🤓 more DEI drama & culture shifts

🦹 villains & crosshairs

✍🏾 My colleague just quit her DEI leadership role because “she no longer wanted to be in the crosshairs of DEI.” Is this a trend?

Context: 100 employees, insurance

📣 Alex Clermont, Director of People and Culture @ Steppingstone:

It’s hard to say if it’s a trend. Certainly there are some people who want a role that’s less politicized right now. There are also almost certainly folks who are concerned if DEI roles will be a net-negative on their resumes if the climate continues in this direction. But there are also companies – some out of necessity, some just seizing the moment – who are getting rid of DEI roles on a grander scale.

So it’s easy to see the amount of DEI roles and people in them shrinking, but it’s hard to know how many different factors are leading to that and what the primary motivations are.

📣 Melissa Stough, HR Coordinator @ Project Genesis:

I echo Alex. It’s too soon to tell if it will be a trend, and there are already too many factors playing into people leaving DEI roles to really know. Your colleague, ultimately, had to make a decision for her future, and she was probably extremely worried that even if your company has every intention to maintain DEI, her role could still be on the chopping block in the near future. 

The most you can do, as her colleague, is respect her (probably difficult) decision and leave the door open for her if she wants to return to the company in the future, in the same capacity or a different role.

📣 Margaret Spencer, General Manager @ Unexpected Tours and Training:

I’m reading what her reason was, but I’m wondering if that wasn’t the real reason. DEI has been under (major) attack for just over a month (and yes, I know it has been hard always), and all of us in DEI know this latest challenge is just starting.

However, I know that my colleagues and myself are all buckling up for the long haul. We’ve been sharing meaningful messages with each other to lift our spirits and remind us of how necessary DEI is today and every day.

Could she have been unhappy already in her role already and used this as her reason to quit?

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✍🏾 How can I transform company culture without being an axe-wielding villain? CEO (and I) want an exciting tech culture/startup grind, but the current environment feels very 9-5 traditional finance.

Context: 20 person crypto hedge fund, well funded. Just started as Head of People (department of one) a month ago. Was excited to join an innovative, dynamic company, but was met with a Thinkpad, silent office, and a team that doesn’t seem to have career-related ambitions.

📣Dani Herrera, Talent and DEI Consultant @ dei by dani:

This is a tricky but absolutely solvable challenge. It just takes time, energy, and a lot of intentionality from both you and leadership (and your talent base!) 🙂

Start by defining what this exciting tech/startup grind culture actually looks like in practice: What behaviors, rituals, and values bring it to life? What about the micro-culture? The policies, the practices and the accountability? What behaviors will be rewarded, tolerated, and absolutely not allowed?

Then, get to know your team better. Surveys aren’t always fun, but they can be a good starting point. If you want a more direct and culture-friendly approach, 1:1 conversations can give you deeper insights. You might find that people do have ambitions, they just haven’t had the right environment to voice them, the team to support them, or the managers to elevate them.

This kind of transformation is hard to tackle solo, especially as a department of one. If you have the means, working with an external consultant can help drive the strategy forward. Tara Turk-Haynes and I make a great team for projects like this!

Rooting for you!

📣Sandi Creyaufmiller, SVP Culture &Talent @ Marine Bank & Trust:

Building a dynamic culture doesn’t happen overnight. Once you have documented what you want the culture to be and the core values that support your vision, look at what the current values are and start there. Consider core values the foundation of the culture. It’s likely there will be some that will be similar and others that will need to change. Take your time with the gap analysis. The better the upfront work, the better the outcome.

Set up your employees to succeed. If you want the tech startup vibe, then you need to support that with more collaboration, snacks, and fun. Think: work hard, play hard.

Changing a culture will likely mean that you will need to be prepared for some turnover. Not everyone will embrace the new culture. Make sure you celebrate the behaviors that support the new culture and have employees that are not on board, move on to find something new.

I hope that helps.

📣Mollie Luken, Employee Experience Manager @ Jolly Plumbing Drains Heating Air:

Oh wait I love problems like this – does this make me crazy? I think it’s so important to get a pulse on that team. What makes them tick? What excites them? What’s something that can be done in the office space that is simple and easy but a conversation starter?

For example: we use discord for company-wide chat (about 60 of us) and every Monday, we have a prompt that we encourage them to take a few minutes and answer. We have town halls and give out awards. We host competitions for gift cards or free lunch. We constantly are shouting out recognition where it’s due and trying to stay engaged with each other. 

BUT! It wasn’t always like that. You literally have to gauge your people and see what juices them up! There’s so many things that can move the needle – happy to set time to talk more on this!

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