Marian Croak has a unique way of looking at the world. It probably explains why the inventor of one of 2020’s most essential technologies – Voice over Internet Protocol – and Google’s Vice-President of Engineering has hundreds of patents to her name.
The COVID-19 pandemic, has in her view, ‘gifted’ the world with increased awareness of inequities – and the chance to do something about them.
“If we can zero in on that gift we’ve been given to see what the world is truly like and where the gaps are… I think it would be so beneficial to address that huge amount of inequity,” she said at a session during the World Economic Forum’s inaugural Pioneers of Change Summit in November 2020.
McKinsey analysis showed that in April last year, Black lives and livelihoods in America were already disproportionately affected by the pandemic. More recent research found women – and particularly women of colour – were more likely to have been laid off or furloughed, while working mothers were picking up more of the childcare.
McKinsey and LeanIn.Org’s Women In The Workplace 2020 report also found that just 3% of C-suite roles were taken by Black women, compared to 19% of white women and 66% of white men.
So how do we turn this awareness of the world’s inequities that have been exacerbated by COVID-19 into action to make the world a more diverse and inclusive place?
Here, Croak and two other women leaders of colour share their thoughts. READ FULL ARTICLE HERE
by Kate Whiting
Source: weforum.org
At a recent training I was facilitating, I invited people to ask me anything anonymously using polling technology. While the questions always give me great insight into where people are struggling with issues of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), this question seemed more universal: “What do I do if my manager is not inclusive?”
Our society’s tendency to look to men for expertise is one of the things that holds women back in our careers. But we can all help give women’s knowledge and accomplishments greater visibility, which will cause people of all genders to view women as experts and turn to women for expertise more.
Right now, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives are under growing scrutiny. Some companies are pulling back from DEI initiatives amid nervousness around shareholder activism and possible investor or customer pushback. Highlighting the benefits of DEI to an organization’s performance and the wellbeing of employees is the best way to address this negativity.
