Giving Notice

Ever think that only racists are biased and use stereotypes? Think again. As Giving Notice affirms, it is important to recognize that everyone, even the most well-intentioned person, harbors some level of unconscious bias, and therefore perpetuates stereotypes. Researchers have confirmed that stereotypes are an inherent part of our nature and affect how we relate to and interact with each other. Unconscious bias can negatively impact our decisions and judgments in work environments at every level of an organization. This translates to hidden barriers in the workplace, which are the subtle, day-to-day, trivial behaviors that can distort the playing field and have a cumulative effect particularly for people of color, women, and gays and lesbians. These hidden barriers are perhaps more insidious than explicit discriminatory practices, as they can often go unrecognized and yet affect all aspects of business from letters of recommendation, resumes, and hiring interviews, to promotions, wages, and job assignments.

The next step is to delve deeper and identify one’s own biases. The Level Playing Field Institute has partnered with Project Implicit, a collaborative research initiative focused on examining unconscious bias. They created an objective, online tool known as the Implicit Association Test (IAT) that measures how quickly a person responds with positive or negative words to photos of people. Almost all of the people taking the IAT described themselves as unbiased at the onset, yet a huge percentage of white people show some bias against African Americans, and a majority of people show bias against photos of overweight, gay, elderly, or Arab/Muslim people. Take the test yourself at www.implicit.harvard.edu – you may be surprised to learn that you’re not as unbiased as you think!

Unfortunately, most corporate leaders fail to realize the negative impact of unconscious bias on their organization’s culture, which is critical to creating a truly equitable workplace and retaining the best and most productive workforce. Once the first steps are taken to establish common ground and fully recognize our biases, we can begin to eliminate stereotypes and hidden barriers in the workplace by framing discussions, trainings, policies, and systems around these issues.

• you overheard a colleague or manager refer to you as the “diversity hire” on your team?
• you were continuously pigeon-holed into representing your race or gender at diversity and recruiting events meanwhile other coworkers were being selected for the more substantive career-enhancing client assignments?
• you were constantly asked unwelcoming questions at work about your clothes, hair, ethnic attire?
• you were subject to inappropriate comments, public humiliation, or bullying by your coworkers and when you reported these instances to your manager or HR, they were either unresponsive or responded negatively towards you?
• you were of Middle Eastern or Arab decent and a coworker jokingly compared you to a terrorist?
• you genuinely felt that you consistently performed well and exceeded job expectations, only to find out you have been passed up for promotion while other equally or less qualified coworkers were promoted?
• your identity were continuously mistaken for another person in the company for no other reason than they are the same race as you?
• you were excluded from social events at work because of your race, sex, age?

These are only a handful of the many forms of unfairness that cumulatively push out corporate leavers. These sometimes subtle, yet insidious indignities experienced in the workplace by women, gays and lesbians, and people of color inspired Freada Kapor Klein to write the book, Giving Notice.

Year after year, certain companies continue to land their names on the coveted “Best of…” lists and score high in the annual rankings by Fortune, Working Mother, Black Enterprise and Essence magazines. For most consumers and employees, these rankings and lists are considered credible indicators of a company’s strength in a particular area. But as indicated in Giving Notice, journalism insiders acknowledge the lack of quantitative rigor that goes into these “Best of…” lists. Contrary to what one may want to believe, making these lists is not necessarily indicative of an effective diversity management strategy, but rather a good public relations strategy to boost the company’s own image and land their name on these lists.

Consider the following example: “…a recent survey mailed to one of the largest financial services firms in consideration for list inclusion at a national women’s magazine. The firm provided glowing answers to the questions asked, but when pressed for backup to support its responses, the company said that the information was ‘highly confidential and could not be shared outside the firm’ or ‘confidential/proprietary and could not be used for publication.’ Therefore, every key fact (for example, where minorities rank in the levels of pay, how many minorities are actually in the top 10 percent of wage earners, how minorities are faring throughout all management levels of the company) was not permitted by the firm to be independently verified by the writers and editors of the magazine. They were supposed to rely on the company’s word. Nevertheless, the company made the magazine’s list that year” (Giving Notice, Chapter 3 “From the Top”).

Not only do these lists and rankings lack journalistic rigor behind them, but some of the companies that are heralded on the “Best of…” lists as models of diversity and best companies for minorities and specific groups, are also the same companies that have had disturbing race and gender discrimination suits (e.g., Wal-Mart ironically landed on Fortune’s “Best Companies to Work For” and Black Enterprise’s “Best Companies for Diversity” lists despite having a landmark sex discrimination lawsuit filed against the company previously).

Perhaps the message to take away is that making these lists does not necessitate a proven track record. So when considering companies for employment or reputation, it is best to avoid placing all faith in the “Best of…” lists and conduct more thorough research by asking actual employees and considering reliable consumer reports and independent sources of information.

According to a study conducted by Thomas Kochan of MIT’s Sloan School of Management, American corporations spend an estimated $8 billion annually on diversity programs and efforts in their organizations. Not to mention, almost any corporate CEO today would unblinkingly profess his or her commitment to diversity… “We believe diversity is a key driver of our success.” Sound familiar? But corporate leadership’s ability to play the diversity game—that is, mastering the right movements and strategies to create a diversity façade—is not necessarily equivalent to truly embracing diversity and taking the necessary measures to ensure fairness in the workplace for all employees. Leadership may say the right things, but are they actually doing them?…Do they themselves embody them?

Chapter 3 “From the Top” of Giving Notice emphasizes the critical roles CEOs and top management play in establishing and maintaining a diverse corporate culture. Leadership should recognize that their tone and cultural awareness (or lack thereof) have a profound impact that trickles down to the lowest levels of the organization. So, if you feel that your company fails to provide a diverse, accepting, and fair workplace for its employees, ask yourself the following the questions about the leadership: Do they themselves represent diversity in cultures, backgrounds, races/ethnicities? Do they tolerate inappropriate behaviors and unfairness in the workplace or do they exhibit real concern and take real measures to extinguish them? Do they foster and practice open communications at every level of the organization around diversity and workforce issues—and do they follow up and execute?

“When the top actually reaches the bottom, then, and only then, will the diversity movement reach its full potential” (Giving Notice, Chapter 3 Conclusion).

“Clearly, whether on an individual, company, or societal level, a fresh approach to diversity is required–­not a one-size-fits-all way of thinking that starts with a legal framework (you’re either a protected class and can sue us or not), but a deeper and richer approach, based on rigorous research that distinguishes between the different levels and types of hidden barriers. This approach must provide a deep understanding of bias and how it pervades business and hiring decisions. It must allow for a broader evaluation of what actually makes a candidate qualified. This new approach to creating fair workplaces is laced with an acute understanding of the business imperative to stem the loss of talented women, people of color, and gays and lesbians from America’s top companies. Without these talented employees, American businesses will face defeat in the increasingly competitive global landscape.” Excerpt from Giving Notice, Chapter 1.