5 Things / lessons

Sometimes I feel like being a leader means I’m in a near-constant state of asking myself, “OK, so what can I learn from this?”

I often look at work (and sometimes life) as an experiment. I’ve been a business owner for over 17 years now and it’s impossible to get it right all the time. And it’s certainly impossible to be all things to all people. My work, whether it’s writing, or speaking, or building and leading a team, is constantly being evaluated, tweaked, and adjusted along the way. But one thing being a business owner has taught me is to focus on progress over perfection. 

Your work towards creating a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization is also an experiment. There is no one way to do this work. Mistakes will happen and you might even accidentally offend someone. It's unrealistic to expect otherwise. But self-reflection, tweaking, and adjusting are (or should be) part of the process. I often say in my talks, “what matters is how you recover.”

Will you stall out or keep moving forward? 

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Here are some good vibes I found this week:

• There are some great virtual Pride ideas in this article which focused heavily on ActiveCampaign. Among other things, they had a drag queen read the children's book A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo, and made an effort to involve the employee resource groups for parents. AC's Pride group was inventive this June and there are some good ideas in this article you can file away for next year. This matters because virtual employee engagement can be challenging, and AC showed real creativity in how it builds allies.
  
  

• L'Oréal USA became the first company to achieve certification of pay equity across gender, race, ethnicity, age, ability, and LGBTQ identity. The company used a global third-party auditing company to certify the results. For L'Oréal, this is not a new initiative - they got started in 2011. This shows a real commitment and matters to the underrepresented employees who will benefit from equal pay for equal work.
  
  

• The abortion law that recently passed in Texas is the strictest and most archaic in the U.S., and most companies said nothing. The dating app companies Match and Bumble, however, created relief funds to help people affected by the law. Uber and Lyft said they would cover all legal costs for any of their drivers who get sued for driving a customer to an abortion clinic. This matters because those companies used their influence and power to speak out against a law that is abhorrent and will affect thousands of people.
  
  

• Speaking of Bumble, the woman-led company unveiled a fantastic new employee leave policy which includes, among other things, 20 days paid time off for victims of domestic violence and 15 days paid time off for grief. This matters because employee wellbeing matters and a generous employee leave policy is a signal to employees that they matter.
  
  

• The Football Association of Ireland is now paying equal match fees for its men and women's teams. There was previously a €2000 disparity. The men's teams willingly took a pay cut to create pay parity. This matters because it shows allyship on behalf of the men, and because equal pay for equal work is just the right thing to do.

Image by Chaos Soccer Gear

5 Things / taking responsibility

This week I learned that (in December) the Kansas City Star newspaper issued an editorial apologizing for decades of unfair and overlooked coverage of the Black community. Among other things, the paper failed to cover bombings of Black homes in the city and provided poor coverage of local legends Jackie Robinson and Charlie Parker.

The editorial reads, in part: "through sins of both commission and omission — it disenfranchised, ignored and scorned generations of Black Kansas Citians. It reinforced Jim Crow laws and redlining. Decade after early decade it robbed an entire community of opportunity, dignity, justice and recognition."

This matters because racial justice includes taking ownership for past mistakes, even ones that are "not our fault." It also includes making commitments and righting wrongs, as the Star did, in part by hiring an editor to address race issues, and by covering stories of systemic racism, Black Lives Matter, and more. 

We can all take responsibility, as individuals, and as leaders or managers. It can start with a few simple words such as, "I'm sorry. You have every right to be upset."

Here are the good vibes I found this week: 

• Dollar General is paying its employees for 4 hours of work if they get the Covid-19 vaccine. This matters because it incentivizes people to get the vaccine and ensures their employees (many of whom are Black and brown and disproportionally affected by Covid) don't have to choose between getting paid and getting vaccinated.

• Toyota and Lixil Corp have developed a mobile restroom for wheelchair users that can be pulled by a car. This mobile restroom will help wheelchair users be able to better enjoy outdoor events where accessible restrooms are not available. This matters because the product enhances access (and hopefully joy) for people with disabilities.

• In British Columbia, anyone involved in court proceedings will now be required to specify their pronouns and an honorific / title for themselves. Titles may include Mr., Ms. Mx. (a gender-neutral title), Counsel and others. The goal is to ensure the Court properly addresses each individual without assuming gender based on name or appearance. This matters because gender is not based on appearance and this policy will reduce the risk of mis-gendering.

• Sephora has announced policies to reduce racial bias in their stores. Changes include new employee training and greeting standards, a phasing out of private security guards from stores, and a zero-tolerance policy for profiling, discrimination, harassment. They've also committed to doubling the number of Black-owned brands available at the store. This matters because Black customers report unequal treatment and that's just not right.

Finally, I hope you'll join Patti and I for our (free) January 19 fireside chat 5 DEI Predictions for 2021. 

Thanks for all you do to build a more inclusive world-

Image by: The Teacher and The Admin

5 Things / hire trans people

This week was a pretty great week for LGBTQ+ inclusion. First I learned that the Argentinian President signed a decree that creates a 1% job quota for transgender people, regardless of what gender marker is on their ID. This matters because transgender people often face high levels of employment discrimination and, as a result, are often underemployed.


Then I learned that high schools in England will now teach LGBTQ-inclusive sex ed classes. The new guidelines call for information on sexual orientation and gender identity to be integrated into the curriculum for all students.


This matters because critical health information will now be provided to reduce risk factors for LGBTQ+ youth. It will also reduce the stigma of being part of a marginalized group. This is a game changer.

Some other inspiring things I learned this week include:

• Barilla Group closed the gender pay gap for their 8,400 global employees. This makes them one of the first FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) companies in the world to do so. This matters because right now women are paid $.81 for every dollar a man makes - and Black, indigenous women of color make even less. Closing the gap is the equitable thing to do.

• This week the Academy Awards released new criteria for Best Picture, beginning in 2024.  Films must meet at least two of four benchmarks related to casting and hiring under-represented people in all aspects of the film's production. Only films which meet the criteria are eligible for Best Picture. This matters because increasing diversity doesn't happen by accident -- organizations must announce goals and develop systems of accountability.

• There were a couple of major firsts announced this week: Jane Fraser was announced as the new CEO of Citigroup. She's the first female CEO of a major Wall Street bank. Also, Doris Burke made news this week when she was revealed to be the first woman to call play-by-play for the NBA conference finals and finals (on ESPN Radio). These stories matter because they provide possibility models for young people, and also, because it's about time. 

I choose the "better late than never" perspective on these pieces of news.  There's inspiration everywhere, and there are lots of hard working people like you, committed to changing systems and behaviors to be more inclusive. The world needs us. Keep it up.

Photo by Juanje Garrido/shutterstock

5 Things / work the polls

Tom Brenner / Reuters file

This week I learned that Old Navy will pay its employees a full day of pay to work the polls on Election Day. 

64% of Old Navy's 50,000 employees are 18-29, the age group least likely to vote...so perhaps they will this year.

This matters because there's a projected shortage of 250,000 U.S. poll workers this year, and Old Navy's commitment may be significant. I also appreciate Old Navy valuing its customer-facing team enough to give them this opportunity.

Here are some other things that inspired me this week:

• Uber released a massive new ad campaign: "If you tolerate racism, delete Uber."  Although this campaign met some criticism for several valid reasons, I believe this matters because the company is taking a stand that racism is unacceptable, even by paying passengers. 

• Ben and Jerry's (which is owned by Unilever) is launching a 6 part podcast on systemic racism. The podcast, which starts on September 15, is about the history of systemic racism in America. This matters because we are only at the beginning of our racial reckoning, and these stories of centuries of injustice are important to hear.

• Male and female football teams in Brazil are now paid equally. This is not the case for the U.S. teams, where male players are paid more than female players, despite the wild success of the U.S. Women's National Team. This matters because pay equity is simply the right thing to do.

• Capital Group, an investment firm, decided to no longer show internship candidates' resumes' to hiring managers. Managers instead focused more on the conversation with the candidate. This one change resulted in a 50/50 gender balance and 58% people of color among the internship class. This matters because the hiring process is riddled with bias, which leads to a lack of diversity. Much of the bias comes when reviewing resumes.
  

These stories remind me that collectively, we can make real, systemic impact towards a world where everyone feels safe to walk with dignity. 

Photo by Tom Brenner/Reuters

5 Things / loot your own store

This week another Black man was shot by police, this time in Kenosha, Wisconsin, 50 miles from the headquarters of Penzey's Spices. CEO Bill Penzey has publicly supported Black Lives Matter and this week heard from a customer, "you would be singing a different tune if it was your store being looted [by the protestors]."


Bill Penzey responded, "Human life means everything; stuff, not so much." Then he announced plans to "loot" his own store in Kenosha.


Penzey's is giving that store's equivalent of spices and gift boxes to food pantries and organizations working on social justice. 


This matters because Bill Penzey walked the talk. He used his voice and influence to speak out against injustice. Pretty cool. An action a lot of us can learn from.

Here are some other things that inspired me this week:

• Hired.com virtually eliminated the gender wage gap in a study of 120k candidates. How? They changed the part of the form used to ask desired pay. It used to be an empty field and is now pre-loaded with the median salary for a candidate's desired role. This matters when we change the system to be inclusive, we reduce natural human bias.

• Constellation Brands, McCain, and other companies are participating in the Great American Takeout this weekend. These companies are paying for their employees to order food or beverages from Black-owned restaurants and bars. This matters because supporting Black-owned businesses is a critical piece of reducing the racial wealth gap.

• Hundreds of companies including Coca-Cola and Best Buy are giving their employees paid time off to vote. This matters because many employees (especially customer-facing employees) are often forced to choose between work and voting. 

• Google now offers affordable 6 month educational certificate programs for roles in project management and data analysis. That's nice, but the real win here is that, when hiring employees, Google is treating these certificates as the equivalent of a 4 year college degree. This matters because a college education is not attainable for many folks and Google is reducing barriers to well-paying jobs.
  
  
  Does your company require candidates to have 4 year degrees?