Equity's New Normal

Technology has merged our home and our business lives and connects us with our colleagues and clients in a more equitable and personal way than ever before. Going forward, technology will play an even bigger role and will be an important component as we build our post-COVID workplaces. 

On April 21st, we gathered in the Female Quotient’s virtual Equality Lounge to explore how to create an equitable workplace today and post-COVID. In addition, we examined how to leverage the power of new digital and virtual solutions that allow us to be more equitable across multiple dimensions, ultimately creating a stronger culture of belonging.

I was joined in this discussion by three dynamic business leaders:

• Sheila Patel, Chairman, Goldman Sachs Asset Management
• Shannon Britton, VP, Business Transformation and Engagement, Diageo
• Robin Jones, US Workforce Transformation Leader, Deloitte Consulting

In order to determine how to create an equitable workplace, it’s important to understand the difference between equality and equity:

Equality is about fairness and treating people the same exact way. Equity, on the other hand, considers people’s unique situations, their strengths and barriers and what they need to survive and thrive. While equality provides equal backdrops and footing, equity offers ownership and having a stake.

Soft “feminine” values are what appears to be effective in this time of crisis. We need to ensure that we bring these values forward into the workplace of the future.

• There is a risk that we default back to the old biases if we rush trying to change leadership traits. We need to make sure that we close the door to the past and open a new door creating an equitable workforce. 
• There is no playbook or past experience to go on. We’re dependent on one another to fix this problem and create the workplace we all want and need. So, leaders must first create a safe space for everyone to contribute their ideas. Collectively, we’re going to shape our future rather than looking to leaders to say this is the way to do it.
• It’s important to remember that companies with more diversity on their board and in leadership deliver better economic results and are better prepared for risk. Women bring great ideas to the table, so their voices must be heard.

Technology, as we are all experiencing during this work-from-home quarantine, creates a more equitable workplace by allowing for a diversity of opinions. 

• Everyone in a meeting on a platform such as Zoom has a better opportunity of contributing and sharing their opinions than in more traditional in-person meetings. And, being able to virtually look someone in the eyes is powerful! 
• Technology in our work-from-home mode also allows our real selves to come through; in fact, the different personas we each have are now morphing together. 

There is consensus that much of what we are now experiencing as a result of technology is important to bring forward when we return to our post-COVID workplaces. These include:

• Continue to see the more personal and human side of people 
• Be more flexible about working hours to give people a healthy balance in their lives 
• Have fun by doing activities that bring the community together
• Use this opportunity to rethink productive ways of working, which could involve less travel
• Give employees the freedom to act
• Trust your teams … they will work just as hard even when they work from home. When leaders trust, teams have confidence.