WonderWomen of Diversity
WonderWomen of Diversity was launched in Chicago in 2016 by Dr. Stephani Mason (Professor, DePaul University) and co-convened by Shannon Stone-Winding (President & CEO, Black Alliance of Colleges and Employers-BACE). The group has hosted dinner conversations about diversity, equity, and inclusion in the academic and corporate setting with female leaders which include:
Dorri McWhorter, CEO, YWCA Metropolitan Chicago; Joni Duncan, CHRO, Lurie's Children Hospital; Z Scott, President, Chicago State University; Perika Sampson, Executive Director, Regional Diversity Officer for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management; Merry Green, Black Women's Expo; Kelli McMiller, Kaleidescope Group; Connie Lindsey, EVP/Head of Corporate Social Responsibility & Global D&I, Northern Trust; Jacqui Robertson, Global Head of Talent, Diversity and Inclusion, William Blair; Karen Freeman Wilson, former Mayor of Gary, Indiana and President of the Chicago Urban League; Tricia Myers, US Head Inclusion & Diversity/People & Culture, BMO Harris Bank; Kim Waller, Executive Vice President, co-lead Willis Towers Watson Diversity Solutions, Willis Towers Watson; Jamica Quillin, The Federal Reserve Bank; Celeste Wright-Harris, Loop Capital; Auyana Orr, Ariel Investments; and other women from U.S. Bank, Discover Financial Services, Constellation Brands, United Airlines, McDonald's, Wintrust, US Cellular, Mesirow Financial, CIBC US, and Mars Inc.
In addition, the group has convened In San Francisco, New York, and Atlanta, as well as in Gary, Indiana as the guest of then Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson, who hosted the group for dinner at Gary’s private airport hangar.
Outside of our dinner discussions, we also host larger scale panels.
In Fall 2019, we convened during the PhD Project for a discussion on diversity with leading diversity scholars – Drs. Quinetta Roberson (formerly of Villanova University) and Tina Opie (Babson College), along with Erika Broadwater, the National President of National Association of African Americans in Human Resources, during the annual conference of the PhD Project. Read more at Wiley's Diversity in Research: (https://www.diversityinresearch.careers/article/the-wonder-woman-group-diversity-discussion-building-the-talent-pipeline/?s=11).
Over the course of the WonderWomen of Diversity programming, the scholars and leaders have shared valuable research relevant across industries.
Highlights
Grounding
Are we looking at the same research?
Defining diversity from the outset = differences across roles. Some business leaders may need grounding/to get on the same footing. "Are we looking at the same research? What are our interpretations and assumptions?"
Definitions
Not one word
Separate "inclusion" from "diversity"; it’s not one word
Data
Credibility and accountability
Emphasize data and credible research with representation and wage gaps (build personal and organizational credibility and accountability)
Budgeted Roles
Budget and Take Race Equity Seriously
Develop dedicated diversity roles, as KPMG (positions are not shared with many other titles/roles/responsibilities = org takes DREI seriously)
Leadership Duality
Assimilating
Recognize the issue of "polish and assimilating" and "tap-dancing" in leadership
Research Sharing
Are we only talking to each other?
Necessitate sharing resources across industries and practice. How is research shared for practice implication? Are we as scholars only talking to each other?
Redress Historical Inequity
Diversity is not charity
Redress historical inequity - President Obama's quote "diversity is not charity".
When Data is Not Enough
External Strategy
Examine next steps when the data is not enough? (Are there external allies/pressure)
Exacerbate Inequity and Elitisms
Policies, procedures and practices
Endeavor to build and maintain sponsors, allies and partners. How are we in our everyday actions? Do policies exacerbate inequality and elitisms?
Importance of Story
Data sharing
Share reports and data in multiple ways including stories
Power in Academia
Race Equity and Justice in Higher Ed
Address "the beast" that is higher ed; power dynamics at play. Use power & money to our advantage. Those who are tenured are in a better position, but we can also use our alumni, sponsors and partners.
Does this match who we think we are?
Perceptions
Examine the perception of HR/DREIB among diversity leaders, C-suite, and community. Lack of awareness: does this match who we think we are? Leadership must improve before we invite students and alumni. Be intentional about our role with them. What is our commitment? What can we do collectively?
Big Ideas
1. Business researchers partner with corporate and nonprofit allies for practice implication and industry redevelopment. Researchers to assist with translating data for implication.
2. Call for diverse media/PR credibility in DEIB stories, awards, rankings.
Resources
"Toward a Racially Just Workplace" HBR 5-part series https://hbr.org/cover-story/2019/11/toward-a-racially-just-workplace
Race influences Professional Investors' Financial Judgments
Accountability measures: "You get what you incent." http://fortune.com/2018/09/25/brainstorm-reinvent-mellody-hobson/
https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2019/06/26/black-workers-are-being-left-behind-by-full-employment/
What We've accomplished
Events and Panels
We reconvened for Building the Diversity Pipeline in virtual format during the PhD Project November 2020 to highlight how Corporate America can engage with academia to build a talent pipeline that is diverse and inclusive. The panelists were Dr. Erika James, Dean of the Wharton School of Business; Dr. Sandra Richtermeyer, Dean of the University of Massachusetts Lowell School of Business; and Dr. Jennifer Joe, Chief Diversity Advocate, Alfred Lerner College of Business & Economics, University of Delaware. Jamal Watson, executive editor of Diverse: Issues In Higher Education, was the moderator.
Early Spring 2021, we hosted Expanding the Diversity of Women in Policy, Politics, and Government with Hasoni Pratts, the National Director of Engagement – Pete for America; Cecilia Cabello, California State Director – Pete for America and Hillary for America; Karen Freeman-Wilson, Former Gary Mayor/Indiana Attorney General; Kira Sanbonmatsu, Professor of Political Science at Rutgers and Senior Scholar at the Center for American Women and Politics, and Kimberly Peeler-Allen, the co-founder of Higher Heights.
In May 2021, we convened WonderWomen of Diversity series on Cultivating Diversity in Philanthropy and Non-Profits with Dorri McWhorter, the CEO of YWCA Metropolitan Chicago, and Dr. Una Osili, Associate Dean for Research at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Una’s research focuses on diversity in philanthropy. Andrea Saez, COO, Chicago Community Trust represented the perspective of community foundation, especially as a leader from a diverse background. The panel was moderated by Cora Cervantes from MSNBC.
In December 2021, WonderWomen of Diversity reunited with The PhD Project for How Bias in Economics Hurts Us All. The economics profession includes disproportionately few women and members of historically underrepresented racial/ethnic minority groups, relative both to the overall population and to other academic disciplines. This underrepresentation is present at the undergraduate level, continues into the ranks of the academy, and has barely improved over time. It likely hampers the discipline (and allied disciplines such as finance, accounting, management, and marketing), constraining the range of issues addressed and limiting our collective ability to understand familiar issues from new and innovative perspectives (Bayer and Rouse, 2016).
The WonderWomen of Diversity and The PhD Project discussed how the Economics pipeline issue impacts public policy, theories used in academic research, as well as how we can all participate in being a part of the solution. Hosted by Dr. Stephani Mason, Professor, DePaul University, School of Accountancy and MIS; Founder, WonderWomen of Diversity featuring: Dr. Lisa Cook, Professor, Department of Economics and in International Relations (James Madison College), Michigan State University Dr. Miriam Jorgensen, Research Director for the Native Nations Institute, University of Arizona and the Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development Dr. Marie Mora, Provost and Associate Vice Chancellor for Strategic Initiatives University of Missouri - St. Louis and moderated by Dr. David Porter, Executive Vice President of Strategy, People + Culture at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.