NENE’S CHALLENGE FOR LEADERS
WHAT I HAVE LEARNT OVER THE YEARS BEING A DEI PRACTITIONER The work of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) is interpersonal, systemic, complex, and generative all at the same time - it can be both deeply satisfying and frustrating. In my two decades of being a practitioner in this field, as an employee, executive within organisations, and an independent consultant, I have witnessed all four of these aspects of this work. This is a field that is regularly misunderstood, where everyone thinks they can ‘do diversity work’ or facilitate its conversations because the basis of diversity is our identity. It is a fact that no individual or organisation can claim territory over the concept of DEI, yet at the same time, it is a field that requires practitioners to invest careful study and have a willingness to practice reflection before attempting to help others navigate the complex terrain. I have learned that DEI work (of which coaching is an integral part) requires training, dedication, passion, and certification and, most importantly, resilience, if we are to make a good impact. Some of the lessons I can share. 1. ‘Give us the tools so that we can get on with it’ There is nothing wrong with providing tools to help with implementation, but often I have come across leaders who want to avoid doing the hard ‘inner work’ of heart transformation and who do not want to allocate enough time to this important work, simply wanting me to give them the tools. What use will those tools be if you do not internalise how to use them? Imagine being asked to teach or facilitate racism workshops in a once-off two-hour session? That is not only impossible but dangerous. Leaders need to commit to the journey, as challenging as it may be. Shortcuts will always take you back to the starting point and come with wasted resources of time and money. 2. Management prefers to focus on core business, and deprioritise DEI There are endless examples of organisations that believe that as long as you do DEI work with lower-level staff, you would have addressed DEI issues. In fact, some will have a budget to work with all levels but exclude the executive or senior levels because they do not have the ‘time’ and are focusing on ‘important’ areas of the business. When this happens, it is a clear example of a lack of understanding of how integral DEI is to the day-to-day workings of any organisation. When you are facing problems with a lack of performance, customer or stakeholder complaints, or low sales, how will you know if some of the root causes are not related to inclusion or exclusion, which inevitably impact productivity? Leaders need to engage with staff and unearth underlying issues. You cannot separate DEI from the way you conduct your business. Staff take their cues from senior leadership, and if you are not leading by example, the DEI initiative will fail. 3. ‘Help us with workshops - that is all we need’ Effective DEI work is systemic. It is not a ‘tick the box’ quick workshop approach. There is nothing wrong with needing only workshops from your DEI provider if you are doing the steps internally and are following a process with clear milestones and know how to measure impact along the way. My experience is that there are many organisations who believe that workshops are the panacea to everything. Even if you were to commit to taking everyone through workshops, your efforts will not be sustainable if you do not approach this as a whole system change process. DEI in the Global South | Edition 1
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