TaChelle L.’s Post

🚨 Time to Get Strategic About DEI! 🚨 McKinsey & Company’s latest article, It’s (past) time to get strategic about DEI, by Jan Shelly Brown, Diana Ellsworth, Alex Katen-Narvell, and Dana Maor, highlights the critical need for organizations to approach diversity, equity, and inclusion with a strategic mindset. It's not just about checking boxes—it's about creating sustainable, impactful change that drives success. If your DEI efforts aren't moving the needle, it's time to rethink your approach. 💡 Check out the full article for insights and actionable strategies! Read here: https://lnkd.in/e4xTAVvz #DEI #DiversityEquityInclusion #Leadership #StrategicPlanning #McKinsey

In our work, we often observe organizations jumping into DEI initiatives without a clear understanding of their unique internal dynamics—especially when it comes to neurodiversity. This tendency to adopt external strategies without a solid foundation can indeed lead to superficial outcomes. DEI, particularly neuroinclusion, requires an intentional, phased approach that reflects the organization's culture, needs, and employees’ lived experiences. It’s not about copying what others are doing but rather about crafting strategies that resonate internally and truly promote equity for all—including neurodivergent individuals. Leaders must be prepared to invest time, reflect, and commit to sustainable progress. As we guide companies through this process, we emphasize the importance of moving beyond performative gestures. Instead, we advocate for creating an inclusive environment where diverse minds can flourish - one step at a time. Let’s not rush the process but ensure each stage of development is meaningful and impactful. #Neuroinclusion #IntentionalLeadership #SustainableDEI #EquityInAction #InclusiveCulture #DEIMaturity

How Mature is your DEI? Over the past few years, I’ve spoken with countless CEOs and HR leaders grappling with racial inequity in the workplace. Time and again, I see a similar response: After an initial wave of concern, they quickly ask, "What are other companies doing?"—often rushing to mirror external DEI strategies without solid internal groundwork. Many of these initiatives, like bold public statements or top-down DEI strategies, fizzle out over time. Leaders are left frustrated, saying, "This is too hard. It takes too long to see results." Here’s the truth: DEI is not a one-time project or a race to make the loudest statement. It's a long-term commitment that requires thoughtful, sustained effort. Jumping into large-scale initiatives without the right foundation risks alienating minority employees and giving your company a reputation for performative promises. But there’s hope! Decades of research show that organizations move through five predictable stages on their DEI journey: Aware, Compliant, Tactical, Integrated or Sustainable. At each stage, leaders must ask critical questions and align both top-down strategies and bottom-up initiatives to truly foster inclusion and equity. Remember, it’s not about how fast you can get there; it’s about how intentional and prepared you are along the way. #DEI #Leadership #Inclusion #Diversity #CorporateCulture #Sustainability #EquityInAction

Being a woman of color in leadership often feels like walking a tightrope - balanced precariously on the edge of impossible expectations. Reading this article by Mita Mallick over the weekend helped me put words to the immense feelings that have been flowing through me over the last 2 weeks ... and across my career. The article explores Harris’s loss as a parallel to the struggles of women of color in the workplace Mallick’s words articulate the unspoken truth that so many of us live every day: 👉🏾 we are often set up to perform against the odds 👉🏾 held to a standard that’s anything but fair; and 👉🏾 still judged harshly when we falter. It’s a reminder that grace under fire isn’t just expected of us—it’s demanded. And don't dare show emotion. This paragraph summarizes so many of our experiences: "We are judged by different standards; scrutinized for what we say or don’t say or how we say it; for what we wear; for how we laugh or cry; or god forbid how angry we might become. We are often expected to smile no matter what the cost, put others’ comfort ahead of our own, and be grateful for the opportunity to even be in the room." Thank you Mita for challenging us to rethink leadership opportunities and create environments where success isn’t just survival. Thank you Fast Company for publishing articles like this.

📊 The latest #Fortune500 list reveals some key trends and challenges in the corporate world. Despite efforts, diversity in leadership remains stagnant with only 52 women and 8 Black CEOs at the helm. Meanwhile, efficiency and high interest rates have driven profits, California is reclaiming its spot as a business hub, and AI is transforming the tech landscape. Walmart and Apple continue their reign as revenue and profit leaders. Dive deeper into these insights and what they mean for the future of business. #Fortune500 #LeadershipDiversity #CorporateTrends

Check out this insightful article on how intentional Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives can enhance leadership development by fostering essential interpersonal skills like active listening and emotional intelligence. The author delves into uncovering the hidden human experiences of women of color in leadership roles. #DEI #LeadershipDevelopment #InclusionForAll [Link to the article: https://lnkd.in/gUH47shf]

Some organizations are backing away from the term "DEI." I work with several who are not. But that could change. And, given our changing times, that might be ok. The bottom line is, regardless of what we call it, are we willing to do the work and make it last? Are we ensuring that we are hiring and promoting diverse talent at all levels of the organization? Are we ensuring that all employees are being treated equitably and thriving? Are we making sure that our systems and policies are inclusive and equitable? Are we using quality data, and disaggregating it, to support our decision-making? Are we equipping leaders to lead with cultural intelligence and see themselves as change agents? If we can honestly answer "yes" to these questions (and there are, of course, more), call it what you want. #MakeItLast #DEIandChangeManagement

While men and women enter into the workforce at the same rate, for every 100 men who are promoted into the first role of manager, only 81 women are promoted. Every year around this time, the McKinsey and Lean In organizations release their annual “Women In The Workplace” report. Nearly every year since they've launched this report in 2015, we've seen progress in the leadership pipeline - except for this year - in the first promotion into leadership. Last year, 87 women were promoted into the first role of manager for every 100 men promoted. This year, that number has dropped to 81. This is costly to organizations, hindering the diversity of candidates in the talent pipeline .. and research continues to show organizations with more diverse leadership teams outperform their more homogeneous rivals. This progress is even worse for women of color: for every 100 men promoted, just 54 Black women (down to 2020 levels) and 65 Latinas (the lowest since the research began) get the same opportunity. In short: The pipeline is broken. There are systemic issues that need to be corrected to foster women's ability to advance. As I addressed in my book, Closing The Confidence Gap, solving these talent pipeline issues is a both/and. Yes, we need to address systemic issues AND we can take charge of our own careers by managing up well and communicating our goals. I am a huge believer that we should always be asking, What's in my control? One thing I have learned, and encourage my clients to do the same, is to stop waiting to be picked and take ownership of our career trajectory. ▫️Who have you shared your career goals with in the last quarter? ▫️How have you advocated for yourself? ▫️What support networks are you building for yourself? What tips or suggestions would you add to fix the pipeline?

There’s a clear and growing business case for greater diversity in leadership teams.  📈 Companies with more diverse directors outperform financially.  🏆 In fact, those in the top quartile for both gender and ethnic diversity in executive teams are on average 9 percent more likely to outperform their peers. 🌟 And importantly, it’s not only the bottom line that benefits. Our research shows a positive impact across finance, operations, capabilities, health, workforce, environment, and social aspects too.  Our team has been tracking the relationship between leadership diversity and company performance for almost a decade. For the first time in some areas, equitable representation is in sight – which is incredible progress. While there is still a huge amount of work to do, it’s encouraging to see we’re moving in the right direction. 🎯  #DEI #Diversity #Leadership 

At Business Markers, we recently received a request from one of our clients for "supplier diversity information." In that request diverse businesses are defined as being at least 51% owned and controlled by individuals or groups from traditionally underrepresented or underserved demographics, including women and minorities. This request sparked a debate among our team about whether and how we could intensify our diversity efforts. Although well-intentioned and positioned as voluntary, the request from our customer felt somewhat accusatory, as if it pointed fingers to all who don’t comply to their definition. Our team consists of about 30 experts in Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, and they have joined us organically over the years. When recruiting new members, we primarily assess each individual's merits, focusing on their ability to contribute optimally while aligning with our collective goals. So yes, we proactively seek to enhance the diversity of our team, starting with gender and age, but is not stopping us from others joining our team. And thus no, we recognize that we do not fully meet those diversity criteria specified by our client. This situation reminds us of our conversation with Wim Dejonghe, the retired CEO of Allen & Overy - one of the world's largest law firms. In discussing diversity and inclusion, he shared that he is not a strong advocate of such initiatives. He noted, "They serve as a starting point and can improve representation, but cultural change cannot be forced or imposed; it requires time and dedicated effort." 👉 What are your views on this topic? Is our customer going too far creating more opposition than support for the topic of D&I, or is this indeed the way to go to speed up change in society? What could be a nuanced perspective in this matter, one that unifies rather than divides, reflecting the essence of effective leadership, which is also the core theme of our upcoming book, 'Leadership Unraveled'. You can find the full interview with Wim Dejonghe, along with discussions with other inspirational leaders, in 'Leadership Unraveled'. These interviews serve as practical illustrations of the leadership model that threads through our book. 'Leadership Unraveled' will be available from mid-September, but you can pre-order it now at your favorite bookstore. Lucia Soetens Jille Tabak Pelckmans Uitgevers #leadershipunraveled #leadership #diversityandinclusion #DEI #leiderschapontrafeld #leiderschap #21capabilities