Looking For Your Expertise Planning Commemorative Events For My Organization

DEAR SEANDRA, I am a member of my organization's Diversity Committee. It is our responsibility to plan events that celebrate the commemorative months on our calendar. I am seeking your advice on how to plan events or activities for certain occasions such as Gay Pride Month, Black History Month, and American Indian Heritage Month, while ensuring that we do not cause any controversy or offend anyone. I would appreciate your suggestions on this matter. - I’M NO EXPERT AT THIS

DEAR, I’M NO EXPERT AT THIS - When it comes to commemorating occasions or events, organizations often ask me for advice on the best approach. There are many ways to celebrate these occasions, but some approaches may not be as effective as others, despite having good intentions and preparation behind them.

Instead of providing a list of ways to celebrate, I suggest asking yourself and your organization some important questions.

For example, consider whether the occasion is meaningful for the employees and stakeholders within your organization, or whether it's being observed because you feel obligated to do so. If it's the latter, you may come across as inauthentic and disconnected from the matter. It's best to either abstain or make a modest, respectful nod to the occasion and focus your energy on events that align with your organization's mission and vision.

If there are people within your organization that you want to commemorate, I suggest asking them how they want to be celebrated. The same could be said for events like Black History Month or Cancer Awareness Month. Speaking with people who relate to the issue or cause being commemorated can help you honor the occasion in the best way possible.

One way to collect feedback is to send out a newsletter inviting staff and stakeholders to send recommendations for how they'd like to see the month celebrated. This approach can help you stay true to the intent of honoring important occasions while remaining true to your organization's mission and vision. It can also help you invest in your people, making them feel valued and strengthening relationships within the workplace.

At the Root of it all, the answer to your question lies within your organization, not external opinions. I encourage you to explore this matter internally to ensure that your approach is authentic and effective.

Be Rooted,

Seandra

DEI Meetings Are Leaving Members Feeling Offended, Silenced and Misrepresented

DEAR SEANDRA - Our organization has an in-house Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. There is no doubt that everyone on the committee is committed to creating an environment where critical conversations take place, leading to long-term solutions regarding DEI policies and initiatives. However, because we facilitate truly candid conversations, which can put people on the defensive, instances arise where committee members feel deeply offended, silenced, or misrepresented during our meetings. This can derail our progress towards our goals. What steps can we take to mitigate the damage caused by these heated conversations and get back on track toward a solutions-based focus? - READY TO THROW IN THE TOWEL

DEAR, READY TO THROW IN THE TOWEL - Participating in conversations about race and diversity can be a brave act, especially when people fear that their perspectives will be misunderstood or opposed. Even the most passionate and dedicated members of such a group can feel vulnerable in such situations. In such cases, conflicts can escalate, and a neutral party is usually needed to resolve them.

At the root of it all, it is impossible to be objective when you are the subject of the struggle, so outside help is often necessary.

Rooted Group offers Advisory Consulting Services that help find long-term solutions to problems like these. However, for organizations that need coaching on a case-by-case basis, the Ask Seandra Hotline is available.

It provides immediate, direct advice and support to address issues as they arise and prevent them from derailing otherwise productive programs and initiatives. The hotline offers tailored guidance in areas such as race and diversity, leadership development, strategic planning, training, and facilitation.

You can access the hotline to receive expedited support so you can get back on track with your mission ASAP.

Be Rooted,

Seandra.

The Story BEHIND Ask Seandra

I recently heard about an interesting situation from a director who was seeking support. Their organization has an in-house DEI Committee, and it's clear that everyone on the committee is passionate about fostering an environment where open and honest discussions lead to long-term solutions regarding Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies and initiatives.

However, because these conversations are unfiltered and can sometimes make individuals defensive, there have been instances where committee members have felt hurt, offended, silenced, or misunderstood during their meetings.

This not only occasionally sidetracked them from their primary objectives, but it also created division among relationships that are vital to the momentum of the organization.

This is not an uncommon occurrence, but it requires immediate solutions, and my existing suite of Advisory Services at the time was a larger investment than necessary to address these types of dilemmas.

In speaking with this individual, I developed the idea of a hotline where leaders could call in to receive prompt advisory services for a flat fee.

While this service is perfect for those who have run into a snag in their mission and need immediate help managing it, I needed a fresh way to show my audience what I was offering, and what that could look like.

That’s when we developed our “Ask Seandra” series. In this series, you will see real-world circumstances my clients have come to me with, and can observe the way we begin the solution development process.

This way, readers can apply the solutions when similar situations arise within their organization. Consider it the first tier in my suite of “support options.”

This series comes out bi-weekly, and you may have also seen it included in our quarterly newsletter.