Culture Fit: Having A Diverse Workforce

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Opinions expressed in this episode are personal. [00:00:03] Speaker B: They do not necessarily reflect the views. [00:00:05] Speaker A: Of this streaming platform. [00:00:10] Speaker B: Good day, everyone, and welcome to another edition of let's Be Diverse. I am your host, Andrew Stout. This episode is dedicated to all my loved ones who supported me through this journey. Those who have left us will always be in our hearts and will never be forgotten. Culture is something that I'd say many people are discussing and talking about specifically today. And I would say probably after the pandemic, I'd say it's something that's come top of mind a lot more than it did. Not that it wasn't talked about, but I'd say after the pandemic, I think people's mindset changed. So today our topic is going to be culture Fit, having a diverse workforce, and my guest today that's going to help us navigate this, who I'm so happy to have on is Amanda Rogers. Welcome to the show, Amanda. I appreciate you taking the time to chat with us today. [00:01:06] Speaker A: Thank you, Andrew. And hello everyone. Hi listeners. I'm so honored to be here. And again, just thank you for having me on. I'm excited to dive into this amazing topic that I'm super passionate about. [00:01:20] Speaker B: Oh, this is awesome. I'm really super excited about it. It is going to be a good one. Before we go though, I want to know, how are things with you? What's going on? What's new? Give us the tea, the deets, Give us it all. Tell us what's happening. [00:01:33] Speaker A: All the deets. So I am incredibly full plate right now, if you would say. I, I work part time with an investment banking firm and support support their people and culture initiatives there. I also manage my consulting business which focuses primarily on people and culture as well as business coaching. So I have a very full plate with several clients where I indeed work on all things people and culture. So that, I mean, we can of course dive into more details, but my plate has been really full in that space as of late. And I think that's just kind of as we wind down the year as well, a lot of these initiatives that we're working on are coming to light. So it's really exciting, whether it's leadership development, culture, diversity in the workplace, inclusion and belonging, employee relations, recruitment of course is up there as well. So just a lot of different things going on. [00:02:36] Speaker B: I love that and I just love the fact that the time you just mentioned time is going by so fast. I was talking to somebody the other day and actually I did a post on LinkedIn about this a while Back where I was saying that, you know, does anybody feel like 2024 went like January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September. Like it just seemed like it just flew by after March, like time just. I don't know where it went. And it's. I always felt like it was weird, especially last year. I kind of started talking about new year stuff and planning for the new year and I kind of felt weird about it. But now I'm like, I think September, I find is kind of like you go, you have spring, you get through summer, you're kind of doing your rate, you know, maybe not regular stuff. You're going on trips, going to the beach, having some fun time. And then September is kind of like, it feels like almost like the new year for me. It's almost like, okay, back to regular stuff. We got three, you know, four months left to go before the end of the year. You know, let's get this set up and let's finish off strong. [00:03:45] Speaker A: I agree with you, Andrew, absolutely. I, I thousand percent. I felt April hit and then summer came and September flew by in a couple weeks. I felt. And so I feel post for me, post solar eclipse, which just happened and into October, this Q4 season, beautiful fall, Autumn, I feel there's this shift in this reset and motivation to really hone in on our projects and priorities and also self care right as the season of nourishment and just tuning in and having those darker mornings and evenings to be able to do so. So I do love this season we're in. [00:04:29] Speaker B: Me too. Me too. And I actually am a big time. I'll share this and then we'll get going. I. When I'm sleeping, I. For the listeners, I am not embarrassed to say I am very much a blanket guy. So I got to have the blankets up to my chin, almost to my nose. And in the summertime we can't do that too much because it's too hot out. So as it starts getting colder, especially around this time, it's nice during the day and it will cool in the morning, nice during the day, and cool at night. So as it's cooling off, you know, you kind of get it. You know, you're getting, getting ready for bed and it's a little bit cool. So you need to have the blankets and the extra blankets. And that is just when I have that. I am like in heaven. [00:05:12] Speaker A: Yeah, I hear you. Cozy, cozy season, right? All the sweaters, sweater weather, I call it. And just with that hot cup of coffee or mocha to start your day or maybe tea. Yeah. Depending on which you like best. But yeah, it's, it's a cozy season and time also for focus and a little bit of discipline. I agree with you too, Andrew. Trying to reach all of our goals that we set out, which feels like forever ago, but it wasn't nine months ago at the beginning of the year. Okay. I need to get back to routine a little bit. As you were saying post summer. Right. Summer was fun times. Beach time, family time, friends. Yeah. Season. So, yeah, I'm feeling good. I feel really great about this season and coming in to have this conversation with you. [00:06:02] Speaker B: Yeah, absolutely. So listen, before we, I, before we dive in, I always have a fun, thought provoking question to ask my guests to get things going. Are you ready for yours today, Amanda? [00:06:15] Speaker A: Yes, you betcha. [00:06:16] Speaker B: Okay. Your question today is if you could be any food or any type of food, what food would you be and why? [00:06:28] Speaker A: Oh, my goodness. I love this question. If I could be any type of food and why. I'm leaning towards what popped into my head originally, probably because it's my favorite meal and I've been still enjoying a lot of them, is a Cajun chicken Caesar salad. And I think because there's different elements to it, there's this fresh crispiness and there's like the heat of the Cajun chicken that you bake or however you'd like to do that. I like to barbecue as well. And I just mixing those flavors, it makes me feel like creative and innovative and a little bit spicy and a little bit cuckoo. But that sort of how I would describe that question and, and why I chose that, if you will. So that was very interesting. I've never been asked that, so thank you. [00:07:29] Speaker B: Well, it's funny, I've asked this question a few times to a few people and I've gotten different answers. So that's kind of like why I've chose to ask it a couple times because I kind of figured that I was going to get different answers. So I've gotten cake because cake is, it's fun, it brings happiness, it brings joy. So that's kind of why they chose that. I was asked the same question and I said pasta because pasta is like a, a warm, comforting type of food. So that's. And I'm all about comfort and warmth, so that's why I chose that. But I do love your answer because it's got a. You're right. It's got a little bit of a mix of crunchy and, and, and spicy and the chicken is the tender. So Yeah, I do love your answer. [00:08:24] Speaker A: And like, let's not forget garlic. And I'm a huge garlic lover. And I think that's also why it's a key ingredient to the chicken Caesar salad that I personally make and love. And it's variety. Right. And I love that's all about me is you'll get to know me as we continue our conversation. That variety is just what keeps me going most of the time. [00:08:45] Speaker B: So I love it. I love it. Well, thanks for having fun with me with that question. We're going to get into the meat and bones of this conversation here, but what I'd like to do is start off with you telling us a little about yourself and your why. [00:08:59] Speaker A: Yes. Thank you, Andrew. Delighted to be here. So thank you again for having me. Yeah. I'm Amanda. I'm an innovator, I'm a collaborator, I'm a creative, I'm a people person through and through. Connection is my jam. I've been in the people and culture space for over 15 years in different capacities with different industries. And it drives me to want to be the change leader in everything that I do and work with various organizations, both public and private, to foster engaged, supportive, innovative and respectful workplaces and culture. And so yeah, that's sort of about a year and a half ago I was working with a different employer and I ended up leaving. And it was of course hard, big decision, but also like really sparked something in me to dive into my passion which is coaching and consulting, both sort of on the business side, which is there's a variety of there in that space as well as people and culture. And so I've been doing that for the past year and a half. I've worked with several clients both in the not for profit and private sectors. And I'm though it's been scary and challenging and eye opening to go out on your own. I wouldn't change it for the world because it gives me the flexibility and the ability to create from a space of where I value, which is co creating with other humans to bring to light and foster, you know, inclusivity, strong relationships, innovation, respect and just overall workplace happiness. You know, engagement. Right. So perhaps long winded, but that's who I am in, I don't know, a couple minutes or less. [00:11:06] Speaker B: No, I, I love all of that meeting you. We'll kind of go into a little bit further in our conversation and people will get to know you. But you, you mentioned three things there, innovator, collaborator and connector. And those are there's many things that There's a lot of things I noticed when I first met you, but those are actually three things that caught my attention to you, is that you are innovative. You. You're a collaborator. You love collaborating. You are a connector. You just love people. And I could just tell that right away. And the other thing that I noticed too, is that you could. We were talking on the phone, but I couldn't. And I couldn't see your face, but I could feel the passion for what you were doing in the. In the way that you were speaking. And I could almost tell you were smiling on the other end of the phone. And that is huge for me. When I can hear somebody or feel somebody smiling. It is. It's. It's. It means the world to me because that just tells me that they love what they do. And, you know, who doesn't want to love doing. Doing what they're doing? [00:12:12] Speaker A: Absolutely. Thank you for saying that. Andrew and I. Yeah, I remember our conversation very vividly, and we just hit it off right off the bat. Right. And. And I'm just so glad that we connected. But thank you for sharing that. It's. It's a great reminder of self to be in the present moment and to share from the heart, which is really what I'm all about. [00:12:35] Speaker B: Yeah, but it's that vulnerability factor. Right. And I think there's a lot. I'm sure you're working with a lot of people, and I. And I think there's a lot of people who were afraid to show themselves in a vulnerable nature because they don't want to seem soft or weak. But I think you're respected a little bit more when you show your vulnerability because you become a little bit more genuine. And I think that's what people respect when they see that genuine nature in you rather than, you know, the hard ass. You know, like, nobody wants to see that. [00:13:08] Speaker A: Yeah, Abs, I agree with you. And likewise, I think it's important to be real. Be real with self and be real with those that you're working with, both professionally and personally. And it does resonate. And especially post pandemic, the old way isn't working anymore. And so we have to get really creative and innovative and tune into the needs of what the changes are, you know, and there's so many of them. There's a plethora that I won't go into because we do have a detailed conversation with all your questions you're gonna ask me. But as you know, I'm super passionate in space, so. [00:13:45] Speaker B: Yeah, for sure. So listen, I'm I'm, I'm rubbing my hands together of excitement. Let's get to the first one here. What are the benefits of having a culturally diverse workforce? [00:14:00] Speaker A: Oh, my goodness. Such a beautiful question. So many benefits and all equally important. The first one that comes to mind is the culture of belonging and a sense of purpose for the teams and leaders that are working together. It's really important to hone in on this. Right. Because the skill sets that evolve are the collaboration. I speak to, I speak a lot about innovation, this psychological safety, if you will. We want to create trust in the work workplace. So that's really important to foster all of that because it overarchingly creates a sense of belonging. And then people feel as though they're contributing to the bigger cause, which in turn gives them purpose in terms, give them motivation to do great work with their leaders and teams. [00:15:03] Speaker B: And you mentioned too, like innovating or being an innovator. I feel like when you have purpose or when you feel like you belong, that means that you're comfortable. So you're comfortable to come up with ideas and be innovative. You're not worried about, oh, if I come up with this idea, they're just going to shun me or they're going to push it aside. They may decide to not do your idea, but it's okay to come up with those ideas and bring them forward to your, to your supervisor or leader or what have you. Because there are going to be some times where they are going to look at it, they're going to say, that's a really good idea. Never thought about that. Let's, you know, let's try it. Or they may have said no to something earlier, but then they're like, oh, you remember that I, you know, that thing that you brought up to me two, three months ago. Maybe, you know, maybe it's time that we try it. Let's, let's, you know, how would we go about doing it? You know, what do you suggest the process is to get it going. So, you know, I think it's super important that we allow ourselves to, or, you know, the benefits of having a cultural diverse workforce is allowing for people to be innovative. [00:16:16] Speaker A: Yeah. And ultimately. Right. I talk about the belonging piece and safety. Right. So ultimately trust and vulnerability falls into this category too because as you suggested, Andrew, it's really important for people to be able to comfortably share their ideas without being criticized and ridiculed, for example. And in that setting, they must feel safe, right? [00:16:42] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:16:42] Speaker A: If not, then people aren't going to speak up and they're just going to go about their day. So I really think. And having a culturally diverse workplace also instills this. You know, it links to better decision making because you have a plethora of different thoughts and ideas and processes from different individuals on said project team. Yeah. And I just think, you know, having that diversity in different settings in the workplace is really, really important. So when you think about in a group setting, if you're, you know, you have a planning committee for, you know, let's call it leadership retreat. I'm in this right now, I'm in this space. So it's at the forefront. It's so important to hear everyone's thoughts and opinions on different things, whether it's strategy, whether it's, you know, team building event for this, in this case. And I've, it's been really eye opening to hear everyone's perspective and sometimes that comes through forms of. Not this, you know, you know, online or in, in meeting or sorry, in person meetings, but rather through FE feedback, which is really, really important. Surveys are very important to understand and obtain this information. If some folks don't feel like they can speak up in certain settings. [00:18:10] Speaker B: Yes, for sure. And yeah, it's a, it's a, it's an opportunity to build rapport as well and which is super important. It's one of my core values. I talk about it a ton. Anybody that knows me knows that it's, I'm a firm believer on it and it allows you to. So this is a great way to meet people like you said, have great ideas, talk about things and build and meet new people like you and I have met. Right. So it's a great, it's a great, great tool for sure. Now that we know what the benefits are. How do organizations deal with a lack of diversity in a workplace? Because I know it's out there and I know there's a lot of companies and organizations who have a lack of or deal with it or have a lack of it. So how do they do that? [00:18:55] Speaker A: In my opinion, Andrew, I would say offer training and education. Right. And so building that into forecast year over year and to strategy. In terms of educating staff in this space, it. There's no right or wrong answer in this space. It's all a learning for all of us. And so I truly believe when you invest in your people and that includes training and development, that includes so much more that really will set an employer apart from the rest. I think it's also important to showcase this in branding. So it's not Just perhaps in the strategic plan. That could be one avenue incorporated in vision, mission, values, really to articulate what diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging means and how the teams embody that. So you can have a policy. That's all great, right. But it's how your teams are embodying it. So again, I always come back to training and education, a huge advocate for that in my own life. And I do facilitate leadership development workshops as well on such topics. So it is at the forefront as well. And in my personal opinion, that is all we have to do is educate, educate, educate. At the end of the day, I. [00:20:19] Speaker B: Love when you talked about the branding. I think it's super important as well. There is a lot of. And I've talked about this as well quite a bit. When companies, way, way back, marketing come, marketing departments or marketing companies were coming out to companies and they were looking at their websites and were saying, well, yes, you need to have, you know, you don't, you know, where's your mission, vision, values? You know, you need to put that on your website and they're putting them out there. And I don't know about you, but I've been having quite a few conversations with people and there have been some people who have not been able to. When I've asked them what their mission or vision or what their values are, there are some leaders who have not been able to answer me on that. And I kind of feel like it's great to put it there, but you need to not just believe it, but you need to be able to recite it and you need to be able to have a passion for it. So when someone asks you, you're, you got a smile on your face and you firmly believe in, in, in that process, like your, you know, your Cajun chicken Caesar salad, you have to believe in your mission, vision, values like that. And people are going to see that when you're talking about it. [00:21:35] Speaker A: Yeah, I love that. Come back to the food always. I'm a big foodie as well, so I love that. And I think it's important to. And thank you for sharing that, Andrew. Really important to come back to. That's people's why, right? Any organization, it starts with a why. And it evolves. Small or large organizations and everything in between, it's, if we don't know where we're going, how do we be successful? And having. It's one thing, like you say, to have a vision, mission, values, but it's how are we embodying them and how are we showcasing them in all the Work that we do day in and day out, it might not be seen and heard every single day, but how can we weave it in our work and play outside of work too? Right. Because it ultimately, when we work with organizations, we hope that there's an alignment of self, value of self, and what you can contribute versus what values that organization has. And typically what I've seen in my career is if there's a misalignment, it's not going to last very long, that relationship. And I'm sure you've seen it as well in your career. [00:22:45] Speaker B: I sure have. I sure have. Okay, so I got a good one for you, Amanda, here. So I hope you're ready for it. Who is responsible for creating an inclusive workplace? Because I've heard different people talking about different sides and I want to hear what your thoughts are on this one. [00:23:03] Speaker A: Well, the people, you know, and so with that, in conjunction with support from leadership and budget, it starts with the people and then it comes back to training and development and so investing in our people to have and build upon the skill sets needed to be able to be comfortable in this space. I think there's this big stigma still around like a diverse workforce or inclusion. What does it mean? And everyone's perspectives are different and beautiful. That's great. We all bring our unique opinions and expressions to the table. But I truly believe it comes from the support from leadership, supporting the people to be like, this is the company we want to be at the end of the day, representing that a diverse workforce, a workforce of belonging, a workforce of just feeling again like you're part of something greater than yourself and that you are open and curious to learning about others, people's perspectives, backgrounds, culturals, ethnicities, their story. Right. So it's just really becoming curious. And I, I think, yeah, I mean it comes from leadership and it comes from of course having their buy in, but the people and so continuing to educate on that front and build it into strategic plans. We have to do that. We have to do better at that, to be honest with you. [00:24:40] Speaker B: Oh, for sure. I agree with you 100. I think it is the people. I don't think it could be. I do think that leaders have a responsibility to, to, to, to make sure that it is going in that direction. But I do think we need everybody to do it. I think if you're, if you got the leaders trying to do it, but there's no buy in with the team or the organization, it's not going to go anywhere. So you need to create that buy in and that engagement with everyone and you know, and show is. And make them understand that, you know, by doing so. I love when you said workforce of belonging. This is going to create a long. A workforce of belonging and you're going to keep those people in the organization or keep people in organization a lot longer by doing so. And you're not going to have those. That turnover that, you know, I know a lot of companies are, are dealing with. [00:25:40] Speaker A: Absolutely, Andrew. Yeah. And being intentional. So again, building it into the framework of the strategy which aligns with the vision, mission and values and having that the teams and staff embody this. And so what does that look like? Okay, well, it's training and development. Okay. It's. How do we become transparent leaders in our communication? What does that look like? It's not, in my opinion, just an email that's going out. It's having sessions and workshops on understanding the importance of this and why it's going to bring value to the teams and being intentional week after week to weave that into not only messaging, branding, communication, internal and external, but also walking the talk and having. And hosting those workshops. They don't have to cost a lot. I think that's the misconception. You can start small to go big, I believe. And so regardless if you're a small industry or a large industry and workplace, you can start small and have even work groups that focus groups that focus on this topic alone and it can just ripple down into all the departments. But again, coming back to that intention and buy in from leadership is really important. [00:27:00] Speaker B: Absolutely. So listen, Amanda, you've talked about training and training on this. You've mentioned it quite a few times. I'm going to give a scenario to you. So you're talking to a, a client and they're a leader and you're telling them that training and development is going to be good for to create an inclusive workforce. And they're going to. And they tell you we don't need that. We've been in existence for 40 years, Amanda, and we've been running strong. The company's been running smooth for that long. We don't have it. We haven't had it. We don't. I don't think we need it. So I think I'm gonna pass. What do you tell them? [00:27:39] Speaker A: So that's me talking to the leader, correct? [00:27:41] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, yeah. [00:27:43] Speaker A: I would ask them, have you talked to your people? Have you talked to your people? Have you gathered feedback? Have you done. Now, surveys can only be productive and successful when they're actioned. Right. Employee Surveys really important to understand the needs of our people in order to make the necessary changes. And to your point, if this person says, no, we don't need it, I would dive into why. And getting curious, oh, we're successful. The books look good, you know, we're growing our people, that's great. But on the other hand, what are the people saying about leadership, about training and development, about culture, about compensation and benefits, like all of these important pieces, work, life integration, how is that impacting our staff? And when we don't know and we don't ask those questions, that's where we're going to be. A rock and a hard place, in my opinion. [00:28:40] Speaker B: Because I think a lot of companies don't do that. They say, exactly, and that's why I wanted to put it to you that way, because that's exactly how a lot of companies do it. They say they speak for everybody else in the company. And I'm a firm believer in telling people or telling somebody. I am never going to tell you how you should feel and I'm never going to tell and tell you and I'm never going to say or I, I'm asking you to not tell me how I should feel. And that you just told me right there is exactly what an organization would do is by saying that, that they haven't talked to people. That means that they are telling their people how they think that they should feel and it's not the right way as well because they are a hundred percent thinking differently. So I just love your answer. [00:29:39] Speaker A: Thank you, Andrew. Yeah. And we're aligned on that, right? Very much so. And I also want to throw out there, I understand, it's more work. Right. Everyone has a lot of work on their plate for sure. And everyone who wants to take on another project such as, hey, how do we define culture, alignment and diversity in our workforce? That is a big undertaking. Yet as I said earlier, start small to go big, you know, and it might seem daunting, but it doesn't have to be. And so in my space, I help clients determine the needs. And so we complete a needs analysis and go from there and we hear from the people ultimately, because it will never stick. Training and development will never resonate when it's not coming from the people in terms of what do they need, what do they look like? We can throw out all the policies and all the procedures and all the training, but if it's not what is needed in the workforce, because we have been blind to some of maybe the concerns and issues that come up with the staff, then we need to really reverse our understanding in that space and try something new. And that's also coming from an innovative and creative place, which is really important. And I think industries and certain corporations could look at that differently. For sure. [00:31:01] Speaker B: 10,000% on that. You're making me think of. There is a show on TV called Undercover Boss, and I love that show because what it did was they had the owner of the company going in or somebody up above that they were going into the company, and they were going in and they were being a spy and they were pretending that they were somebody else, and they were getting the underground floor of what people were. Were saying and how they were feeling. And you're absolutely right. You. If you. If you want to know what's going on, if you want to know what's happening, sure, you're gonna get some people that are gonna say some stuff that you really, you know, most likely sometimes you can't use because it is stuff that it can't be controlled. But there's gonna be a lot of stuff that you can control that they're gonna tell you and that you could probably take down and you could take to your. Your board of governors or who have you and. And our leadership team and say, hey, here's what I found out. This is what the people on the ground for people who are actually doing the work on a daily basis and keeping our company running, here's what they're saying. And you're gonna get a good idea about. About things, and you're probably going to come up with some really good solutions, some ideas if you. If you do that. [00:32:20] Speaker A: Yeah, Andre, I remember that show. Oh, my goodness. And very eye opening in some of the episodes. My goodness. Yeah. Yeah. I think focusing on what matters and it doesn't have to be all the things at once. We have to keep it simple and focus on three things, let's say in a calendar year that will move the needle forward to a stronger culture for sure. In that place of work and in that organization. [00:32:46] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah. So in closing, Amanda, what is the one takeaway that you want the audience to get from this episode? [00:32:54] Speaker A: Well, I'm personally super passionate in, you know, culture and development, people development in this space. And thank you to all the listeners for tuning in today. I was just honored to be here. And I think the one takeaway is let's stay open and be curious and all that we do and get really curious on what people are saying, how culture looks and feels in your organization and checking in with your people. And so I think it's really just understanding the philosophy at the end of the day and making sure people at all levels are supported. Right. That's so important. And to create alignment and congruency and engaged workforce, I think that's really, really, really important. And I really, if there's one thing that I could leave today, it's stay curious, check in with your people and listen with both ears. [00:34:01] Speaker B: I love that. I love that. Mana, I want to take the time to thank you for coming on today. You. I think I just admire you. I just admire who you are as a person, as an individual, as a professional. I, the second that I met you, I just admired everything that you do and who you are and, and what you represent. And you know, sometimes we meet people and we just connect. And I was super lucky to, to connect with you. And when you had said yes to come on here today, I was super thrilled. I will tell you, and I'll be honest and vulnerable. I was super thrilled that you said yes, that you were willing to come on and have this conversation with me because I knew was going to go exactly the way that it went. So thank you so much for, for your time. I know you're a busy lady and you got lots going on, but I appreciate you taking your time to have this conversation with me today and spending time with me and I look forward to, to further conversations with you and, and staying connected with you. [00:35:05] Speaker A: Yeah. Thank you, Andrew. I really appreciate the time today. I, I'm honored to be on here. Honestly, like it's, it's a passion of mine. You've inspired me to be vulnerable and get out of my own way and do sometimes the hard things like having a live conversation with you to your amazing audience. So I'm just honored and I look forward forward to connecting further with you and your audience. And thank you so much again for having me today. It was an honor. [00:35:32] Speaker B: You were very, very welcome. On behalf of myself and my guest Amanda, I'd like to thank you all for listening today. Until next time, be safe and remember, everybody, that if we all work together, we can accomplish anything you have been listening to. Let's be diverse with Andrew Stout to. [00:35:52] Speaker A: Stay up to date with future content. [00:35:54] Speaker B: Hit subscribe.