Everyone has a role to play in boosting diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace – from rank-and-file employees to the top executives – and to ensure changes take root and are lasting, the people at the top in particular need to be vigilant about prioritizing these efforts.
That’s what a panel of business and diversity leaders concluded during Providence Business News’ Diversity & Inclusion Summit and Awards event on Dec. 2 at Crowne Plaza Providence-Warwick.
“We need the CEO, and we also need people on the ground,” said Dorca M. Paulino, diversity director for the R.I. Judiciary. “As much work as we do at the ground level, if there’s no change in policy, nothing is going to change.”
The event recognized those in the business community who are working to develop more-diverse workplaces, and panelists discussed strategies for further improvement.
Lawrence E. Wilson, managing director at Providence-based The Wilson Organization LLC, said diversity is a powerful force that improves businesses on multiple levels.
Diversity “goes beyond a sign of the times,” Wilson said. “It goes beyond being the right thing to do. … There are personal advantages. They enrich us as human beings, they define the commonality we have among ourselves and the strength in that community.”
Improved diversity also gives companies a better global understanding and increases innovation, Wilson said.
Rather than financial considerations, the two major factors stunting diversity efforts are entitlement and privilege, he added. “There’s always enough money in the budget, if they want to spend it,” Wilson said.
Like Paulino, Wilson emphasized the need to involve executives in efforts to diversify companies.
‘As much work as we do at the ground level, if there’s no change in policy, nothing is going to change.’
DORCA M. PAULINO, R.I. Judiciary diversity director
“The problem is that unless [CEOs] are in the room and providing that kind of leadership, diversity, equity and inclusion gets stymied,” Wilson said. “It really does, and we run the risk of talking to ourselves.”
He added, “It’s absolutely incumbent on us to knock on those CEO doors or to raise questions through the proper channels to get them to the table.”
To foster top-down leadership and organizational involvement, businesses also need to practice empathy and be persistent in efforts to increase diversity, the panelists said.
“Be mindful that every conversation is crucial,” said Peter Rodriguez, executive director/plant manager for Amgen Rhode Island. “That could be the difference between someone checking out and someone feeling inspired.”
Those in leadership positions must stay on the lookout for situations where employees may feel ignored or targeted and help empower or educate as needed, he said.
“When you’re in a meeting, are we making sure that every voice is being heard?” Rodriguez asked. “Are we looking for that person in the back of the room who may have a question? … Are we looking for the many examples of microaggressions that take place on a daily basis?”
Companies must also continue to promote diversity when these conversations aren’t as prevalent in the public sphere, Wilson said.
“George Floyd gets killed, all the sudden you have leadership of any number of companies saying, ‘We’ve got to do something, we’ve got to do something,’ ” Wilson said. “As the George Floyd story starts to fade from radar screens, so does the interest in advancing [diversity, equity and inclusion]. I run into that over and over again.”
Business leaders and employees also need to realize that racist incidents and other biases occur in their communities, Paulino said, noting an incident in 2020 when a white woman racially abused a Black man in a Narragansett restaurant.
“To the people who oppose [diversity, equity and inclusion] work and don’t want to support it, I say, let’s talk about what’s happening in our own backyards,” Paulino said, “and how as a restaurant owner, your staff should be trained to know how to handle that because, again, it can hurt your staff, it can hurt your customers and it can hurt your friends.”
Neil D. Steinberg, CEO and president of the Rhode Island Foundation, said that businesses need to consider their long-term plans when enacting efforts to increase diversity in the workplace.
“It’s a long-term commitment,” Steinberg said. “You have to realize that you can’t judge what somebody does, what a group does, based on a six-month, 12-month period. … If we’re going to do this, we have to stay the course.”
The panel discussion was moderated by Kevin Matta, head of diversity and inclusion for Thielsch Engineering Inc.
Matta encouraged everyone in attendance, regardless of their position in a company, to think of themselves as responsible for making a difference in diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
“My hope for each of you today is that we continue to look back at ourselves, look at our own commitment of what we get to do to change where we work, our environment, the voices we listen to, how we share our own perspective and invite others in,” Matta said at the close of the discussion.
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. Contact her at Voghel@PBN.com.