Found this free online course on implicit bias on LinkedIn! It is short, clear, and focused on understanding how common biases show up in hiring and how we can work together to mitigate them.
I’ve also pooled together a few extra readings here:
Generational Differences in Racial Equity Work by Dax-Devlon Ross
“Are we actually interrupting and dismantling white supremacy, or are we just giving lip service while feeding the systems of oppression that have harmed generations of people?“
By and large, the critics [of organizations & leadership] are younger, often of color, though also white allies. They are newer to the workforce and in direct service roles that power the organization’s mission. Often, they identify with the very people the organization is set up to serve. In short, they are the people closest to the work, yet they find themselves furthest from the decision-making tables that define the strategy, design the delivery model, and determine the core objectives.
Critiques include:
- The organization “whitens” as you get closer to the top of the organizational chart. Rather than hire from within when coveted positions open up, the organization looks externally for talent.
- Wealthy white men (some of whom might be Republicans or even Trump supporters) occupy a disproportionate share of the board seats.
- Staff performance is judged and promotions based on metrics that don’t tell the whole story of their work. Relatedly, perfectionism is celebrated while progress is ignored.
- Overwork is glorified.
- Professionalism is code for white.
- The default development strategy feels exploitative of communities of color and/or obscures the role that systemic racism plays in shaping the problems nonprofits are set up to address .
The people leading nonprofits today were molded and shaped, promoted and rewarded within a social and political context that was fixated on procuring accountability through metrics.
Address your performance metrics. The very notion of quantitative measurement as the gold standard of managing and motivating employees is rooted in capitalist industrialism, the focus of which was mass production by any means, including the exploitation of labor. If you call yourself an anti-racist organization, figure out what’s worth measuring and let the other stuff go.
Clarify decision rights. Let people know which decisions are on the table and which are not and why. A solution: let people know when and how they will be included in decisions as well as who has ultimate decision rights. Also, consider letting people know if they are being included for input gathering purposes only, and let them decide if they want to play that role.
Purity can be its own form of perfectionism. We can’t ask everyone else to see our nuances but not allow for the nuances in others. If you find yourself finding fault with every choice the leader makes, check in with yourself. Are you holding this person to an exacting standard that no one can attain? To advance in any field, one has to be able to work within imperfect systems. Give people the grace and space you would want to be imperfect.
Demos HR Samples
Demos Levels of Racial Equity Practice by Position
Junior-level staff (Intern, Assistant, Associate, Accountant, and Coordinator-level) positions must include the following:
- Interested in Racial Equity. You are interested in expanding your analysis and knowledge about the role that racial inequity plays in our society, and are committed to building and/or deepening your commitment to racial justice work.
Mid-level staff (Manager, Campaign Strategist, Policy Analyst, Counsel, Designer) positions must include the following:
- Understand Racial Equity. You have a demonstrated understanding of the role that racial inequity plays in our society and in movement-building, and have demonstrated an ability to effectively manage across difference.
Senior-level staff(Senior Manager, Senior Campaign Strategist, Senior Counsel, Economist, Senior Policy Analyst) positions must include the following:
- Working for Racial Equity. You consistently integrate your deep understanding of key racial equity concepts into work projects and interactions by addressing structural implications and disproportionate impacts of policies, activities, and decisions on race, class and other group identities within the context of job responsibilities and projects.
Director and Associate Director-level positions must include the following:
- Leading on Racial Equity: You have a sophisticated understanding of how race dynamics impact supervisory relationships, organizational culture, partnerships, campaigns and coalition work, and can demonstrate a history of successfully intervening in problematic dynamics and deepening a racial justice approach within an organization, team, or campaign.
Executive-level positions must include the following:
- Movement Building with Racial Equity. Along with the above, you are pushing movement partners and allies to incorporate racial equity into their work and are crafting and leading Demos ’ internal racial equity transformation effort.
Demos Racial Equity Interview Questions
For phone screens, for all candidates:
- In 2014, Demos began a long-term and ongoing internal effort to transform our integration of racial equity into our work and organization. This process involves all staff and every facet of the organization and incorporates comprehensive intellectual and interpersonal learning curricula aimed to help us negotiate the challenges that encompass this ambitious mission. While this work centers issues of race and ethnic identity, additional intersections critically inform our development–gender, sexuality, physical ability to name a few. Our intensive learning curriculum for all staff has focused on such issues as the history and construct of race; levels of racism; color-blind racism; group dynamics; dominant and subordinated group identities; white privilege; implicit bias; and, so on. We now require that staff demonstrate benchmark racial equity competencies and practices, as reflected in job descriptions and annual reviews. As you hear this, what impressions come to mind, and how might you envision yourself engaging with this process?
- What is your perspective on the state of racial equity in the United States?
For 1st round interviews, for all candidates:
- As you heard in the phone screen, Demos has elevated the issue of racial equity in all of our work. A very important component of racial equity is thinking about, and making changes to, how we work together. In particular, we have explored the concept of group dynamics and the concepts around dominant and subordinated group identities. For me personally, I have explored how my [XXX] identity influences my interactions with others. Within that context, in thinking about your own dominant identity (ies), what is your experience working effectively across subordinated identity groups? What comes to mind when thinking about working across race, culture, gender, class, sexual orientation, language differences?
For 1st round interviews, for SLC-level positions:
- As a senior leader at Demos, you will be expected to identify and effectively navigate challenging racial dynamics both internal and external to the organization. What specific professional experiences can you name that speak to this requirement? In giving one or a few examples, please set up the situational dynamics; detail your individual roles and action steps; summarize the outcomes–whether positive or otherwise; and tell us the lessons you learned.
- What is your opinion regarding the strengths and weaknesses of the progressive movement on the issue of racial equity? How do you feel progressives have functioned within this space?
- 1. As we learned with the PBS documentary, our racial categories were themselves political creations to support the economic and political system of slavery: http:// www.pbs.org/race/000_About/002_04-background-02-09.htm