How to be an ‘actionable’ ally to Black colleagues at work

In this week’s guest column, UK diversity champion and leadership coach Jenny Garrett OBE, provides some insights on how to be an ‘actionable’ ally to your Black colleagues at work.

Just after the tragic killing of George Floyd in May 2020, I was delivering some leadership training with groups of leaders from diverse backgrounds. The words I frequently heard were: “I am questioning my place in this organisation due to the way they have responded these tragic events.” 

Many organisations said too little and left it too late, which left their Black colleagues feeling unsupported. However, an organisation is really just a group of people; and if each individual had decided to be an ally, this issue wouldn’t have occurred, because there would have been a culture of inclusion and belonging in place.

What do I mean by being an ally? To be an ally is to take the struggle that Black people experience as your own, recognise the advantages you have at work and transfer them and the benefits they give you to Black people that don’t have them. It’s about amplifying the voices of Black colleagues before your own. It also means standing up, even when you feel scared and to understand that your education is up to you and no one else. This is easier said than done. But alongside three fellow coaches we recently discussed what it means to be an ‘actionable’ ally.

BUILDING RACE EQUALITY ALLYSHIP

Claudia Crawley, executive and career coach for women provided some useful insights on how to nip racism and micro-aggressions in the bud. The award-winning mentor, author and trainer in building race equality allyship, advises the following:

1. Educate yourself continuously. Get to fully understand the systemic nature of racism and how it is maintained.
2. Interrupt micro-aggressions with courage, calm, courtesy and clarity in order to get a commitment to change.
3. Support Black colleagues in the way they wish to be supported; not how you think they should be.

LISTEN, ACT & UNDERSTAND

Leadership coach Jessica Rogers, who empowers women to be visionary and bold, highlighted the importance of listening, acting and understanding. A summary of her advice includes:

1. Listen: When someone is telling you about their experiences of racism don’t be tempted to interrupt or jump in and give your perspective. Listen, learn and try to understand.

2. Act: When you see/hear racist behaviour, call it out. Open the dialogue so that the person at the receiving end of the racist behaviour does not have to, so they feel supported.

3. Educate yourself: Listen to the voices of Black and minority ethnic people. Research and read the plethora of information now available, and keep reading and learning!

TIPS FOR MANAGERS & FRONT-LINE STAFF

Psychologist, stress management consultant and productivity coach Obehi Alofoje, who helps overworked high-achievers to thrive in the workplace without burning out, also provides some great insights for managers and front-line employees.

If you’re a manager, then:

1. Engage in anti-racist education for you and your team. Hire a third party diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) consultant as they’ll be objective; and they will help you with strategic actions to help the team develop and grow. If this is not possible, then invite your in-house DE&I professional to deliver a workshop to your teams.
2. Deal with conflict head on and allow room for discomfort. Don’t let it slide. Don’t try to ignore it and ‘hope’ it’ll go away. It rarely does. Instead resentments tend to fester; and you lose the opportunity to facilitate a worthwhile conversation that would lead to connection and understanding among your teams. 
3. Seek counsel from your Black colleagues and team members. Invite them to co-produce some of the resources and training so they have an opportunity to share their lived experiences. 

If you’re a frontline employee:

1. Request for anti-racist training for yourself and colleagues. 
2. Read books, take course or participate in a book study to gain insights on the lived experiences of Black people. 
3. Amplify the voices of your Black colleagues in meetings by calling out racist comments and behaviours.  

FINAL WORDS OF ADVICE

My final words of advice to you are to use your power and position with humility, by engaging in small acts of allyship daily; and develop your sense of empathy and compassion. You can watch the full video of the recent webinar on this very topic here below.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Jenny Garrett OBE is an award-winning career coach, author and leadership trainer. Her books explore the empowerment of working women and women in leadership roles. Together with her team, she uses her years of experience in coaching and leadership to support women and ethnically diverse leaders to progress at work. As well as supporting majority group leaders in making inclusion happen, she is also Co-founder of a social enterprise Rocking Ur Teens, which connects corporates with a pipeline of future talent.