Federal Agencies to Develop a Strategic Plan to Insure a Diverse and Inclusive Workforce

On August 18, 2011, President Obama issued an  Executive Order directing  each federal agency to develop a strategic plan for diversity and inclusion in the federal workforce.  Focus is to be placed on recruiting, retaining, promoting, developing and training a diverse and inclusive workforce.

 Higher Education Institutions, non-profit agencies and private industry are also developing plans to insure a workplace that is inclusive.  Take a look at the President’s Executive Order and let us know  how your agency or institution  insures a diverse and inclusive workplace.  What are the key components of your plan?

Click on the link to view the President’s Executive Order: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/08/18/executive-order-establishing-coordinated-government-wide-initiative-prom

Julie Middleton

Building and Maintaining Trust in Relationships across Differences

Dionardo Pizaña, Diversity and Personnel Specialist

Michigan State University Extension

A key fundamental characteristic for developing and maintaining healthy relationships across differences is the development and preservation of trust. Being willing to be engaged in an interaction across differences at the interpersonal or organizational level in and of itself does not signify that trust exists in these relationships.  Trust must be a mutually defined relational principle that needs continuous work and updating.  It is effortful, intentional and ongoing. Developing trust across difference requires active listening that is focused on attempting to understand the realities of others and honors their realities as being just as relevant as my own. Trust is centered on the ability to reduce denial and defensiveness and a commitment to remaining in the relationship and “at the table” as the relationship develops and when tension or discomfort arises. Trust evolves as we intentionally identify the places where our relationship gets stuck and work together as co-equals to figure out how we will keep the relationship intact operating from a place of wholeness, health and authenticity.

Helpful considerations that assist in the development and maintenance of trust across differences are:

·         Never assuming that trust is inherent in a relationship, especially across differences and that instead, it needs to be developed, nurtured and maintained over time.

·         Living in a society and within communities that have been historically segregated based on race, class and other differences, we have been overtly and subtly exposed to information about each other based in fear and stereotypes which have supported mistrust rather than trust.

·         Many of our past experiences across differences have lead us to mistrust each other, or at the minimum questions each other’s motives, which may only be changed through ongoing, positive and supportive interactions across differences.

·         The way that trust is defined and earned varies based on differences (race, gender, disabilities, sexual orientation, and class). It is important to use “both/and” thinking related to trust, rather than “either/or” thinking.

Helpful relationship skills that assist in the development and maintenance of trust across differences are:

·         Being open and honest

·         Being willing to suspend judgment or disbelief when someone of difference shares their reality, which might be vastly different from your own (related to experiences with individuals, within a work setting, within a community context, etc.)

·         Being willing to accept (and hopefully understand) the emotions that may be expressed by people of difference attached to their life experiences and not attach negativism to the person or their emotions

·         Being willing to recognize, discuss and own my points of privilege while working to use my privilege in support of social justice, equity and inclusion

·         Being willing to be a lifelong learner about issues related to differences on your own and in community with people different from yourself

·         Giving up the need to be right

·         Work toward outcomes grounded in equity rather than equality

·         Being comfortable with unfinished conversations knowing that as we build trust in our relationships through authentic interactions, our conversations and relationship will grow deeper overtime.

·         Being committed to change at the personal, interpersonal, institutional and cultural levels

·         Fighting against the tendency to want to “fix” (savior mentality) situations for people of difference rather than engaging in conversations related to empowerment, shared power and partnership

·         Reframing questions to come up with new, more inclusive approaches (i.e., instead of asking “Is race playing into this situation?” we might ask, “How is race playing into this situation?”)

·         Finding ways to articulate and actualize how addressing issues of racism, sexism, heterosexism, classism and other forms of oppression will move us all toward our human core of connectedness, community, love and relationship

·         Looking first at myself when feelings of mad, sad or scared surface in relationships across differences rather than pointing the finger outward in a blaming or shaming manner

·         Be intentional about documenting your stories of developing and maintaining trust across differences as a way of celebrating your successes, sharing this information with new members of your community/organization/work, and as a way to hold yourselves accountable to your vision of trust, inclusiveness, and equity

What have you done to develop and maintain trust across differences in your personal, community or other relationships/work?

How have you worked to develop and maintain trust across differences using social media or other forms of electronic communication?  Is this possible?

What has been your biggest challenge or opportunity as you work toward building trust across differences?

How to Make Your Business a Multicultural Success

http://www.entrepreneur.com/blog/219707

Cultural Competence: A Journey or a Destination?

What is cultural competence?  Is it something that you have or can obtain (a destination) or is it a life time journey of learning and change at the personal, interpersonal, institutional and cultural levels?  Does cultural competence only apply to race or does it encompass other differences such as gender, class, disabilities, sexual orientation and religion?  Are there certain individuals or professionals who are more apt to have cultural competence based on their group identities, disciplines or other factors or is cultural competence something that is accessible to all?  These are only a few of the questions that arise when one begins to investigate the notion of cultural competence and the varying perspectives related to this idea. 

In my work on myself and with individuals, organizations and communities, I have begun to understand cultural competence as a process which:

·         Is as much about learning about myself as it is about learning about “the other”

·         Is centered on relationship building across differences

·         Is about building trust across differences

·         Is as much about process (what I do and how I do it) as it is about content (knowledge)

·         Contains a power and privilege analysis

·         Acknowledges the complexities of the interconnectedness of people’s identities

·         Looks at issues of oppression and change at the personal, interpersonal, institutional and cultural levels

·         Incorporates a social justice framework to intentionally look at inequities and inequalities and how systems continue to advantage some groups at the expense of others

·         Has individuals, communities and organizations reframing questions and seeking new, inclusive and equitable outcomes

As I reflect more on cultural competence, I realize that it begins with me.  It occurs to me that it is a mixture of a lifelong process of change, skill development, risk taking, curiosity, and questioning.  At times this process can be independent because of the work I need to do on myself.  It can also be dependent and life giving because of the work that I need to do with people who are like me and those who are different from me to build a community of support, challenge and accountability.  As a person of color, I am also aware that I can be further ahead on my journey toward cultural competence in some identity areas such as race and still have an enormous amount of work to do in areas related to gender/patriarchy, sexual orientation and other identity areas where I have more privilege and power.  And there are times when I am not sure if cultural competence is the appropriate term to describe this transformative journey toward equity, inclusiveness and social justice. 

Social justice educator and author Paul Kivel (www.paulkivel.com) provides us with this definition of cultural competence which I have found helpful, “Cultural competency is not something we have or don’t have. It is a process of learning about and becoming allies with people from other cultures, thereby broadening our own understanding and ability to participate in a multicultural process. The key element to becoming more culturally competent is respect for the ways that others live in and organize the world and an openness to learn from them.”

What are your thoughts about cultural competence?  What have you, your organization or your community done related to issues of cultural competence?  What is missing from my thoughts presented about cultural competence? What have been your success stories as they relate to cultural competence?  What is your biggest challenge as you work toward cultural competence? 

Dionardo Pizaña

Diversity and Personnel Specialist

Michigan State University Extension