Not the Usual Suspects: Diversity in public relations work (August)

The following is a guest post provided by Bill Prickett, APR:
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Photo by clevercupcakes via Creative Commons

The August program focused on “outsiders,” so I guess it’s appropriate that this post is written by someone from the Dallas chapter. I’ve been active in PRSA for many years, and served as the first co-chair of the Dallas Diversity Committee and was also involved in the diversity initiative with PRSA national. When I saw this topic, I knew I wanted to attend.

First, I want to report that the speaker, Jacquie Lambiase, Ph.D., was stellar, offering so much insight into a difficult and sometimes uncomfortable topic. She’s an associate professor in the strategic communication division of TCU's Schieffer School of Journalism and has co-edited and co-written two books on advertising's use of sexually oriented appeals, along with writing journal articles and books chapters on ethics, social media, and gendered images in mass media. Her content was informative and her style was casual, encouraging the interactive discussion that the audience obviously didn’t want to end.

She informed the group of her intentions to cover three basic areas on the topic of diversity: religion (specifically Islam) and disabilities, though her primary concentration would focus on gays, lesbian and transgendered in the workplace. At the very beginning, she shared that all three of these barriers would be helped by each of us adopting an attitude of hospitality—making people feel welcomed, valued and accepted.

I will attempt a brief (sigh) overview of some highlights from the presentation and discussion.

The day of the luncheon happened to be the first day of Ramadan, and it was brought out that neither of the DFW primary newspapers had carried any stories about the event or the religion. “Can you imagine Christmas without a front page story? Or Easter?” Jacquie asked the group.

On the subject of disabilities, Jacquie pointed out that most accommodations cost nothing. She said the best way to deal with people with disabilities is to “have the conversation”—talk about it and get it out in the open. Our differences keep us at a distance, but communication can bridge the gap.

When it comes to sexual orientation and gender identity, Jacquie encouraged companies to “come out of the closet” in their open, vocal support of GLBT employees. The group made numerous suggestions to help GLBT employees :

• Provide domestic partnership benefits
• Change the options on forms (Male and Female only; Single, Married, Divorced… Partnered?)
• Use of offensive terminology: sexual preference, chosen lifestyle, etc.

I wish there was time and space to share all the insights I recorded in my notebook; they were helpful. (I learned the new term “Gay Vague Advertising” and how some companies are content with a casual ‘wink’ in the direction of the gay/lesbian market. That discussion was worth the price of the meal for me.) But it’s my hope that what I have shared here will give you an idea of what was discussed…and the incredible value of such programs.

As Jacquie pointed out, it’s not that we don’t need to continue our discussion on issues such as racial and gender diversity, but we must broaden our perspective and our hospitality. I applaud the Fort Worth chapter for addressing this topic in such a (pardon the pun) straight-forward and thoughtful approach.
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Bill Prickett, APR works in Public Relations/Communications at Certified Payment Processing and is a Dallas PRSA chapter member.

Diversity Without Opportunity is Just Talk

(This post fist appeared Thursday, August 14, on the Next Communications Blog) 

I attended the Greater Fort Worth Chapter PRSA's August luncheon and meeting where the group heard from a panel on diversity.

The topic, Working Diversity into the Workplace promised to be at best, an interesting approach to something that seems fundamental OR at worst, a nice way to get out of the office and have some pretty good fajitas.

Personal aside: It was kind of funny that we had our diversity session at a famous Mexican restaurant in Fort Worth.
(Thanks, Terry.)

Photo credit: chrisjfry

The People
We were introduced to a panel that included:

• Mitch Hill, Baylor Hospital (social worker)
  
• Leah King, Chesapeake Energy (community relations)
  
• Tom Burke, IBM (communications/public relations)
  
• Dora Tovar, Tovar PR (public relations)
  
• Ken Reeves, Bell Helicopter (human resources)
  

I was immediately struck by the make-up of the group. Aside from the obvious male/female/ethnic differences, our chapter diversity chair had an interesting mix of PR and non-PR professionals. I had an idea of how PR can help address diversity to build and maintain relationships. What I was looking forward to was seeing how this group would approach the topic.


Thoughts on diversity vs. culture
Here are a few of the thoughts that resonated with me:

Mitch Hill thinks we wear many masks and take on multiple cultures.

"There is diversity within myself," he said. "Once we understand this about ourselves, we can move forward."

Leah King said she lived oversees and takes a much broader approach to diversity.

Tom Burke pointed out how IBM approaches diversity.

"[IBM is] welcoming everyone to the workplace regardless of differences un-related to their job functions."

Letter from IBM's Vice President of Global Workforce Diversity, Ron Glover

Tom also made what I thought to be an excellent point about our topic.

"Diversity is not created, it already exists."

Dora Tovar spoke more on culture, telling the group that culture in the U.S. is very individual and is in constant change.

"Those that can adapt and change will be the most marketable."

She also pointed out that diversity is about representation and culture is about identity.

Ken Reeves followed Tovar and gave his perspective on diversity stating that it is not just about representation, it's about opportunity. He explained how as an ex-NFL player he had to develop a strategy to diversify himself and about the corporate strategy at Bell Helicopter related to diversity.

"Until [diversity] translates into opportunity for everyone, it's just talk."

Moving forward
Each of the panelists brought an enlightened perspective on diversity that went beyond the typical race, ethnicity, sex, religions, etc.

Also, going back to Mitch Hill's reference, the mask metaphor, in my opinion, is fundamental to human communication. It is a great explainer for the different roles we play on a daily basis. We are different (diversity within ourselves) depending on our audience. When I am at home, I play the husband and father roles. At work, my mask is that of a communications/PR professional. With friends...With other family members...With new people...etc. These are all roles that are within me. We all have the different masks to wear. It's not hiding. It's playing the role of a human.

Lastly, the notion that diversity without opportunity is a significant next step. It is not about checking off boxes to make sure your company has this many women or that many Latinos. It is about recognizing the business strategy, objectives, and benefits behind a diversity opportunities.

What do you think? Do you consider yourself to be personally diverse? Do you think you wear masks? Can diversity translate into opportunity?