1

Share unwritten rules with new team members

According to a new report from McKinsey, “an inclusive culture is increasingly a competitive advantage for organizations in attracting and retaining talent.”

That quote got my attention, given the record attrition we’re experiencing across industries.

While the report has many suggestions for creating a more inclusive culture and embracing, supporting, and enabling employees to make meaningful contributions, here’s just one: the importance of integrating new team members, especially in hybrid work environments.

Let’s face it. Every team has its unwritten rules of how things get done. Even the best onboarding training and documentation are bound to miss some important nuances of working norms across a group or larger organization. Or it could be outdated, lacking new best practices for hybrid teams, for example.

Unfortunately, people from underrepresented groups may not learn these insider tips as quickly as those in the majority or at all. They may lack access to informal networks. They may not have casual mentors who habitually gravitate towards helping people who remind them of their younger selves.

Allies, reflect on how you welcome new employees to your team. Is there more you can do to share the unwritten rules with everyone?

p.s. If buddies are a key part of your onboarding strategy, be sure to check out this Wall Street Journal article of recommended “do’s and don’ts”.

2

Improve support for internal mobility

Earlier in my career, when I was an engineering leader at Adobe, my department decided to focus on increasing internal mobility. We wanted to retain the talent we had worked hard to recruit and keep their knowledge and expertise at the company. Even if it meant they would transition from positions in our department to join another one, leaving us with the task of finding their replacements.

Today, this mindset could benefit organizations that want to retain employees from underrepresented groups that they worked hard to recruit and hire.

Yet, are we aware of the barriers employees face when looking for in-house opportunities?

In What Stops Employees from Applying for Internal Roles, Gartner researchers shared the results of a recent survey: Only a third of employees who looked for a new role in the last year looked at internal opportunities first. The survey found three key obstacles:

• Awareness: Internal roles are often communicated informally via a “tap the shoulder” approach that advantages people with strong internal networks.
• Access: Employees assumed that someone else was already favored for the role and that it would be easier to achieve career growth somewhere else.
• Support: Most respondents didn’t feel their manager or team supported internal transfers.

Allies, reflect on your approach to internal mobility. Are roles advertised? Are you having career discussions with employees? Are you celebrating internal transfers when they happen?

Then, check out the article for strategies to make your internal labor market more equitable.

(Thank you to the team at Aleria for bringing this article to my attention via their recent newsletter.)

3

Don’t insist on “assume positive intent”

When someone raises a concern about discriminatory or sexist behavior, how many of us respond with a positive spin? For example, “I don’t think they meant to offend you.” Or something similar.

This is called assuming positive intent.

It’s fairly common for organizations to embrace this maxim. It can shift a negative mindset to a positive one and help us avoid negative biases. In fact, it’s my go-to stance when I find myself starting to get annoyed by someone speeding by me on a highway, weaving in and out of traffic. Instead of getting angry, I force myself to think, “Maybe there’s a family emergency that they’re rushing to.”

Yet, “assuming positive intent” can give careless or ignorant employees a get-out-of-jail-free card in our workplaces. They can say racist or sexist or otherwise inappropriate and harmful things and claim that they “didn’t mean to be offensive” — that they intended to give an innocuous compliment, make a joke, or point out something that seemed harmless.

Intent is not valueless, especially because plenty of people do racist and sexist things with full knowledge of how their actions will be received. That said, positive intent is not a justification for discrimination or ignorance. Insisting that colleagues “assume positive intent” can create damaging conditions in the workplace. So instead, let’s work to set expectations around demonstrating positive intent through respectful action.

4

Avoid saying “that’s not what I intended”

Let’s also be sure not to claim “that’s not what I intended” ourselves when a colleague points out that something we did or said is not inclusive. As my friend Melinda Briana Epler wrote in her book, How to Be an Ally,

“The worst harm from a microaggression can come from denying someone else’s harmful experience by centering it on your own intent. Trust people’s unique experiences. Use your curiosity to build compassionate empathy. Really work to understand what they are going through—not what you are going through, or what you imagine you would go through in a similar situation. What matters is what they are going through and what you will do about it as an ally.”

5

Bookmark a resource for supporting coworkers during trauma

Hate crimes are seemingly everywhere. Some make the national (and international) news, some just a local paper. Sadly, they’re going to continue happening. As allies, remember that each one can impact our coworkers. To be ready to offer your support now and in the future, I recommend reviewing and bookmarking at least one of these resources.

• Leading in Times of Trauma by Jane E. Dutton, Peter J. Frost, Monica C. Worline, Jacoba M. Lilius, and Jason M. Kanov for Harvard Business Review
• How to Support Black Employees in Times of Racial Crisis from Upwork
• Managering In Terrible Times by Lara Hogan
• How to Manage Your Team in Times of Political Trauma by Michelle MiJung Kim (also applies to other kinds of trauma)

That’s all for this week. I wish you strength and safety as we all move forward.

— Karen Catlin (she/her), Author of Better Allies®