Imagine Belonging at Work: Recent Episodes
Rhodes Perry
If you have ever felt disconnected, excluded, or that you just didn’t matter at work, then this podcast is for you.
Your host, Rhodes Perry, bestselling author of Imagine Belonging, connects you with inclusive leaders, visionaries, and change makers. This show was created for people like you – inclusive leaders, DEI professionals, visionaries, and change makers.
In this podcast, we dare to imagine workplace cultures that have yet to exist…until now. It recognizes that leading this kind of transformative work can be both thrilling and intimidating.
You’ll hear inspiring stories from inclusive leaders who have boldly imagined a new way to lead, build teams, and structure the future of work.
You’ll learn how they moved beyond their limiting beliefs, giving themselves permission to envision and then build an enduring culture of belonging at work.
This kind of proven visioning work results in powerful individual and organizational transformation.
During your daily commute, workout, or leisure time, allow Rhodes Perry to share actionable advice, and introduce you to some of the today’s most inspiring DEI thought leaders, all while modeling ways to lead with vulnerability as they bring their full selves to these conversations.
Each episode explores the journey of the successful inclusive leader who reflects on the ups and downs of building belonging at work, all in an effort to inspire you to take action, and unapologetically bring as much of your authentic self to work, as you desire.
In the years before the signing of the U.S. Constitution, framers like James Madison and Thomas Jefferson were vocal about the idea that a person’s civil rights should not depend on their religious opinions. They believed everyone should be free to profess and argue for any view on matters of religion and that no one’s legal rights should depend on those views.
Their words laid the foundation for the First Amendment, which Thomas Jefferson described as “a wall between the separation of church and state.” Since then, several attempts have been made at the federal level to expand these protections. For example, in 1993, Congress adopted the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which was later overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1997.
More recently, states responded by passing their own versions of this law despite Constitutional protections for religious freedom enshrined in the First Amendment. Some believe the states’ actions were thinly veiled responses to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling requiring all states to legalize same-sex marriage and recognize same-sex unions from other states.
These legal battles over religious freedom aren’t isolated incidents. They impact many parts of U.S. society, including the workplace. Increasingly, more employees are bringing their faith into the workplace, expecting greater accommodations. Research shows that religious discrimination is growing faster than claims of gender or racial discrimination at work. Recognizing the U.S. workforce is composed of people who hold many different faith and non-faith beliefs, it begs the question:
Does faith belong at work?
To help us explore this big question, I’m thrilled to introduce you to Jelisa Dallas, CEO of Go Brace LLC. Jelisa equips individuals and organizations with the emotional intelligence required to break barriers, bolster belief, and build behaviors that optimize life for true belonging. Jelisa has a background in education and has developed resilience programming for nonprofit organizations, historically underrepresented communities, and for-profit and public institutions.
During our conversation, you'll:
- Discover how to cultivate “true belonging” for all employees, regardless of their religious beliefs or lack thereof.
- Learn why religious discrimination is rising and access practical strategies to help organizations minimize risk.
- Gain insights to respect personal religious beliefs while limiting the risks of creating a hostile environment for those with different beliefs by focusing on organizational values.
This conversation is designed to support visionary leaders like you and those on their way to joining us. Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Jelisa, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community. This community of practice is committed to putting our values of belonging, collective care, and collaboration into action. Members have the unique opportunity to connect with guests like Jelisa for 1:1 laser coaching sessions.
Join the Belonging Movement by subscribing to our newsletter: www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe
Learn more about Go Brave LLC: https://jelisadallas.com/
Thanks for growing our #BelongingMovement!
You may have heard the phrase, or you may have said it yourself, we have to see it to be it. The phrase underscores the importance of possibility models, a concept I wrote about in my first book, Belonging at Work. To be a possibility model means that you are providing an example of future scenarios for a person who holds a shared core identity central to who you are.
Simply by living your life, you provide inspiration for people within communities you belong to by offering a new way for them to visualize alternative futures for what could also be possible for them. Your existence, and the path you forge, provides the motivation for others to climb up the ladder of opportunity you have graciously dropped down to support their journey.
For underrepresented people in the workplace, including LGBTQ+ employees, the simple act of being seen can engender powerful feelings, especially if these groups feel neglected, overlooked, and underestimated. Recognition is a necessary precondition to feeling a sense of belonging at work, and when a group of people are valued for the lived experiences they bring into the workplace, they are more productive, innovative, and engaged.
Given that belonging is the prerequisite for business success, I am fortunate to talk with Sarah Tinkler, to explore one of the core ingredients to building belonging at work. The interview examines this key question: How does being an openly LGBTQ+ advisor at NM shape her own interactions with fellow LGBTQ+ clients?
For those unfamiliar with Sarah, she is a financial planning entrepreneur associated with Northwestern Mutual since July 2006. She is also a Forrest-inspired yoga instructor, certified life coach, and certified personal trainer. Sarah blends those passions together with a refreshingly soul-nourishing approach to visioning, analysis, planning, and guiding her clients' assets so they can live abundantly, authentically, and be ready to jump at the next aligned opportunity the Universe throws their way.
Together, during our conversation, you will:
- Learn why one of the preconditions for feeling a sense of belonging starts with being recognized, respected, and valued.
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Gain strategies on how you can be a possibility model for communities you belong to that can help your organization more fully represent the communities it serves.
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Recognize the value add LGBTQ+ employees bring into your own organization..
This interview was designed to support people like you - visionary leaders, and those on their way to joining us. Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Sarah, be sure to join our Belonging Membership Community - a community of practice committed to putting our values of belonging, community, and collaboration into action. Members have the unique opportunity to connect with guests like Sarah for 1:1 laser coaching sessions.
For LGBTQ+ friendly financial planning services, get in touch with Sarah Tinkler at: https://www.northwesternmutual.com/financial/advisor/sarah-a-tinkler/ You can also find her on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahtinkler.
Imagine belonging with our community when you join the Belonging Movement Newsletter: www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe.
Why build spaces of belonging at work? After all, your company is likely investing in technology products to reduce overhead and increase returns. It’s investing in new products and services to increase market share. It’s also likely investing in advertising to increase brand awareness and positioning. In short, you invest in building belonging at work, because the people working at your company are at the end of the day, your greatest asset.
Tragically, most of the people working in U.S.-based companies (64%) experience “non-belonging,” and suffer from what the current U.S. Surgeon General labels an “Epidemic of Loneliness.” Left unchecked, this form of exclusion comes at an annual price tag of $1.05 trillion dollars due to lost productivity, high turnover, and employee disengagement. This is a problem that is especially vexing for LGBTQ+ employees, and a spirited commitment to building belonging at work can help solve.
So what will it take to build this kind of culture and prioritize the people in your business & innovation strategy? It starts with creating a shared foundation of psychological safety and trust, particularly for those within your organization most likely to experience the sting of social exclusion. These foundational prerequisites for building belonging are necessary to ensure that more of our workforce experiences the coveted emotional outcome of belonging.
It’s for this reason I sat down with Natalie Le. Natalie knows what it takes to benefit from a workplace prioritizing building spaces of belonging at work for their LGBTQ+ employees. Natalie currently serves as the Growth & Development Director at Northwestern Mutual in San Jose. As a dedicated leader, Natalie is a strong advocate for multicultural and LGBTQ+ communities within the corporate sphere.
Recently, Natalie was a featured speaker at the 2024 Multicultural Affinity Summit, where she participated in the "Playing Bigger & Multiplying Impact" Leadership Panel. Alongside two other successful LGBTQ+ leaders, she shared her personal experiences and challenges, inspiring attendees to amplify their local impact and gain effective tools and language for advocacy. Natalie's commitment to inclusion and development continues to uplift and empower those around her.
This interview was designed to support people like you - visionary leaders, and those on their way to joining us. Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Natalie, be sure to join our Belonging Membership Community - a community of practice committed to putting our values of belonging, community, and collaboration into action. Members have the unique opportunity to connect with guests like Natalie for 1:1 laser coaching sessions.
Imagine belonging with fellow visionary leaders when you join the Belonging Movement Newsletter: www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe.
For LGBTQ+ friendly financial planning services, get in touch with Natalie at: https://www.northwesternmutual.com/financial/advisor/natalie-le/
Allies. In workplace settings, there are times when most of us need them. Consider this scenario; you’re in a meeting, and you’re about to take a calculated risk to share an unpopular idea. As soon as you complete your thought, one of your colleagues quickly responds, complimenting you on your idea, and asking you to share more. That’s an act of allyship.
Conversely, in that very same meeting, you can take an act of allyship by showing up for a different colleague when another person says something unskillful to them. Without a beat, you can simply say, “You just said [insert statement]. Could you explain more specifically what you meant?” That simple response should do the trick to shine a light on the harm they caused.
When it comes to showing up for your LGBTQ+ colleagues, acts of allyship in workplace settings are life-saving. They help build the foundation of increased safety and trust that can get more of LGBTQ+ employees closer to experiencing that elusive sense of belonging at work. Yet, for some of the budding LGBTQ+ allies out there, being an authentic ally causes some pause. Some may ask themselves, “what if I cause even more harm,” and instead retreat into silence.
To help build up the confidence and skills of these emerging LGBTQ+ workplace allies, I have the pleasure of connecting with Sara Samuels (she/her) and Kenneth Wilson (they/he). If you’re unfamiliar with Sara, she leads a fee-for-advice and wealth management planning practice, serving clients in 42 states and 8 countries as a means to be an advocate for financial empowerment for all. Building belonging cultures through helping people have ownership over their relationship to money will be my greatest legacy.
Sara works closely with Kenneth K Wilson who is an associate advisor, drag performer, and artist in Philadelphia, PA. For the past five years, they’ve spent their financial career building up clients from diverse backgrounds, helping them unlearn negative financial habits and biases, set up financial stability, and achieve financial and lifestyle goals through solid planning. In that time, Kenneth’s carved out a niche working with creatives like musicians and drag performers, business owners, and LGBTQ+ couples and families.
Together, during our conversation, you will:
- Learn why performative acts of allyship, or merely calling yourself an ally, without taking any action is the fastest way to erode the trust of your LGBTQ+ colleagues.
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Gain fresh insights on accessible actions you can take to show up as an LGBTQ+ ally - some of these are more easy and significant than you think.
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Explore new allyship practices you can test out with close friends and family members to to build up the confidence necessary to overcome the comfort of silence.
This interview was designed to support people like you - visionary leaders, and those on their way to joining us. Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Sara & Kenneth, be sure to join our Belonging Membership Community - a community of practice committed to putting our values of belonging, community, and collaboration into action. Members have the unique opportunity to connect with guests like Sara & Kenneth for 1:1 laser coaching sessions.
Imagine belonging with fellow visionary leaders when you join the Belonging Movement Newsletter: www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe.
For LGBTQ+ friendly financial planning services, get in touch with Sara Samuels at www.sara-samuels.com, or email Kenneth Wilson at kenneth.k.wilson@nm.com.
Welcome to the Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast brought to you by Rhodes Perry Consulting. The episode you’re about to hear is a special gift to help ease what psychologists and researchers have identified as a specific kind of anxiety; election anxiety.
To ease election anxiety, the show’s host, Rhodes Perry, developed a 10-minute mindfulness practice designed to help you self-regulate, ground, and soothe political anxieties that are running high this season given the uncertainty about what’s on the 2025 horizon.
You’re invited to try this practice to help you build capacity to increase your well-being and ignite creativity and connection at work. It’s designed to deliver the medicine you need to heal some of these harsh realities many are experiencing this season:
- 73% of U.S. adults say they are anxious about the election according to the results of the 2024 American Psychiatric Association's annual mental health poll.
- 65% of employees surveyed over the summer by the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) said they have experienced or witnessed incivility on the job in the past month.
- 34% of employees surveyed by SHRM believe that the November 5th elections will trigger additional incivility in the workplace.
You and I know all too well that election anxiety is very real and undermines our commitment to building a sense of belonging at work, where everyone feels seen, connected, supported, and proud. And we know we need to build spaces of belonging at work because it is no longer a moral imperative; rather it is a prerequisite for business success.
During this episode, you’ll be able to recognize where to locate your own sense of belonging. Specifically, you’ll recognize:
- Belonging Lives in the Body. Feelings of belonging live in our nervous system, and somatics practices can help cultivate a sense of belonging.
- Safety & Trust are Foundational. Feeling safety and trust are the foundation for belonging, and during this practice you will explore where they are present in your life.
- Belonging is a Practice: Actively engaging in practices like this one will help rewire you brain to notice where belonging does and does not exist in your everyday life.
This interview was designed to support people like you - visionary leaders, and those on their way to joining us. Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to engage in practices like these, be sure to explore Rhodes Perry Consulting’s Coaching Belonging for Visionaries, a 6-month executive coaching program applying a somatics methodology to help you align your behaviors with your leadership and career vision.
Learn more about this program here: https://rhodesperry.substack.com/p/belonging-the-1-prerequisite-for
Connect directly with Team Belonging here: www.rhodesperry.com/contact.
Get more belonging in your inbox here: www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe
On July 9th, in a statement on LinkedIn, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), announced its decision to drop the "E" from DEI. SHRM is the world's largest HR association dedicated to creating better workplaces that "work for all," and positions itself as being "the voice of all things work."
SHRM's statement on LinkedIn said:
"While we shift to I&D, our commitment to advancing equity remains steadfast. Equity will be integrated under the broader inclusion framework, continuing to be a priority in our strategy and leadership decisions."
If you have read my most recent book, Imagine Belonging, you know the true ingredients required to make a commitment – one of those ingredients is being able to say out loud what you are committed to. Using this logic...a commitment to equity can't be real if we're afraid to say it.
When the announcement was first made, I immediately knew who I wanted to talk to...the person who wrote the bestselling book on the topic of equity, Minal Bopaiah.
Minal had a lot to share, and as she was offering her take, I thought to myself, "why not turn this exchange into a podcast episode?" When I invited Minal to the show, she was all in!
I’m excited to welcome you to this exclusive interview with Minal Bopaiah, Brevity & Wit Founder and bestselling author of Equity. Minal combines her experiences and interests in human-design, DEI, psychology, and strategic communications to help her clients achieve the change they desire.
During our conversation, you'll:
--Discover why prioritizing inclusive behaviors alone will set your colleagues up for failure if they lack the systems and structures to support these practices.
--Explore the unintended consequences of SHRM’s decision on entire programs, positions, and departments that have the word "equity" in their titles.
--Gain insights on how to respond to objections and push back that employers and colleagues may have, feeling emboldened because of SHRM's recent decision.
Today’s conversation is designed to support people like you – visionary people leaders, and those on their way to joining us. Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Minal, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community.
The Belonging Membership Community is a practice space where we can try putting our shared values of belonging, community, collaboration, and joy into action. Members have the unique opportunity to connect with guests like Minal for 1:1 laser coaching sessions.
Join the community here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com
Stay connected with Rhodes: www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe
Learn more about Minal’s book Equity: https://theequitybook.com/.
Thanks for growing our #BelongingMovement!
Nearly a decade ago, the State of North Carolina enacted HB2, the first statewide anti-trans bathroom bill introduced in the United States. It required transgender people to use public restrooms inconsistent with their gender identity, which sparked widespread political backlash and severe economic consequences. Estimates suggest the legislation costs the state almost $5 billion annually.
Since that time, nearly every state across the country has attempted to pass similar, or even more restrictive laws. In just the past two years, we’ve seen over 1,000 anti-LGBTQ+ bills - many of which target the lives and well-being of transgender children. As a result, a growing number of families are uprooting their lives and relocating to more supportive and affirming states.
While public policy over the past two decades has led to significant legislative wins for LGBTQ+ people – the freedom to marry, the ability to openly serve in the military, and protections against hate crimes - these basic freedoms are under siege, and this assault is having adverse impacts on our workplaces.
Many businesses have met these legislative efforts with formal rebukes from chambers of commerce, business advocacy organizations, and at shareholder meetings. Yet, many business leaders struggle with how to effectively communicate why pride at work is essential for their businesses to grow into the future. If you’re among this group of leaders, you’re in the right place.
Our featured guest, Erin Uritus is here to help. Erin is the CEO of Out & Equal, which is the premier nonprofit working to advance LGBTQ+ representation, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the workplace, and beyond. She is a passionate advocate for creating diverse and thriving workplaces where everyone can reach their full potential. During our conversation, you will:
---Discover the alarming impact of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, which is causing a talent exodus and hindering business growth.
---Gain insights from a recent Out & Equal report, Talent on the Move, revealing the needs and expectations of LGBTQ+ employees in today's climate.
---Explore actions business leaders can take to gain a competitive advantage by doing the right thing and investing in LGBTQ+ DEIB interventions to enjoy business growth.
Our conversation is designed to support people like you – visionary people leaders, and those on their way to joining us. Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Erin, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of practice committed to putting our values of belonging, community, and collaboration in action. Members have the unique opportunity to connect with guests like Erin for 1:1 laser coaching sessions.
Join the community here: belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Stay connected with Rhodes here: www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe
Learn more about Out & Equal here: www.outandequal.org
Thanks for growing our #BelongingMovement!
Do you ever feel like you're stuck in a professional persona? You show up, put your head down, and power through the workday, but a nagging sense of inauthenticity lingers. Maybe you crave deeper connections with colleagues, or you dream of a career that aligns with your true values. Here's the good news: authenticity isn't just about feeling good at work; it's the key to unlocking a more fulfilling and successful professional life.
Yet, the idea of being your authentic self at work might sound daunting. After all, wouldn't that mean sharing every quirky detail of your personality? The good news is authenticity isn't about unfiltered self-disclosure. It's about bringing your core values, strengths, and passions to the table in a way that feels appropriate for the situation.
Think of authenticity as the foundation of trust. When you show up as your authentic self, you create an environment where others may consider doing the same. Yet when you lack the agency, or the choice to determine how much of your real self you want to bring into your work, authenticity won’t be an option. And if authenticity isn’t an option, then growing trust, the ultimate business currency, won’t be an option either.
Agency is about power, and naturally, those of us who hold more power at work may treat authenticity as a dial that you can turn up or down depending on how relevant a personal detail is to the work at hand. Yet for those of us who hold less power at work, showing up as our real selves on the job is not a choice – it’s a liability. So how do we grow our collective agency to realize the authenticity advantage?
Fortunately, today’s featured guest, Don Mamone, offers their insights on this episode of the Imagine Belonging Podcast. Don is a renowned identity coach who teaches others how to reach their maximum potential and impact by discovering and embracing their true identity. As a nonbinary person, Don supports their clients build safer spaces that support and encourage unapologetic authenticity.
Don will explain how authenticity can lead to increased trust with your colleagues, leading to better feedback, career development opportunities, and potentially even promotions. You'll also learn how authentic connections with colleagues can create a more positive and supportive work environment, boosting your overall well-being and happiness.
This conversation is specifically designed to support organizational leaders, DEIB practitioners, and HR professionals seeking everyday actions they can take to maximize the power of the authenticity advantage. During this conversation, we will gain:
--Strategies to balance authenticity with professionalism.
--Fresh ideas to bring your authentic self to work.
--Answers for why genuine connections are essential for success.
--Awareness of how authenticity builds trust with your manager and colleagues.
--Practical tips to identify your values & translate them into your career.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Don, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders, visionaries, and change makers committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our featured thought leaders 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private laser coaching session with our guests.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
And now…let’s jump into today’s conversation…
In the wake of last year’s Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action, certain media personalities and recalcitrant business leaders have falsely claimed that “DEI is dead.” This claim may very well be true for the businesses that were never serious about setting this work up to succeed.
Yet, for businesses that want to remain relevant for the workforce and customers of the future, many are doubling down on their commitment. In fact, 75% of HR leaders believe DEI interventions are a crucial strategy to prepare for the future of work, which may be why 60% are increasing their DEI investments in 2024.
While the demand for DEI interventions remains high, employers are seeking evidence and evaluation that these interventions are working. They want to know if the needle is moving in the direction of building healthier workplace cultures and diverse teams, which lead to better decisions, innovative ideas, business success, and even industry breakthroughs.
So how do we design and evaluate the effectiveness of our work? Given the volatile, uncertain, and complex times we are living through, it’s first important to ask better questions, starting with what kind of interventions does this current moment demand, and how can we link those interventions to our organization’s broader strategic goals?
Fortunately, McKensie Mack, founder of MMG Earth offers their insights on this episode of the Imagine Belonging Podcast. McKensie’s company recently partnered with Catalyst, a global nonprofit designed to accelerate progress for women through workplace inclusion, to design the Virtue Economy survey to better understand how organizational leaders, DEI practitioners, and other change-makers continue to learn grow and evolve as they strive to build healthier workplace cultures in the face of systemic and political adversity.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/953FGN2
McKensie is a leading voice on power, politics, and pop culture in a global marketplace. A trilingual tech enthusiast, future economist, and award-winning entrepreneur from the Southside of Chicago, they are the Founder and CEO of MMG EARTH, the first Black and nonbinary-led research and change management firm in the U.S. and Boundary Work, a public service platform dedicated to raising collective awareness on boundaries and offering educational information for the betterment of culture, systems, and society.
This conversation is specifically designed to support organizational leaders, DEIB practitioners, HR professionals, and other people leaders seeking everyday actions they can take to better assess the kind of L&D required to support, grow, and nurture leaders to advance their DEI interventions to build healthier workplace cultures.
Together, we will:
--Learn about the Virtue Economy and how it’s influencing our workplace culture.
--Strategies on how to assess the kind of L&D support org leaders and DEI professionals need.
--Actions required to survey such a large group of professionals, and ways we can support.
--Ways to leverage the MMG World & Catalyst report to ensure our DEI interventions succeed.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like McKensie, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders, visionaries, and change-makers committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our featured thought leaders 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private laser coaching session with our guests.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
And now…let’s jump into today’s conversation…
Talking through tough issues at work can help initiate change and influence others by presenting different perspectives and approaches to solving problems. When we engage in healthy debate and work through conflict, our team is much closer to realizing its next innovative idea, product, or service.
Yet when we engage in challenging conversations, they have the potential of straining our professional relationships. They can also erode our health and well-being. As a result, many of us are conflict-avoidant, and there are good evolutionary reasons we exercise caution when conflict arises.
Our brains are wired to keep us safe from harm. When conflict arises, internal alarm bells ring loud, and we cling to what feels most comfortable. Tension arises, and psychological safety deteriorates. Specifically, we may fear negative consequences should we engage in a challenging conversation where we are uncertain of the outcome.
So how do we build the stamina required to talk through tough issues that arise at work when our instinct is to run in the opposite direction? Meaningful dialogue in any form requires two key ingredients: 1) risk, and 2) vulnerability. Risk arises because we are uncertain of the outcome, and vulnerability is necessary to maintain our presence as the dialogue continues to unfold.
Fortunately, this episode’s featured thought leader, Dr. Elisa Glick, will offer suggestions based on her deep experience about how to create and maintain the conditions required to skillfully talk through tough issues at work.
Dr. Glick is a DEIB consultant, thought leader, and inclusive teaching expert. She is the first openly gay faculty member specializing in queer studies to be tenured at the University of Missouri, where she is Associate Professor Emerita. As the Founder and President of Elisa Glick Consulting, Elisa helps leaders and teams to have courageous conversations, overcome barriers to connection, and foster trust and collaboration.
This conversation is specifically designed to support executive leaders, DEIB practitioners, HR professionals, and other people leaders seeking everyday actions they can take to tame the tension that often arises when dialogue around tough issues is required. Together, we will explore:
---Strategies on how to override the brain’s instinct to avoid conflict at all costs.
---Actions required to frame the conversation and establish community agreements.
---Behaviors that promote a shared sense of trust among participants in the dialogue.
---Ways to repair the environment if the trust they have created is eventually tested.
https://elisaglick.com/blogtest
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elisa-glick-phd Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Dr. Elisa Glick, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEIB goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our featured thought leaders 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private laser coaching session with our guests.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Are you concerned about the #InclusiveLeadership skills gap in today's workforce? Are you curious about how to change this reality? You're not alone.
In this year’s State of the Union, President Biden mentioned a recent meeting he had with nearly all Fortune 500 CEOs. He asked them what they needed most.
They unequivocally said, "a better-educated workforce." Yet many of these same CEOs resist making investments in their L&D programs, with 51% saying they are:
"A waste of time."
Past learning workshops my company delivered have enumerated the significant ROI gained from these programs, including higher engagement and retention rates. We’ve also discussed the C-Suite's responsibility in up-skilling their workforce.
Yet, to what degree of responsibility does the U.S. education system also have when it comes to equipping the next generation with inclusive leadership skills?
To answer this BIG question, Rhodes had a thought-provoking discussion with Rebecca Kling to explore the roles both businesses and the education system play in building a future-ready workforce.
Rebecca is the co-author of The Advocate Educator's Handbook, and is the co-founder of A Better World Collaborative. In this episode, you'll discover:
1) The surprising truth behind why CEOs might see learning programs as a "waste of time."
2) How recent legislative attacks on critical race theory (CRT), LGBTQ+ inclusive and book bans harm future leaders.
3) The alarming rise in school bullying and its impact on students' social-emotional skills (3).
4) Practical strategies for equipping younger generations with the leadership skills needed to thrive in a diverse workplace.
The conversation is a value-add for C-suite executives, DEIB professionals, social justice champions, and anyone passionate about building belonging at work.
Don't miss your chance to connect with a nationally renowned expert on this latest episode of the podcast.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Rebecca, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of inclusive leaders committed to advancing their DEIB goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
To connect with Rebecca Kling please visit: www.rebeccakling.com.
The Advocate Educator website, Better World Collaborative
Many listen to this podcast to gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence to build a workplace where we feel seen, connected, supported, and have a sense of pride on the job – these elements are what it takes to build belonging. To achieve this emotional outcome of belonging, we must be willing to explore and appreciate other people’s worldviews. This exploration includes getting curious about the worldviews of others who may be opposed to our own – especially the values we hold closest to our hearts.
Learning about another person’s worldview encourages us to practice sonder, the realization that each random person you pass is living a life as vivid and complex as your own. Sonder reminds us that each person’s world is filled with their ambitions, friends, fears, routines, joys, beliefs, and behaviors, and until we engage in a respectful dialogue…this rich inner world is 100% invisible to us.
Now in our Belonging Membership Community, we have the opportunity to practice the art of sonder. When we practice sonder, it aligns with our community’s shared value of seeing the humanity in another person, even when we don’t agree with their worldviews. Practicing sonder helps us hone one of the peacebuilding skills many DEIB leaders have, which is the ability to understand human behavior…as unpredictable as it may be…
And today, we have the pleasure of learning from Diana Cutaia, Founder of Coaching Peace Consulting, who will share what it takes to build peace at work and beyond. She will share why these skills are so critical considering the current cultural and political environment we are living through. Diana founded her practice in 2012, with the goal of creating positive and safe cultures that empower its members to lead with empathy and understanding.
Together, our conversation supports DEIB professionals, along with other executives, and those on their way to joining us, by sharing her coaching philosophy and why peacebuilding skills are necessary for current and future workplace leaders. Topics explored during this episode include:
--Diana’s calling to explore the meaning of peace earlier in her life.
--The power of play and connection to cultivate cultures of peace.
--Tactical strategies build cultures that feel like they were designed for you.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Dr. Carter, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEIB goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
Website: https://coachingpeace.com/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/coachingpeacelive/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dianacutaia/
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Dorothy Enriquez, Founder of the Ellevate Collective, shares her wisdom about what's required to change the face of leadership to fully reflect today's workforce.
Workplace demographics are rapidly changing. Researchers predict that somewhere between 2045 to 2050 the US will become a majority-minority nation. This reality impacts all aspects of our lives, including the face of leadership in our workplaces.
Many executive teams I work with recognize this shift. They want to build inclusive workplaces that fully reflect these shifting demographics. Yet, many feel overwhelmed because they are uncertain where to begin. They juggle competing priorities. First, they must transform their current workplace culture to prepare for this future workforce. Second, they also must develop the next and most diverse generation of U.S. leaders.
In the Belonging Membership Community, we recognize that the next generation of leaders expect so much more from their workplaces and their career velocity. They hold high expectations for their employees, and status-quo companies refusing to transform their cultures consistently fail to meet them. They also recognize to fully prepare for the future, the face of leadership – and the way we lead - must also change.
Fortunately, I had the opportunity to chat with, Dorothy Enriquez, Founder of the Elevate Collective on the latest episode of the Imagine Belonging podcast. Dorthy generously offered tangible solutions for leaders who recognize the opportunity this moment presents. As a 15-year corporate veteran and author of Be Accountable, Be Fabulous, Dorothy helps leaders maximize their influence across all levels.
Listen Here
Watch Here
Together, our conversation supports inclusive leaders, visionaries, change makers, DEIB professionals, and social justice champions of all backgrounds and identities as we imagine and build the future of leadership. Some topics we explored include:
--Naming specific trends reshaping the face of leadership.
--Overcoming anti-Blackness hindering career velocity for Black professionals.
--Holding ourselves and other executives accountable to lead with our stated values.
--Distinguishing the roles your sponsors, mentors, allies, and cheerleaders play.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Dorothy, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of inclusive leaders - and those on their way to joining us - committed to advancing their DEIB goals, practicing community care, and activating their belonging vision.
Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests, established thought leaders like Dorothy Enriquez, 1:1 after our live podcast recordings. There they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guests.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Check out our next live podcast recording by joining our complimentary Belonging at Work Facebook or LinkedIn communities.
To connect with Dorothy Enriquez and enjoy 15% of The Ellevate Collective products, please visit: www.theellevatecollective.com, and use the promo code: belong15
Thanks for growing our #BelongingMovement!
In 2020, current US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy authored a powerful treatise on the impact of loneliness and the benefits of human connection. Drawing on rich science, compelling personal stories, and beautiful prose, it explores the high costs of loneliness and considers how individuals, societies, and governments can tackle the problem by promoting human connection by building a belonging society.
The book discovered one of the most common underlying themes of ill health was loneliness, without exemption by wealth, education, or accomplishments. The Surgeon General labeled this as an epidemic and said, “Loneliness and isolation have been an underappreciated public health crisis that has harmed individual and societal health.” He went on to say that human relationships – connection and belonging – are the medicine that can allow us to heal and live healthier, more fulfilled, and productive lives.
Now in our Belonging Membership Community, we recognize that one important ingredient to building this belonging society is the role of the workplace. Sadly, building belonging cultures at work has yet to take root – it’s a stretch for some of us to even permit ourselves to imagine what a belonging workplace can look and feel like on a full sensory level. As George Washington Carver once said, without vision, there can be no hope.
Fortunately, today we are joined by Cordell Carter, the Aspen Institute’s Founding Director, who will us imagine what a belonging society can be, and we’ll explore how the workplace can play a key role in activating this vision. Cordell is a transformative leader in championing democracy, DEIB, and promoting the greater good. His career journey is as diverse as it is impressive, spanning roles at the White House, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and IBM.
Together, our conversation supports DEIB professionals, along with other executives, and those on their way to joining us, by sharing his belonging society vision. He will also share practical strategies on how our workplaces can play a role into making this vision a reality. Topics explored during this episode include:
--Cordell’s calling to serve as the Founding Director of the Aspen Institute’s Project on Belonging.
--The importance of having a vision, even if that vision feels elusive, and how it can make what feels impossible become a reality.
--The threat of not addressing the global epidemic on exclusion and loneliness, and how building a belonging society and upend it.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/cordellcarterii/
https://www.aspeninstitute.org/people/cordell-carter-ii/
https://expectantadvisory.com/#about
https://www.festivalofthediaspora.org/
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Cordell, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEIB goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
And now…let’s jump into today’s conversation…
The different people, cultures, and ideas stitched throughout the fabric of your organization are at the end of the day your most powerful assets. Your workplace has the capacity to embrace all parts of these powerful differences, and the CEOs who recognize this truth will have a competitive advantage moving into the future of work.
CEOs who sponsor their organization’s DEIB commitments say the need for these programs is stronger than ever given the stubbornly persistent inequities that create challenges to recruit top talent – including younger generations that demand working at organizations committed to building belonging at work.
Over the past 3 years, many workplaces have made significant investments to establish and advance their DEIB commitments. Sadly, some of these efforts have lost momentum, primarily due to politicians, courts, and sometimes customers challenging this work with false claims. These claims overlook over four decades of research and case studies underscoring the significant return on investment DEIB programs deliver to improve a company's profits, employee engagement, and customer loyalty.
The increasing polarization of DEIB interventions spawns new and unexpected challenges, which is why we are hosting this very important conversation with Paolo Gaudiano. Paolo is the Founder and Chief Scientist of Aleria, an impact startup that measures inclusion to help organizations have happier employees and superior financial performance – without guesswork or backlash.
Together, our conversation supports DEIB professionals, along with other executives, and those on their way to joining us, by offering practical strategies to diffuse today’s backlash. Topics explored during this episode include:
--Paolo’s calling to write his forthcoming book, “Measuring Inclusion: Higher Profits & Happier People, Without Guesswork or Backlash.”
--The power of metrics capable of measuring the impact of DEIB interventions to help diffuse backlash and inform a strategic and beneficial approach that centers the workforce.
--The harms anti-DEIB legislation inflicts upon good business practices and employee morale, and how DEIB professionals can proactively respond to the backlash that left unchecked harms progress.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Paolo, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEIB goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/pgaudiano
https://www.aleria.tech/
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
And now…let’s jump into today’s conversation…
Somatic practices, or body intelligence (BQ), offer an antidote to compassion fatigue and burnout. These practices help us locate and release stress, tension, and trauma by becoming more aware of the felt sensations within our bodies. This inner wisdom also has the potential to help us become more resilient and self-compassionate at a time of massive disruption and break-neck change on a global scale.
Somatic practices can be especially beneficial for those of us at the forefront of social justice movements – particularly for those of us who have lived experiences of racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, and other forms of oppression. These practices can be especially healing for DEIB practitioners like us. They offer support in the following ways:
--Grounding and connecting with our inner strength and body intelligence.
--Developing healthier coping mechanisms for dealing with stress and trauma.
--Cultivating more compassion and understanding for ourselves and others.
If you are interested in learning more about the power of somatic practices and how they can help you build resiliency as you advance your DEIB goals during these transformative times, then join us on Thursday, October 26 at 10 am Pacific Time for a live podcast recording with Sarah Rimmel, Founder of Slow Integration Coaching, along with members of our Belonging Community. https://youtube.com/live/-pR99Tc7Gz0
As the Founder of Slow Integration Coaching, Sarah is deeply committed to the belonging ingredient of support – ensuring that each person on our team gets what they need so that they can do their best work. As an ICF-certified somatic coach, team coach, facilitator, and intercultural development educator, Sarah supports DEIB professionals and BIPOC people in centering their mental, spiritual, physical, and emotional well-being while doing the external work they are committed to. https://www.instagram.com/slowintegrationcoaching/
Together, our conversation supports DEIB professionals, along with other inclusive leaders, to become more aware of our bodies’ intelligence and deep wisdom. Topics explored include:
--Sarah’s calling to leave a career in higher education to support DEIB professionals in avoiding and overcoming the harms of burnout, so that they can continue to support others.
--The power of how somatic practices can support us as we seek belonging and healing in our relationship with ourselves and those surrounding us.
--Somatic practices we can use in our personal and professional practice to help us embrace compassion for ourselves and those we interact with daily.
https://linktr.ee/SarahRimmel
https://www.sarahrimmel.com
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Sarah, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEIB goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Do you struggle with finding a common language that can help bring people together, especially those who often disagree with one another, hold different beliefs, and become defensive when conflicting values arise at work?
Then you’ll want to tune into this episode where you’ll have the chance to learn more about Leah’s Kyaio’s newest book, Between the Bars. Her book offers a powerful foundation to help you successfully engage in meaningful, difficult, and uncomfortable conversations that when done well, can help us move forward.
Leah Kyaio has dedicated the past 25 years of her life supporting business and community leaders successfully engage in challenging conversations like these. She identifies as Two-Skinned, having a Blackfoot Native American mother and an Appalachian white father. These identities inform her work about privilege and oppression and are amplified in much of her work, including this book.
During this episode, Leah and Rhodes discuss the Cage of Oppression Framework featured in Between the Bars to explore critical concepts such as privilege, internalized oppression, and strategies to embrace acts of allyship that will help us consciously recognize and value different perspectives when we gather together at work.
A few key highlights from this conversation include:
--Exploring how Leah’s Two-Skinned identity helps informs the way she connects with audiences when discussing complex topics such as privilege and oppression.
--Identifying why having a shared language when discussing oppression is critical, and also recognizing some of the barriers we are up against when trying to create one at work.
--Naming the skills we need to develop that will help us neutralize the problematic behaviors that arise when challenging conversations arise that spark disagreement, conflict, and defensiveness.
--Underscoring the importance of inclusive behaviors and learning strategies to begin engaging in skill practice to embody them at work (and beyond).
--Recognizing what has gone wrong with most DEI learning programs, and ways to course correct by following the adult learning process.
--Sharing guidance on how leaders can make it safe to make mistakes and learn from them as they engage move from awkward practice to more skill practice.
--Offering strategies on ways DEI professionals can utilize the Cage of Oppression to engage in challenging conversations about power, privilege, and oppression.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders Leah, be sure to check out the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members of our community have the opportunity to participate in live podcast recordings and engage in a private Q&A session after the recording is complete. Your membership is appreciated as it helps make this podcast possible.
You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
What are you are about to hear is a recording from a Pride Panel Conversation we held in June. Given the current cultural climate and the reality that the lives of LGBTQ+ people are being politicized for nefarious reasons, I wanted to amplify the discussion and strategies shared earlier this year because the knowledge and skills discussed are simply too important to leave in our archives. Rather, we wanted to democratize this valuable information to enhance your own diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) practice.
To help answer the question about how leading brands of choice can build gender inclusive cultures that last, I’ve shared important context below to set the stage for this dynamic conversation with leading TGX business owners and DEIB practitioners.
Since the rise of the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement in the late 1960s, the experiences of transgender, nonbinary, and gender expansive (TGX) employees in the workplace have dynamically shifted. Over these past five decades, TGX employees have benefited from workplace protections, greater social visibility, and acceptance in a growing number of workplaces.
Given all of these gains, many falsely believe transgender and gender expansive employees have equal access to jobs, promotions, and stretch assignments they are qualified for. Many more also falsely believe that trans employees can no longer be fired, denied a promotion, or even a job interview simply because of who they are.
Tragically, today’s reality presents a different story:
--According to the Human Rights Watch, “at least 9 countries have national laws criminalizing forms of gender expression that target transgender & gender expansive people.” Legal punishments vary including life imprisonment and even the death penalty.
--In the U.S., the Supreme Court ruled a landmark case in 2020 stating that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 extends protections from workplace discrimination for LGBTQ+ employees. Despite this monumental ruling, trans & gender expansive employees in the United States, particularly BIPOC trans employees, frequently endure workplace discrimination and harassment, resulting in lower job security, economic stability, and a lack of psychological safety.
--While most workplaces recognize that discrimination has no place in business, let alone society, critical gaps in legal protections still remain and create barriers to building gender inclusive cultures at work. Specifically, the U.S. still lacks a federal law protecting employees on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, and even in states and localities that do offer these protections, transforming workplace culture to fully include trans & gender expansive workers remain unfinished.
--And in 2023 alone, 574 anti-transgender bills were introduced in 49 states. This legislation attempts to block TGX people from receiving basic healthcare, education, legal recognition, and the right to public accommodations. Over 14% of these bills have already been signed into law, and their impacts reverberate throughout our country, with many trans people and their families relocating to friendlier states in an attempt to flee from anti-transgender political agendas and their negative messages.
Tragically, many leaders struggle to recognize how their businesses can be adversely impacted if they fail to respond to this moment. While many want to demonstrate their support for their TGX colleagues, many don’t know how. If you also find yourself struggling with how to avoid performative actions, and instead wish to take long-lasting actions that will help you build a gender inclusive workplace, you are in the right place. This panel discussion was created for you. The conversation we are about to have will help reduce any feelings of overwhelm, and offer concrete ideas on how to improve your workplace culture.
Fortunately, we have a dynamic group of panelists to help clarify why anti-transgender legislation is a business concern and to learn how anyone participating in today’s panel discussion can take meaningful actions to build a gender inclusive workplace. Our panelists include:
--Celia Sandhya Daniels (she/they), Founder of Rebekon Consulting
--Gavriel Legynd (he/him), CEO of Visioneer IT
--Rex Wilde (they/them), Founder of Rex Wilde Consulting
--Rhodes Perry (he/him), Host, Founder of Rhodes Perry Consulting
Together, we will explore how to move beyond performative actions and we also discuss the importance of current LGBTQ+ employees potential to ascending into the highest ranks of leadership to enjoy better company performance, accelerating the company’s DEIB commitments, and attracting new clients and vendors.
Savor this insightful conversation, and if you’re looking for ways to build gender inclusive cultures that last year round, consider joining our Belonging Membership Community by visiting: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com
According to UCLA’s Williams Institute, there are over 8 million LGBTQIA+ employees living in the United States. Tragically, nearly half of these employees have endured unfair treatment on the job at some point in their careers, with 57% of this unfair treatment motivated by religious beliefs. These experiences of discrimination are amplified for LGBTQIA+ people who are BIPOC, transgender, and those who live at these intersections.
Given these harsh realities, it’s no surprise 50% of LGBTQIA+ employees are not out to their current supervisor, and 26% are not out to anyone on the job. Covering the things that are most precious to who we are compromises our sense of safety and erodes interpersonal trust at work. Exacerbating these barriers, is a renewed anti-LGBTQIA+ legislative campaign attempting to erode the limited rights secured over the past few decades, most acutely targeting transgender and gender expansive people.
If you are committed to advancing your organization’s diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) commitments and want to do more for you LGBTQIA+ colleagues during these chilling times, the conversation you’re about to hear was created for you. During this conversation, Fiona Dawson provides an opportunity to build more solidarity within & beyond LGBTQIA+ communities, including workplace employee resource groups (ERGs).
Fiona is an Emmy®-nominated and award-winning filmmaker. She's a proud bisexual, cisgender, immigrant woman from the LGBTQIA+ community, and she is the founder and director of Free Lion Productions, where she and her team create content to make diversity, equity, and inclusion programs work. She has received many notable awards including President Obama’s LGBT Artist Champion of Change for her Emmy®-nominated short, Transgender, at War and in Love, and the 2018 SXSW Audience Award for her documentary, TransMilitary.
Together, our conversation supports DEIB professionals, along with other inclusive leaders, build stronger and psychologically safer teams across differences. Listeners like you will gain a deeper appreciation of the many dynamic cultures that exist within LGBTQIA+ communities, including workplace employee resource groups (ERGs). Topics explored include:
-Fiona’s bestselling book, Are Bisexuals Just Greedy? Animated Answers for All People Who Simply Want to Understand the Spectrum of Being LGBTQ+
-Learning how to engage the silent majority within the LGBTQIA+ community
-Recognizing the power of LGBTQIA+ solidarity within ERGs and what gets in the way
-Fiona’s vision for the future of work
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Fiona, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEIB goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Now, let’s jump into the conversation!
A good friend and colleague, Lillian Tsai, sent this quote my way last week in anticipation of this learning session from AESOP Fables: “No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”
And this topic of kindness is what we are focused on for today’s Imagine Belonging Vodcast…now…
If you were to write a list of the adjectives you use to describe your workplace, is kindness even included on the list? If so, does kindness rise to the top of that list?
The Oxford Dictionary defines kindness as "the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate."
Sounds easy enough to do, right? It's something that we all have the capacity for, and it's something that can make a big difference in our workplaces.
Why?
There are many reasons why kindness matters at work, and here are three primary benefits to consider when kindness is a shared workplace value:
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Fosters Belonging. Promoting kind behaviors at work can lead to increased safety and trust, which are the foundations for belonging at work.
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Enhances Engagement. A sense of belonging leads to higher levels of engagement resulting in more creativity, connection, and innovation.
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Improves Morale. When people feel engaged and supported by their team, they're more likely to feel valued and remain loyal to their company.
So, if we all have the capacity to embody kind behaviors at work, what gets in the way from engaging in these very accessible and simple actions?
There are three primary barriers that can block our successes to nurture kindness at work:
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Toxic competition, which manifests when we find ourselves hoarding profit, credit, and power. These behaviors arise when we compete for promotions or raises in an unhealthy manner. In these moments, it can be easy to forget about being kind to one another.
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Stress and Burnout. When employees experience high levels of stress and even burnout, they're more likely to be impatient and short-tempered, which erodes our sense of safety, trust, and belonging. This can lead to unhealthy conflict and a lack of cooperation and collaboration.
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Unconscious Bias leads to microaggressions, discrimination, and a hostile work environment, undermining a shared value of kindness. These negative behaviors can lead to people being treated unfairly, even if it is not intentional.
Despite these barriers, there are many things that we can do to foster kindness in our workplaces, and our featured guest, Preet Dev, Co-Founder and CEO of Kind-namic will share some of her wisdom with us. Preet has dedicated her career to reshaping the business landscape by infusing kindness, empathy, and conscious leadership into every aspect of organizational culture.
Together, we will discuss the role conscious leadership and spiritual wisdom can play in helping us nurture kinder, healthier workplace cultures, which has the potential of reshaping the future of work.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Preet, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has generated quite a buzz over the past few months. Given the promise of this evolving technology, many of us charged with advancing our workplace's DEI goals wonder how AI can accelerate them? Many others exercise caution, recognizing the many ethical pitfalls AI can have if those who create & implement it are unable or refuse to mitigate their biases.
If you're ready for a conversation about AI’s power, pitfalls, and impact on our #BelongingMovement, then you’re in the right place! In this episode, we have the opportunity to learn from Shayne Halls, author of Inclusivity 2.0: How AI is Accelerating the DEI Movement.
Shayne is the founder of Manifested Dreams, a company that helps clients merge AI technology and career growth, exclusively tailored for corporate professionals. With 15+ years of HR experience, Shayne’s dedication to championing DEI has motivated him to create equitable opportunities for underrepresented talent in various industries, including bioPharma, IT, healthcare, and engineering.
Together, we will explore creative ways you can utilize AI to advance your DEI goals while systematizing check-and-balances to neutralize the ethical pitfalls. Things we explore during this conversation include:
-Shayne’s new book, Inclusivity 2.0: How AI Is Accelerating the DEI Movement.
-AI’s potential to promote the career growth of underrepresented talent.
-Mitigating this technology’s ethical pitfalls.
-Shayne’s vision for the future of work.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for more ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Shayne, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Now, let’s jump into the conversation!
One size does not fit all.
To truly build an equitable workplace, employers must give each employee what they need to do their best at work. When an employer gives each of its employees exactly the same kind of support, this good intention often results in disengagement and exclusion.
Why? Because many of us have different roles, we likely are at different places in our careers, we have different learning and work styles, and we need different kinds of emotional support. When an employer honors these differences, and works to meet them, their employees achieve success.
Giving our employees the support they need to do their best at work, is a core ingredient to build a belonging culture at work. This kind of work culture translates into a workforce more capable to design for identity, meeting the different needs of their clients and customers.
Today’s guest, Jessica Bantom, author of Design for Identity, will help us recognize why this kind of inclusive design helps improve the culture of work. Jessica’s career as a DEI practitioner and interior designer has led to her ongoing exploration of the intersections of design and diversity.
She completed her master’s degree in interior design at Marymount University and her Bachelors at the University of Virginia, and she is certified as an Associate Diversity Coach through the CoachDiversity Institute in collaboration with the Howard University School of Business. Jessica’s unique blend of business and design practices give her practical and artistic capabilities that inform her approach to solve for very real human challenges.
During our conversation we discussed why human-centered design matters, what the six habits of culturally responsive designers include and how to apply them, how to overlay Jessica’s Design for Identity Blueprint with the standard design process, and why the future of work is one that knows how to design for identity.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Jessica, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
This episode is the 3rd and final episode of our three-part Pride at Work series. In this series, we take a deeper dive into learning how one company, Northwestern Mutual, moved beyond performativity, and embraced impactful actions that have led to meaningful progress. NM, along with other brands of choice, know the competitive advantage of creating a more LGBTQ+ inclusive culture. Specifically, they know that LGBTQ+ inclusive workplaces…are
1) better at retaining and attracting talent from underrepresented groups at work.
2) (capable of) building brand strength and consumer loyalty, and
3) (skillful at) unlocking innovation, creativity, and business success.
These three factors lead to stronger financial performance – specifically, better share price performance, higher return on equity, higher market valuations, and stronger cash flows.
In this particular episode, we amplify how leading Fortune 100 companies honor their DEI commitments by supporting local LGBTQ+ communities. In recent years, there has been a growing trend of businesses speaking out against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.
This is a positive development, as it sends a clear message to lawmakers that the vast majority of Americans support equality for all. There are a number of reasons why businesses should denounce anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.
• First, it's the right thing to do. LGBTQ+ people are just like everyone else, and they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.
• Second, it's good for business. A recent study found that businesses that are seen as supportive of LGBTQ+ rights are more likely to attract and retain top talent, as well as customers.
• Third, it's good for the economy. When businesses denounce anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, it sends a message that the United States is a welcoming place to do business. This can attract investment and jobs to the country.
Our guest today Belle Ives, will help business leaders recognize the enormous business opportunities available for brands of choice who show up for LGBTQ+ people and our communities. Belle is a financial advisor with Northwestern Mutual, and she’s been running her firm for five years, and she is the first openly LGBTQ+ advisor in the history of her Boston office.
Through her time as an advisor, she has built a practice that focuses on working specifically with LGBTQ+ clientele. She is wildly passionate about empowering the pride community around their financial planning so that they can live confidently and purposefully in their own professional and personal life pursuits. Together, we’ll explore NM’s commitment to showing up for LGBTQ+ people and our communities throughout the U.S.
Savor this insightful conversation, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders building more inclusive workplaces be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guests.
You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Want more insights on how to build LGBTQ+ inclusive workplace cultures that last?
Then register for our June 27th Pride Panel moderated by Rhodes Perry. The panel features some of today’s most celebrated transgender DEI thought leaders including Celia Daniels, Gavriel Legynd, and Rex Wilde: https://belongingatwork.kartra.com/page/pridepanel.
This episode is the 2nd of a three-part Pride at Work series, where we take a deeper dive into learning how one company, Northwestern Mutual, moved beyond performativity, and embraced impactful actions that have led to meaningful progress. NM, along with other brands of choice, know the competitive advantage of creating a more LGBTQ+ inclusive culture. Specifically, they know that LGBTQ+ inclusive workplaces are:
1) Better at retaining and attracting talent from underrepresented groups at work.
2) Capable of building brand strength and consumer loyalty.
3) Skillful at unlocking innovation, creativity, and business success.
These three factors lead to stronger financial performance – specifically, better share price performance, higher return on equity, higher market valuations, and stronger cash flows.
In this particular episode, we amplify how LGBTQ+ inclusive companies build brand strength and consumer loyalty when they show up for LGBTQ+ people and our communities, especially during these challenging times when so many states are introducing anti-LGBTQ+ legislation that is bad for business. Afterall, the LGBTQ+ community is a powerful force in the economy. In the US, LGBTQ+ consumers spend an estimated $1 Trillion (with a T!) annually. There are a number of reasons why brands of choice ought to consider building more inclusive organizations for LGBTQ+ employees and their customers.
• First, the number of LGBTQ+ adults in the US is expected to reach 30 million by 2025, which means there’s a significant market opportunity to provide culturally specific products and services.
• Second, LGBTQ+ consumers are loyal. We are more likely to spend our hard-earned money with businesses that they feel are supportive of our community. We’re more likely to recommend those businesses to their friends and family.
• Third, LGBTQ+ consumers are affluent. On the whole, we tend to have higher incomes and higher levels of education than the general population. This means that we’re more likely to spend money on discretionary items, such as travel, dining out, and entertainment.
In today’s interview we are speaking with Northwestern Mutual – Park Avenue Financial Advisor, Matthew Erickson, whose practice focuses on the growth, visibility and prosperity of the LGBTQ+ community.
His relationship to Northwestern Mutual has led to his work on the Field Advisory Council for the LGBTQ+ segment for the company. He has worked closely with specialized medical risk in rolling out the Northwestern Mutual HIV+ programs now in place, has helped change and update underwriting procedures for the transgender community, and is the financial planning resource specializing in adoption, surrogacy and IVF planning with the organization Gays with Kids.
Matt offers powerful tips empowering your business to enjoy the power of LGBTQ+ consumer spending and boost your business profits.
Savor these insightful conversations, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders building more inclusive workplaces be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guests.
You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Want more insights on how to build LGBTQ+ inclusive workplace cultures that last?
Register for our June 27th Pride Panel moderated by Rhodes Perry. The panel features some of today’s most celebrated transgender DEI thought leaders including Celia Daniels, Gavriel Legynd, and Rex Wilde:
https://belongingatwork.kartra.com/page/pridepanel.
Since the rise of the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement in the late 1960s, the experiences of LGBTQ+ employees in the workplace have dynamically shifted. Over these past five decades, LGBTQ+ employees have benefited from workplace protections, greater social visibility, and acceptance in most workplaces.
Given all of these gains, many falsely believe LGBTQ+ employees have equal access to jobs, promotions, and stretch assignments they are qualified for. Many more also falsely believe that LGBTQ+ employees can no longer be fired, denied a promotion, or even a job interview simply because of who they are.
Tragically, today’s reality presents a different story:
- According to the Human Rights Watch, “at least 68 countries still have national laws criminalizing same-sex relations between consenting adults,” and “at least 9 countries have national laws criminalizing forms of gender expression that target transgender & nonbinary people.” Legal punishments vary including life imprisonment and even the death penalty.
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In the U.S., the Supreme Court ruled a landmark case in 2020 stating that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 extends protections from workplace discrimination for LGBTQ+ employees. Despite this monumental ruling, LGBTQ+ employees in the United States, particularly BIPOC LGBTQ+ employees, frequently endure workplace discrimination and harassment, resulting in lower job security, economic stability, and a lack of psychological safety on the job.
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While most workplaces recognize that discrimination has no place in business, let alone society, critical gaps in legal protections still remain and create barriers to building LGBTQ+ inclusive cultures at work. Specifically, the U.S. still lacks a federal law protecting employees on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, and even in states and localities that do offer these protections, transforming workplace culture to fully include LGBTQ+ workers remains unfinished.
Thankfully, many leading Fortune 100 businesses have a long history of recognizing the value LGBTQ+ employees add to their company’s culture. Many brands of choice have made significant strides championing LGBTQ+ inclusive cultures, beyond the performativity of pride celebrations – AKA, “food, fun, and famous people.” Many of these organizations are leaning into innovative and impactful ideas by asking and listening to their LGBTQ+ employees on ways to truly roll out the rainbow welcome mat.
In this three-part interview series, we’ll take a deeper dive into learning how one company, Northwestern Mutual, moved beyond performativity, and embraced impactful actions that have led to meaningful progress. NM, along with other brands of choice, know the competitive advantage of creating a more LGBTQ+ inclusive culture. Specifically, they know that LGBTQ+ inclusive workplaces…are:
1) better at retaining and attracting talent,
2) (capable of) building brand strength and consumer loyalty, and
3) (skillful at) unlocking innovation, creativity, and business success.
These three factors lead to stronger financial performance – specifically, better share price performance, higher return on equity, higher market valuations, and stronger cash flows.
It’s for these reasons, and many more, that employers like Northwestern Mutual provide greater access to leadership, stretch opportunities and influence for their LGBTQ+ employees. Leaning on the lived experiences of LGBTQ+ employees, leaders at NM contribute to building more LGBTQ+ practices and systems in a responsible way.
In our first interview of three…we’ll be speaking to Gina Pagan, a Financial Advisor at NM. She began her career at Northwestern Mutual in 2009 as a college intern and has since built a team and a practice that helps individuals, families and businesses align their actions with their values - primarily focusing on serving diverse markets with an emphasis on LGBTQ+ planning. As a leader, she both mentors and develops new advisors within the firm and is heavily involved in diversity and inclusion efforts at Northwestern Mutual, both locally and nationwide.
Together, Gina and I will explore the NM employee experience, learning first-hand from Gina’s perspective on how the company is committed to rolling out the rainbow welcome mat for LGBTQ+ prospective employees. We also discuss the importance of current LGBTQ+ employees potential to ascending into the highest ranks of leadership to enjoy better company performance, accelerating the company’s DEI commitments, and attracting new clients and vendors.
Savor this insightful conversation, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders building more inclusive workplaces be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guests.
You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Want more insights on how to build LGBTQ+ inclusive workplace cultures that last?
Then register for our June 27th Pride Panel moderated by Rhodes Perry. The panel features some of today’s most celebrated transgender DEI thought leaders including Celia Daniels, Gavriel Legynd, and Rex Wilde: https://belongingatwork.kartra.com/page/pridepanel.
Hello & Welcome to the Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast brought to you by Rhodes Perry Consulting…I’m your host, Rhodes Perry.
Since the start of the Pandemic, anti-Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) hate has surged at an unprecedented rate in the U.S.
The previous Presidential Administration's racist and divisive language linked COVID-19 to AAPI communities, further exacerbating this surge.
DEI leaders like us play a critical role in raising awareness and taking workplace specific actions to support our AAPI colleagues. Yet, 3 years into the pandemic, far too many workplaces still remain silent.
Today, we will explore meaningful actions that we can take using our relative power privilege, along with actions our peers can take, to support our AAPI colleagues.
As you listen to this episode, I invite you to take a look back over the past 12 months and ask yourselves the following questions:
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What can I do to learn more about anti-AAPI hate, bias, and discrimination – particularly with how it shows up at work?
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How can I unlearn misconceptions and biases I may have about AAPI people and communities?
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"How can I support AAPI communities near me? Donations? Pro bono work? Attending community events?...in other words, what’s available to me?
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And lastly, "What will I do if I witness an act of hate, bias, or discrimination in my workplace, my community, or my family?
Seeking answers to these questions is an action you are uniquely situated to take – you are uniquely positioned to take this action even if it feels clumsy, imperfect, or incomplete. As you work to answer these questions, engaging in trusted conversations with those you have proximity to are perhaps some of the best ways to show up and support AAPI people right now.
To build up your knowledge, skills, and confidence, I am honored to share this conversation the Belonging Membership Community had with Lillian Tsai last May. If you’re not familiar with Lillian’s work, here’s a bit about her impressive background:
Lillian was born and raised in Malaysian Borneo to a former Davis Cup tennis player and a superintendent of Chinese schools. She is an award-winning consultant, facilitator, trainer, coach, and keynote speaker on cross-cultural fluency, intercultural communications, and diversity, equity and inclusion. She works with C level executives, DEI committees, conducts organizational assessments, team interventions, and specializes in coaching women, people of color, and leaders of diverse teams. Prior to starting her own company, TsaiComms LLC, in 2002, she spent 25 years in global high-tech marketing and communications which culminated in an expatriate assignment in Germany.
As some of you know, Lillian is a friend of our Belonging Membership Community and is a seasoned DEI thought leader.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Lillian, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
To learn more about the Belonging Membership Community, please visit: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com
Everyday actions offered to the Belonging at Work Community:
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Inform yourself about what anti-AAPI hatred is & why it is occurring.
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Share safety tips to support your AAPI colleagues.
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Issue a workplace statement denouncing anti-AAPI racism.
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Support AAPI-owned businesses through supplier diversity efforts.
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Donate to help respond to the surge in AAPI racism & xenophobia
Now, let’s jump into the conversation!
Beat Burnout and Conquer Toxic Ambition w/Angelic Williams, Founder of Toxic Ambition
I’m guessing if you call yourself an inclusive leader, a DEI professional, or a social justice champion, that you likely set bold and ambitious goals….and after achieving those bold goals, you may have the tendency to move the goal posts further down the field.
If you can relate, then this interview with Angelic Williams, Founder of Toxic Ambition, is one you must listen to. This conversation examines the root causes of toxic ambition, and their dangers if they remain unchecked. If you find yourself feeling unhappy, no matter how many goals you accomplish, you will gain valuable insights from this interview.
The biggest question you are encouraged to explore today: how can you set meaningful goals without burning yourself out?
Angelic Williams is a published author, entrepreneur, startup ecosystem builder, changemaker passionate about elevating BIPOC and queer voices. Her career spans several realms, including startups, writing, and architecture.
A few key highlights from this conversation include:
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Learn what toxic ambition and burnout are, how they are connected, and why some of us are unhappy no matter how many ambitious goals we accomplish.
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Explore Angelic’s experience with toxic ambition syndrome, burnout, and ways she identified, managed, and recovered from burnout’s underlying symptoms.
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Examine why toxic ambition and burnout is so pervasive in workplaces around the globe, and why DEI professionals experience it at a disproportionate rate.
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Identify the role goal setting, perfectionism, and boundaries can play in contributing to toxic ambition and burnout and how they can also serve as a remedy for it.
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Gain strategies on how to identify the signs of burnout, how to manage it once you know it’s present in your life, and how to recover from it.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Angelic, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care.
Members of our community have the opportunity to participate in live podcast recordings and engage in a private Q&A session after the recording is complete. Your membership is appreciated as it helps make this podcast possible.
You can learn more here: https://www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com
Want to know if you ambition is toxic? Enroll in Angelic’s course, Conquering Toxic Ambition Syndrome, and use the discount code BELONG20 to receive a 20% discount! https://www.toxicambition.com/
Transgender Day of Visibility Day (TDOV) is an annual day of recognition observed around the world on March 31st. It’s a time to celebrate the contributions and successes of transgender and nonbinary people.
It’s also a time to shine a light on the work ahead to end the disproportionate level of violence and discrimination transgender people endure, particularly BIPOC trans folx. With an onslaught of legislation attempting to bloc trans people from receiving basic rights, there’s a role you can play.
You can begin by showing up as an ally, or a person helping to build a more gender inclusive world. This matters given that nearly 500 anti-transgender bills are actively being considered in nearly every state across the U.S., many of which target the health & well-being of trans children.
Our guest today, Dr. Lulu, is a board-certified pediatrician and CEO of Dr. Lulu’s Life Coaching Lounge. She is a queer mother of a transgender adult and life coach for parents of LGBTQ+ kids. I first discovered Dr. Lulu when she shared a powerful LinkedIn post during Black History Month entitled, "10 things the #BlackTrans Child wants you to know.”
During this episode, we discuss the connection between legislation targeting transgender children and the dangers it poses to the future of work. We’ll also explore ways allies, and those on their way to joining them, can help stop this legislation from being enshrined into law.
A few key highlights from this conversation include:
- Exploring how Dr. Lulu’s background as a pediatrician and mother of a transgender children shapes why her business focuses on supporting parents of LGBTQ+ young people.
- Discussing the onslaught of anti-transgender legislation predominantly targeting transgender children, and its impacts on the future of work.
- Considering the role employers could play in denouncing anti-transgender legislation, by making a real commitment to attract, retain, and advance transgender and nonbinary talent.
- Naming the actions workplaces can actively take to build more safety, trust, and belonging for their current (and future) transgender and nonbinary employees.
- Underscoring the importance of everyday actions allies, and budding allies, can take to show up for the transgender and nonbinary people in their lives.
- Sharing resources that will empower you to successfully show up for the transgender and nonbinary people in your life.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Dr. Lulu, be sure to join the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. Members have the unique opportunity to engage with our guests 1:1 after our podcast recordings where they can participate in a private Q&A session with our guest.
You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Design a Workplace Where Everyone Thrives
In Rhodes Perry’s bestselling book, Belonging at Work, he helps readers distinguish between the terms diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. All of these terms are outcomes: diversity is a people outcome, inclusion is behavioral outcome, equity is a structural outcome, and belonging is an emotional outcome.
Minal Bopaiah’s bestselling book, Equity, builds from these distinctions by taking a deep dive into what it means to work in an equitable organization. She writes that “equity means fairness…where all people have unbiased access to education, dignified livelihoods, and the ability to participate fully in society.”
Minal has a passion for talking about equity, particularly because she believes the conversation is short lived given that so many DEI professionals “treat equity as a middle child, skipping over it to get the warm, fuzzy feelings of inclusion.” Yet equity is the critical element to building organizations that successfully leverage differences skillfully.
During this conversation, Minal and Rhodes discuss ways leaders can embrace their power to build a fair workplace where people get what they need so that they can do their best at work. Much of their conversation will help anyone at work operationalize how to design a more equitable workplace where everyone can thrive.
A few key highlights from this conversation include:
- Exploring why many DEI professionals overlook or outright avoid conversations to avoid addressing systems, policies, and practices that institutionalize unfairness.
- Recognizing that engaging in equity work requires us to “do the hard part first,” to dance with uncertainty, and to summon the courage required to entirely redesign our workplaces.
- Naming equity’s promise when DEI work centers the principles of targeted universalism – embrace the universal goal, while taking targeted interventions designed to upend unfairness.
- Underscoring how to achieve equity by using your relative power to influence how to transform your workplace culture by using concrete tools and embodying inclusive behaviors.
- Clarifying the practical, everyday actions you can take – no matter your role - to connect your colleagues to what they need to thrive at work.
- Sharing guidance on how leaders can effectively raise awareness of systemic bias and craft new systems, policies, and practices that can lead to better outcomes and lasting behavior change.
- Offering strategies on ways DEI professionals can utilize Minal’s book, Equity, to begin the hard work of designing an organization where everyone can truly thrive.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Minal, be sure to check out the Belonging Membership Community – a community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Grow the #BelongingMovement by Empowering a Generation of Little Justice Leaders with Shelby Kretz
Public schools across the U.S. have served as the decisive testing ground for some of the most contentious social and political issues. Everything from mask mandates and teachings about racial justice, to the discussion of LGBTQ+ rights, and the opportunity for transgender athletes to participate in sports – these flash points have emboldened a movement demanding a return to parental rights at the expense of exposing students to different people, beliefs, and cultures that can help them unpack their own conflicting beliefs while learning in a more reasoned way.
For DEI professionals, we recognize the value of learning and connecting across our differences. When we respectfully engage with people who are different from ourselves, we have the opportunity to build real and psychologically safe relationships with them. Increasing our proximity to differences – whether these differences are because of a person’s identity, beliefs, or behaviors, we have the opportunity to grow our empathy skills and practice them real time.
Yet, if our public schools fail to teach these important skills, largely because of censoring historical events like the genocide of Indigenous People, or the transatlantic slave trade, how can younger people have the opportunity to learn about human and civil rights movements that are not included in the public school curricula?
To help us answer this question, I am honored to introduce you to Shelby Kretz, the creator of Little Justice Leaders, an organization that makes it easy to learn about social justice. Little Justice Leaders wants to make it easy for parents and caregivers to teach elementary schoolers about social justice because Shelby and her team know it can be hard to talk with young children about these topics, and they want to make it easier for you!
During this conversation, Shelby and Rhodes discuss the challenges that educators have in public school settings to teach about social justice movements and leaders. Rhodes explores Shelby’s approach to solving this challenge with some of the services her organization provides.
A few key highlights from this conversation include:
• Learning about the costs of censoring social justice topics in elementary schools and how these costs, if left unchecked, harm the development of a young person’s reasoning skills.
• Discussing the origin story of Little Justice Leaders, and why it was created to support parents, caregivers, and teachers talk with young children about social justice topics.
• Exploring how Little Justice Leaders’ learning kits are created, how learning materials are carefully selected to help guide a student’s learning on important social justice topics.
• Recognizing how the lessons help young people identify when conflicting beliefs arise, and how they might help students notice and then unpack them.
• Sharing guidance on how DEI professionals can incorporate some of the Little Justice Leader lessons into their own learning & development work.
• Discussing learning approaches that can help any learning & development professional simplify the purpose, outcome, and processes to designing effective educational experiences at work.
• Offering a vision for the future where adults have more ease and skill engaging in respectful discourse across differences, and how that will impact our sense of belonging at work.
Savor this insightful talk, and be sure to check out this gift from Shelby, the 10 Simple Tips for Talking to Little Ones About Social Justice: Ljl.education/perry.
If you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Shelby, be sure to check out the Belonging Membership Community – community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
The past 3 years have underscored the importance of taking care of our mental health, working with professionals to maintain a robust sense of mental health, and talking about mental health in workplace contexts. Even so, the recent emphasis on taking care of our mental health and talking about it in workplace settings can’t immediately erase decades of stigma surrounding this topic.
For DEI professionals, we have an even greater challenge to facilitating conversations about mental health, considering how our own mental health can become challenged with the combined threats of secondary traumatic stress, compassion fatigue, and burnout.
To help us end this stigma, and to begin talking about the importance of taking care of our mental health at work, the Belonging at Work Team is thrilled to feature the thought leadership of Simone Walsh, Founder of Essence of Mind, a nonprofit that offers tools and resources to support individuals navigating mental illness.
During this conversation, Simone and Rhodes explore her commitment to eliminate the stigma of mental illness in our workplaces. Rhodes explores Simone’s approach to ending this stigma through wellness activities, seminars, and special events.
A few key highlights from this conversation include:
- Learning about Simone’s personal memoir, Poetic Diary of a Bleeding Heart, and why she decided to share her testimony of escaping the darkness to begin her healing journey.
- Discussing the negative impact bullying and harassment had on Simone, and how these kind of behaviors showed up in her workplace experiences.
- Identifying the personal practices Simone found most helpful to catalyze her healing journey that has helped her emerge from the darkness and share with others.
- Learning how the workplace can actually be a sanctuary that can begin connecting individuals to mental health resources that can help fortify our mental health.
- Exploring why Simone believes serving as a possibility model to support other people overcome clinical depression and anxiety can help reduce stigma.
- Recognizing how not speaking about the importance of mental health can create further stigma, and what we can do to disrupt this kind of silence.
- Sharing guidance on how DEI professionals can encourage their workplaces to end the silence around mental health and begin including this topic in the broader work.
- Making the specific case as to how business leaders can promote the mental health and well-being of their employees and why that will help them become employers of choice.
Episode 28 – Mental Health
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Simone, be sure to check out the Belonging Membership Community – community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care.
You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com
It’s budget season, which begs the question, is your employer investing in your career development to help you lead more inclusively in 2023? Whether you’re looking for ideas on how to advocate for a professional development (PD) budget, or if you’re curious about how you can put it to work, Rhodes offers powerful insights all about the importance of utilizing your professional development budget in the year ahead.
During this episode, you will discover some of the many ways you can invest your PD budget to gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence to transform moments of exclusion into moments of belonging at work. And if you don’t yet have a PD budget, you’ll gain clarity about why a PD budget is an essential element to ignite your career growth, how you can encourage your employer to budget for your very own PD budget, and ways you can put it to work as you grow into a more inclusive leader.
As a result of listening to this episode, you will:
- Learn 3 reasons why PD budgets are a key ingredient to belonging at work.
- Gain key strategies to help advocate for a PD budget (if you don’t yet have one).
- Recognize the 3 common reasons why many fail to utilize their PD budgets.
- Gain a framework to clarify the specific skills you will need to lead inclusively at work.
- Avoid paying money out of your own pocket to gain the leadership skills you desire.
After listening to this episode, if you want to dive more deeply into the content Rhodes offers, be sure to register for his upcoming, Budget for Belonging workshop, where you can discuss these topics in greater depth with fellow DEI professionals and other inclusive leaders eager to advocate for PD budgets for their colleagues, and to put their own budgets to work in the year head! The workshop will help you build an even greater sense of belonging at work for you and your colleagues.
After you listen, please be sure to explore these additional resources:
- Register for the Budget for Belonging workshop: https://belongingatwork.kartra.com/page/nov-30-22
- Subscribe to the Imagine Belonging at Work Newsletter: https://www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe
- Leave an honest rating and review of the show: http://www.imaginebelongingatwork.com/
In Belonging at Work, Rhodes Perry’s bestselling book, he writes about the power of being a possibility model to empower those of us who still find the idea of being a leader out of reach, out of sight, and even out of mind.
A possibility model is a person who reveals one way of being human in the world that deeply resonates with another person who may share a social identity and/or a lived experience with this person. The phrase, “you have to see it to be it,” helps one recognize the power and significance of possibility models.
For those of us who experience exclusion simply because of who we are – perhaps we are BIPOC, LGBTQ+, a person with a disability, an immigrant, or perhaps we live at these intersections - possibility models matter when it comes to politics, entertainment, sports, and even the workplace. We have to see it to be it…
And we are extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to chat with Caitlin Copple Masingill, Founding Partner of Full Swing PR, who will share why she’s on a mission to amplify the leadership of BIPOC, women, and LGBTQ+ leaders (and those at these intersections) so that they can make a positive impact on our world.
During this conversation, Caitlin and Rhodes explore her commitment to helping underestimated and historically excluded leaders unlock the power of their influence so that they can serve as the leaders we have been waiting for – leaders that fully reflect our rapidly changing workforce throughout all levels of large and small workplaces alike.
A few key highlights from this conversation include:
- Exploring what possibility models mean to Caitlin and why she’s so passionate about amplifying the leadership of BIPOC, women, and LGBTQ+ leaders (and those at these intersections) in workplaces around the globe.
- Abandoning old models of leadership by transforming the narrative of what it means to be an effective, successful, and inspiring leader in 2022.
- Learning about the existing barriers that make it difficult to transform old notions of what it means to be a leader, and ideas on how to get started.
- Sharing guidance on how we can amplify this new narrative of what it means to be a leader in today’s (and future) workplaces.
- Making the specific case as to why the lived experiences of underestimated and historically leaders is a “value add” for any organization as it works to remain relevant in today’s rapidly evolving world.
- Overcoming imposter syndrome to empower any of us who resonate with Caitlin’s message to fully share our talents with the world.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you’re looking for ways to connect with inspiring leaders like Caitlin, be sure to check out the Belonging Membership Community – community of leaders committed to advancing their DEI goals while practicing community care. You can learn more here: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com
The social determinants of health are the conditions in the environments where people are born, live, learn, work, play, workshop and age that affect a wide range of health, functioning, and quality of life outcomes, and they are traditionally grouped into 5 core domains including economic stability, education, health care, neighborhood and social networks.
Yet very limited research exists on how the nature of work, and our working conditions influence employee health and well-being. Fortunately, Dr. Brad Shuck, Co-Founder of Org Vitals developed a potentially new line of research within Human Resource Development called the Workplace Determinants of Health. The WDOH are organizationally attributable employment and related conditions that influence and group differences in health risk and health status.
A few key highlights from this conversation include:
- Why Dr. Shuck set out on researching WDOH and how he and other researchers came up with a potential structure for understanding WDOH, which includes four pillars: stress, capacity, physical and social environment, and meaning in work.
- How we can identify, assess, and address our WDOH, specifically examining these four pillars of stress, capacity, physical and social environment, and meaning in work.
- How Dr. Shuck’s company, Org Vitals helps employers monitor, assess, and address WDOH for a larger workforce, and how his company helps to connect employers with solutions and resources at the right time to overcome poor WDOH.
- How meaning in our work connects to the ingredients of belonging – feeling seen, connected, supported, and a sense of pride in our work, and the opportunity Dr. Shuck recognizes when it comes to supporting employers trying to help their employees become more engaged.
- Why employers ought to consider their own organization’s vitals, and recognizing the costs of failing to address elements of toxic workplace culture.
Savor this insightful talk, and then explore some of the resources shared during this conversation:
- Belonging Membership Community: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com
- The Social Determinants of Health: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/hrdq.21468.
- OrgVitals: https://www.orgvitals.com/
When it comes to scaling and advancing our DEI commitments, technology holds many promises, and even more pitfalls. Many DEI-focused technologies make bold claims about their ability to root out biases, particularly in HR functions.
Yet, experienced DEI professionals recognize that while technology does have the power to advance and scale our goals, without important oversight, the very biases this technologies aim to upend can become exacerbated by them.
During this episode, Vivienne Ming offers oversight strategies to keep these technologies in check. Vivienne is a theoretical neuroscientist, technologist, and the co-founder of Socos, a company that combines machine learning and cognitive neuroscience to maximize life outcomes.
Rhodes and Vivienne engage in an honest discussion that introduces you to a few of the technologies being used by DEI professionals to help advance their goals, and they will also highlight their specific limitations as an important reminder that technology alone is not a panacea to overcome biases at work.
After you listen, please be sure to explore these additional resources:
- Read this Workforce Solutions Review, The Power & Pitfalls of Artificial Intelligence by Rhodes Perry & Bernadette Smith: shorturl.at/ktUX4.
- Subscribe to the Imagine Belonging at Work Newsletter: https://www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe.
- Leave an honest rating and review of the show: http://www.imaginebelongingatwork.com/.
According to the US Department of Labor, 47 million Americans voluntarily left their jobs in 2021. The number one reason these employees joined the Great Resignation was because of toxic workplace cultures – cultures where exclusion and othering thrive.
If you too have joined the Great Resignation and are seeking your next great career opportunity, you likely are also a part of the “Great Reflection.” This collective reflection period encourages many of us to reimagine the kind of workplace culture we desire – one where our values fully align with our employers’ values.
Yet, where can you learn more about a prospective employer’s values, and how do we know if their stated values are more than simply lip service? If you’re looking for answers to these questions and more, then be sure to give this episode of the Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast a close listen.
You will learn 5 simple actions you can take to earn your next great career opportunity. As you listen, you may want to write out your top 5 – 10 personal values that guide how you live and work. Knowing your personal values will help you get the most out of today’s content, as you identify prospective employers that prioritize building more safety, trust, and belonging at work.
After you listen, please be sure to explore these additional resources:
- Grab your copy of Imagine Belonging: https://www.imaginebelonging.com/.
- Subscribe to the Imagine Belonging at Work Newsletter: https://www.rhodesperry.com/subscribe.
- Leave an honest rating and review of the show: http://www.imaginebelongingatwork.com/.
Today’s episode features an encore presentation of a talk that originally aired in 2019 during the first Annual Belonging at Work Summit. This interview was recorded in a world that has long ago gone away; however, some of the challenges that existed then with regard to managing generational diversity, still remain stubbornly the same.
What you’re about to hear, is a speaker who will underscore the importance of unlocking the power of working on multigenerational teams, and the challenges that every manager has with making this mix of employees work well together, and that speaker is Laurie Battaglia.
Laurie is the CEO and Workplace Strategist of Aligned at Work®, and she works with companies who understand that their leaders are the ones who create a healthy, human-centered environment where they and their teams thrive.
During our conversation, Laurie reminds us that there are five distinct generations in the workplace including Traditionalists, Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, and Zoomers. She also recognizes the distinct challenges people managers endure when leading multigenerational teams.
She reminds us that when we fundamentally can’t relate to someone because they are so much younger or older than ourselves, it’s hard to see things from their perspective. As a result, we can resort to using harmful stereotypes and blame solvable problems on one another instead of working to understand the differences that distance us.
To unlock the powerful potential of multigenerational teams, Laurie offers 3 core strategies to manage generational diversity at work:
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Openly Communicate. Encourage your teams to openly communicate and respect the reality that different generations may prefer one communication & working style over another, and that your team will need to find a middle ground.
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Respect boundaries. A wider representation of age groups at work has introduced new generational beliefs and values at work. This reality underscores the importance of respecting the varied generational beliefs and values, while upholding your team’s set of established boundaries and values.
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Don’t play favorites. During team meetings, build opportunities for ALL voices and perspectives to be considered, regardless of someone’s age, title, or level of seniority. You can achieve this by creating an inclusive decision-making process that encourages open dialogue and psychological safety.
Savor this insightful talk, and if you like what Laurie has to share, consider joining the Belonging Membership Community, where you’ll have a chance to learn more about generational diversity from speakers just like Laurie. You can also connect with other DEI professionals ready to support you as you advance your DEI goals: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Visit www.imaginebelongingatwork.com for more details on how you can share your feedback!! If you have questions, show topics you’d like to explore, or if you have guest recommendations, you can share those on this same webpage under the “Ask Rhodes” tab.
Today’s episode features an encore presentation of a talk that originally aired in 2019 during the first Annual Belonging at Work Summit. In many respects, 2019 represents another world, one that no longer reflects our reality. Yet, the concept of community care was alive before COVID-19, and in 2022 it is becoming more of a regular practice.
In my book, Imagine Belonging, I describe the concept of Community Care as a practice where each of us uses our relative power, privilege and resources to better the people who are both in and out of our scope of influence. When it comes to equitably including the diversity of our world into our workplaces, it is imperative that DEI practitioners embrace the compassion practice of community care, which asks us to give support where we can to our colleagues, and being vulnerable enough to ask for support when we need it.
Community care was a concept first introduced to me by Aida Mandulay. Aida is an award-winning Latinx activist, international presenter, and trauma-focused clinician known for big earrings and building bridges. Trained as a sexuality educator, social worker, and nonprofit management professional, they work to make the world a more equitable place through education, therapy, and community organizing.
What you’re about to hear, is Aida’s approach to community-care. When it comes to the workplace, one of the core tenants of community care is to cultivate a workplace culture that not only addresses harm, but also helps prevent harm, knowing that harm will undoubtedly happen. It’s about mutuality, it’s about interdependence. It’s about all of us taking care of each other. Giving support when we can, asking for support when needed, and continuing to show up so that we can collectively maintain the stamina to advance our DEI goals…
During Aida’s talk, they remind us:
· “Militant self-care is about compassion and context. Its’ about not masking who we really are, or pretending that we have more bandwidth than we actually do. Rather, it’s self-care that is rooted in the idea of community. It challenges the superficial notions of what self-care is and upends the very individualized idea of self-care which is dominant in most corporate environments.”
· Aida also reminds us to “Use your organizational values as a guiding framework in your everyday. Rather than thinking about them just once a year, bringing them up at literally every staff meeting. How are we aligning with our vision? How are we aligning with our values today? If we have a workplace conflict, let’s look at our values. How would our values dictate that we addressed this? Just by doing that, you’re getting closer to being authentic and being the kind of organization you want to be.”
· And lastly, Aida has this to say about relationships - “If you think that time is money, then I’m asking you to invest the time and the money to build human relationships that will actually sustain your work and make your workplace culture a healthy one. Transforming a toxic work culture does a lot for retention, especially retention of underrepresented employees.”
There are so many other incredible takeaways from Aida’s talk today. Savor them all, and if you like what Aida has to share, consider joining the Belonging Membership Community, where you’ll have a chance to observe and embody community care compassion practices, as you connect with other DEI professionals ready to support you as you advance your DEI goals: www.belongingmembershipcommunity.com.
Visit www.imaginebelongingatwork.com for more details on how you can share your feedback!! If you have questions, show topics you’d like to explore, or if you have guest recommendations, you can share those on this same webpage under the “Ask Rhodes” tab.
Today’s episode of the Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast is a very special encore presentation of a talk that originally aired during last week’s 4th Annual Belonging at Work Summit.
The Belonging at Work Summit is an annual event designed for DEI professionals and other inclusive leaders to gather, learn from some of today’s most celebrated DEI & social justice thought leaders, and build community over the course of 5 days so that we can maintain the stamina to keep going in our work.
It’s truly an epic learning journey – and on its fifth and final day, we launched a special viewers’ choice award. This award allows every single Summit participant to choose their top 3 most favorite speakers – as a special gift to participants, we offer an encore talk on Saturday featuring the most popular talk from the Summit.
What you’re about to hear, is the speaker who won the viewers’ choice award, bestselling author and founder of change coaches, LaTonya Wilkins. LaTonya partners with executives, professionals, and teams to build cultures of belonging through highly customized coaching and consulting services. Latonya is a sought-after keynoter and has inspired audiences all over the world. And today she’s here to inspire us.
A few key highlights from LaTonya’s talk include:
- Ways old models of leadership don't serve us anymore, including those with power and privilege.
- The key reason why most workplace culture transformation efforts fail.
- Everyday actions you can take to lead below the surface to cultivate real connections with your co-workers and team.
- Examining the "Terrible Three" biases and the nonsensical human instinct to exclude in order to belong.
- The importance of leaders being vulnerable and "sharing their slips" to model letting go of perfectionism, a harmful trait of white supremacy culture.
- Practical skills on how to listen better, how to build more empathy, and how to create psychologically safe relationships.
Savor this insightful talk, and please consider checking-out some of the other Summit speakers from last week by visiting: belongingatworksummit.com.
Then, be sure to visit the podcast’s homepage where you can learn more about how to support the show and catch up on your favorite episodes here: www.imaginebelongingatwork.com.
Thanks for growing our #BelongingMovement!
As you give yourself permission to boldly imagine belonging at work on a global scale, how do you know if your organization is successfully moving in the direction to activate this vision? Have you all identified indicators that would suggest your organization is on track, and what do you all do if you find yourselves drifting far away from your bold vision? These are some of the questions many workplaces often ask before they even attempt to establish a bold vision that upends the status quo. Which leads to this big question: how do we measure what matters, if we haven’t yet defined what success feels like on a full sensory level?
If you’re interested in exploring these critical questions while receiving guidance on how to establish metrics to activate your belonging at work vision, then you'll want to listen to this episode featuring a panel discussion Rhodes Perry moderated on July 5, 2022 all about Measuring What Matters. After listening to this episode, you will gain powerful insights from a panel of DEI thought leaders, including Malissa Adams and Cecilia Stanton Adams for the Diversity Institute, and Jamie Strong, Senior Consultant from Inturvey.
After listening to these panelists, you will gain essential knowledge, skills, and confidence to begin measuring what matters to benchmark success. Specifically, you will:
• Learn why establishing a bold vision for transforming your workplace culture is the first essential action to take prior to benchmarking your successes.
• Recognize why clarifying what you want in your workplace culture, what’s worked well in the past, and naming how you will get there will help clarify the path forward.
• Gain awareness of available diversity, equity, and inclusion metrics beyond employee demographics that will help you build a culture of belonging.
• Feel empowered with new knowledge, skills and confidence about how you can begin benchmarking your successes as you activate your belonging vision.
After listening to this episode, be sure to subscribe to the show and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. When you do, you’ll be entered into an exclusive drawing where you will have the chance to travel to Portland Oregon for a one-day inclusive leadership strategic planning session with me and my team!
We’ll be selecting this winner during our 4th Annual Belonging at Work Summit running July 11 – 15. You can register for the 100% free and virtual Summit here: www.belongingatworksummit.com
Thanks for growing the #BelongingMovement
P.S. Have guest recommendations? Let Rhodes know by leaving a comment on his website: www.imaginebelongingatwork.com under the “Ask Rhodes” tab.
Welcome to The Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast brought to you by Rhodes Perry Consulting.
In today’s episode, I honor Pride Month. And I get intensely personal.
Many of you know the origins of my DEI story. I began my social transition in college. This journey led me to become who I am today.
I noticed that as a young professional and transgender man, most workplaces weren’t designed with me in mind. But fortunately, I had many employers who were open to upending some of the barriers I encountered.
These are barriers that most non-transgender people never notice. But they exist. And they are pervasive.
In today’s episode of the Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast, I talk about these barriers. I also share with you an article I penned for the Portland Journal. Its title? Why Pride Matters More Than Ever Before In 2022.
Welcome to The Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast brought to you by Rhodes Perry Consulting.
Once again, I’m honored to introduce you to the incredible thought leadership of Dr. Bianca Laureano.
Dr. Laureano is the Foundress of ANTE UP, an organization she started after noticing the needs of many communities doing justice work but finding limited support in their own growth and development.
Today, we conclude our special 3-part learning series on the critical topic of intersectionality. We’ll discuss the concrete, specific actions we can take to begin dismantling systems of dominance. These systems include white supremacy culture, patriarchy, ableism and nativism.
We also talk about resources available for inclusive leader who want to discover how to take an intersectional approach while creating a culture of belonging.
Welcome to The Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast brought to you by Rhodes Perry Consulting.
Once again, I’m honored to introduce you to the incredible thought leadership of Dr. Bianca Laureano.
Dr. Laureano is the Foundress of ANTE UP, an organization she started after noticing the needs of many communities that were doing justice work but finding limited support in their own growth and development.
Today, we continue our special 3-part learning series on the critical topic of intersectionality.
During this episode, part II of our series, we’ll learn about the origins of intersectionality as a Critical Race Theory that impacts all of us.
We’ll discuss why it’s critical that our DEI work embrace an intersectional framework and how DEI leaders can begin taking this approach.
We’ll also consider why our work will remain incomplete if we fail to establish a long-term DEI vision that incorporates intersectionality.
Welcome to The Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast brought to you by Rhodes Perry Consulting.
Today, as we begin a special 3-part learning series on the critical topic of intersectionality, I’m honored to introduce you to the incredible thought leadership of Dr. Bianca Laureano.
Dr. Laureano is the Foundress of ANTE UP. She started this organization after noticing the needs of many communities that were doing justice work but finding limited support in their own growth and development.
She imagined, and then created a virtual space for collective un/learning and accountability that honors shifts and the ebb and flow of collective webs of knowledge.
ANTE UP offers professional development and training for the world we have inherited.
During this special learning series, I’ll be asking Dr. Laureano to share her thoughts about intersectionality.
In this episode, we’ll first take a deep dive into what intersectionality truly means, and how it impacts all of us. We’ll discuss how to resist building silos and instead build coalition & connections across different culture within our organizations.
Welcome to the Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast brought to you by Rhodes Perry Consulting.
Today, we conclude our special 3-part learning series featuring renowned DEI thought leader, Mary-Frances Winters, founder and CEO of the Winters Group, a 40-year-old global diversity, equity and inclusion consulting firm.
Please be sure to listen to parts 1 & 2 of this series (show episodes 12 & 13), before you dive into this concluding episode.
In today’s episode, Mary-Frances and I discuss the topic of supporting systemic change. Where does this change begin? It begins with each of us on an individual level.
To reach the DEI goals we’ve set for our organizations, we must focus on transformation in ourselves, while we invite others to join us on our journey.
In this episode, Mary-Frances emphasizes a critical point: leaders must understand that organizations are made up of individuals. If our group culture is going to change, we as individuals must change.
Welcome back to the Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast brought to you by Rhodes Perry Consulting. Today you have the opportunity to dive back into part 2 of our 3 part learning series with award winning business owner, bestselling author, and renowned DEI thought leader, Mary-Frances Winters.
In part I we explored what the world of work was like over 40 years ago, when most workplaces were focused on complying with EEO policies and staying out of legal trouble. Mary-Frances also offered her perspective on how workplace DEI goals have and haven’t evolved over the past 4 decades, and what DEI professionals of today can learn from our predecessors.
During this episode, we’ll take a peek into what the future of work could be as we give ourselves permission to establish a bold vision for what’s to come. We will also explore how to identify and work around some of the biggest obstacles that stymie this vision. Then we’ll identify several proven strategies to begin upending these obstacles…Today!
After the conversation, please be sure that you’re subscribed to the podcast. Once you’re subscribed, you will be the first to hear part 3 of this interview. And you listen, I’d love for you to leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Your perspective will help more people find this show and benefit from the content.
As reward, you’ll be entered into a VIP drawing where you will have the chance to travel to Portland Oregon later this fall for a one-day inclusive leadership planning session with me and my team!
For now, let’s gain a new perspective and powerful insights from Mary-Frances Winters.
Welcome to The Imagine Belonging at Work Podcast brought to you by Rhodes Perry Consulting.
Today, we begin a special 3-part learning series featuring Mary-Frances, founder and CEO of the Winters Group, a 40-year-old global diversity, equity and inclusion consulting firm.
During this series, Mary-Frances will put into perspective the origins of the DEI movement, her four decades of DEI thought leadership, what her journey has taught her, and her vision for what the future of work holds.
As you listen, I’m confident you will gain inspiration and motivation to establish your own bold vision for the future of your workplace.
In today’s first episode, you’ll meet Mary-Frances and discover more about the Winters Group. She tells us what the world of work was like 40 years ago and how it's changed since then.
She also gives us her perspective on how workplace DEI goals have and haven’t evolved over the past 4 decades, and what DEI professionals of today can learn from our predecessors.
On this episode of the Imagine Belonging at Work podcast, we conclude our conversation with celebrated DEI thought leader, McKensie Mack, an award-winning entrepreneur and Founder of the McKensie Mack Group, a research and change management firm that helps private and public sector organizations realize transformation in their communities.
Our conversation is the third and final installment of our special learning series with McKensie. We address how to find the courage required to establish personal and professional boundaries to overcome the epidemic of exclusion and loneliness at work. During this conversation, we recognize the truth in that we all play pivotal - though quite different - roles to dismantle white supremacy culture at work.
McKensie offers new frameworks, essential skills, and powerful ideas to help you speak truth to power and maintain the stamina and resolve required to advance your organization’s DEI goals.
Welcome back to our powerful conversation with McKensie Mack. This episode is the second installment in our special 3-part learning series that addresses the topic of overcoming the epidemic of exclusion and loneliness at work.
Once again, celebrated DEI thought leader and award-winning entrepreneur, McKensie Mack, will lead the conversation. McKensie is the Founder and Managing Director of the McKensie Mack Group (MMG), a research and change management firm that helps private and public sector organizations bring about transformation in their communities.
A key theme for todays’ discussion is finding the courage to engage in difficult conversations that disrupt power differentials at work. We explore the amazing breakthroughs that come as a result of this disruption, and how it can help us show up in a new, powerful way to do our best work.
We also talk about how to identify and overcome white supremacy culture and the interlocking systems of dominance that negatively impacts our organizations if left unchecked and real harm inflict upon the people who are part of them.
This episode begins a special 3-part learning series that addresses the topic of overcoming the epidemic of exclusion and loneliness at work.
McKensie Mack, Founder and Managing Director of the McKensie Mack (they/them) Group, will guide our discussion. They are a trilingual facilitator, educator, activist, and researcher.
McKensie has over 10 years of experience helping organizations, community groups, governing agencies, and healthcare organizations create transformational cultures at the intersection of race, gender, class, disability, and LGBTQ+ identity with clients based in the U.S, the UK, India, France, Germany, Spain, Peru, and other countries.
They will help you discover the courage necessary to set and maintain your boundaries as you help your colleagues overcome exclusion and injustice at work, in its many forms, including racism, patriarchy, ableism, sizeism and classism.
During this first part of our discussion, McKensie shares their approach to establishing and maintaining interpersonal and organizational boundaries. By the end of this episode, you will learn why these boundaries are essential to the success of your workplace’s DEI commitments.
Welcome to Part III of the how exceptional Black women lead learning series. This is our final installment of this series, featuring bestselling author, Dr. Avis Jones-DeWeever. We are hosting this learning series in celebration of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson’s confirmation to the US Supreme Court.
During this episode, Dr. Jones-DeWeever and I discuss:
• Ways inclusive leaders like you can radically include Black women leaders into executive pipelines
• How to defy the odds as an outsider working from within to make real change
• We also feature Dr. Jones-DeWeever’s final thoughts on how to racially include Black women leaders in the workplace and beyond.
In this episode of the Belonging at Work Podcast, we dive into Part II of my special interview series with Dr. Avis Jones-DeWeever.
The occasion? To celebrate the historic confirmation of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to the US Supreme Court.
This landmark event gives us an amazing opportunity to discuss the key topics of Dr. Jones-DeWeever’s award-winning book, How Exceptional Black Women Lead.
In this episode, we explore how Black women leading organizations can overcome harmful racial and gender stereotypes.
We also talk about why it’s difficult for Black women to forge strong and meaningful mentor and sponsorship relationships at work.
Importantly, we also focus on what any of us within the workplace can do about it.
Who Belongs? Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson!
Earlier this month marked an historic occasion…
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed as the first Black woman to serve on the United States Supreme Court.
To celebrate, I’ve dedicated a very special 3-part learning series that delves further into the topic of who belongs.
Only 4.7 percent of attorneys are Black, and only 70 Black women have ever served as US federal judges, so Justice Brown Jackson’s confirmation to the United States Supreme Court represents a truly remarkable example of perseverance in punching a hole in the glass ceiling, making way for other Black women to follow.
Please join me for this very special episode of the Imagine Belonging at Work podcast, as Dr. Avis Jones-DeWeever, bestselling author and social entrepreneur. Her significant expertise and lived experiences helps put into perspective this truly monumental occasion as we discuss how exceptional black women lead.
Transformation…
We say we want it. But do we really? We think we are willing to work for it. But are we?
In today’s episode of the Imagine Belonging at Work podcast, I talk about this important and timely topic.
During this episode, I delve into questions such as:
How are transformation and change different?
Why is it important to understand these differences?
Why is it harmful to maintain the workplace status quo?
I’ll give you the knowledge, skills and actions required to make transformation a reality in your workplace. As in each episode, I’ll help you understand why belonging at work matters.
Here’s a sobering statistic…only 33% of employees feel like they belong at work.
The flipside of that number? If you are a manager, 67% of your team members feel like they do not belong. They feel the sting of exclusion.
This is alarming news with potentially devastating consequences for employees and their employers’ bottom line.
But there is hope. There is something leaders can do. They can bring a feeling of safety, trust and a sense of belonging to their teams.
The goal of the Imagine Belonging At Work Podcast is to give listeners simple, actionable real-world advice, and to inspire them to take action by committing to first transform themselves, and then transform their workplaces, building more equitable organizations.
Explore what it takes to imagine belonging on a full sensory level.
This includes some framing a few reflection questions and rounding out this episode, Rhodes created a special meditation exercise, you can try out to help activate what you imagine.
Rhodes personally invites you to go on a familiar journey with him. This journey is one where we'll encounter some common feelings that arise when we begin to remember our experiences with belonging, and exclusion.
If you have ever felt disconnected, excluded, or that you just didn’t matter at work, than this podcast is for you. Your host, Rhodes Perry, bestselling author of Imagine Belonging, connects you with inclusive leaders, visionaries, and change makers.
This show was created for people like you – inclusive leaders, DEI professionals, visionaries, and change makers. In this podcast, we dare to imagine workplace cultures that have yet to exist…until now.
It recognizes that leading this kind of transformative work can be both thrilling and intimidating.
You’ll hear inspiring stories from inclusive leaders who have boldly imagined a new way to lead, build teams, and structure the future of work.
You’ll learn how they moved beyond their limiting beliefs, giving themselves permission to envision and then build an enduring culture of belonging at work.
This kind of proven visioning work results in powerful individual and organizational transformation. During your daily commute, workout, or leisure time, allow Rhodes Perry to share actionable advice, and introduce you to some of the today’s most inspiring DEI thought leaders, all while modeling ways to lead with vulnerability as they bring their full selves to these conversations.
Each episode explores the journey of the successful inclusive leader who reflects on the ups and downs of building belonging at work, all in an effort to inspire you to take action, and unapologetically bring as much of your authentic self to work, as you desire.