to address burnout
• How to create open spaces for dialogue and use insights to drive systemic change

Stephen is a Senior Consultant with All In Consulting. Learn more at https://www.allinconsulting.co. Resources cited on the episode: The Nap Ministry (@thenapministry) on Instagram and the book Rest is Resistance: A Manifesto by Tricia Hersey.

Beverly Jurenko served as the Director of Diversity & Inclusion for Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, and worked in Europe, Latin America, and Russia in energy and finance for Amoco and Enron. She joins us to share how to:

• Demonstrate the value of DEI and get support from top management
• Manage the naysayers against DEI
• Measure DEI at an individual level

Follow Beverly at https://inside-edge-group.com/ and Julie at https://nextpivotpoint.com/ 

Nicole Hughey has been leading DEI for 16 years. As the DEI leader at SiriusXM, she joins us to share:

• Why the future of DEI is about embracing intersectionality
• How to broaden diversity to include other perspectives without watering down DEI
• What an inclusive DEI event looks like using your competitive advantages as an organization

Connect with Nicole at https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-hughey-061639b/ and learn more about SiriusXM at https://careers.siriusxm.com/diversityequityinclusion 

Brett Heising is a highly acclaimed speaker who educates and inspires people around the world about living life with a physical disability. He has mastered the art of talking about the sensitive topic of “disability” in a fun, open, and honest way.

We discuss:

• Tangible, real-world advice designed to help his clients understand the difference between something being “ADA compliant” and truly accessible
• Why people with disabilities are underemployed and how to design workplaces to be inclusive of people with disabilities
• How allyship is about paying attention to opportunities to be helpful 

Meet Brett at www.brettheising.com.

Chris Jones is the CEO and Co-founder of Spectra Diversity, the creator of the only DEI assessment which measures the organization and the individual in a single survey. 

Together, we discuss:

• What data to measure for a good baseline
• How to dig through the data to tell a story by asking “so what?”
• What the future holds for DEI

As Chris says, measuring DEI improves perceptions of DEI. Follow Chris at https://www.spectradiversity.com/. 

Celeste Warren is Vice President of the Global Diversity and Inclusion Center of Excellence at Merck.  Celeste has over 30 years of experience in the fields of Human Resources Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and Change Management. Celeste is the author of the book How to be a Diversity & Inclusion Ambassador: Everyone’s Role in Helping All Feel Accepted, Engaged, and Valued.

We talk about:

• How awareness of DEI has improved, yet leadership representation continues to lag
• The headwinds affecting DEI leaders and how to overcome them
• Why everyone (especially individual contributors) can impact change

Connect with Celeste at https://crwdiversity.com/. 

Esther Armah is an international award-winning journalist, a playwright, an international speaker, and an author. Esther is CEO of The Armah Institute of Emotional Justice (The AIEJ), a global institute working across Accra, New York, and London, and is the author of the book: EMOTIONAL JUSTICE: a roadmap for racial healing. We talk about:

• How white centering harms DEI work today
• The four languages of whiteness, and how to replace them with the four love languages of emotional justice 
• Why were are the dismantlers we have been waiting for

Connect with Esther at https://www.theaiej.com/.