confident are you in the leadership capability of your teams to play their part in dismantling systemic racism? Or is there a nagging thought that they might be part of the problem?
Managing talent is probably one of the top priorities for executive boards around the globe. How do you motivate, inspire and unleash the potential of colleagues who are essential for where you are headed? Colleagues who get your mission, whose behaviour aligns with your values and who already have put their hat in the ring to help transform your culture for the benefit of everyone?
What is your course of action for those who prefer that things stay the way they are, silent or not so silent saboteurs who are resistant to change?
How do you navigate changing societal expectations? Macro issues are now having a direct impact on strategy and execution. What were once abstract theories for once‐a‐year conferences are now monthly if not weekly conversations with no one person having all the answers.
It's a lot, isn't it?
We've moved on from being able to get away with vague platitudes and sound bites that look good in a social media post or as a quote in your diversity and inclusion report – despite the fact this is still extremely commonplace. We cannot return to business as usual if we are unable to grapple with an issue that affects individuals on a global scale.
Even if you believe it's political correctness gone mad, this is the new expectation. Therefore, this is the time to be honest and recognise that while you may not have all the answers and you're still unsure about what steps to take, you need to move away from the preconceived ideas about what racism is and why it's still an issue.
This is where the skills of unlearning and relearning come in, because instead, you need to reverse engineer your approach and seek to change the conditions, your workplace cultures and behaviours so that it works for everyone, not just the ‘majority’ who look like you. Lean into that discomfort; it's a sign of growth. Demonstrate moral courage and be willing to take the lead, rather than seeking safety through consensus. And do it in a way where there is a depth to the work, giving you a prime opportunity to put in solid foundations to increase equity, inclusion and safety for all of your colleagues, without having to keep repeating the same change programmes over and over again.
Your customers, colleagues, investors and key shareholders want to see you committing to and delivering on action. This is the time to be honest and recognise that while you may not have all the answers and you're not sure what steps to take, it's time to move away from the expectation of fixing people. Instead, you need to reverse‐engineer your approach and seek to change the conditions in your workplace culture so that it works for everyone, not just the ‘majority’ who look like you.
Having conversations internally is important, but they must go somewhere. Every organization that has knocked on my door since the summer of 2020 has had the same problem, no matter who they are. Multinationals, growing startups, household names and brands across a dizzying array of industries all explain to me, in almost the exact same way, ‘Shereen, we want to do something, but we don't know what or how or even where to begin.’
They're convinced they've been too slow to act. They're worried about answering questions, about why it's taken them so long. They are different from the companies I've previously mentioned, whose social media teams are keen to show action through the liberal use of trending hashtags.
These executive leaders made the decision to do something, but despite an unwavering commitment, they're nervous. For many it's uncharted territory; they didn't want to be the first, yet they don't want to be last. They're fearful that their lack of action will reflect badly on their organization. They don't want to get it wrong but they aren't sure they 100% want to get it right. They don't want to spend too much money. They're apprehensive about taking things too far. And they believe they must avoid the ‘politics’ of race and are desperate to find a way to do something that's safe and won't upset their white colleagues under the guise of ensuring that they're ‘on everyone's on side’.
In their own words, here's a snippet of what they were grappling with:
We're a majority white, male and middle‐aged board. None of us have a clue where to start.
Watching your videos has made me realise we don't really understand as much as we thought we did.
I don't have access to anyone credible whom we trust to help us navigate this area. Lots of diversity and inclusion consultants out there claim they can help, but how do we know who to choose?
I know representation is an issue. It's embarrassing and I want to fix it, but suddenly just hiring more Black people doesn't feel right. Or is that what we should focus on?
My HR team is majority white; that's also an issue, isn't it?
We've never trained our managers on anything to do with race and racism. In fact, we've barely talked about it as a business, and I don't know where we should start.
If people make mistakes, they're only human, but should we just fire them? Is that what we should be doing now?
We understand our approach needs to be aligned to our business strategy, but how do we do that?
What do we call you people? Can we say Black?
Should we be talking about this in our other territories? How do we do that? I'm particularly thinking about Africa – there isn't racism over there like there is here, is there? So maybe this isn't relevant for them?
I'm being asked more challenging questions by our shareholders and if I'm honest, I don't feel confident and comfortable with my answers.
We don't really have a budget for this, but we know we need to do something. What can you suggest?
We've done a lot, but we feel like we are a seven out of ten. How do we get to ten? How do I know that we're doing enough?
We've spent a lot of time on listening and raising awareness. How do we convert it to action?
Our Black colleagues are reluctant to come back to the office after extended periods working from home and/or they are still leaving, despite everything we've done. What are we doing wrong?
Does it matter that I'm the only person leading this, that I'm the only person who cares?
Not everyone is supportive of what we're trying to do. How do we deal with that?
What about everyone else?
Does any of this sound familiar? And in reading this list, think about whether you noticed these things missing:
No mention of how their Black colleagues or customers were thinking or feeling
No mention of what it was like to live, work and play in a society that was accepting of racial inequities and inequalities
Little recognition of the inherent power and privilege afforded to leaders who could objectively debate and discuss a course of action according to convenience, comfort, ease and ‘affordability’
Very few questions about how to ensure their products and services don't perpetuate harm
Some (not all) mentioned how the lack of substantive action
