Conversations: We need to talk about race...

Words_Jermaine Haughton

In October, CMI’s Race network published ‘Moving the dial on race: A practical guide on workplace inclusion’, featuring a host of tips on building a fairer workplace culture. Here, six of Britain’s top leaders share their own insights on what needs to be done to tackle racism in the workplace

Before we can begin eliminating racism in the workplace, we have to be honest about our prejudices, says Delroy Beverley CMgr CCMI, managing director of York Teaching Hospital Facilities Management.

Delroy Beverley CMgr CCMI

Sharing his own shocking experiences of racism throughout his career, he explains: “We need to create communities inside and outside the workplace where it’s OK to speak honestly and openly about how you feel. It needs to be OK to say, ‘When I see a Black person walking towards me, I cross the road because I’m afraid.’

“We can create a million psychological safe spaces for People of Colour, but the real challenge is creating a safe place for these important conversations, somewhere people can share their childhood or adult experiences – whether it was being tackled on the rugby field or feeling that the Black guys were always better at the 100m sprint and not feeling comfortable about it.

“You don’t just wake up one day and say, ‘Hey, I’m going to have a go at the Black guy today’ – there’s usually some insecurity that triggers that inner feeling. Once we address that together, we can start to fix the root of the problem.”

Beverley, who helps organisations recruit a more diverse range of candidates, argues that businesses must diversify the gatekeepers on their recruitment boards to have a better chance of addressing the chronic underrepresentation of ethnic minorities in senior business positions. “Discarding a potentially good candidate from a BAME background should create discussions as to why that has happened, and through diplomacy we should encourage businesses to look at that decision from a completely different perspective,” he says. “Ultimately, it’s about making sure you’re around the table with the decision-makers and gatekeepers, because they’re the ones who determine who gets through.”

Kanya King CBE founded the MOBO Awards in 1996 and is now launching a new initiative called MOBOLISE to help Black people make it to the top in the creative industries. So, how does she think the race question is changing in the workplace?

Kanya King CBE

Employers and businesses are talking more about race, diversity and inclusion at work. Why now?

Organisations have seen the inequality out there and stood up to say they want to make a change. Many have realised that this will not change overnight and that they need multiple approaches over a longer period of time, but they must still prioritise it now.

After a challenging 2020, the business world needs to focus on “the decade of opportunity”, driven by an ideas economy, which should be powered by this untapped diversity of thought.

The business case for increasing management diversity is absolute. More diverse, gender-balanced teams outperform less diverse, unbalanced teams. It is a commercial imperative as well as a societal one. It will ultimately help the bottom line.

What are the main challenges for employers and leaders in creating a truly “anti-racist workplace” in the UK?

A lot of organisations find diversity and inclusion issues tricky and don’t do anything because they’re concerned about doing the wrong thing. That is no longer acceptable. We’re in a different time now.

Never in my lifetime have I been in a situation where these issues have affected not just the Black community but all races, religions and creeds. What has happened with the pandemic has highlighted the inequalities that exist with regard to poverty and health and wellbeing, while also focusing attention on the fact that lots of Black people are working in roles that parts of society perceive as being less worthy of support, status and recognition.

These are really big issues, founded on structural and systemic prejudices. It’s no surprise that businesses are finding it difficult to counter them.

In your experience, how can embracing an inclusive culture improve a business’s success?

I grew up surrounded by creatives who were immensely talented but frustrated by this huge void in the music industry’s idea of popular music. Why would you miss out part of the population? That just didn’t make sense to me.

At the heart of the MOBO Awards is the idea that creativity is a powerful expression of identity, capable of transcending racial and cultural divides. That also makes it an effective tool for social activism and business success.

As well as increasing profit and influencing an organisation’s sense of purpose, diversity of thought makes and keeps companies relevant and helps them meet the needs of their stakeholders today and in the future.

What are the most important practical steps that a manager or leader can take to support people from diverse ethnic groups in the workplace?

Mentoring, networking and support with CV writing and interview practice can open up career opportunities for underrepresented individuals, while also giving those who may be held back by unconscious bias in the hiring process the chance to showcase their skills.

It’s also worth remembering that there’s a really scary underrepresentation of Black talent in business, especially in senior roles. So everyone must do more to demonstrate that true diversity is possible. This is why we’ve launched the MOBOLISE platform, which is being developed in conjunction with Accenture. It’s designed to connect Black talent with organisations and companies, initially in the creative and technology sectors, to provide that all-important career support and help them change the picture at the top.

Richard Iferenta, vice chair of KPMG in the UK, has a unique experience of race in the workplace, having worked his way up through the ranks in one of the UK’s most competitive industries

Richard Iferenta

Iferenta explains that racial discrimination should be tackled now, when race is at the forefront of people’s minds.

Why now? “The tragic killing of George Floyd and other Black citizens in the US, combined with the resulting unrest around the globe, has acted as a painful reminder of how far the world still has to go to end racism and discrimination. Beyond that, this tragedy has presented all employers with a real opportunity to turn the tide on this long-standing issue, while it’s front and centre in people’s minds. Both corporations and individuals alike have a critical role to play in doing this.”

Even so, Iferenta notes that there are a number of obstacles in the way. “Racism and inequality are long-standing issues that won’t be remedied overnight, but it’s encouraging to see greater attention being drawn to the subject of inequality and discrimination. While we should always be striving for better, progress takes time.

“The main challenges for employers and leaders are clarity at an early stage about what the business wants to achieve, sponsorship from the CEO for those objectives, and execution of the agenda with appropriate dedicated resources. All of this starts with education as to what privilege is, and leaders need that understanding if they are to achieve meaningful change.”

Like Beverley, Iferenta believes this all begins with having difficult conversations. “The ability to openly discuss race and racism is vital for business,” he says. “Being anti-racist isn’t enough to radically shift the dial. It should be complemented with practising anti-racism.”

Iferenta offers the following advice:

1. Hold regular, informed discussions about race as part of your business strategy or team updates. Investing time in this activity can lead to huge rewards, as it makes it easier for uncomfortable conversations about race to become part of your everyday dialogue.

2. Being open to learning, listening and education can help leaders and managers navigate these difficult conversations. These activities provide platforms for self-reflection about the way we manage our own biases. This, in turn, creates opportunities for growth.

3. Being proactive about inclusion is more than a “nice to have”. Every leader and manager should be comfortable talking about race and willing to make mistakes and learn from them. Brave conversations are key.

Racial discrimination at work disrupts employees’ performance and productivity, says Dr Jummy Okoya FCMI, associate programme leader for the MSc in human resource management at the University of East London

Dr Jummy Okoya FCMI

Okoya, who is also a member of CMI Women and was a pivotal contributor to the ‘Moving the dial on race’ guide, believes that it’s time to transform workplaces into inclusive safe spaces where people of colour can thrive and drive UK businesses forward.

“When employees are fully themselves at work without having to ‘code switch’ or wear a mask to pretend to be somebody else, they are fully able to access their brain capacity, their creative juices are unleashed, and sustainable high performance is achieved. It is mentally and emotionally draining to work in an environment where there are many exclusionary practices.

“Employees will thrive when they are fully themselves at work, leading to higher levels of engagement, increased motivation and a boost to productivity.”

Managers will need to break the ‘Golden Rule’, Okoya adds. “Don’t treat People of Colour as you would like to be treated. Take time and ask them simple questions like what their experience of working in the organisation is, what would make a difference for them in terms of their career progression, how they prefer to describe their ethnicity, their preferred frequency of check-ins, style of communication, type of feedback, etc.

“Leaders should prioritise creating a safe team environment where all People of Colour are listened to, are encouraged to speak up and feel a sense of belonging. They should encourage and embrace input from employees from different backgrounds or with different expertise to their own, foster collaboration among diverse staff, ask questions of all members of the team, facilitate constructive arguments, give actionable feedback, and act upon the advice of diverse employees.”

Leon Mann is co-founder of the Football Black List, which pays tribute to those from the Black community who are in influential positions throughout football and who help to address issues of underrepresentation. He believes there’s a real opportunity now to usher in lasting change

Football is one of the most visible examples of the Black contribution to life in the UK. An estimated 30 per cent of professional Premier League players are Black. Off the pitch, however, Black and Asian people are vastly underrepresented in football’s coaching, medical, media, administration and management positions.

“From the conversations I’ve been having with business leaders, it feels like there’s a will to change things, perhaps fuelled by a sense of guilt about how Black people and ethnic minorities have been treated for so long,” Mann says. “Unfortunately, the lack of diversity in the leadership teams at many businesses often leads to a lack of understanding about what they should do.”

Building partnerships with Black and Asian networks and making diversity an essential business decision rather than a charitable effort will be vital to this effort, Mann adds. “Whether it’s in sport, the media or any other UK industry, these businesses should look for meaningful collaborations with Black, Asian and ethnic minority community groups that are making a tangible impact at the grassroots level. When a business faces a specific technology problem, they go out and seek out people who have the required knowledge and track record to solve the issue.” The question is, then, why don’t they do the same when they have a race problem?

“Another question must also be asked, though: ‘How do we value this work?’ Is racial diversity and inclusion a charitable initiative or a serious part of day-to-day business operations? If it’s the latter, it will be given the necessary energy and resources to succeed. If it’s seen as charitable and a ‘nice-to-have’, it won’t be a priority and it will get pushed right down the agenda.

“That’s how businesses have been treating this issue for decades, and that’s why we’ve seen little progress. This is not just about giving Black and Asian people jobs; it’s about approaching it from the standpoint of us all needing to get better at business, and diversity is better for business. Then we will see accelerated change.”

As one of the first Black female professionals to sit on the board of a multinational tech company in the UK, Dr Nneka Abulokwe OBE FAPM FBCS, founder & CEO of MicroMax Consulting, has decades of experience driving innovative technology and business transformation initiatives

Dr Nneka Abulokwe OBE

Abulokwe explains that “employers are beginning to see and understand the value of a diverse workforce that reflects not only society at large but also their customer base. Competition is keen, and employers that do not embrace a diverse workforce and create an inclusive environment in which everyone, regardless of ethnicity, can thrive will be left behind over time.” For diversity and inclusion efforts to succeed, research, resilience and knowledge are needed, says Abulokwe. “First and foremost, organisations have to understand how to build an inclusive culture. Cultural change is never simple, as the core ingredient involves people. The will and the sponsorship from the leadership is imperative to engender such change. The richness of a diverse mix of people, ideas and perspectives cannot be underestimated.”