Say My Name, Say My Name: The Power of Your Name in the Workplace

With the name Andrew, people rarely get the pronunciation or spelling wrong. McCaskill is a little trickier and even though people get tripped up on it sometimes, it’s not an everyday issue at the workplace. At most, I get the occasional “Black Irish” joke from a colleague–which I’m used to hearing… But many, including my good friend, deal with their name being mispronounced (or flat out ignored) on a daily basis.?

Think about that. A person’s biggest identifier — their name!! — is being minimized. And what’s most disheartening is, many in this situation are considering giving themselves a nickname, using their middle name, or changing their name altogether.? Unfortunately, they have a point. About 20 years ago, two researchers put help-wanted ads in Boston and Chicago newspapers and found that applicants with names suggesting they were white got 50% more callbacks from employers than those whose names suggested they were Black. Last year, researchers at University of California, Berkeley and University of Chicago revisited it, submitting 83,000 fake job applications for 11,000 entry-level jobs at Fortune 500 companies. Their working paper, A Discrimination Report Card , found employers called back the presumably white applicants around 9% more than Black ones.The good news is it’s getting better; the bad news is the most egregious companies did it about 24% of the time.?

Our names are important. They're part of our identities. And many people from underrepresented groups and people of color feel they have to sacrifice a part of themselves to get a job. And that should not be the case.?

This is about authenticity! A person’s name is core to who they are. As executives, hirers, recruiters, and coworkers, we need to enable professionals to embrace their true and authentic self in the workplace.?

As soon as it was available, I hooked up LinkedIn’s name pronunciation tool . You record your name pronunciation and display it on your LinkedIn profile for others to listen to. This is a great tool for helping people remain authentic to themselves, as well as helping recruiters be smarter about how they engage with candidates and be more culturally competent and culturally aware. Here is a link to the video tutorial for adding your name pronunciation to your LinkedIn profile .?

Correctly pronouncing someone’s name isn't just a common courtesy, it's an important part of creating an inclusive workplace. Managers, take the extra beat and ask how to pronounce a new hire’s name if you don’t know. Set an example for your team. If you hear a colleague’s name said incorrectly, speak up. My friend, Soon Mee Kim , put it perfectly in a post she wrote about her name: “Recognize the humanity in others by honoring our names.”

Soon Mee is one of the most respected diversity, equity and inclusion professionals in the world. As Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer for Omnicom's Public Relations Group and Brand Consulting Group for Omincom Group, a leading global marketing communications firm, she knows a lot about creating environments of belonging at work. She’s also had the unenviable experience of people getting her name wrong–a lot. And she’s been vocal about how it has made her and others feel in professional and personal environments. Here’s what she shared with me about it.?

“The care we demonstrate for people's’ names reveals how we feel about others and ourselves. While we all make mistakes, persisting in mispronouncing, misspelling, renaming, trimming, mocking, and erasing the names of others lets them know how little we think of them. It indicates who belongs and who doesn’t, who’s welcome or less so. It also reveals our own ability to learn, be curious and be more culturally aware. The goal isn’t perfection, but one of caring enough to try to get our names right. It’s the least we can do.”? – Soon Mee Kim

To those considering changing your name, I encourage, do not sacrifice your authenticity. Don’t quiet the power and meaning rooted in your name. Be YOU. And remember, it’s ok to correct people when they mispronounce or misspell your name. No matter how competitive the job market is right now, there are places and spaces where you can go to work, be yourself, and have an incredible impact — where your differences are seen as assets, not liabilities. I LOVE the campaign Procter and Gamble did a couple years ago. It’s called THE NAME , and it’s a beautiful illustration of the importance, individuality, and power of your name .?

I love the Procter and Gamble campaign and use it in empathy and inclusion trainings when I’ve done DEI consulting in the past, because it gets to the heart of how important our names are and how easy it is to take the time to get it right. So many folks from marginalized groups have dealt with inelegant and often down right racist reactions to their names—one of the precious first gifts our parents give us.?

This is especially egregious at school and work because it can be so intimidating to push back on teachers, recruiters, managers or stakeholders. A young engineer of Igbo (Nigerian) descent at LinkedIn led the development of our name pronunciation tool, so our members can record the correct pronunciation of their names for their LinkedIn profile. I love that for people like my niece Christandre, my friend Shondonte, and former colleagues Chinweike and Daehyun. We may never truly be able to put our finger on actual intent, but gosh, I hope it lessens some of the impacts.?

For those job seekers who are nervous about the market and considering “whitening” their names or resumes, I pray you don’t have to do it. There are companies constantly and diligently working to expand belonging across all cultures.?There are hiring managers and recruiters who will do see your skills and capabilities and make the effort to greet you with enthusiasm and respect.

Stay true to YOU. Don’t shrink yourself to fit any place or anyone. Say your name! Because whether they want to or not, others absolutely can, too!

EDITOR’S NOTE: That said, you get no judgment from this newsletter author for doing what you feel you need to do for your career. In the meantime, let Beyonce, Kelendria and Michelle guide you... “Siri, play Destiny’s Child SAY MY NAME !”