For much of my professional life, I have always worked for leaders who were white, and more specifically white women. In reflecting on both current and past experiences, I began to think about the many nuances of corporate life that, as a black woman, are part of my experience much more than they are for my white counterparts. This also led me to think about which skills and knowledge white leaders should develop in order to be most effective at leading black employees and providing a safe work environment for us to thrive and contribute. Rarely have I felt that safety in these environments; the only time I felt it somewhat was when my leader was a strong Latina woman who fought for what was right. My typical experience is one of being gaslighted, where blame is shifted to me for others' insecurities, and where I am unsupported and undermined in everything that I do.
Unfortunately, in the workplace there are people who hold their racist and other marginalizing ideologies dear and intentionally set out to harm others they feel are deserving of such harm. There are also others who may not proactively seek to harm others, but who are complicit in the mistreatment of others- because it makes them look better, there is some social gain attached, or simply because they may have personal feelings against a person or group (they deserve it...). And still there are others who want to do the right thing, but simply lack the awareness and/or courage to do so.
On a broader scale, there seems to be a disconnect in general (even outside of race/ethnicity) between leaders and employees, with many leaders not having the awareness that their employees are having a very different experience from them in the workplace and in life, based on their positions, socioeconomic statuses, nepotism, and other systemic factors. People often treat leaders and people of influence or social status much differently (better) than someone they perceive to have little to no influence or social benefit. This is true of people across ethnicities/races - and ever so obvious within the corporate environment.
Since the dynamic in many companies in Corporate America is white leader/minoritized employee (which can include people of different religions, socioeconomic statuses, abilities, ethnicities, etc.) the tips below will focus on that dynamic. The list below is a short, starter set of knowledge and skills to learn and develop for white leaders who want to have a positive impact on the work experiences of their marginalized employees and do their part in creating lasting social changes our country so desperately needs in these times:
Knowledge of human behavior: As much as we'd like to think everyone shows up to work with good intentions, we have to be realistic and understand that people bring their beliefs and assumptions to the workplace and treat others accordingly, even when unprovoked or without proof of the validity of their assumptions. You will need to acknowledge that some of your peers- even the ones that are so nice to you- can and do treat others poorly based on these assumptions and stereotypes. People rarely are the same person with everyone they interact with- acknowledging this piece will make development in the below skills much easier and quicker.
Managing conflict and group dynamics: This takes courage, as it requires you to be able to manage conflict effectively and hold your peers and employees accountable when necessary. Instead of making excuses or otherwise avoiding accountability when your employees share experiences with you, you will need to be courageous and bold in addressing the policies, behaviors and other things that organizationally marginalize your already socially marginalized staff. You will need to know how to spot and manage workplace bullying and manipulation, and you will need to understand undercover workplace politics that undermine your employees' success. For example, someone may spread the rumor that your employee is unlikeable, intimidating or not a team player, versus saying that they themselves are intimidated, don't like the employee, and prefer not to work with them. The accountability is often thrown on us to resolve these issues, which are not ours to resolve in the first place.
Courage and allyship: Your role as a leader is to provide a physically and psychologically safe working environment for all of your peers and employees- not just the ones you like or are comfortable with. This requires everything listed so far, and also the will and desire for change. This also requires you to understand your accountability. As mentioned earlier, being complicit in the mistreatment of others (not speaking up when your colleague microaggresses against someone, or going along with plans to undermine someone, for example) means you are just as guilty as the aggressors. In fact, the aggressor's action would not have any impact if those complicit would not go along with them, so it is the bystanders who hold just as much, if not more accountability in the mistreatment of others.
Social Awareness: This connects to the first bullet point, and the concept of developing your awareness. Just because you, or the people you have surrounded yourself with in life, haven't experienced certain things does not mean others have not, or that they are the cause of their experiences 100% of the time. Awareness of how the treatment you receive and the experiences you have are the result of unearned privileges (and not necessarily because you're awesome, even when you are) is important in understanding and responding to the experiences of others. You may exhibit a set of behaviors or skill that is acknowledged by others as positive, and those same behaviors and skills will be seen as threats when displayed by marginalized employees. Simply "doing as others do" or aligning to corporate culture are not enough for your employes to enjoy the same privileges and experiences that you do. The social and corporate systems do not honor meritocracy when it comes to marginalized groups (I'd argue not at all, but that's a different article), so you'll need to unlearn those old beliefs and learn the actual belief systems that are in place that negatively impact your marginalized employees.
Empathy: If you are unwilling or unable to see things from the perspective of your marginalized employee, you will never be able to fully connect with them and will continuously cause harm- intentionally or unintentionally. When your marginalized employees bring experiences to you, understand the nuances of what happened, and why the experience was significant for them. Then, offer your support (and take accountability as noted above) in helping them to hold others accountable for their actions.
Self-awareness and self-regulation: While learning and unlearning, you'll inevitably come up against cognitive dissonance and other unpleasant feelings, which is normal. While hard, it is not impossible to overcome these feelings- you'll have to push through those "abort mission" messages your mind, body, friends, coworkers and family will send to you during your learning journey. Self-regulation includes awareness of your triggers, feelings and beliefs and being intentional about how you respond to them. Do you function on autopilot, automatically resorting to old beliefs and assumptions when faced with difficulty? Or do you take time out to understand the situation and analyze best ways to respond?
The benefits of investing in this type of growth and development are many, including building more fruitful working relationships with your employees, better work product (since our creative energy is not drained by excessive protective measures we need just to survive intact), and better intra-team dynamics.
Without intentional awareness of and attention to developing these skills, you are more than likely contributing in some way to a marginalized work experience for your employees. The ability to understand the experiences of others and do your part in not contributing to further trauma and negativity can make all the difference in the world- not only for your team, but for your peers, leadership, society and for you as well.
Taking Action: What will you differently (if anything) as a result of reading this article? Leave your thoughts in the comments!
Hi! I'm Nicole, an organizational consultant and personal coach, who is passionate about inspiring the changes our society needs for all to thrive. Using lessons learned from my own experiences and challenges, I hope to help people within organizations by creating mentally, socially, and emotionally healthy workplaces for all. Check out the other resources on this site for more ways to do just that!
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