Recently, my Ombuds coaching client sent me an article about DEI layoffs in tech and asked for my thoughts.
I’m not surprised about the layoffs.
Before law school, I was a fashion buyer for a major retail chain. I learned the lessons about trends & knockoffs. When something is popular, it becomes a trend. Other companies want that popularity so they knockoff the item.
The rush to throw money at DEI programs following George Floyd’s murder was a trend, I'm sad to say. There were plenty of companies that offered knockoff programs to improve their reputation and enjoy the popularity.
The SCOTUS decision on affirmative action reversed the trend. DEI is not in fashion anymore, except for the companies that always understood the power of diversity to generate success.
As an Ombuds, I’ve helped countless employees to manage the trauma of exclusion, discrimination, and systemic racism, which leaves long lasting scars that take decades to heal.
Here’s what I know, though. When underrepresented, marginalized and invisible groups find a workplace where they are seen, heard, celebrated and appreciated, their impact on growth and innovation is unprecedented.
Truth is, we NEED diverse people and their intersectionality to view problems from a fresh angle and reveal new ideas, new ways of thinking and being in the workplace.
Personally, I’m super diverse: biracial, jewish, neurodivergent and part of the invisible disability community- I have MS.
I didn’t see that as a gift until I revealed my diagnosis to an Ombuds coaching client who is also living with this disease. We both cried bc she didn’t think she could be an Ombuds and I represented that possibility for her.
When corporations hire me to develop the Ombuds programs, I apply all my lived experience and knowledge to their benefit.
Companies that value diversity by investing in DEI leadership will thrive in the future. Nearly 80% of workers said they want to work for a company that values diversity, equity and inclusion according to a recent CNBC poll. Diverse leadership increases revenue by 19% Clearly, the way forward is diverse.
Let’s focus on that.
#leadership #diversityequityinclusion #ombudsareessential
Retired Teacher, Reading Specialist, Private Tutor.
3wBrink’s Inc the ad should really say— Experience our wide range of 15 hour days, low pay and no one of color moves up. Join our team in the trucks with no registrations, no AC and no brakes. Work overtime every day and if you don’t, then be prepared for Vaughn to curse at you. Join the team of employees that call people of color the N word and get away with it. Brinks is hiring!