Prior to the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, many organizations were viewing demographic data and coming to the conclusion that they needed to dramatically increase their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts to create a work environment that was welcoming to the influx of Millennials and Gen Zers (see Table 1 below). The drive for a more inclusive and equitable work environment accelerated greatly following the George Floyd murder as organizations became more “woke” to racial disparities within their own workforces and society as a whole.
Table 1: Demographic Statistics by Generation in the U.S. (Pew Research)
Regardless of the immediate George Floyd awakening or demographic changes occurring with the incoming workforce, there is pent up demand to make organizations more inclusive and equitable. At the same time, many organizations have previously tried to make their cultures more inclusive and equitable, often with disappointing results. Research shows this disappointment often occurs because DEI programs are offered like other compliance training programs, skimming the surface and avoiding the uncomfortable work that comes with transformational learning.
At Transcend, we have partnered with thought leaders in the DEI space to develop an interactive training program that has proven to be a transformational learning experience for participants, providing “considerable to tremendous” value to 92% of participants. The Racial Equity through Action Learning (REAL) program consists of 20-hours of training and is well suited to executive management teams as well as functional teams looking to become culturally fluent. Schedule a no-obligation introduction to the program with me at bob@transcendengagement.com.
