DEI Committee February 2021 Blog

WGR'S Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Committee met for its monthly meeting on February 9th for a discussion centered around Corporate DEI Advances. Neal Walia, Senior Customer Success Manager, at Quorum led us through an engaging conversation on providing DEI best practices. Neal shared Quorum's DEI journey, which started with small internal events that led to their leadership team's engagement. Ultimately, Quorum’s Path for Progress initiative was born -- a resource designed to help build inclusion and diversity programs from the ground-up.

Neal emphasized the importance of leading from the top down and getting buy-in from organizational leadership. However, those who lack support from leadership can utilize grassroots approaches to build the momentum needed to make changes. Neal recommended peer-to-peer advocacy as an empowering tool to share stories and find commonalities. Understanding and appreciating a colleague's story can break barriers and gain the essential support from company leaders.

Everyone's workplace DEI journey is different, and each one will pose its challenges. WGR's DEI committee members shared their own experiences in making meaningful changes and the necessary awareness to avoid “tokenism” and performative actions. One member shared the difficulty of navigating the nuance between inclusion and tokenization. As she shared her story, there were lots of head nods and "+1s" in the chat, demonstrating she was not alone in this feeling. Even when intentions are pure, the wrong delivery or lack of sensitivity can hinder progress. DEI work is challenging and requires real risks, especially for BIPOC, but there will be times it is necessary to take bold stances and speak up. In Neal's words, "It's not about the end game. It's also about how you get there."

After discussing DEI challenges, the conversation naturally flowed into what success means and how to track it. When Neal was asked how he tracks progress, he replied, "Measure and track everything." For Neal, this includes qualitative and quantitative data to gain a holistic story and ensure the data reflects a genuinely inclusive environment. Leaning deeper into the topic of success, a member shared, "The most important metric I see in this work is who is at the leadership table because that is where decisions are made, and power is held. Leadership is key and you get true inclusion when you get shared power in the C-Suite."

After the robust discussion of corporate DEI advances led by Neal, the meeting transitioned to Committee Business, which began with a discussion of leadership opportunities at WGR. The outstanding leaders of the DEI committee shared their journeys into their current roles. Their stories shed light on the hard work that goes into the enriching content and events we get to enjoy every month, and challenged us to find ways to get more involved! They encouraged all members to look for opportunities not just within the DEI Committee, but within WGR as a whole. For more information on how to get more involved with WGR leadership, click here or contact any of our fantastic DEI leaders!

We welcome all WGR members to join us each month at our DEI Committee Meetings! The next meeting will take place on Tuesday, March 9th from 11:30am - 1:00pm. Please register for the March Meeting here: Women In Government Relations (wgr.org). For more information on WGR’s DEI Committee, please reach out to dei.wgr@gmail.com.

This month’s blog is authored by DEI Committee Member and Lead Blogger Madisyn Rhone.