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How Managers Can Have Effective Conversations On Race At Work

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Does it seem your company wants you to talk about race? Finally. You are not on your own. Over the years, numerous companies have decried publicly against racism and other inequalities.

Although racism is centuries old, this movement toward the mass public, corporate declarations to tackle discrimination, seems new, but it isn't. Many companies have made one commitment to assembling employees through community meetings to hold frank conversations on race in the workplace. A small number of companies will feel more prepared to have these conversations since they first began several years earlier following the multiple slayings of defenseless black persons in the U.S., involving Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown. The responses tend to go this way. A CEO declares an anti-racism agenda followed by a coordinated talk including black, brown, and white executives and their managers concerning their experiences working in their corporation. In non-virtual times, structured small breakout meetings facilitated by internal or external diversity experts would generally go after these group conversations.

Considering physical distancing guidelines, they have out of necessity taken their town halls to their virtual platforms as they delegate other responsibilities to their managers. Managers are then charged with facilitating conversations about "what's wrong" in the company and "what could work" in their company and within their teams. Nevertheless, when the issue isn't racism, which is often avoided in the workplace, numerous managers feel ill-equipped to offer advice on "what to do" regarding diversity and inclusion.  Resultant in D&I initiatives, often never making it past the C-suite.

Pew research on Hispanics with darker skin

Sadly, many discussions on race are only considered in terms of black and white. The Pew research graphic of the separate treatment of Hispanics with darker skin when compared to Hispanics with lighter skin tones reflects how differences in skin tones among any race make a surprising distinction. However, despite darker skin toned Hispanics receiving maltreatment from police along with slurs from others, the report indicates this injustice is far less than those suffered by blacks. What manifestation might that have in other aspects of life, work, and communities?

As a diversity and inclusion consultant, I have battled to offer employees and their leaders' salient plans along with our most effective frameworks intended for handling problems of racism and inequity. The kind of solutions that people are looking for does not always come ready-made, and creating them can be a daunting task. We use a framework to prepare managers to lead conversations about race in the workplace setting. We have had several businesses interested in understanding how this framework could be applied to their organizations.

Because managers feel wholly inadequate to discuss race and its ramifications in the workplace effectively, we created a 1-hour webinar, "How Managers Can Begin Talking About Race Webinar."

My team has modified the RACE framework for middle managers to more easily initiate better conversations on race at work.

R – Reduce the anxiety of talking about race.

It's apparent managers and employees feel uncomfortable talking about race at work, perhaps for a differing reason. Counseled through compliance training not to comment or consider somebody's race, they carry the burden of fearing they'll be called prejudiced.

Thoughtful managers can assist employees as they begin to feel less anxious and more efficacious about engaging in conversations surrounding race and inclusion. We've found it useful to discuss ground rules before participating in tough talks about race. For example, managers should invite workers to create two or three benchmarks they would like to observe to discuss their racial differences effectively. I have encountered little resistance in doing this activity. We remind employees they are building a safe space, exercising respectful engagements, actively listening, and being wholly constructive.

A – Accept that the real issues about race will be obvious or hidden.

I am a Black/African American male diversity consultant and professor who has learned to accept his race later in life than most. I once labored intensely to see "absent of color," including my own, until I realized I could not.  I had hoped my credentials would speak louder than my race. They did not.

My race had followed me from fiefdoms to corporations as though this color was a "collar" coming with a designation when I only wanted to be seen as a man. Regardless of how we carry our race, i.e., differences, it may well be visible or invisible to you and others. I am in my later years married to a marvelous Ukrainian woman living in Europe, and I think it is essential to reflect on the following: What do we gain/lose when the race is hidden? What do we achieve/lose when race is hyper visible?

Managers should help employees find the space in the middle of the extremes of indiscernibility and hypervisibility and standardize race as a component of diversity proven vital at work. Managers can share s positive and negative experiences around their race's visibility at work. Then, employees can be invited to similarly.

C – Call on allies for help.

Cultivating a network of relationships with a diverse set of internal and external allies invested in diversity, equity, and inclusion enables managers to gain traction in building trust for this vital conversation. By sharing tips and resources with members of their network, managers will allow them to have conversations about race in their workplace. Additionally, managers can encourage employees to develop a diverse group of internal and external allies and, when needed to seek advice when necessary.

E – Expect you will need to provide solutions, practical tools, and skill-based structures.

Creating practical tools and skill-based frameworks is essential for assisting employees in feeling that including race in conversations about leadership, diversity, equity, and inclusion are possible.

It is usual for managers to question whether they are doing "the right thing" when addressing race and racism issues in the workplace. Yet, to eradicate systemic racism, managers need to empower employees and provide them with productive conversations on race. Establishing these conversations in evidence and good intentions is better than not talking about race at all.