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The Power of We: Building Ally-Focused Inclusion Initiatives that Engage the Broader Workforce

Forum on Workplace Inclusion - March, 2015

Shavondalyn Givens, NASA Goddard Space Flight CenterJennifer Brown, Jennifer Brown Consulting

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

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IntroductionsJennifer Brown Jennifer Brown is the Founder & CEO of Jennifer Brown Consulting, a certified woman- and LGBT-owned strategic leadership and diversity consulting firm specializing in the future of the workforce and workplace, and dedicated to building more inclusive organizations where all kinds of talent can feel Welcomed, Valued, Respected, and Heard .  Based in New ℠York City and maintaining a global team, the company partners with HR, Talent Management, D&I and Business leadership on change management efforts relating to human capital, including the design, development and facilitation of customized, interactive classroom and online learning events.  JBC is known as the creator of the ERG Progression Model , a ℠proprietary development tool that facilitates the transformation of ERGs into true business partners.  Employer-of choice clients include Cisco, Toyota Financial Services, Wells Fargo, Thomson Reuters, AXA, Disney, New York Life, Target, and many of the Fortune 500.  Jennifer is quoted frequently on next generation diversity and inclusion practices, has delivered two TEDx talks, and is a dedicated and visible change advocate in the LGBT and Allies community.

Shavondalyn Givens Shavondalyn Givens is a senior Diversity and Inclusion Program Analyst at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD. Ms. Givens started her NASA career as a Presidential Management Fellow at NASA Headquarters after graduating from the University of Texas, School of Law in Austin, TX. Ms. Givens has held positions in the public, private and non-profit sectors including EEOC Appellate Division, ACLU of Texas, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and Texas Civil Rights Project among others. Ms. Givens is passionate about Diversity and Inclusion and leveraging the power of D&I to create high performing teams and optimize performance within organizations. Ms. Givens received her BA with honors from Stanford University. She participated in the Semester at Sea Study Abroad Global Learning Program and taught English in Japan. Ms. Givens lives in the Washington, DC area with her family and enjoys participating in numerous community service activities.

http://diversity/index.cfm

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Agenda• Introductions • Current State at NASA and in the World • Setting the Foundation• What We Did

Experiential Learning Demo – Dimensions of Privilege Exercise• What Worked Really Well for Us • What We Learned Along the Way• Making It Real – Putting inclusion practices into our daily work lives• Still to come in the Future• Closing

Are you thinking big enough to capture all of the people who want to be involved in D&I efforts?

Are we using outdated models and understanding to identify on ramps for people within the organization to support and participate in D&I?

How do we start the next generation Ally conversation?

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Setting the Foundation

What was going on in the environment at

NASA Goddard?

What did we want to

accomplish?

What problem were we trying

to solve?

How do we align this with

other D&I initiatives and

training already in place?

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What We Did

– What were the key steps to get started? – What were the key questions we had to address?– How our initial ideas and concepts evolved to where we are

today

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What We Did – Summary – Gained Leadership Buy-In from

D&I Committee and senior leadership and secured a senior champion for the initiative

– Formed a team of passionate volunteers and identified a lead

– Worked with a consultant to provide overall guidance and value added advice around best practices

– Conducted Benchmarking and Research on Inclusion

– Developed a Strategic Implementation Plan, Objectives and Metrics

– Developed website– Created a logo and tagline for

branding – Conducted Focus Groups with

Employees – Drafted White Paper and

Business Case for Inclusion – Developed a definition for

Inclusion and identified the benefits as well as developed a definition for an Inclusion Ally

– Marketed the initiative through Directorate Roadshows

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Who is your ally?  Who is that person that you can go to and you know you can

count on…who you KNOW has your back on a good day or a bad one?

There are people, your coworkers and mine, whose perspective and whose capabilities, for whatever reason, are not fully available to the Center

We all have allies.  They are “in our corner”….”on our side”.   They help us to understand and to be understood.  They defend us when we are down.  They are a safe place.  We need allies. So does everyone else…….

Well, we need to BE an Ally as well.  The diversity of YOUR work unit…YOUR facility…YOUR Center… YOUR Agency gives you a great opportunity to be an Ally

Jay Pittman, Inclusion Ally member, WFF

 

 

 

Dimensions of Privilege ExerciseHow do you teach privilege…

to the privileged? in the workplace?

How do you create a learning exercise on privilege that is accessible across a wide spectrum of D&I awareness?

How do we tie privilege to the concept of Ally in a way that resonates?

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What groups/identities do I belong to where I experience privilege? • Race• National Origin • Gender• Religion• Sexual Orientation• Age• Socio-economic class• Ability

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What Works Really Well – JBCBest Practices and Next Practices

– 1– 2– 3– 4– 5

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What Worked Really Well for Us – Simplicity of concept - something everyone could get behind– Kicking off the initiative with senior level sponsorship – Tying into our core value of Safety for launching the initiative – Having representatives on the core team from multiple campuses– Enabling different teams to implement at their location: Tailor the

presentation to the organizational workplace culture– Core team included employees, supervisors and senior

management. – Practice D&I Principles – example: how we selected team lead – Talking to JBC early to understand who else is working on this

and what are the best practices in this area – Ice cream and Free Books – quarterly book club idea – Fun.  Make sessions engaging and easy to meet new people

What is a core value of your organization that you could leverage for your Inclusion efforts?

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What We Learned Along the Way – The significance of greeting people as they walk into a room – Diversity of opinions about meaning of signing a written pledge– Address confusion on what it means to be an Ally and

expectations for being part of the initiative – Create different roles for various levels of engagement – Challenges in keeping the momentum going – Be prepared to explain how the new initiative builds on the

past ones and aligns to current initiatives and activities – Use a spokesperson who is articulate, engaging and focused

in presenting the initiative– Have passionate and engaged senior champions both formal

and informal – Find ways to re-energize team members and recalibrate plans

if needed along the way  

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Making It Real – Putting Inclusion Practices Into our Daily Work Lives • Starting core team meetings with accountability to model the

behavior - what have you done to be an Inclusion Ally this week? • Incorporate the same level of interactive activities at all campuses• Participating in Random Acts of Kindness• Celebrating Thank You Month• Posting Inclusive Meetings Flyers in conference rooms and using

While you Wait Slides to convey key Inclusion Messages• Developing Email Tags/Signatures that incorporate Inclusion Tips

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Still to Come in the Future • Monthly Newsletter and Resources • Message to Contractors• Planned training seminars – Ally 101 and 201• Partnering with our Employee Resource Groups for sessions on

how to be an ally for specific constituencies• Storytelling with senior leaders and Inclusion Allies

– Why am I an inclusion ally? What does it mean as a person? What does it mean for the organization?

Closing

Here’s to the Dreamers

“Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers…The ones who see things differently…They

change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius.

Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world,

are the ones who do.” – Steve Jobs

Be the Change: Awareness, Respect, Advocacy

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

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Contact Info

Jennifer BrownRead more about the Jennifer and the company at www.jenniferbrownconsulting.com.

jennifer@jenniferbrownconsulting.com

20 E 9th St, Suite 4UNew York, NY 10003Phone + Fax:1-888-522-1599

Shavondalyn GivensSenior Diversity and Inclusion Program Analyst

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt MD

shavondalyn.givens-1@nasa.gov

301-286-9601

Connect with me on Linked In: linkedin.com/in/shavondalyngivens

Learn more about NASA Goddard’s D&I program at http://diversity.gsfc.nasa.gov/