Talking Across Differences: Ask Catalyst Express

May 26, 2022

Today, and every day, everyone must do the hard work and have challenging conversations to expose racism and bias and understand each other’s experiences and perspectives. There are no simple solutions. But we must have constructive dialogue and work to dismantle structures that systematically disadvantage some and advantage others. These conversations are tough but essential. For honest conversations to work, participants must be willing to discuss difficult topics and sometimes experience a little discomfort.

Catalyst Resources

Practices

Bank of America—Investing in Women Supporter Exclusive
Excerpt: “In 2017, Bank of America rolled out a courageous conversation toolkit across the company to enable managers to host and facilitate courageous conversations within their lines of business, networks, or local markets. The toolkit encourages leaders to consider inviting community leaders, civil rights leaders, and outside experts to engage in open and honest dialogue on key issues. Bank of America’s Board of Directors is included in the more than 60,000 participants who have engaged in courageous conversations, demonstrating the company’s commitment to being an inclusive workplace that welcomes dialogue on issues that are important to its employees and the communities they serve.”
Eli Lilly and Company—Employee Journeys and People Strategy Supporter Exclusive
Excerpt: “Conscious Inclusion training—attended by nearly 3,000 managers and supervisors globally—is another integral part of Lilly’s initiative. This training program explores the impact of biases and guides managers as they develop action plans for leading more inclusively. Conscious Inclusion equips managers to start courageous conversations that they might otherwise have avoided, which encourages all employees to be authentic and ensures that all the voices in the room are heard. They also focus on moments of choice, for example in hiring, to fight an unconscious bias to prefer someone just like you. Every participant in the training is encouraged to commit to inclusive actions that they can bring with them into the workplace.”
Enbridge: Informed Insights and Inclusion Supporter Exclusive
Excerpt: “The spirit of frank conversations and listening was extended through a month of podcasts in April 2021 where representatives of marginalized groups and their ERGs were interviewed about their hopes, challenges, and dreams and how inclusion is and should be valued at Enbridge. Podcast guests included front-line workers and executives from underrepresented ethnic and racial groups…. When George Floyd was murdered in 2020, Ehigie had great conversations with leaders within Enbridge who wanted to talk about race but didn’t know how to broach the topic. These conversations sparked a culture of two-way dialogue. The company hosted “Impact Group” discussions where employees could talk about how they felt, where they would like the world to be, and what Enbridge could do about it.”