Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 15

DR. KRISTAL WALKER, CPTM
DIVERSITY AND
INCLUSION
LEADERSHIP: THE BOTTLENECK
OR THE BREAKTHROUGH FOR
DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION?
In a post-pandemic culture moving
diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)
forward, it is imperative to ensure leaders
possess the skills and characteristics
to be effective within their circles of
influence, careers and communities.
If leaders aren't using skills like empathy,
accessibility and accountability to move
DEI forward within their leadership
commitments, they may be serving
more as a bottleneck - an element
that stops a process or activity from
progressing - than a partner committed
to success.
EMPATHY
Leaders realize that understanding
another's feelings while helping them
overcome challenges is more fulfilling
than accomplishing even the most
desired goal. Let's look at the use of
empathy from two perspectives.
Bottleneck: An employee who happens
to be a person of color shares personal
struggles with career mobility. Their
challenge is not qualification but
sponsorship or an equitable shot at
navigating the hiring and selection
process. That leader should at least try to
understand the employee's experience.
They should never use empathy to gain
insight into their personal situation, then
use it against them.
Breakthrough: Imagine the same
scenario where this time the leader
not only listened but also imagined
themselves in that experience and what
support they would need to advance
their career. This positions both for
a breakthrough: The employee gets
support for career advancement they
may have been denied or excluded
from because of their minority
status, and the leader gets to serve
as a sponsor and advocate for the
employee's career path.
ACCESSIBILITY
Are leaders within your company,
community or circle of influence really
accessible for collaborating on DEI
initiatives? Let's look at accessibility
from two perspectives.
Bottleneck: Imagine every project,
task and decision is consulted through
a department leader who can only
meet on a weekly basis. How much
productivity and engagement is at risk
because employees aren't empowered
to do it on their own? This scenario
might present further complication(s)
when centered around DEI.
Breakthrough: When projects, tasks and
decisions need to be made, particularly
around DEI issues, it is important for the
team to see the leader's visibility, even
in the hard things. It is also important
to not confuse accessibility with one's
freedom to disconnect personal and
professional commitments. If 2020
taught us anything, the great lesson is
wellness and self-care. Personal wellbeing
is extremely imperative and
should be carefully considered when
taking on a leadership responsibility.
ACCOUNTABILITY
What gets measured gets done, and
leaders who are accountable to their
teams will accomplish the work at
hand. Let's look at accountability from
two perspectives.
Bottleneck: Say your organization is
genuinely invested in advancing DEI
initiatives. Part of its strategy is challenging
leadership to craft the business case for
diversity to share to their teams, but a few
leaders are struggling because of their
lack of interest, time, understanding or
communication skills. Meanwhile, the few
diverse employees within your company
understand that the company wants
to expand DEI but are clueless to what
is happening.
Breakthrough: Now imagine if they
chose to seek internal or external
support to better understand the
business case for DEI, how to support it
and how to communicate it to their teams
to maximize engagement. This speaks
volumes about the leaders' personal
accountability and commitment. It could
also be the long-awaited answer for
those quietly suffering as they work
through feelings of exclusion and workrelated
insecurities.
Breaking through barriers requires
courage, tenacity, patience and
resilience because the answers or the
solutions may not come immediately.
However, the most important takeaway
is to not allow a lack of empathy,
accessibility or accountability serve as a
bottleneck to any movement for creating
a better, safer and thriving world.
Dr. Kristal Walker, CPTM, is the vice
president of employee wellbeing at
Sweetwater. Kristal is also a facilitator
for Training Industry's Diversity and
Inclusion Master Class. Email Kristal.
TRAINING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE - ELEVATING LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT I WWW.TRAININGINDUSTRY.COM/MAGAZINE
| 15
https://www.trainingindustry.com/wiki/diversity-equity-and-inclusion/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-dei/ https://www.trainingindustry.com/articles/leadership/coaching-mentoring-and-sponsorships-what-does-it-all-mean/ https://www.trainingindustry.com/glossary/empathy/ https://www.trainingindustry.com/glossary/sponsorship/ https://www.trainingindustry.com/continuing-professional-development/master-classes/building-diversity-inclusion-training-programs/ https://www.trainingindustry.com/continuing-professional-development/master-classes/building-diversity-inclusion-training-programs/ https://www.trainingindustry.com/magazine http://WWW.TRAININGINDUSTRY.COM/MAGAZINE

Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021

Elevating Leadership Development
Table of Contents
Preparing Leaders for the 'New Normal'
How Does the Rise of Artificial Intelligence Impact Leadership?
Soundbites for Consideration
Leadership: The Bottleneck or the Breakthrough for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion?
Dip Into Leadership: Identifyiing Emerging Leaders During a Time of Change
Give Your Leadership a Vertical Lift
Creating Conversational Leadership
A Blueprint for Remote Leadership That Works
Leadership Development is About Capacity, Not Just Competencies
How to Create Leadership Fluency: Cultivating Communities of Practice for Seasoned and Aspiring Leaders
Leveraging Data to Increase Leadership and Team Effectiveness in the Flow of Work
The Power of Practice
Brain-based Leadership Development: What Exactly Are You Scaling?
Learner Mindset
Recent Acquisitions Position eLearning Brothers as a One-stop-shop Solution
Company News
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Intro
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 1
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 2
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - CT1
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - CT2
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Elevating Leadership Development
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 4
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 5
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Table of Contents
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 7
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 8
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Preparing Leaders for the 'New Normal'
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 10
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - How Does the Rise of Artificial Intelligence Impact Leadership?
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 12
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Soundbites for Consideration
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 14
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Leadership: The Bottleneck or the Breakthrough for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion?
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Dip Into Leadership: Identifyiing Emerging Leaders During a Time of Change
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 17
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 18
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 19
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Give Your Leadership a Vertical Lift
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 21
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 22
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 23
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 24
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Creating Conversational Leadership
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 26
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 27
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - A Blueprint for Remote Leadership That Works
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 29
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 30
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 31
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Leadership Development is About Capacity, Not Just Competencies
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 33
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 34
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 35
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - How to Create Leadership Fluency: Cultivating Communities of Practice for Seasoned and Aspiring Leaders
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 37
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 38
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 39
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Leveraging Data to Increase Leadership and Team Effectiveness in the Flow of Work
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 41
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 42
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 43
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 44
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - The Power of Practice
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 46
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Brain-based Leadership Development: What Exactly Are You Scaling?
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 48
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Learner Mindset
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Recent Acquisitions Position eLearning Brothers as a One-stop-shop Solution
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - Company News
Training Industry Magazine - July/August 2021 - 52
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