Parity.Org

There has perhaps never been a more important time for organizations of all sizes and across all industries to publicly declare their continued commitment to equal opportunity for all–and earning a spot on our prestigious?Best Companies for Equal Advancement Opportunity?is a powerful way to do just that.? ? Also known as the?ParityLIST?, this annual honor roll?recognizes organizations that have taken concrete steps to remove bias and barriers and create a more level playing field.?The application questionnaire takes less than 15 minutes to complete and includes a series of straightforward, yes/no questions about the policies and practices your organization employs to ensure that every individual has an equal opportunity to be recruited, hired, evaluated, and promoted into the highest levels of leadership.? ? The 2025 ParityLIST application period is now open and runs through April 18th at 5pm EST. Honorees will be announced in May.?Apply now at: https://lnkd.in/giNQ_cAE

At a time when African Americans remain grossly underrepresented in leadership, when dis-information about DEI and merit-based hiring runs rampant, and when Black history (and Black History Month itself) is being silenced--we continue to fight. Karsonya (Kaye) Wise Whitehead, Ph.D. and The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (founders of Black History Month) released a powerful statement about the importance of keeping the truth alive and continuing to celebrate the incredible contributions that Black people have and continue to make in our nation and our workplaces. Click the link below to read the full statement. https://lnkd.in/gr3VjBrT

MEI vs DEI… As our President Dina Schenk, M.S. explains in this article published by SHRM earlier this week, the old (but newly re-branded) concept of Meritocracy doesn’t work. “Due to Affinity Bias, when we attempt to hire based on 'merit, excellence, and intelligence' without simultaneously?taking steps to mitigate our preference for the familiar, we can’t help but fail to objectively assess who has the most merit and is, therefore, the best person for the job." Read on for more of her thoughts on why modern DEI strategies work, and why we need to safeguard them. https://lnkd.in/g_ZmthBa

History can teach us a lot about maintaining momentum for social movements during periods of resistance. As the following Harvard Business Review article explains, "sometimes movements go into abeyance, which essentially means that the strong networks and identities built in the up-phase of the cycle of change help nurture ongoing efforts during periods of stagnation and reduced visibility...In the period between the U.S. suffrage movement in the early 1920s and the so-called second wave feminism of the 1960s and ’70s, activists sustained the broader women’s movement through interpersonal networks and friendships, informal reading groups, social gatherings, and salons. These strategies allowed them to maintain a feminist collective identity so that when the opportunity structure opened up again in the 1960s, feminists were ready to take advantage of public sentiment, allies in high places, and quiet on the part of those who didn’t agree with the feminist agenda. This led to concerted efforts to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment during the 1970s." As disheartening as this period of DEI backlash can be, let’s hunker down and keep our eyes on the prize. https://hubs.li/Q02TqbSP0

Once more for the people in the back. ?? DEI is not about providing unfair advantages to certain groups. It's about ELIMINATING unfair advantages so that every individual has an equal chance to compete. Because, unless the playing field is truly level, you'll never find and hire the "best person for the job."

A message as true today as it was in 1967...

Did Costco just reset the narrative around DEI? "...Its formal response to an investor tactic (‘DEI raises stockholder risk’), is a statement that not only refutes the premise but also states that these investors are not doing so in the interest of Costco but a larger political agenda. As the 5th largest retailer in the world, this is a loud statement."

M-E-I. It was a nice try. But according to Dina Schenk, M.S., president at Parity.Org, the acronym MEI (merit, excellence, and intelligence) doesn’t and shouldn’t replace DEI. Check out why she says MEI is a big meh and why it doesn’t work. https://lnkd.in/g72E5CuN HR Daily Advisor #MEIOutDEIIn #DiversityEquityInclusion #HRDEILeaders

MEI vs DEI… As our President Dina Schenk, M.S. explains in this article published by SHRM earlier this week, the old (but newly re-branded) concept of Meritocracy doesn’t work. “Due to Affinity Bias, when we attempt to hire based on 'merit, excellence, and intelligence' without simultaneously?taking steps to mitigate our preference for the familiar, we can’t help but fail to objectively assess who has the most merit and is, therefore, the best person for the job." Read on for more of her thoughts on why modern DEI strategies work, and why we need to safeguard them. https://lnkd.in/g_ZmthBa

History can teach us a lot about maintaining momentum for social movements during periods of resistance. As the following Harvard Business Review article explains, "sometimes movements go into abeyance, which essentially means that the strong networks and identities built in the up-phase of the cycle of change help nurture ongoing efforts during periods of stagnation and reduced visibility...In the period between the U.S. suffrage movement in the early 1920s and the so-called second wave feminism of the 1960s and ’70s, activists sustained the broader women’s movement through interpersonal networks and friendships, informal reading groups, social gatherings, and salons. These strategies allowed them to maintain a feminist collective identity so that when the opportunity structure opened up again in the 1960s, feminists were ready to take advantage of public sentiment, allies in high places, and quiet on the part of those who didn’t agree with the feminist agenda. This led to concerted efforts to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment during the 1970s." As disheartening as this period of DEI backlash can be, let’s hunker down and keep our eyes on the prize. https://hubs.li/Q02TqbSP0