Exclusion as Excellence - DEI Lessons

Exclusion by Corporate Values

The recent Netflix documentary ‘White Hot’ exposes the racist pop culture of the American fashion corporation Abercrombie and Fitch in the late 90s and early 2000s, offering us valuable lessons for DEI practice.

A&F marketed the 'good looking' American college model as the brand archetype. Who was defined and catalogued as excellent and beautiful, by design, happened to be White? These brand ambassadors were complemented by the same type of front-facing store representatives, who were White by choice.

The company made no apology for exclusion as their unique selling proposition. They prided themselves on a cool brand asserting that the cool kids that bought their line of clothes were the ones that belonged there in the first place. Others could shop where they were better suited.

People of colour were employed, out of necessity, in the minority, relegated to the backrooms. They were explicitly excluded from front-facing roles because they did not fit the model of White excellence.

Following a class-action suit in 2003, the company?quickly settled and went on a DEI drive to address racism. A Black Chief Diversity Officer was appointed to fix the problem. Changes were made in racial representation at junior levels. Insignificant changes happened at senior leadership and Board level. The company's marketing strategy also shifted to be inclusive of the larger Black and Brown market but did not effectively redeem the brand from its racist heritage.

Culture change was slow in the implementation of diversity initiatives. Beyond the revised inclusive brand marketing, was the real barrier of systemic and structural inequity embedded in policies, and procedures.?It’s no surprise that the fruits of DEI change were short-lived given the cultural roots of racism entrenched in the insidious value of excellence by exclusion.

Over the years the company's profitability and market share suffered. DEI became a nuisance, distracting from the core business and interests of shareholders. Exclusion as an American value also became less cool in the late 2000s amongst college kids who became more woke in their values, marked by a growing sensitivity to diversity, inclusion and justice.

Repositioning the company brand has been a challenge for the new CEO, Fran Horowitz recognises it's hard to shake off the past. The brand website headlines a new vision.

“This is Abercrombie Today—Today and every day—we’re leading with purpose, championing inclusivity and creating a sense of belonging.” The company is now representing a diverse racial profile in its staffing, marketing a body-positive image and valuing inclusion as the new cool. “Abercrombie isn’t a brand where you need to fit in—it’s one where everyone truly belongs. We lead with purpose, and that inclusive and equitable spirit is woven throughout all we do.”

A Familiar South African Story

I can't help but see so many parallels to our South African story of apartheid exclusion on the basis of separate development and how genuine DEI change still remains an ongoing national and organisational challenge. Hiring Black DEI officers to be magical culture transformation officers will not work in itself if tokenised or a front for securing BEE deals.?

I can't ignore the ‘twanging’ of Black and Brown kids in private schools,?desperately trying to fit in with normative White excellence.?I experience this same White assimilation masked in a culture of Christian?excellence in a growing number of churches, modelled on the cool Hillsong brand, defined?to the detail of music style, choreography, fashion,?leadership representation and campus design.?The church is a happening place where middle-class Black and Brown people see what God-ordained?“excellence” looks like on Sunday and for the rest of the week in corporate SA.?

Organisations whether public, private, NGOs or faith-based,?play a pivotal role in both mirroring and shaping broader culture. In this sense appealing to unconscious bias is a cop-out for stealth exclusion, in the name of innocent ignorance and pursuing a culture of excellence. This is the failed focus of much of DEI's unconscious bias training. We need the courage and compassion to confront ongoing explicit bias in our organisations.?

Sustainable change will be costly, sometimes requiring a revision of operating models and underlying values which forms the foundation for mindset change. This is the hard work of DEI and not the window dressing that works for as long as it's fashionable to be seen to do something right. Compliance secures a right to do business. Only sincere commitment transforms business, first in hearts and minds, ubuntu in essence and then in supporting structures, systems and policies. Culture change is Inherently a change of heart, mind and soul.

Stanley Arumugam. 19 April 2022