Category Archives: Racial Inequality

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III

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Austin has broken racial barriers throughout his four decades in the U.S. Army.

Newly confirmed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III took office Friday as the first Black defense chief. Retired Army General Austin, 67, is a 1975 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He helped lead the invasion into Iraq in 2003, and eight years later was the top U.S. commander there, overseeing the full American troop withdrawal.

General Austin was only the sixth African-American four-star general in Army history. Austin gained confirmation after clearing a legal hurdle prohibiting anyone from serving as defense chief until they have been out of the military for seven years. Austin retired less than five years ago, but the House and Senate quickly approved the needed waiver, and President Joe Biden signed it Friday.

President Biden said he chose retired Gen. Lloyd Austin III for defense secretary because of his experience and integrity, calling the retired soldier “the definition of a patriot.”

The top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee said that Austin is an “exceptionally qualified leader” who pledged to uphold civilian control of the military during his confirmation hearing.

The retired four-star Army general told senators that the Pentagon’s job is to “keep America safe from our enemies. But in the wake of the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, where retired and current military members were among the rioters touting far-right conspiracies, we can’t do that if some of those enemies lie within our own ranks.”

He said that military leaders must set the right example to discourage and eliminate extremist behavior. They must get to know their troops, and look for signs of extremism or other problems, he said.

But Austin — the first Black man to serve as head of U.S. Central Command and the first to be the Army’s vice chief of staff — also knows that much of the solution must come from within the military services and lower-ranking commanders. They must ensure their troops are trained and aware of the prohibitions.

“Most of us were embarrassed that we didn’t know what to look for and we didn’t really understand that by being engaged more with your people on these types of issues can pay big dividends,” he said, recalling the 82nd Airborne problems. “I don’t think that you can ever take your hand off the steering wheel here.”

Austin describes himself as the son of a postal worker and a homemaker from Thomasville, Georgia, who will speak his mind to Congress and to President Biden.

References:

  1. https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2021/01/24/for-1st-black-pentagon-chief-racism-challenge-is-personal/
  2. https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2020/12/08/biden-heres-why-i-chose-lloyd-austin-for-defense-secretary/

Making the American Dream Available to Every American – CEO Newel Brands

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How can we make the American dream available not just to a select few Americans, but to every American?

African Americans don’t feel fully part of the fabric of America society because systemic racism, discrimination and economic/social injustice have been barriers that have effectively denied people of color their full rights and privileges of American citizenship. Blacks and people of color have had to fight and to demand for decades for their inalienable civil and human rights and privileges, which are accorded freely to the majority, to become full citizens in America.

“As Americans, we need to proactively address aspects of our society in which discrimination and racism are systemic and root them out,” Ravi Saligram, Newel Brand’s President and CEO wrote. “We need to open our hearts and truly believe that every one of us is equal, not succumb to tawdry stereotypes or allow the insidious hand of unconscious bias to seep deep into our souls.”

Saligram wrote in a letter to Newel Brand’s team members entitled “Embracing Our Humanity” that “his hope [is that] this tragedy will galvanize Americans—black, brown, white, Democrat, Independent, Republican, male, female or however one identifies—to come together to acknowledge and reject racism and discrimination of any kind. As Americans, we need to proactively address aspects of our society in which discrimination and racism are systemic and root them out. We need to open our hearts and truly believe that every one of us is equal, not succumb to tawdry stereotypes or allow the insidious hand of unconscious bias to seep deep into our souls.”

Social scientists say crises like COVID-19 and the murder of George Floyd are “focusing events,” events that recalibrates public policy and cultural norms. It often takes a crisis or tragedy to get society to wake up, look in the mirror, face up to uncomfortable truths and find a better way forward.

We require new and innovative thinking and actions in America to solve deep rooted societal problems of systematic racism and economic inequality, to repair the economic devastation caused by the pandemic and to heal and bring spiritual peace (free of the burdens of uncertainty, fear and anxiety) to the country and the world.  

“It would be tragic if the narrative that the general public remembers is property damage and violent acts instead of focusing on the real issues at hand, namely justice, equality and ending systemic discrimination,” Saligram wrote. “We cannot revert to the old normal of ‘Us versus Them’ and perpetuate senseless killings of people of color.”

References:

  1. https://www.marketwatch.com/story/i-can-be-a-three-time-ceo-because-ive-never-been-infected-by-systemic-racism-newell-chief-executive-vows-to-level-the-playing-field-for-black-employees-11603123364
  2. https://www.marketwatch.com/story/back-to-normal-we-can-do-better-here-are-the-best-new-ideas-in-money-11601997311?mod=bniim
  3. https://www.newellbrands.com/embracing-our-humanity
  4. https://www.cgg.org/index.cfm/library/article/id/273/the-fruit-of-spirit-peace.htm

The Economic Cost of Black Inequality in the U.S. | Citigroup

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Racism stymies national economic growth and is bad financially for business

“We’re in the midst of a national reckoning on race, and words are not enough.  We need awareness, education and action that drive results.”  Mark Mason, Chief Financial Officer of Citigroup

Citigroup research found that if the U.S. could instantly end the most severe forms of economic discrimination against African Americans, it could give the economy a $5 trillion boost to gross domestic product (GDP) over the next five years.

Racial inequalities shaved about $16 trillion from U.S. GDP

During the past 20 years, race-based inequalities shaved about $16 trillion from GDP, Citigroup estimated in a CLOSING THE RACIAL INEQUALITY GAPS: The Economic Cost of Black Inequality in the U.S. study. Citigroup said it “studied the costs of lost wages, fewer opportunities for higher education and less access to home and small-business loans” for African Americans.

“What this report underscores is that this tariff is levied on us all and, particularly in the U.S., that cost has a real and tangible impact on our country’s economic output,” Citigroup Vice Chairman Raymond J. McGuire said in the report. “We have a responsibility and an opportunity to confront this longstanding societal ill.”

Furthermore, today in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Black, Latin, and Native Americans have been hospitalized for COVID-19 at a disproportionately high rate, a direct result of what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified as “long-standing systemic health and social inequities.” Blacks and People of Color are also bearing a disproportionate share of the pandemic’s economic devastation.

Citigroup believes that they, as a major U.S. financial institution, “have a responsibility to address complex societal questions” and “to address current events and to frame them with an economic lens in order to highlight the real costs of longstanding discrimination against minority groups, especially against Black people and particularly in the U.S.”

Four key racial gaps for Blacks

The analysis in the report shows that if four key racial gaps for Blacks —wages, education, housing, and investment — were closed 20 years ago, $16 trillion
could have been added to the U.S. economy. And if the gaps are closed today, $5 trillion can be added to U.S. GDP over the next five years.  The Citi study assessed that:

  • Closing the Black racial wage gap 20 years ago might have provided an additional $2.7 trillion in income available for consumption and investment.
  • Improving access to housing credit might have added an additional 770,000 Black homeowners over the last 20 years, with combined sales and expenditures adding another $218 billion to GDP over that time.
  • Facilitating increased access to higher education (college, graduate, and vocational schools) for Black students might have bolstered lifetime incomes that in aggregate sums to $90 to $113 billion.
  • Providing fair and equitable lending to Black entrepreneurs might have resulted in the creation of an additional $13 trillion in business revenue over the last 20 years. This could have been used for investments in labor, technology, capital equipment, and structures and 6.1 million jobs might have been created per year.

Closing the wage, housing, education, and business investment racial gaps can help narrow the wealth gap, which is significant for facilitating homeownership, business, and job creation, plus establishing a pipeline for intergenerational wealth accumulation.

It’s hoped that Citigroup’s study brings perspective that collectively Americans can find substantive and sustainable opportunities to address the racial inequality gaps identified in the research.

References:

  1. https://www.americanbanker.com/articles/citigroup-vows-to-become-antiracist-review-internal-policies‘
  2. https://ir.citi.com/NvIUklHPilz14Hwd3oxqZBLMn1_XPqo5FrxsZD0x6hhil84ZxaxEuJUWmak51UHvYk75VKeHCMI%3D

Wells Fargo’s CEO believes there is a Limited Pool of Black Executive Talent

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“The more things change, the more they stay the same.”  Alphonse Karr

What a classic example demonstrated by a major U.S. financial institution of the quote “the more things change, the more they stay the same”.  The saying is a reference to situations where there appears to be a meaningful change, but many underlying fundamentals are still the same.

Recently, Charlie Scharf, Wells Fargo’s CEO, wrote in a June memo to employees, “While it might sound like an excuse, the unfortunate reality is that there is a very limited pool of Black to recruit from,” according to Reuters. Scharf also repeated this claim in a Zoom meeting over the summer, exasperating Black employees.

According to the Washington Post, less than 5 percent of those holding senior executive positions at Wells Fargo in 2018, a year before Scharf became chief executive officer, were Black.

Committing to diversity and inclusion shouldn’t just be a marketing ploy; it should just be who you are.

Like Wells Fargo, many corporations have released marketing statements committing to change and to the elimination of structural racism and racial inequality. But, they have not released comprehensive data on the racial diversity of their employees and in leadership positions to the public. Regrettably, we must assume that many CEOs harbor similar shortsighted beliefs, and they continue to embrace the excuse that there exist a paucity of Black executive talent in America.

“We value and promote diversity and inclusion in every aspect of our business and at every level of our organization” Wells Fargo’s Diversity and Inclusion Policy

Although Scharf apologized profusely for his bonehead remarks and commented that his remarks reflected his “own unconscious bias”, we must asks whether his beliefs, which one must assume is also the company’s mindset, have actually changed.

“The point isn’t to get people to accept that they have biases, but to get them to see [for themselves] that those biases have negative consequences for others.” — Theresa McHenry, HR Director at Microsoft UK

“Wells Fargo is badly broken in multiple ways and that starts at the top,” Senator Elizabeth Warren commented. “Its CEO has an unfathomable blind spot about how and why this giant bank fails to hire, promote, and fairly compensate Black talent.”

Consequently, it’s difficult to argue against Senator Warren’s point. Since, the primary benefit of hiring from a racially and gender diverse talent pool is that it immediately expands the depth of the pool and increases your chances of hiring the best executive talent.

References:

  1. https://www.businessinsider.com/aoc-sherrod-brown-criticize-wells-fargo-ceo-scharf-black-talent-2020-9
  2. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/wells-fargo-ceo-issues-apology-after-saying-there-was-a-limited-pool-of-black-talent/ar-BB19mize?ocid=uxbndlbing

Without another round of financial assistance, Black business owners facing tough choices | Bizwomen

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Without another round of financial assistance, Black business owners facing tough choices

Caitlin Mullen, Bizwomen contributor, Sep 14, 2020, 9:01am EDT

The pandemic has presented challenges for most business owners, but new research indicates recovery could take longer for Black-owned businesses. 

About 4 in 10 Black small business owners who received Paycheck Protection Program loans have had to lay off staff or cut worker pay as that money has run out, Goldman Sachs discovered. By comparison, 32% of all respondents said they had done so. 

Although just 16% of all business owners surveyed reported less than one-quarter of their pre-Covid revenues have returned, more Black business owners said this — almost 33%, reports Business Insider. 

The situation has prompted Grammy-winner Alicia Keys to create a $1 billion fund to support Black-owned businesses; the NFL is one of the organizations contributing to the fund, per Billboard. 

“As an artist, I’m always thinking about how can I use my platform to further racial equity. This fund is one of the answers and our goal is to empower Black America through investing in Black businesses, Black investors, institutions, entrepreneurs, schools and banks in a way to create sustainable solutions,” Keys told Billboard. 

Keys acknowledged the initial $1 billion goal won’t close the economic gap, but it’s a start.

“The next steps are to reach out to different industries to invite them to invest in racial justice and create a multi-billion dollar endowment across business sectors,” Keys told Billboard. 

A National Bureau of Economic Research working paper released earlier this year indicated the spring’s pandemic lockdown was particularly devastating for Black business owners: The number of working Black business owners went from 1.1 million in February to 640,000 in April. 

Black business owners also have faced discrimination as they’ve sought coronavirus-related financial assistance. About 95% of Black-owned businesses had little chance of receiving funds in the first wave of PPP loans, the Center for Responsible Lending said. 

The National Community Reinvestment Coalition found Black business owners had a tougher time securing loans at banks and faced bias their white counterparts did not, reports The New York Times.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York recently noted counties with the highest concentration of Covid-19 also have the highest concentration of Black businesses and networks, and there were clear PPP coverage gaps in those communities.   

“Covid has basically been a very severe, devastating scenario for Black-owned businesses that were already struggling to survive,” Kenneth L. Harris, national president and CEO of the National Business League, a trade association representing Black businesses, told the Detroit Free Press.

The NBER working paper noted the pandemic’s effect on these businesses could result in near-term impacts on economic advancement and job creation, and long-term effects on wealth inequality. 

Congress has yet to agree on legislation that would provide another round of funds and unemployment benefits. If Congress doesn’t take action this month, 43% of Black small business owners say their cash reserves will run out by the end of the year, Goldman Sachs found; 30% of all respondents said this. 

And 40% of Black small business owners said they’ll have to cut wages or lay off workers without another round of stimulus funds; 36% overall expect they’ll have to do this.

Babson College and David Binder Research conducted the Goldman Sachs survey of 860 small business owners in the U.S. and U.S. territories in early September; 55% of respondents were women.

Main Street America has said almost 7.5 million businesses could close permanently this year due to the pandemic, leaving 35.7 million workers without jobs.

Source: https://www.bizjournals.com/bizwomen/news/latest-news/2020/09/without-more-assistance-black-business-owners-fac.html

Corporate Boardroom Equality and Inclusion

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America needs better inclusion and diversity in its corporate boardroom.

Addressing racial and gender disparity in the corporate boardroom has become a marketing priority in the past several months and less of a firm commitment to action for boardroom chairmen and chief executive officers, especially amid the global protests against racial injustice and inequality. Effectively, the numbers suggest that much work is needed to level the playing field.

Yet, many corporations claim to support diversity and inclusion, but the numbers simply do not add up. Recently, former AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson spoke passionately on CNBC about the lack of inclusion and equality within corporate American. Yet, the company he ran for 13 years and its board of directors he currently leads as executive chairman reflects that lack of inclusion with only one person of color board member. Furthermore, instead of walking the talk, his appointed successor at AT&T was a non-diverse male.

“A board that better reflects all the communities it serves is in the interest of all stakeholders.” Brad Gerstner, founder and CEO of Altimeter Capital and a founding member of The Board Challenge.

Black leaders are underrepresented in America’s public and private boardrooms. Approximately 66% of Fortune 500 company board members are white men and 18% of members are white women, while only 9% of members are Black men and women, according to a report by the Alliance for Board Diversity and Deloitte.

Research by Black Enterprise found that 187 S&P 500 companies did not have a Black board member in 2019, a 2-percentage point improvement from the prior year. Furthermore, recent data for Fortune 500 boards indicates that white men hold 66% of board seats and white women make up 18%, but only 9% of board seats are held by African Americans (men and women), according to online talent marketplace theBoardlist, which is a founding member of The Board Challenge.

The lack of inclusion and ‘doing the right thing’ is not going to passively happen. Leaders and companies must step up to take courageous action to advance equality and inclusion. For example, the moment a S&P 500 company drops or refuses to engage a vendor or contractor because they lack gender and racial diversity will prove transformative in our society.

Additionally, every U.S. company is encouraged to take The Board Challenge which represent a pledge seeking “to enhance representation in the boardroom by asking companies to retain or add a Black director to their board”. The Board Challenge is asking all boards without a Black director to add a Black director in the next 12 months.

“Diversity does matter when it comes to results.” Arnold Donald, President and CEO of Carnival Corp.

True and full racial representation at the board level is in the best interest of companies, employees, customers and communities and helps to advance and support a more equitable society. According to recent research, people of color in leadership position means better performance and returns:

  • Diverse boards of directors are 43% more likely than non-diverse boards to achieve financial performance above the national industry median for companies in the top quartile versus bottom quartile, according to McKinsey & Company’s Delivering Through Diversity 2018 report.
  • More than nine in 10 directors (94%) agree that board diversity brings unique perspectives to the boardroom, according to PwC’s 2019 Annual Corporate Directors Survey. Additionally, 87% said board diversity enhances board performance and 76% said it enhances company performance.

“One objection we hear is whether companies can find the kind of diverse board talent they are looking for. It is 2020 – it is not a pipeline problem, it is a perspective problem,” said Guy Primus, CEO of Valence and co-founder of The Board Challenge.

References:

  1. https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/nasdaq-continues-commitment-to-equality-by-becoming-a-signatory-of-the-board-challenge
  2. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-board-challenge-launches-pledge-for-us-boards-of-directors-to-add-a-black-director-within-one-year-301126074.html
  3. https://www.blackenterprise.com/power-in-the-boardroom-corporate-governance/

Ryan Clark

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Ryan Clark, ESPN commentator, expresses his frustration about the shooting of Jacob Blake and the current state of racial affairs in the country.

It has been extremely difficult not to feel frustrated and angry regarding another senseless shooting of an unarmed man of color at the hands of those sworn to ‘protect and serve’. From reports, this good Samaritian was attempting to de-escalate a domestic situation and was returning to his vehicle with his children inside when he was shot in the back.

Our country has survived a cataclysmic Civil War and two devastating World Wars, but we seem unable to resolve the intrinsic problems of systematic racism and socioeconomic injustice that runs counter to the principles in which the country was founded and as documented in the U.S. Constitution.

Yet, we should remain hopeful that our nation will collectively in the coming decades work to solve this deep rooted challenge. Additionally, we should maintain the perspective that it took many generations to create the problems, but hopefully it takes fewer generations to resolve.

A Moral and Economic Imperative to End Racism

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The U.S. “has both a moral and economic imperative to end these unjust and destructive practices” of institutionalized racism. Raphael Bostic, President and CEO, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta

“Over the course of American history, the examples of such institutionalized racism are many, and include slavery, federal law (consider the Three-Fifths Compromise our founding fathers established to determine federal representation), sanctioned intimidation during Reconstruction, Jim Crow laws in southern states, redlining by bankers and brokers, segregation, voter suppression, and racial profiling in policing.”

Dr. Raphael W. Bostic, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta

“These institutions hurt not only the African Americans they’ve targeted, but the systemic racism they’ve codified also hurt, and continues to hurt, America and its economy. By limiting economic and educational opportunities for a large number of Americans, institutionalized racism constrains this country’s economic potential. The economic contributions of these Americans, in the form of work product and innovation, will be less than they otherwise could have been. Systemic racism is a yoke that drags on the American economy.”

“To be fair, we have made some progress. Legal reforms have erased many of those historical institutions that caused so much pain and violence, and further reform essential for helping end harmful practices is under way in many places. But the legacies of these institutions remain, and we continue to experience misguided bias and prejudices that stem from these stains on our history. These have manifested in the worst way possible—in the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Dana Martin, and, sadly, so many others.”

“It is time for this cycle to stop. It is time for us to collectively embrace the promise of an inclusive America, one where everyone can participate fully. We are each being challenged to rise to this occasion through education and action. All of us, especially our white allies, must learn the history of systemic racism and the ways it continues to manifest in our lives today. Furthermore, we all must reflect on what we can do to effect change at every turn.”

“A commitment to an inclusive society also means a commitment to an inclusive economy.”

To read the entire text: https://www.frbatlanta.org/about/feature/2020/06/12/bostic-a-moral-and-economic-imperative-to-end-racism

Dr. Raphael W. Bostic is president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. He is a participant on the Federal Open Market Committee, the monetary policymaking body of the Federal Reserve System.

Punishing Reach of Racism for Black Men | New York Times

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The burden of race and racism in America. Racial disparities in income and generational wealth are among the most visible and persistent features of American society.

The defining feature of the American Dream is upward mobility – the aspiration that all children have a chance at economic success, no matter their background. However, there are substantial barriers to economic opportunity that prevent Americans, specifically Black males, from rising out of poverty and achieving better life outcomes. “Black and white boys have very different economic outcomes even if they grow up in two-parent families with comparable incomes, education, and wealth, live on the same city block, and attend the same school,” according to the Equality of Opportunity Project.

In 99% of neighborhoods in the United States, black boys earn less in adulthood than white boys who grow up in families with comparable income.

Black boys raised in America, even in the wealthiest families and living in some of the most well-to-do neighborhoods, still earn less in adulthood than white boys with similar backgrounds, according to a sweeping new study that traced the lives of millions of children.

White boys who grow up rich are likely to remain that way. Black boys raised at the top, however, are more likely to become poor than to stay wealthy in their own adult households.

According to the study, led by researchers at Stanford, Harvard and the Census Bureau, income inequality between blacks and whites is driven entirely by what is happening among these boys and the men they become. Though black girls and women face deep inequality on many measures, black and white girls from families with comparable earnings attain similar individual incomes as adults.

African-Americans made up about 35 percent of all children raised in the bottom 1 percent of the income distribution. They made up less than 1 percent of the children at the very top. White children are more likely to start life with economic advantages. But we now know that even when they start with the same advantages as black children, white boys still fare better, only reinforcing the disparities seen here.

In reality, whites and blacks are not represented equally across the income spectrum. More than two-thirds of black boys are raised by poor or lower-middle-class families, while more than half of white boys are raised by rich or upper-middle-class families.

The most promising pathways to reducing the black-white income gap are efforts such as mentoring programs for black boys, efforts to reduce racial bias among whites, interventions to reduce discrimination in criminal justice, and efforts to facilitate greater interaction across racial groups.

Essentially, society needs to create the same opportunities for black men to thrive as you see for white men. That would involve things like mentoring programs, reducing racial bias, creating more racial integration within schools and within neighborhoods, so black and white kids have similar opportunities.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/03/19/upshot/race-class-white-and-black-men.html

Source:

  1. “Race and Economic Opportunity in the United States: An Intergenerational Perspective” by Raj Chetty, Nathaniel Hendren, Maggie R. Jones and Sonya R. Porter; the Equality of Opportunity Project.
  2. https://opportunityinsights.org/race/
  3. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/black-men-face-economic-disadvantages-even-if-they-start-out-in-wealthier-households-new-study-shows

How to Be a Better Ally to Your Black Colleagues | Harvard Business Review

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“The relationship between Black employees and their employing organizations is, at best, a tenuous one.”

by Stephanie Creary, Ph.D
Assistant Professor of Management
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

July 08, 2020

Executive Summary

Research suggests that the relationship between Black employees and their employing organizations is, at best, a tenuous one. Black employees — at all levels — feel that they have not been adequately heard, understood, or granted opportunities to the same extent as their white peers.

The author, Dr. Stephanie Creary, has devised a framework to help people from different backgrounds build stronger relationships in the workplace. Known by the acronym LEAP, the framework encourages company leaders — particularly people managers — to become better allies by:

  • Listening and learning from your Black colleagues’ experience;
  • Engaging with your Black colleagues in racially diverse and casual settings;
  • Asking your Black colleagues about their work and goals; and
  • Providing your Black colleagues with opportunities, suggestions, encouragement, and general support.

Public Positioning (Woke-Washing)

Woke-washing is “a modern-day marketing tactic in which corporations superficially align themselves with progressive causes, often while continuing to perpetuate inequality or unethical practices behind the scenes”.

A few U.S. CEOs and corporations have been positioning themselves publicly as being progressive on social issues such as racism, injustice and inequality. They have been taking a public stand against the racism and injustice while also admitting their own shortcomings in matters of equality.

Yet, for many well known corporations and organizations, there has been a large dichotomy between their companies’ (or organizations’) words and their actions.

Read more: https://hbr.org/2020/07/how-to-be-a-better-ally-to-your-black-colleagues

References:

  1. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/ceo-statements-on-race-matter-more-than-you-think/ar-BB14ZzVk

About Professor Stephanie J. Creary: Dr. Creary is an identity and diversity scholar and a field researcher. She is also a founding faculty member of the Wharton IDEAS lab (Identity, Diversity, Engagement, Affect, and Social Relationships), an affiliated faculty member of Wharton People Analytics, a Senior Fellow of the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics (LDI), and affiliated faculty member of the Penn Center for Africana Studies. She leads the Leading Diversity@Wharton Speaker Series as part of her Leading Diversity in Organizations course at Wharton. She conducts research on the topics of identity, diversity and inclusion, and relationships across differences.  She also advises and speaks to corporate audiences on the following topics:

  • Building stronger relationships in the workplace among people from different backgrounds
  • Improving leader engagement in diversity, equity, and inclusion work
  • Reducing bias in selection processes (hiring, promotion, team)