Advancing the anti-elitist race

In view of the evils caused by elitism – or oligarchism – in Latin America, our duty is not only to reflect on the urgency of fighting this structural problem but act on it. In the following lines, I bring my reflections from the point of view of a white executive, privileged, sensitive, attentive to this issue, and in a constant process of learning.

 To illustrate how we can make a difference in this transformational process occurring daily in many companies, I will draw a brief parallel between one of my great passions, which is auto racing (since I’m Brazilian, I will use Brazilian pilots as a reference), and the corporate world.

In history, from the creation of the main categories of auto racing to here, 27 Brazilian drivers went through Formula Indy, and 33 Brazilian drivers competed in Formula 1. In a brief analysis, we found that only 5 of them were successful, in addition to Ayrton Senna: Tony Kanaan, Hélio Castroneves, Felipe Massa, Rubens Barrichello and Nelson Piquet. Note: Ayrton Senna is not a part of the analysis since his social origin does not fit as an example for our reflections.

Why did the vast majority of these 60 drivers who tried a career in auto racing fail to achieve the same prominence?

Something all these 5 successful racers shared is the great number of adversities they faced and that shaped their character. Rubens, for example, says that his father had to sell the family's old car, a Fiat 147, to pay for the trip to the Brazilian karting championship. Tony Kanaan ran – and won – a race the day after his father's death, honoring the promise made days before he would ever leave the tracks. The great Nelson Piquet who, during the Italian F3 season, says that he took “about 8 baths” all year round, since he lived inside his racing truck and needed to save every penny, not being able to stay in a hotel; as well as Helio Castroneves, whose family sold all assets to support their son's career.

 Thinking of the pilots who had a dream, but did not reach the podiums, it is possible to link the various filters and biases that we find in the big companies, which prevent some “types” of professionals from ascending.

 Based on experiences in several large technology companies, I often saw prejudice in action. Many companies Human Resources tend to seek a normative standard, hostile to diversity and inclusion, which ranges from requirements of a certain aesthetic standard such as hair color and height, to the disposal of curricula for not mentioning an elite university.

In one particular episode, when I needed to hire for a certain position, I received a resume from a candidate, whom I will call “Paul”, in which none of these leading institutions were mentioned – he had not completed his degree. Despite the insistence of HR colleagues, that said it was an accident that he passed the filter of resumes, I really wanted to meet him. He was a black man, living in the outlying ghettos of S?o Paulo and born in a well-known slum in the same city. I do not exaggerate when stating that despite all these characteristics that would exclude Paul from the selection processes of that company, this was one of the best hires of my life.

 After I left this company, Paul stayed there for another four years. He left to join another large multinational company, invited by an executive from the previous company, who had about four levels of seniority above him. And although these two people had a very little previous relationship, Paul's reputation reverberated in the company we worked in such a way that everyone recognized him as a truly competent professional.

 At this point, you may be asking yourself: what was different about Paul that made him cultivate this image both among colleagues and outside the company?

 We all had that one colleague everyone likes. Paul was like this: gleam in the eye, firm handshake, an affectionate word for everyone. His coping trajectory provided him with the ability to build more sincere, more transparent, more empathic relationships. This is very different from the intimidating posture that many of us, privileged whites, have when relating, and which ends up resulting in a superficial connection.

 In addition to that, Paul was able to analyze the possible difficulties of a project holistically and deliver creative ways to overcome them in the most harmonious and respectful way possible for those involved. And he never missed an opportunity to learn. It impossible to compare the quality of connections of people who have this type of trajectory with that of others, who carry their privileges and presumptions.

All these skills were intertwined with Paul′s personal history and were essential when talking about his ability to establish strong relationships with clients and colleagues. Not only that but the determination, the sparkle in his eyes, and the desire to grow that everyone without exception noticed in Paul was really impressive. At the time, I already associated that resourcefulness – and love – with Rubens's feelings when he didn't slow down to let Michael Schumacher pass in the 2010 Hungarian GP, even with the imminence of the wall tightening it and putting his physical integrity at risk; or Tony driving incredibly the way he drove in the last laps of the 2013 Indy 500, when he was almost an unemployed racer and won the most important race in the world of automobilism because that was his only chance, or Nelson passing someone named Ayrton Senna, on the outside, in Hungary 1986, offering us the most spectacular overtaking of all time in the history of motorsport. This, for me, represents the strength of the renegades, the excluded, the energy of those who depend on it and understand that they need to do better than the others, all the time... that they do it out of passion, love, and will. Things like these are not “learned” in top-tier colleges, or in management courses. This feeling comes from overcoming obstacles, learning life, social sensitivity, dynamism, empathy, and, especially, the desire to prosper.

 In addition to the corporate space, the fight against elitism is a complex process, but it is a race in which we need to accelerate as human beings. There is also an urgency for decision-makers in companies to commit to a process of developing awareness and to combat these biases and contribute to the repair of this wound that is the “bias” of corporate elitization, each one in its own way.

 As in automobilism, we need a change in attitude in large corporations. This requires looking beyond the obvious, the discomfort of getting out of our own comfort zones, learning to recognize what is really valuable. Above all we need to do our part to allow the many talented drivers who are not yet on the track – not only to have a chance – but to get to the podium faster and faster.

Kleber Wedemann