The Best Leaders Tip #12 – Lead holistically

This is my final of 12 posts about how to be among the Best Leaders.  In these, I provide inspiration for everyone seeking professional and personal growth as a leader of people, projects, groups, teams and organizations. I welcome your comments and feedback.  Visit my website for more information.

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BE A GROWN-UP

Best Leader Tip #12        Lead holistically.  The academic field of leadership is evolving to this, more holistic view of leadership. – where although we understand and acknowledge the various types and styles of leadership and when to use them, we lead as whole people, embracing our teams with all their differences, demonstrating values-based behaviors, setting a clear vision and motivating our people to achieve it, communicating authentically and powerfully, and making sure our organizations are aligned with their entire systems.  This is also known as integrative leadership. 

To me, this sums up all the steps to being the best leader.

The Best Leaders Tip #9 – Embrace the breadth and depth of diversity

This is my 9th of 12 posts about how to be among the Best Leaders.  In these, I provide inspiration for everyone seeking professional and personal growth as a leader of people, projects, groups, teams and organizations. I welcome your comments and feedback.  Visit my website for more information.

BE A GROWN-UP

Best Leader Tip #9          Embrace diversity in all its definitions.  Although it’s tempting to hang out only with your friends at work (the ones you hire, the ones you know, those with whom you have a lot in common), resist.  Cliques make you narrow and exclusive, and not in a good way.   Instead, be welcoming and expansive.  Seek out and be involved with new hires, and those who are different from you in background, age, professional status, education, mindset, culture, and personality.  You’ll be richer, more well-rounded in your perspective, a more effective professional, and a more mature person.

The Best Leaders Tip #4 – Be Brave: be humble

This is my 4th of 12 posts about how to be among the Best Leaders.  In these, I provide inspiration for everyone seeking professional and personal growth as a leader of people, projects, groups, teams and organizations. I welcome your comments and feedback.  Visit my website for more information.

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Best Leader Tip #4          Be humble.  You don’t know everything, and people know you don’t, so stop trying to pretend you do.  It’s really okay – people will still admire and respect you.  Humility requires bravery – a sense of self confidence that empowers you to know that asking for advice, input and feedback doesn’t diminish nor belittle you in any way.  So go ahead – hire people who are smarter and more experienced than you in the areas in which you are not as strong.  Take their advice.  The best leaders also know they are not perfect, and when they make mistakes, own them rather than blame others or circumstances.  Apologize and make it right with those who are impacted.  Read more.

 

Honoring a human rights advocate, a loving uncle, the epitome of leadership

“…life is not fair, but unending in its capacity to change us; …compassion is fair and feeling is just;…we are not responsible for all that befalls us, only for how we receive it and for how we hold each other up along the way.”   Mark Nepo

KOILPILLAI, Robinson
Aged 92, of Edmonton, Alberta passed away peacefully at Saint Vincent’s Nursing Home, Halifax on April 27, 2016.
Born in Prakasapuram, India, Robinson’s first introduction to North America was in 1954 when he studied in the US under a Fulbright Scholarship. He came to his beloved Canada in 1960 and, with his wife Helen and their three children, made a home first in Athabasca, Alberta and then in Edmonton. As a stalwart in education he had an exemplary career, which took him from being a teacher to vice- principal, and then finally to the position of principal with the Edmonton school board. But teaching was not his only passion. Robinson will always be remembered for his commitment to community, multiculturalism and human rights. He held positions as a member of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, and chairman of numerous organizations including the Edmonton Taxi Cab Commission, Edmonton Race Relations Council, Alberta Heritage Council, Canadian Multicultural Education Foundation and the National Association of Canadians of Origin in India. He used his fundraising skills to provide funding for the Anantha Ashram Orphanage and Clinic in India, for a women’s shelter in Nepal and a fund for children in South Africa. For these and other efforts he received numerous awards culminating with the Order of Canada in 1996.
He was a great believer in the importance of family. He and Helen endured the untimely death of their children Michael and Susan in 1989 and 2001 respectively. They hosted grand get-togethers of extended family and eagerly attended other family gatherings.
Robinson will be missed and fondly remembered by Helen, son Chris, daughter- in-law Anuradha, granddaughters Priya, Renuka and Kiran, Fayanne Perry, mother of Kiran, all members of his extended family and many dear friends.

Published in The Edmonton Journal on Apr. 30, 2016

 

Diversity & Inclusion: Steps to Creating an Integrated Strategy

1. Make sure you understand your organization’s mission and business goals and strategies
2. Become an expert on your organization’s D&I goals and strategies
3. Collaborate with those in charge of D&I programs to solidify relationships, ensure mutual inclusion in respective strategies.
4. Create D&I goals and strategies as part of your communication strategies, integrating them fully
5. Start with internal strategy and work your way out to external strategy
6. Include clear metrics and results
7. Report and celebrate results!

The Diversity & Inclusion Imperative: Adapting to a Changing Market

I co-authored this article with my friend and mentor coach, sukari pinnock, msod, of Georgetown university. for more information about the D&I program, visit Georgetown D&I Program

Today, Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) are considered business imperatives for every corporation, government agency, or activity. However, few executives know how to define, integrate, and lead D&I initiatives. For those seeking to add value to their organizations – from driving revenue to supporting innovation to fulfilling mission goals – D&I expertise is critical. If you have the combination of: (1) knowledge; (2) a formal credential and; (3) a network of professional peers in D&I, then your chances of success are greatly enhanced.  This is true whether you are seeking a career in D&I management or you are a manager in an organizational role that involves collaborating with people from different cultures and backgrounds to achieve shared goals.

Getting Started

D&I is no longer just about compliance and equity: it’s a strategic driver affecting all facets of business, from talent acquisition to product innovation to profitability. If you don’t have a solid understanding of how D&I, Cultural Competence, and EEO are differentiated, now is the time to get started. Georgetown’s Executive Certificate Program in Strategic Diversity & Inclusion Management is considered by its graduates as one of their best career investments. As one graduate says, “I was challenged to increase my knowledge, skills and understanding of Diversity & Inclusion by the faculty and course content.”

Graduates say they’ve reached higher career levels and professional visibility after earning the certificate. New professional development opportunities have included speaking engagements, consulting engagements, invitations to serve on task forces, and teaching stints.

Career Paths

Career paths for D&I graduates include diversity consulting as an independent consultant or as a consultant at a consulting firm. D&I consultants are in demand because of the business imperative of D&I to bottom line goals (i.e. profit or mission). Another path is the in-house route. D&I experts are needed in marketing and sales, HR, organizational development, and training departments.  Any internal manager responsible for diverse, multi-disciplinary, and cross-functional teams will benefit from a deeper understanding of D&I issues.

The Public Sector Imperative

The federal government has made D&I a priority, recognizing the fact that a diverse and inclusive civil service leads to better services, solutions, and responses to complex public issues. With the issuance of Presidential Executive Order 13583, federal agencies are now part of a coordinated government-wide effort to promote D&I in the workforce. The demand for human resource professionals with expertise in D&I, as well as a strong skill set in cultural competence, is growing in the public sector.

“As the Nation’s largest employer, the Federal Government has a special obligation to lead by example. Attaining a diverse, qualified workforces is one of the cornerstones of the merit-based civil service.” White House Press Release, August 18, 2011

Real-World Experience & ROI

Students in the program gain real-world D&I experience by working with clients – corporations, non-profits, and federal agencies – facing strategic D&I issues. Past clients include the Red Cross, the U.S. Cost Guard, and Coca-Cola.

Graduates report recovering their investment costs associated with the certificate program in less than  two years of completing the program. Many receive tuition reimbursement from their employers. Moreover, veterans can apply for funding under the GI Bill, including Post-9/11.

Beyond career enhancement, the D&I certificate at Georgetown provides graduates with the opportunity to learn from and become colleagues with a group of like-minded peers. Graduates build a network of relationships that last well beyond graduation. “The Power of the Cohort” is often an invaluable resource to leverage at any career stage.

“This course provides an exceptional venue to collaborate with and learn from an esteemed array of Georgetown faculty members who provide well-researched and informative presentations, and it also facilitates a wonderful networking experience with colleagues in the public and private sectors.” Clarence Johnson, (SES) Director, Office of Diversity Management & Equal Opportunity

Learn More

Learn more about the Certificate in Diversity Strategy & Inclusion Management program. Applications for the 2014 cohort are being accepted now. For more information, please contact Becky Hoven (rh373@georgetown.edu) or Sanea Pinkney (sap48@georgetown.edu).

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About the Authors

Sukari Pinnock is an independent Organization Development Practitioner with specialties in Diversity, Inclusion & Cultural Competence.  She developed and currently teaches in the Strategic Diversity and Inclusion Management Certificate Program.

Jaya Koilpillai Bohlmann, MA, APR, is Founder and President of Designing Communication, offering corporate communication, change and reputation management, employee engagement & organization development services to global organizations and agencies in a variety of dynamic industries.

Diversity & Inclusion: Strategic Recommendations for Leaders

Operationalizing
-Define and refine D&I for your organization. Remember diversity of background, professions, work environments.
-Create a clear, articulated, and measurable D&I strategy that is enterprise-wide and consistent, tied to business goals.
-Invest company resources and demonstrate your commitment.
-Create measurement tools (scorecards, etc) that emphasize accountability.
-Tie to bottom line, including performance objectives and bonuses.
-Look at leadership teams and pipeline for senior management.
Embedding Into Culture
-Emphasize culture and mindset transformation (more than actions and behaviors).
-Communicate all D&I positioning and programs clearly and often to employees – internal to external.
-Develop leadership behaviors up to mid-manager level.
-Learn from and partner with clients, suppliers, others in your system.
Self Awareness and Improvement
-Gaining the key competencies for leading a diverse team, and being a successful contributing team member who can serve multilingual and multicultural customers
-Acknowledging individual frames of reference, and understanding how different perspectives impact personal and business objectives of both clients and employees
-Acquiring skills for working productively and respectfully with all team members and customers
-Leveraging the talents, skills and experience of everyone to meet individual and organizational goals

Communication inspiration from MLK Jr

“People fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don’t know each other; they don’t know each other because they have not communicated with each other.”
— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Inspiration from MLK Jr

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Designing Leadership: Thought of the Week

Be Diverse, Not Safe.

Surround yourself with people who don’t think like you. Don’t confuse their differences with lack of skill. Don’t pretend you are acting in the best interest of your organization by hiring only people whose resumes and looks are the same as everyone else’s. Learn how to understand people with differences, and learn how to lead them.