Moderator: Colton Palmer, Senior Partnership Manager at Fair360, formerly DiversityInc
Panelists:
- Jeff Raver, Vice President of ESG Integration at SAIC
- Rakhi Agarwal, AVP, Global Head of Supplier Diversity at Sanofi (No. 25, Top 50 Companies for Diversity list)
It’s the holiday season, which means it’s time to review the measures taken to improve inclusivity in your workplace.
Everyone comes from different backgrounds, and it’s important to remember that not everyone in the workplace follows the same doctrines or celebrates the same holidays. Assuming everyone celebrates Christmas, for example, can be uncomfortable and even harmful to some.
In this session, panelists discuss the importance of recognizing individuality within the company and how organizations can maintain inclusivity during the holidays.
Employee resource groups (ERGs) can help educate employees about different religions their colleagues may follow, as well as the importance of being respectful. Organizations can also encourage mindfulness among their employees to avoid negative interactions.
Highlights from the Session
“The holidays allow us to look at how the diversity of our workforce celebrates these events. Just acknowledging that other faiths are out there and that people celebrate them in different ways. In many times, our internal biases will drive us to make assumptions that people are all looking at the holidays or this time of year in the same way, but that is not always true. By providing that reminder to our workforce, that alone is incredibly beneficial as you start to look at how you can be more inclusive with other experiences during this time of year.” — Jeff Raver, SAIC
“During the holidays, it’s extremely important for organizations and corporations to create a safe environment. The way we can do this is by constant reminders and education to be mindful. DEI trainings, gentle reminders, the nudges that we can send out. Please engage, but be respectful. The intention is there to learn from each other, to know what’s important for everyone and not hurt each other. We are all individual in our own right, we all have our own opinions. But having a different opinion doesn’t mean you can’t get along with one another. We should be able to coexist.” — Rakhi Agarwal, Sanofi
