Robert D. Woodard’s Post

Transcript

Hi everyone. My name is Robert Woodard and I'm the author of From Diversity to Inclusion, Empowering the Black Voice in Corporate America. His book has been a four year in the making and I decided to write it following the death of George Floyd. As many of you, I sat in my seat. I felt helpless. I felt hopeless. I was frustrated and wanted to know what am I doing to create the change that I believe we needed to see. And so being in corporate America for three decades. I felt that's why I need to start so much when we talk about cultural wealth. It really comes through. The jobs that people have and the money that people make and how you use that money. And so I thought I would start there. The book talks about systemic and systematic issues and help you understand the difference. It talks about the segregation that still exists in America today. It talks about sundown towns still existing in America today. It talks about some of the disparities that we need to solve for in order to have a better America. The book unpacks diversity, equity, inclusion and representation. Because what I found over time is that companies can solve easily for diversity. But they struggle with inclusion. Inclusion is how you modify and transform the company's culture. How you create the safety that people need to express themselves to be themselves. And to be able to nourish and flourish and grow within their organization, you can achieve diversity. And never achieve inclusion. But you cannot initiate achieve inclusion without achieving diversity. It is very, very fascinating and their representation. Representation is the seat of power. Do people who look like me? Have a place at the table in positions of decision making in the decisions of the where the company or the business will go. And do I have a role that I can help take them there? And then equity, equity is allowing everyone to start on the same place on the field. Was to be the 10 yard line, the 20 yard line of the 30 yard line. But me starting on the 10 yard line when you starting on the 30 yard line. Already disadvantages being, So equity brings that back and normalizes that because that's really what this is about. So many times we're hearing now and seeing at the state level where they're talking about DI being disruptive really is not disruptive. The problem is that we have a normalized the way that we look at race in this country and people who look a certain way don't have a right to be in a certain place. You should be after all. Thankful for what you have. And so as we unpack this, this is something that I wish that in high school. I had access to. In college, I definitely need access to it starting to work in corporate America, It would have made a significant difference of how I navigated through the landscape. And so this book is here to help do some of that for you As we talk now today, there's so many people sitting. These jobs, they're they're worn out, they're burned out, They're exhausted. They're afraid of retaliation. They're afraid to speak up. They're afraid to speak out. They're trying to figure out, what do I do? Do I just keep my hand? Gonna work hard and I will tell you right now, none of those things will keep you safe in the company. Your voice is your power. Using it the right way. Learning how to be strategic about how to use it when you use it, that is the work that you need to do. The rest you can find anywhere, So this book looks at you as an individual in the work that you need to do. And then it looks at organizations and institutions and talks about the things and the work that they need to do. Companies spend $10 billion a year. On diversity, equity, inclusion, DIY type events with very little to show for the reason that it's actually very little to show for it because they continue to talk about unconscious bias and implicit bias and things that aren't moving the needle. It isn't moving the needle because the inclusion isn't being addressed. When you address inclusion. When you address, when you address representation, you began to start to move the needle, the book. You will find it has workable worksheets in there because there's work that you need to do. This is the time to really do the work. This is not just a conversation where you read the book and and I'm talking very candidly about certain things, it is asking and challenging you of what you know and what you're contributing to being the change that we talk about seeing. Following the death of George Floyd, so many people were shocked that these things were going on. But people who look like me will tell you that these things have been going on since we have been born into life. And so the fact that we have normalized the pain and the suffering. That certain people go through it tells me that we are not doing the work to move the needle as we even approach. We're black. History Month is coming up. Doctor Martin Luther King Junior Birthday is coming up. All of these things come. Juneteenth will come up. These are events. They are not the work. And so journey with me through from diversity to inclusion. And let's start doing the work. I'm going to set up a space on TikTok. I want to go live. I want to start having the conversations. I want to create a safe space so that we can have the right conversations and just be candid. And I get it and and it's not a 0 sum game. Meaning that as I profit, somebody else suffers and you're going to give up something. This is this. We are in a place. A space. Where my success does not mean your failure. But if we lift each other up. We can be so much better as a country. We can create so many more opportunities as a company. And we can leave this world. Better for the next generation. So join me in this journey. It is a labor of love. It will say some things in the book that you may look at it. You may ohh did he say that? And the answer is yes. I said what needed to be said, and I spoke truth to power. I am unapologetically who I am. And I will continuously do this. Until my last breath, it is the work of my life and so thank you so much. We will talk soon. Take care. Bye and we'll win.