April is Diversity Month
April is Diversity Month, and what a month it has been. On the day of the Derek Chauvin trial verdict, we learned of the death of a Black female teenager at the hands of a police officer, and there were other horrible news stories of Black Americans being harassed or worse by police.
As a Certified Inclusion Coach (CIC), I am committed to helping leaders create diverse and inclusive work environments. I am committed to doing whatever it takes to end systemic racism in all institutions, including our workplaces. I offer several program to support you and your organization.
Next month, Debbie Laxer and I are delivering Unconscious Bias: Awareness, Introspection & Action to a new corporate client. Their diversity strategy includes bringing in speakers to have conversations with employees on a variety of topics related to diversity, equity and inclusion. We customize our workshops by including client-specific scenarios into our content. We focus not only on education, but action. Once participants know what unconscious bias is, how will they identify their own biases, and what action will they take to overcome their biases?
As a follow-up to our Unconscious Bias session, Debbie and I are developing a new workshop called Active Allyship. We are excited about this new program, which will help people realize what they can do both within and outside of their organizations to become better allies to underrepresented groups. We recently pitched this program to a new corporate client, and we have generated tons of ideas and content so far. This workshop is an excellent option for organizations who are ready to take their awareness to the next level with a focus on developing allies.
Mike Brown and I offer a 90-minute workshop called Race Matters: Courageous Conversations for Leaders. This program is ideal for leaders who are struggling with how to talk to their team on the topics of race, diversity, inclusion, and equity. Participants learn techniques for having better conversations with their employees, peers, clients, and more and lean into the vulnerability required to get comfortable with discomfort in a safe and collaborative environment.
One of my fellow Certified Inclusion Coaches, Tiffany Sturdivant, and I are developing a webinar and group coaching program for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) professional women. It’s called THRIVVE: Transforming Hurt & Racial Inequities Into Vision, Value and Empowerment. The goal is to provide a safe space for women of color to cultivate confidence around their racial identity and how they show up at work. We will support them as they navigate barriers to racial pressures, manage how they are perceived at work, and encourage them as they design a new vision for their role at work. Tiffany and I feel called to create this community and to empower women of color in the corporate world. Stay tuned, as we are still developing this powerful program.
