Allyship In The Workplace Top Tips By Automattic
💎 Practicing allyship in the workplace is crucial to help build a diverse and equitable work environment where everyone’s voice is heard. Watch the video to the end to learn some practical ways to accomplish it.
📼 Use these tips to improve your allyship practice in the workplace! To make people feel included and part of the group, you have to know how to become a better ally. Meet Jeffrey Zeldman, Principal Designer at Automattic, who shares his tips to be a better ally to underrepresented coworkers.
📼 Allyship in the Workplace - Tip #1: Research And Listen. Jeffrey starts by bringing up the old saying “you have two ears and one mouth for a reason” which means: you should listen more than you talk. Jeffrey’s advice is to talk to people who are different from you- lots of them! Also: research! You can read articles, watch videos where people talk about diversity, look up inclusion and diversity, and specifically look for ways of making people feel at home. Ask questions and be prepared to continue to learn forever. The good news is you'll benefit from the creativity and insights of people who may think differently from you, be from different cultures from you. Above all, listen, learn, ask questions, and try to learn a little more every day.
📼 Allyship in the Workplace - Tip #2: Use Inclusive Language. Learn how to pronounce people's names: one of the things people love the most is hearing their own names correctly pronounced. When using inclusive language, you'll be going a long way toward making people feel more at home and included. So do the work! Use language that makes everyone feel wanted, accepted, and understood.
Allyship In The Workplace - Tip #3: Opportunity And Visibility
What folks from underrepresented groups want most it's the opportunity that you've had and they haven't. So you have an opportunity to help them up the ladder, to introduce them to people, and to recommend them for projects that come to you. Bring them in! As Jeffrey puts it: “sponsorship over mentorship”. You can do that in your workplace just by inviting your coworkers to meetings, including them in plans and projects, and giving them a helpful push!
🧑💼 Are you interested in joining Automattic? They have open positions! To learn more, click here.
Get to Know Jeffrey Zeldman
Principal Designer, Automattic, Inc. Founder & Publisher, A List Apart “for people who make websites” (founded 1998). Co-founded the multi-city user experience design conference An Event Apart with Eric Meyer. Founder Emeritus of Happy Cog™, an award-winning digital design studio. Publisher and co-founder (with Jason Santa Maria) of A Book Apart—brief books for web and interaction designers. Blogger & web designer since 1995. He has written two books, notably the foundational web standards text, Designing With Web Standards, currently in a 3rd Edition co-authored by Ethan Marcotte. It has been translated into 15 languages. Faculty member on the MFA, Interaction Design program at School of Visual Arts, New York. Co-founder and host of the internet radio program The Big Web Show (“Everything Web That Matters”), twice named Podcast of the Year by .net Magazine. Former freelance journalist, The Washington Post & City Paper. Former copywriter & art director (DeVito Verdi, Grey Entertainment, Campbell-Mithun-Esty). Played Casio in DC’s Insect Surfers. Composed & produced electronic scores for Upright Vertebrates Dance Co., and (with Robert Goldstein of Urban Verbs) for PBS. Former design columnist, MacWorld, PDN-Pix, Adobe. In 2012, was the first designer inducted in the SXSW Interactive Hall of Fame. If you are interested in a career at Automattic, you can connect with Jeffrey Zeldman on LinkedIn. Don’t forget to mention this video!
More About Automattic
Automattic are the people behind WordPress.com, Jetpack, WooCommerce, Tumblr, and more. Founded in 2005, and valued at $3 billion, they were one of the first companies to pave the way in remote work culture. The company’s 1,400+ people hail from 79 countries and speak 99 languages. Though the workforce is intellectually and geographically diverse, they’re united by a shared passion to democratize publishing and commerce—so that anyone with a story can tell it, and anyone with a product can sell it, regardless of income, gender, politics, language, or country. And the company is growing rapidly!
The Problem With "Boys Will Be Boys"
How It Ends Up Hurting Women And Men
The phrase "boys will be boys" makes my blood boil. But I realized when I sat down to write this piece that I didn't know exactly why.
Was it because it's so often used as an excuse for poor behavior?
À la when a little boy punches another little boy on the playground and his mom chuckles, "Boys will be boys!"
Or worse yet, when a Supreme Court nominee is accused of sexual assault, and half of the adult population collectively rolls their eyes and says, "He was just a kid… boys will be boys, after all."
These are the more sinister applications of "boys will be boys" – the ones that reflect our society's tendency to forgive men's bad behavior because we believe it's somehow hardcoded in their DNA.
Don't get me wrong, I hate that we do this. I hate that we're so quick to accept that 50% of the population is simply wired to be aggressive and that therefore we shouldn't expect more of them.
But this isn't why the phrase "boys will be boys" makes my blood boil.
It makes my blood boil because it's society's way of using a cute, seemingly innocuous phrase to remind us all that men and women are inherently different. To reinforce the assumption that boys are wired to be a certain way, and therefore will be that way - no matter what.
When this cute little phrase is used to defend cute little activities, I find it's at its most dangerous.
In researching this piece, I came across an article by a mom defending her use of the phrase. In her words:
I'm pretty sure that whoever first said, "Boys will be boys," didn't mean it as an excuse for us to turn the other way when a woman is sexually assaulted….
On the contrary, I'm fairly certain that these words were originally intended in the most innocent of ways.
The truth is, as a mom of two young boys, I see this old adage being a part of my vocabulary for many, many years to come.
"Boys will be boys," is what I say as I watch my sons wrestling wildly on the couch with their Daddy before bedtime, while I try in vain to get them to wind down for the night.
It's what I mutter when I go to do the laundry and a pound of dirt falls out of the pockets of three pairs of scuffed up jeans.
It's what I'll let out in a startled scream on the day that one of my sons inevitably brings some sort of unwelcome critter into the house and asks if he can keep it for a pet.
Even she is aware of the intended innocence of the phrase. But what is innocent about purporting that there is only one acceptable way to be a boy? What is innocent about perpetuating the assumption that there is something inherently masculine about being curious, about wanting to go outside to play and explore?
Would girls not also bring critters home and show up with scuffed up jeans if we didn't admonish them so frequently to "be careful," and dress them in clothes that aren't very good for playing in?
As a girl who grew up playing outside each day after school, digging up worms and climbing trees, I've always resented the idea that my interests were somehow meant for boys. That I was doing something wrong or abnormal.
With "boys will be boys" comes the assumptions that "boys will not be girls" and "girls will not be boys."
Meaning that if a boy displays feminine traits or interests, parents panic and refuse to buy him the Barbie doll he fell in love with at Target.
And that if a girl displays a propensity for pranks, or a love of fighting or competing, then she must be a "tomboy," not merely a girl exploring her interests.
"Boys will be boys" hurts boys and girls because it implies that there's one way to be a boy, and one way to be a girl. Later on, it implies that there's one way to be a man, one way to be a woman, and no overlap in between.
It genders traits, interests, and behaviors that need not be masculine or feminine.
Strong. Assertive. Violent.
Nurturing. Weak. Organized.
We all know which set of words is associated with which gender. But men can be nurturing, and women can be assertive. And men and women can both learn not to be violent.
We use "boys will be boys" as an excuse when something really requires an apology, but no one says "girls will be girls" because it as an implicit expectation that girls will act like "ladies."
If your six-year-old daughter washes her plate after dinner, "girls will be girls!" doesn't really roll off the tongue the same way "boys will be boys" does when your seven-year-old son comes home with his shoes covered in mud and tracks it all through the house.
We expect girls to be kind, conscientious, and well-organized, and we teach them these lessons by chastising them every time they yell too loudly or run too quickly through the house.
We raise our boys and girls differently. We don't think twice when we have a gender-reveal party filled with ballerinas and pink cupcakes. Or when we buy girls dolls and boys legos for their birthdays. Or when we tell our nieces that they're pretty and our nephews that they're funny.
And slowly but surely, we manage to teach boys and girls that there is a right and a wrong way to act. And both groups face backlash when they deviate from prescribed gender stereotypes.
Whether it's a young boy who is teased for wanting to play house, or a girl who is called bossy when she asserts herself on the playground, we are implicitly telling them that there is something wrong with these desires.
We teach young boys confidence and risk-taking, and we reward them for it. And we teach girls conscientiousness and people-pleasing, and we reward them for it too. With straight A's and praise…. right up until they join the workforce.
Then things go a little haywire. When girls join the workforce, a male-dominated and male-built institution that heavily values the male characteristics we've historically dissuaded girls from displaying – assertiveness, confidence, risk-taking – they struggle.
At work, "boys are boys," and they're rewarded for it, and women are left trying to navigate the double bind.
They know that if they don't ask for a promotion like their male peers, they might not get one, but if they do ask… they could be reprimanded.
And then we all scratch our heads, asking ourselves, why don't more women ask for raises? Why don't women speak up in meetings? Why are there so few women relative to men in the C-suite?
Sure, there are biological differences between men and women. But there are very few meaningful ones between prepubescent boys and girls.
We teach children more than we know, and inequality in the workforce starts with "boys will be boys" and a million other "innocent" phrases that perpetuate implicit gender bias.
"Boys will be boys" turns into "men will be men," and that's not good for anyone.
How to Avoid Tokenism in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Work
We've all seen the stats that diversity is good for business, but many companies are missing the mark with their diversification efforts. Failed attempts at building diversity are bringing forward a new issue– tokenism.
Tokenism is "the practice of doing something (such as hiring an individual who belongs to a minority group) only to prevent criticism and give the appearance that people are being treated fairly." It's a superficial effort to meet diversity goals or create the appearance of diversity without making effective changes.
Tokenism can lead to hiring for the wrong reasons, lack of representation, and poor retention rates.
So, how do you avoid tokenism in your company culture? What steps can you take, as a leader, to make sure your efforts to increase diversity and inclusion don't become mere gestures?
What does it take to build authentically inclusive company cultures today? Join our free webinar on June 16th to find out.
We sat down with PowerToFly's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion experts Sienna Brown, Sr. Manager Global DEI Strategy, and Zara Chaudary, Global DEI Strategist & Trainer, to learn more about what tokenism is and how to avoid it in diversity and inclusion work.
What is tokenism and why is it a problem?
"Tokenism is a dangerous concept where folks conflate diversity and representation. I think about tokenism as having a certain underrepresented person be the spokesperson for a group, but also not have any real power to affect any change."
Zara Chaudary
"Tokenism is a problem because companies are trying to attract diverse talent without
creating an inclusive environment. That means when diverse talent comes, they don't actually feel like they belong."
Sienna Brown
What are some of the negative effects that come with being a token employee?
"Employees who are tokenized have higher visibility, because they are often an "only" in the room. If an organization expects an individual to represent and act as a spokesperson for their identity group, that person can't come into work as their full self. They sense increased pressure about how their actions, the way they speak, how they interact with others, the goals that they reach, etc. are perceived.
I think it's really dangerous because tokenized employees get burnt out. They get disillusioned. They feel used and they don't feel valued."
Sienna Brown
There is a fine line between diversity and tokenism. How diverse does an organization need to be in order to avoid tokenism?
"I guess if you were to look at statistics, you would see companies that have less diversity may end up like tokenizing certain identities more, but that's not a guarantee. Often folks assume if a company doesn't have the best representation or diversity that folks who are of a different identity are immediately tokenized, but that's not true.
It's not a matter of numbers, it's a matter of mindset. A company that may not have the best diversity may do an amazing job of not tokenizing certain demographics. And vice versa, there may be a company that has really great diversity that continues to tokenize certain demographics."
Zara Chaudary
What are some specific dangers that tokenism can pose for a workplace's culture and wellbeing?
"I feel like tokenism is an unfulfilled promise in many ways. The danger then is that you start to lose trust from employees, and not just those who are tokenized, but those who see the tokenism happening. It's very difficult to trust my employer if I see them consistently tokenizing certain employees.
On the other hand, from the company's perspective, they're not fully leveraging the knowledge and experiences of people who bring different perspectives to the table. When you're offering a venue to hear them out, but then not doing anything about that, it's a lose, lose situation because your employees are going to start losing trust in the company. And those who are being tokenized are probably eventually going to want to leave."
Zara Chaudary
In your experience, what are the most common mistakes that organizations striving toward inclusion make?
"I think some of the biggest mistakes that we see is focusing only on intention vs action. Someone can have good intentions but still have harmful actions without realizing it. Many companies launch ERGs or have a DEI task force or council with great intention, but never see change because leadership isn't on board. It often means more work for underrepresented talent as well. The mistake is wanting to do great things, but not actually having the strategy to take meaningful action."
Sienna Brown
How can companies go beyond policy to ensure their DEI efforts are truly impactful?
"It doesn't matter what policies you have in place, if your mindset or intention isn't right, things will never properly be implemented and change won't properly happen.
Oftentimes, those who are in the room, making big decisions, are not those who are of underrepresented identities. And so wanting to be mindful of that and pulling in folks from underrepresented groups to be in the room where decisions are being made is one way to ensure impactful DEI efforts."
Zara Chaudary
"You can have policies in place, but if there isn't actually change in the company culture and how individuals think, speak, act — it doesn't matter. Implementing policy is a band-aid and a quick fix instead of actually doing surgery to identity and fix what we need to change or shift."
Sienna Brown
What hiring practices can organizations keep in mind to combat tokenism?
"Hiring is the number one key way that we can shift company culture. Who we let into the room makes a big impact on how the company will then continue to function moving forward. To combat tokenism, it is about looking at how people identify and being more mindful of which groups we are targeting.
Let's say a company is hiring and they don't have representation of neurodivergent folks, so it's determined that they want to bring on more folks who identify as neurodivergent. The problem with that is, assuming that if they bring on one person, they check a box and the issue of not having a neurodivergent perspective is solved. We have to remember that, just because someone identifies as part of a group doesn't mean that their experience is representative of everyone else in that group's experience. Folks can offer their perspectives based on their lived experience as a member of that group– and it's vital that we listen to those perspectives– but no one can speak on behalf of an entire group."
Zara Chaudary
What role does belonging play in DEI work?
"When you think about diversity, equity and inclusion, that sense of belonging is important to really focus on. You might be the only person of color or LGBTQIA+ person in leadership, but if you feel like there's actually a sense of belonging from the allies in the room then it makes coming to work a lot more exciting.
Think about being invited to a dinner party as a vegan. There's a difference between being invited although you're a vegan, having a salad prepared because it's easier than creating something specific or being able to have the same access to options as the non-vegans even though you're the only one in the room."
Sienna Brown
What piece of advice would you give to managers and execs who are looking to avoid tokenism, but aren't sure where to start?
Check in on your employees. "Take a pulse check of your employees from underrepresented groups to see if they feel like they're being tokenized. That can be done through an anonymous survey or externally facilitated discussions. Focus on any feedback you'd like to be brought up to leadership."
Sienna Brown
Provide education around tokenism. "Oftentimes, those who are being tokenized may not even know what that concept is, but they know how it makes them feel. Educate folks on what tokenism is so that folks who aren't directly experiencing it can also understand the concept and see where it might be playing out in their own company."
Zara Chaudary
Work with a DEI specialist. Hire experts to focus on DEI initiatives from a holistic point of view. Your teams will save time, energy and stress being led by an expert instead of trying to figure it out on their own. Attracting and retaining a diverse employee base, won't just help with retention but also business growth. The good thing about having a DEI specialist is that it's someone who's coming in with an external, holistic and unbiased with the experience and expertise as thought-leaders in the field. DEI specialists can help audit everything from recruitment and hiring processes, to company culture, bias in promotions and understanding how to strengthen support networks and resources available to employees, especially those who are from different identities.
Sienna Brown
Be humble. Too often, folks are shocked or disappointed or upset about the fact that their employees aren't having the best experience possible. You have to recognize that you are going to make mistakes and you have to be humble and take it with grace. If you are finding out that employees are not necessarily experiencing what you think they're experiencing, that requires a high level of humility. Sometimes folks really struggle, especially leaders, and they start taking it personally, which doesn't help address the underlying issue.
Zara Chaudary
Looking to avoid tokenism at your company? Learn more about PowerToFly's DEI services here.
What does BIPOC mean?
What does BIPOC mean?
For our first entry in our now-monthly glossary of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) terms, we're going to cover BIPOC, a (relatively) new term in the space. We'll answer questions like "What does BIPOC stand for?", "Are Asians and Latinos BIPOC?", and "BIPOC vs POC — which should I use?"
As always, our goal in this series is to empower you to lead and participate in efforts to make your own workplace inclusive and supportive of all talent. DEI is always evolving, and we're here to learn and grow right along with you. If you have other terms you'd like to see us cover after BIPOC, leave a note in the comments or reach out at hi@powertofly.com!
BIPOC meaning and definition
BIPOC is an acronym. It stands for Black, Indigenous, and people of color.
Within that, Black usually refers to people with darker complexions, who may have African or Caribbean ancestry, and may or may not be descended from people who were enslaved. Indigenous usually refers to people whose descents were native to the Americas or here before European colonizers arrived. People of color is a broad term for non-white people; it includes Black and Indigenous people but also may also those of Asian, Middle Eastern, Pacific Islander, or Latin descent.
BIPOC vs POC
BIPOC builds on (and in some contexts, replaces) another popular DEI acronym, POC, or people of color, but highlights the unique discrimination faced by Black and Indigenous groups. Instead of lumping all non-white people into one category, which has been seen by some as erasing the significance of anti-Black sentiment, it adds more nuance to a term used to reference all non-white people.
Cynthia Frisby, a professor of strategic communication at the Missouri School of Journalism, explained the expansion of POC to the New York Times: "The black and Indigenous was added to kind of make sure that it was inclusive. I think the major purpose of that was for including voices that hadn't originally been heard that they wanted to include in the narrative, darker skin, blacks and Indigenous groups, so that they could make sure that all the skin shades are being represented."
The term was first used in 2013, but took off in May 2020 after protests against anti-Black police brutality exploded after the death of George Floyd. There was some initial confusion over what the term actually means, with some people reading it as "bisexual people of color" or "Black and Indigenous people of color"—that is, a combination of Black and Indigenous people versus a broader category that includes other non-white people.
It's now well understood to mean Black, Indigenous, and people of color, and while the intention behind the term is to be extra inclusive, which is why you'll see it used in DEI spaces, not everyone sees it that way.
From a September 2020 episode of NPR's Code Switch podcast: "I feel that the term POC is nonsense, and I think it's a way for non-Black people to sit comfortably in their anti-Blackness because they're so afraid to say Black," says Christine Harris. "So they come up with these terms that make them feel comfortable with their whiteness or their adjacency to whiteness. And I get irritated — not irritated, vexed — when people refer to me as POC or BIPOC. Like, no, absolutely not. I'm Black, don't play me."
Are Asians BIPOC? Are Latinos BIPOC?
For people of Asian descent, yes. Since POC includes all non-white people, and Asian Americans are non-white, BIPOC includes them.
For Latinx people, sometimes. Remember that the term Latinx refers to geography, noting people residing in Latin America or descended from people who resided there. (The related term Hispanic describes anyone descended from Spanish-speaking populations.) Neither refers to race, which in and of itself is a social construct and not a biological classification. Therefore, a Black or Indigenous Latino might identify as a person of color whereas a white Latino might not.
The relationship between Latinx people and race is a complicated one, particularly in the U.S., where people who look non-white (including Latinx people with darker skin tones) or have Hispanic-sounding names may face discriminatory treatment more similar to the ways that Black and Indigenous groups have historically been treated than the ways white people have been treated. So in that way, Latinx people are often considered to be included under the banner of POC.
When to use BIPOC vs POC or other terms
Like a lot of what we talk about when we talk about inclusive terminology, it really comes down to the preferences of the people you're referring to. For instance, some people may prefer to be called Black and others might like African American better. One person may identify as Native American and another as Indigenous and still another as a member of a specific tribe, finding umbrella terms like Native American to strip away the history of her tribe. If you don't know, listen to how your coworkers or employees refer to themselves or ask them outright what they'd prefer.
Do keep in mind whether you're using umbrella terms like POC or BIPOC to avoid addressing the specific experiences of one underrepresented group. For instance, while using the term BIPOC might be a good way to talk about the broad non-white experience, BIPOC isn't a substitute for Black people. Don't erase a specific group's history, issues, and perspective if you mean to highlight them. And overall, ask the group you're trying to include what kind of terminology or behavior would make them feel included. You don't have to have all the answers—you just have to make space for the people who do.
