As part of our efforts to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) at Mission Met, we're hosting internal workshops where each team member explores topics of interest about incorporating DEIJ principles into our work
These workshops help us better understand and commit to creating a diverse, fair, inclusive, and just environment at Mission Met and in our broader community. This is the fourth workshop in our series and we’re sharing the key takeaways with you. (You can also find insights from our previous workshops on project management, unconscious bias, allyship, and a reflection of our company’s current DEIJ efforts.)
The Topic: DEIJ In The News
This month, Megan Drapcho who serves in a marketing and communications role at Mission Met, presented on the changing landscape of DEIJ by highlighting recent news pieces and court rulings that have impacted DEIJ efforts.
Megan’s responsibilities for Mission Met include writing and building emails for our current customers, as well as marketing our products and services to potential customers. Additionally, she writes blog articles, manages our social media channels, and assists in creating videos and presentations. Another key priority is ensuring customer success by creating help content and assisting with answering help tickets.
The topic of reviewing DEIJ news came up because we typically discuss current events before meetings start or during our semi-monthly team lunches. Megan chose to present on this topic to provide more information about some of the major DEIJ developments from the past year. Additionally, it's essential for us to understand these developments and consider their potential impact on our work.
Through compiling information for the presentation, she gained a deeper understanding of the various issues and initiatives related to DEIJ, including how different organizations (both nonprofit and for-profit) are addressing these challenges and the outcomes of their efforts. There are varying degrees of progress and setbacks within this field which highlights the complexities and ongoing nature of DEIJ work, and it’s important we’re all on the same page about Mission Met’s goals moving forward.
Given that this is an election year, it would be insightful to revisit this topic in a year to compare and contrast the changes over time, both politically and professionally. She would like to explore how political developments influence DEIJ initiatives and the impact of these changes on organizational policies and practices.
Key Takeaways
In this recent DEIJ training series for Mission Met, we identified several key takeaways from recent news and any impacts for our organization's DEIJ efforts. Overall, the discussion touched on the complexity of DEI initiatives across various sectors (business, higher education, and nonprofit) and the need for ongoing evaluation and adaptation to ensure meaningful progress.
Impact on Businesses:
Businesses are shifting away from using the term DEIJ due to perceived divisiveness, rebranding these initiatives under different terms like "employee experience." There's still strong public support for the goals of DEIJ, but legal and political scrutiny has made companies cautious. Companies are advised to clearly document business reasons for DEIJ initiatives, focus on culture rather than quotas, provide training, and stay updated with legal advice.
Articles highlighted include Companies Rush to Define DEI from Axios and DEI Is Under Attack. Here’s How Companies Can Mitigate the Legal Risks from HBR.
Impact on Higher Education:
The Supreme Court's decision to end affirmative action in college admissions was discussed, leading universities to reconsider their admission criteria. Universities are shifting toward considering socioeconomic status and other factors instead of race.
Articles highlighted include Divided Supreme Court outlaws affirmative action in college admissions, says race can’t be used from AP
Challenges for Nonprofits:
Nonprofits are facing challenges in implementing diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice initiatives. Lately, news is expressing dissatisfaction with the progress made including a lack of diversity in the nonprofit sector. Teams making up nonprofits don’t look like the communities they serve and a lack of diversity is an issue for leaders of nonprofits. Nonprofits also struggle with executing strategies for DEIJ efforts due to a lack of resources. Additionally, there is a need to address rising anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. Efforts to avoid divisive language and promote inclusion were highlighted, similar to what higher education and businesses are experiencing.
Articles highlighted include Diversity Work Isn’t Working. It’s Time to Consider a New Approach and Actions Have Yet to Match Words on DEI, Nonprofit Survey Says from The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Despite DEI progress, most nonprofit staffs don’t look like their communities from HR Dive, and The larger the nonprofit, the more likely it is run by a white man, says new Candid diversity report from AP
Moving Forward
This presentation gave us an opportunity to reflect on our company’s strategy. Our team shared mixed feelings about the dilution of DEIJ efforts. Some expressed concern that rebranding and reducing visibility might undermine the impact of these goals, while others hope for a continuation of the substantive work without the need for public recognition. Based on these key takeaways, questions were raised about whether to “double down” on DEIJ efforts or reconsider language and strategies in light of changing circumstances.
Despite challenges and questions, our commitment to DEIJ efforts was reaffirmed. We plan to focus on making a positive impact with this work and look forward to continuing it and sharing outcomes and progress with our audience.