Podcast | Catalyst Archives

Episode 107: AI and the Future of Pink-Collar Jobs

Michelle Ermolenko — Wed, 13 Nov 2024 18:36:13 +0000

Welcome to season 1, episode 7 of Breaking with Tradition, Catalyst’s podcast that explores trends and ideas that will impact the future of the global workplace. This episode is called AI and the Future of Pink-Collar Jobs.

As AI technology rapidly evolves, a troubling new gender gap has emerged, especially among younger workers: 71% of men ages 18-24 say they use generative AI weekly, compared with 59% of women. This gap threatens to widen existing disparities, especially frontline women in “pink-collar” sectors such as customer service, healthcare, and education.

Join host Victoria Kuketz as she chats with Ana Kreacic, Partner and Chief Knowledge Officer of Oliver Wyman Group and COO of the Oliver Wyman Forum, and Terry Stone, Managing Partner Global Health and Life Sciences and Former Managing Director, Americas, Oliver Wyman to discuss the urgent and important need for inclusive upskilling initiatives, incorporating AI into companies’ future vision, and tapping the leadership of Gen Z.

Tune in as we unpack how generative AI could both displace and empower, and what steps companies can take to create a more equitable future of work for all.

Host and guest

Victoria Kuketz, Director, Corporate Engagement, Canada, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

Ana Kreacic is a Partner and Chief Knowledge Officer of Oliver Wyman and COO of the Oliver Wyman Forum – the think tank and platform for engaging business, public policy, and societal leaders to act on shared challenges. With over 20 years of consulting and operating experience, Ana is known for her ability to blend customer insight with business strategy and leadership effectiveness. A frequent speaker and author, Ana’s work has been featured in the World Economic Forum, Wall Street Journal, and MIT Sloan, to name a few. Ana is passionate about empowering women and youth.

LinkedIn | Website

Terry Stone is Vice Chair and Interim Global Lead taking on two strategic priorities for Oliver Wyman. One is as interim Global Leader for Health and Life Sciences focused on accelerating the growth of our Life Sciences businesses in the US and Europe. A second critical firm priority which Terry leads is a project for our CEO to accelerate the transformation of OW’s own business and operating model in response to Artificial Intelligence. Our priority is to identify how consulting overall, and our OW’s business is likely to be impacted by the opportunity and threats that AI creates for strategic advisory businesses.

LinkedIn | Website

In this episode

1:41 | Tell us about yourselves! Ana and Terry fill us in on what excites them as AI practitioners.
4:29 | The AI gender gap. Our guests break down the emerging AI usage gap between men and woman.
8:22 | “Pink-collar” sectors and AI. Terry defines what a “pink-collar” job is and how they’re perceiving new AI technology.
14:49 | Performing at the top of your license. How can we convince reticent AI users of its huge potential for positive change?
20:11 | AI tips & tricks. Terry reflects on her experience and what works on implementing AI policies at work. Ana brings in the “pink-collar” specificity.

Favorite moments

2:17 | Ana: For me, [the exciting part about AI] is the opportunity for positive change… It’s a time that requires a lot of reflection if we’re going to get it right.
3:21 | Terry: AI is going to be the single biggest, disruptive force or catalyst for change in business in my entire career.
11:50 | Terry: When [AI use is] done well, you can easily see 15-20% productivity improvements in key areas.
12:19 | Terry: There’s still a lot of fixation on AI as “driving efficiency.” I think the best companies are thinking about “How does AI serve as a catalyst for me to reimagine everything we do?”
15:25 | Ana: When ChatGPT was launched, all of the assessments said it was a very smart eight-year-old… Now we’re getting in the realm of it being an average, maybe C-level PhD student.
16:22 | Ana: If you look by gender, women on average will say that they are less aware, in the same company, of AI initiatives. They are less aware of changes their company has made. They are less likely to participate in trainings.
18:44 | Terry: The truth of the matter is, AI is going to impact your job. So, you getting smarter about AI will enable you to use it to do your job better… The more you lean in, the more you’ll get out of it.
22:02 | Terry: [When it comes to AI implementation], you have to think about both breakthrough business impact and things that are broad-based and easy but that make everyday users’ lives’ easier.
25:46 | Ana: How is it that 40% of Gen Z prefer an AI manager? Part of the reason is because they have no fear of asking any question to AI. And the way they ask the question, they know they’re not going to be judged for how they’re asking the question or what they’re asking about. Also, it’s available any time.

Mentioned on the Pod

World Economic Forum: How to stop women falling behind on generative AI in the workplace
Oliver Wyman Forum: How generative AI is transforming business and society
Forbes: 46% of Gen Z leans more on AI than their managers, says new study

Research you can use

Blog: Global CEOs share insights on AI implementation
Blog: What is ‘responsible AI’? Panelists weigh in
Blog: Leverage AI while avoiding its risks and biases
Webinar recording: How to use generative AI free of gender and racial bias (Supporter Only)
Explainer: Responsible artificial intelligence for inclusive workplaces (Supporter Only)
Tool: Use AI to attract a more diverse candidate pool (Supporter Only)

Get the Latest Episodes

The post Episode 107: AI and the Future of Pink-Collar Jobs appeared first on Catalyst.

Episode 106: From Taboo to Topical: Menopause in the Workplace

Michelle Ermolenko — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 15:47:55 +0000

Breaking with Tradition is diving into a topic that’s been long overlooked but is now coming to the forefront of workplace conversations: menopause. Welcome to season 1, episode 6.

According to Catalyst’s recent report, nearly three-quarters (72%) of employees have hidden their menopause symptoms at work. Additionally, 36% perceive a stigma against talking about menopause in the workplace. With celebrities like Naomi Watts and Michelle Obama also speaking out, menopause is no longer overlooked in the culture at large—so why should it be in the workplace?

Join Catalyst’s Victoria Kuketz as she speaks with Janet Ko, President and Co-Founder, The Menopause Foundation of Canada to bust some myths about menopause and flip the workplace taboo on its head. Learn why it’s an essential issue for companies to address and how the stigma impacts women’s earning potential and career trajectories.

Take the first step to join the movement. Learn how your organization can get involved and create a more inclusive work environment for everyone.

Host and guest

Victoria Kuketz, Director, Corporate Engagement, Canada, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

Janet Ko is President and Co-Founder of The Menopause Foundation of Canada, a national non-profit advocacy organization dedicated to breaking the silence and the stigma of menopause. Together with co-founder Trish Barbato and a medical advisory board of the country’s top menopause specialists, she launched the Menopause Foundation of Canada to lead a national conversation on menopause and to advocate for concrete action to improve women’s health.

Janet has held numerous leadership roles including Senior Vice President, Communications in the global life sciences and senior care sectors. She is dedicated to helping women thrive through their menopausal years and is a passionate speaker and menopause advocate. Janet is honoured to be one of the top 25 Women of Influence Award recipients for 2023.

In this episode

1:35 | Tell us about yourself! Janet tells us about her health journey and what led her to co-founding the Menopause Foundation of Canada.
3:52 | Workplace taboos: from mental health to menopause. Why does something that impacts millions of employees remain so stigmatized?
6:34 | Let’s bust some myths! Menopause looks different for everyone—and a large knowledge gap exists.
10:12 | Women spend half their lives in menopause. How can women be more proactive about their health at this time?
14:59 | Menopause stigma costs the economy $3.5 billion. Janet breaks down the staggering economic and career impact for women.
17:43 | How to get started. Take the first step to supporting women impacted by menopause in your workplace.
20:59 | BONUS: Creating new traditions. Janet flips our last question on its head.

Favorite moments

4:21 | Janet: [Menopause] has been a taboo subject not just in workplaces, but everywhere. I think one of the significant reasons driving that is the reality of ageism that disproportionately has a negative impact on women. Women, as we get older, there’s this view that we’re in a stage of decline. That doesn’t happen to men necessarily.
5:15 | Janet: As organizations focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion, looking at how they can retain top talent, supporting women to break through the glass ceiling… You cannot consider those factors without looking at supporting women at this stage of life in the prime of their career.
8:07 | Janet: A myth that I would love to break is that menopause is about period changes, hot flashes, and the end of your reproductive life. While that is true, focusing on just those things really does women this tremendous disservice. And it keeps us all in the dark about what menopause truly is, which is this profound hormonal shift that happens in midlife that can impact every organ in your body, because we have estrogen receptors all over the body.
9:28 | Janet: I’m hoping that we can change the narrative in our conversation, from menopause being something that you don’t look forward to, to shifting it to something that’s very positive, an important milestone where we recognize and honor women for stepping into the peak of their lives, where they have the most wisdom, experience, and contributions to make.
11:37 | Janet: It’s about time that we empower ourselves with knowledge, which I think is happening thanks to generation X. Gen X women will be the last women to be in the dark about menopause. And we know that the Millennials and the generations after us, their expectations of an experience at work, their openness and willingness to share is quite different from previous generations. So, we are going to definitely see a change, as we know it’s happening right now, because menopause is a hot topic and it’s turned into a movement.
14:18 | Janet: It is women who are demanding better care, women who are demanding a change in the conversation and the narrative. And because of our very large numbers, 10 million over the age of 40 in Canada, quarter of the workforce, we are seeing employers really step up to support women in the prime of their lives.
16:15 | Janet: You have to recognize that menopause intersects with that critical career stage between the ages of 45 and 55, where women are assuming greater leadership roles. And if you do not understand the changes that are happening to you, and you’re struggling with symptoms… You can have years of struggling and not being at your best… Employers cannot afford to lose their expertise, their wisdom, their leadership, their knowledge.
18:16 | Janet: One of the first things that employers can do, which isn’t a heavy lift, is to break the conversation, change your culture and your communications, really focusing on normalizing this topic.
20:13 | Janet: Reasonable accommodations, looking at your policies, all of those things can make a big, big difference… Women are really just looking for some openness in the workplace, some respect for what they’re experiencing, greater flexibility, and choice as they go through this.
22:18 | Janet: I truly believe that menopause is a disruptor in a woman’s life. You know, it’s a great moment for you to take a breath, to prioritize yourself, to reflect on who you are and who you want to be. Women end up doing amazing things in their 50s, 60s, 70s, and beyond… We just have to make sure that our health is there to allow us to achieve that.

Mentioned on the Pod

Menopause Foundation of Canada: Menopause – What Everyone Should Know
Menopause Foundation of Canada: Menopause Inclusive Workplace Playbook
Menopause Foundation of Canada: Menopause Works Here campaign

Research you can use

Get the Latest Episodes

The post Episode 106: From Taboo to Topical: Menopause in the Workplace appeared first on Catalyst.

Episode 105: Broadening Gender in Workplace DEI

Michelle Ermolenko — Mon, 16 Sep 2024 14:18:28 +0000

Welcome to Season 1, episode 5 of Breaking with Tradition, Catalyst’s podcast that explores trends and ideas that will impact the future of the global workplace. This episode is called Broadening Gender in Workplace DEI.

Catalyst has been accelerating progress for women for over 60 years, and our future vision is “workplaces that work for women.” To many women, this vision is a rallying cry because the status quo of workplaces is that they don’t work for women. But where do men fit into the equation in this future workplace? And what about trans and gender non-conforming (TGNC) employees?

Join Erin Souza-Rezendes as she sits down with Dani Gomez-Ortega, Senior Manager, Global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at McCain Foods, and Mark Greene, a writer, inclusion coach, and host of Remaking Manhood. Together, they tackle the complex subject of gender and how we talk about it in the workplace.

First, we start with the basics: what does “gender equity” mean in today’s world? And how is that reflected in the workplace—or not? Before long, we dive into “Man Box Culture,” how women can be allies to men, and the importance of vulnerability in conversations around gender.

Grab a drink and sit down with our panel to hear their inspiring perspectives on this topic and how we can shift workplace cultures so that nobody is left behind.

Hosts and guest

Erin Souza-Rezendes, VP, Global Communications, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

Dani Gomez-Ortega is a global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion leader with a passion for empowering others to create more inclusive spaces. Dani has championed inclusion across various sectors for 10 years. Currently, Dani works as a global DEI leader at McCain Foods, where she collaborates with teams across the world to drive inclusion.

Most recently, Dani was featured in the book Global Changemakers for a Feminist Future by Dr. Gayle Kimball and has won multiple awards for her work, including a Bill 7 Award. Dani’s work and commitment to inclusion are shaped by her lived experience as a Venezuelan Latinx, immigrant, transgender woman with an invisible disability.
LinkedIn

Mark Greene is an author and activist who speaks, consults, and coaches on diversity, equity, and inclusion. Mark works with organizations and individuals to overcome the challenges created by retrogressive workplace cultures. Mark’s client list includes General Mills, Société Générale, Sephora, AOL, Bank of America, Catalyst, and The Better Man Conference.

Mark is the author of The Little #MeToo Book for Men and Remaking Manhood, and co-author, along with Dr. Saliha Bava, of The Relational Book for Parenting and The Relational Workplace. Mark is co-host of Remaking Manhood, the Healthy Masculinity Podcast, available on all major streaming platforms.

Website | LinkedIn

In this episode

1:24 | What does gender equity mean to you? Spoiler alert: it goes beyond equity for women alone.
5:04 | The “evolution” of gender norms—or not. And have they been reflected in the workplace?
8:56 | Workplaces still aren’t safe for everyone. Where can we look for solutions? What is men’s role?
12:30 | Women can be allies to men, too People of all genders have work to do on how we define masculinity and femininity.
18:34 | We need gender equity inside and outside the workplace. How can we make work more connected and joyful?
20:57 | Closing thoughts (both practical and inspiring). Questions companies can ask to create more gender-inclusive workplaces and personal anecdotes from our panelists about how they show up.

Favorite moments

1:45 | Dani: When we talk about gender equity, it can’t just be about women. It’s also about men, but also about all the other genders that exist in the world.
6:00 | Mark: It’s become evident that if we don’t make space for conversations among men about men, men will continue to fall prey to the single primary purpose of “Man Box Culture,” which is to keep us silent and keep us conforming without ever checking in with each other about where did we learn these ideas about dominant space masculinity?
7:54 | Dani: I think people are slowly but surely starting to realize that [gender norms and gender roles] are made up, right? And they’re not necessarily benefiting us in the way that they might have benefited us in some magical time in the past.
11:44 | Mark: What we need men to hear and do now is that you cannot remain silent any longer because your own mental health, the mental health of your coworkers, of the people in your life, the well-being and future hope of everyone requires that we push through decades of conditioning we’ve had to remain silent by the bullying men around us.
13:20 | Mark: When we start to define male strength as including the full spectrum of human capacities, which we all have, which include things like caregiving, empathy, listening with curiosity… And we invite women at the same time to bring those aspects that are traditionally referred to as masculine, which is strength, leadership, toughness…When everyone is invited to bring their full human capacities, we start to change things.
14:39 | Dani: As women, we need to recognize that men have really high rates of mental health challenges. Especially when we talk about suicide rates. And so, it’s up to us to create space for men where they can be vulnerable and ask for help. Unless we create the space, that space is not going to be created.
15:55 | Mark: Vulnerability means, ultimately, to reveal. And when we reveal, we tap into an incredible resource because our resiliency, our success in the workplace, our capacity to live richer, fuller lives, is co-created with other people.
19:16 | Mark: The question becomes for us as human beings, why can’t we have as rich and meaningful of relationships in the workplace as we have in any other of our communities, in our churches, in our families?
20:28 | Dani: In the workplace, some people need to be able to talk about their lives, talk about their family, talk about their same-sex partners. Other people need privacy to succeed. It’s about recognizing individuality and giving everyone the ability to come to work the way that makes them feel happiest, even if that means being private about some things.
21:06 | Dani: We need to ask more questions. We first need to ask, “Who’s here?” Who’s in our company? It’s not just women—it’s men and non-binary people, Two-Spirit people, etc. Then we need to ask, how are they feeling? We need to segment that data to make sure we capture how different genders are experiencing the workplace. After that, we need to do research around where the gaps are and see what strategies we can enact to ensure that all genders are feeling included.
22:28 | Dani: I try to break with tradition by taking up space, by speaking up, and trying to be as visible as possible as a trans person to ensure that being trans in the workplace is no longer a thing that needs to be highlighted.
23.43 | Mark: Each and every one of us must step outside of our comfort zone and show the kind of courage that a lot of folks are publicly displaying right now in a genuinely unsafe world.

Mentioned on the Pod

Equimundo: The Man Box – A Study on Being a Young Man in the US, UK, and Mexico
Harvard University Press: Deep Secrets – Boys’ Friendships and the Crisis of Connection
Penguin Random House: Rebels with a Cause – Reimagining Boys, Ourselves, and Our Culture
The Cigna Group: TThe Loneliness Epidemic Persists: A Post-Pandemic Look at the State of Loneliness among U.S. Adults

Research you can use

Get the Latest Episodes

The post Episode 105: Broadening Gender in Workplace DEI appeared first on Catalyst.

Episode 104: Women Money Power

Michelle Ermolenko — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 13:13:55 +0000

Welcome to Season 1, episode 4 of Breaking with Tradition, Catalyst’s podcast that explores trends and ideas that will impact the future of the global workplace. This episode is called Women Money Power.

We know that women across the globe make less money than men. The gap may vary among countries, but it is a persistent pattern caused by a variety of systemic factors including job segregation, differences in education, and a lack of pay transparency, discrimination, and bias.

Some would say, however, that the gender pay gap is because “women aren’t ambitious.” And financial journalist and author Josie Cox has a lot of evidence to the contrary.

Join host Lucy Kallin as she sits down with Josie to discuss her latest book Women Money Power: The Rise and Fall of Economic Equality. Together, they discuss the century-old workplace design that holds back working mothers, recent legislative efforts to make salaries more transparent, as well as the trailblazing women who have contributed to the seismic progress in women’s economic empowerment we have today.

How can companies and employees work collectively to close the gap and create workplaces that better support people of all genders, including men? Listen to find out!

Hosts and guest

Lucy Kallin, Executive Director, EMEA, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

Josie Cox is a journalist, author, broadcaster and public speaker. She’s worked on staff for Reuters, The Independent and The Wall Street Journal. As a freelancer, she’s covered the intersection of gender and the economy for The Washington Post, The Spectator, Guardian, Business Insider, MSNBC, Forbes and other publications.

Josie has appeared on CNN, ABC, PBS, CNBC, public radio and a host of other networks. She regularly contributes to the BBC, both as a writer and broadcaster and is a founding editor of The Persistent.

Website | LinkedIn

In this episode

1:04 | Are women less ambitious than men? Josie and Lucy discuss the myth of the “unambitious mother.”
6:22 | Breaking away from false perceptions. What can individuals and companies do to combat bias?
12:54 | Trailblazers in Women Money Power. Josie talks about some of the women who changed history under the radar.
20:08 | Is gender equity a zero-sum game for men? We still tend to frame gender as a woman’s issue.
24:22 | Pay transparency regulation. Is it effective? What are some of the bright spots?
29:12 | The main takeaway from Women Money Power. Lucy asks Josie what she hopes readers get from her book.

Favorite moments

4:40 | Josie: And I think what we have to do, and it’s our duty as a society, is to recognize that when it looks like a woman might not be as ambitious as a man, we have to ask ourselves: what are the parameters, the constructs, the infrastructure that are preventing her from being able to make the choices that make her look ambitious in the way that we understand ambition?
5:52 | Lucy: It’s not about fixing the women… It’s about changing the infrastructure where women are working and making them more accessible and places where ambitions are allowed to grow, whatever that might look like. Because I do believe that organizations that do that will be the ones that will be around for a long time and will be successful.
6:49 | Josie: We need to be able to have conversations in the workplace that shed a light on the lived experiences of people who are perhaps not always given the opportunity to be the most vocal.
7:44 | Josie: On an operational level, what I would really like to see is organizations that have the courage to really self-reflect and say, okay, why am I doing the things I’m doing? And what is this design rooted in?
10:50 | Josie: And one of the most interesting things that I saw coming out of the pandemic—before corporations snapped back to the pre-COVID way of working—was this openness to hybrid working. We saw a steep rise in women’s labor force participation among women with young kids. And that was because they were finally able to do their work in the paid labor market from home, around their caregiving responsibilities they have.
22:49 | Josie: When we talk about gender inequality, a) we still tend to frame it as a women’s problem. In workplaces, conversations about the gender pay gap still tend to be the domain of women. On the other hand, b) we haven’t really spent enough time considering the role of men in the unpaid labor market and really advocating for changes there. I think it is our duty to address the other side of the equation.
28:06 | Josie: [Companies need to] spell out the effect that pay transparency can have on your organization. If you abide by not just the letter, but also the spirit of [transparency] laws, if you create that transparency, and therefore that trust within your workforce, you are undoubtedly likely to have a better retention rate.

Mentioned on the Pod

U.S. Department of Labor: Mothers’ employment has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, but the child care crisis persists
Business Insider: A History of How the 40-Hour Workweek Became the Norm in America
PBS: Katharine Dexter McCormick (1875-1967)
The New Yorker: The Many Lives of Pauli Murray
Amazon: Of Boys and Men: Why the Modern Male Is Struggling, Why It Matters, and What to Do about It

Research you can use

Get the Latest Episodes

The post Episode 104: Women Money Power appeared first on Catalyst.

Episode 103: What Does Gen Z Want in a Workplace?

Michelle Ermolenko — Wed, 10 Jul 2024 21:31:50 +0000

Welcome to a special edition of the Catalyst podcast, Breaking with Tradition filmed live at the 2024 Catalyst Awards! This is season 1, episode 3: What does Gen Z want in a workplace?

Everybody’s talking about the new multigenerational workplace—and for good reason. The newest generation, Generation Z, will soon make up over a third of the global population and a quarter of the global workforce.

Born after 1996, Gen Z is bringing new expectations and priorities to the workplace. From better work-life balance, a bigger investment in mental health, and their preference to work with companies that prioritize DEI, this generation is already making waves.

On this episode, join hosts Lucy and Victoria as they sit down with Remington Bennett, former Content Writer and Producer at The Female Quotient to talk about how the multi-generational workplace will shift future workplace cultures and priorities.

Our conversation will help you learn how companies can successfully manage the challenges a multigenerational workplace brings, while still accelerating diversity, equity, and inclusion progress.

Hosts and guest

Lucy Kallin, Executive Director, EMEA, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

Victoria Kuketz, Director, Corporate Engagement, Canada, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

Remington Bennett has diverse work experience spanning multiple industries. At the time of filming, they worked as a Content Producer at The Female Quotient since 2022. Prior to that, they held various roles at The New York Times from 2019 to 2022, including Assistant to the Managing Editor, Executive Assistant for Global Enterprise Subscriptions, and Executive Assistant for Advertising. From 2017 to 2019, they were a Production Coordinator to the Chief of Staff at OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network.

Remington Bennett has pursued a Bachelor of Science degree in Broadcast and Digital Journalism at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.

In this episode

1:44 | About Remington. Who is Remington Bennett and what is The Female Quotient all about?
2:44 | A clash of workplace values. Gen Z (or Gen Zed according to Lucy) is quickly changing the demographics at work—how do their ideas square with older generations?
5:18 | Leaving no one behind. How can the generations work together to accelerate DEI in an evolving workplace?
7:42 | Creating belonging cross-generation. Women in each generation share universal experiences that shape them.
10:34 | Mentorship works both ways. Regardless of age, professionals both young and old have something to teach each other.
11:23 | Misconceptions about Gen Z. How do we “close the gap” of the assumptions and stereotypes older generations may hold of Gen Z?
15:13 | Creating a space of safety, inspiration, and productivity. Prioritizing diversity creates a space where many voices have a seat at the table.
17:28 | Men as advocates for change. Remington shares a story about bringing together a powerful all-male panel to support gender equity in the workplace.

Favorite moments

4:00 | Remington: Now as we’re starting to come back to work, RTO, returning to the office, is top of mind for a lot of leaders. But younger generations are looking at that and saying, well, what’s happening to this workplace flexibility that we were experiencing before during the pandemic, is that now going to be desolate?
4:52 | Lucy: The dynamics have changed now… there’s [more of a sense that] we want a different world for this new generation that’s coming in.
7:05 | Remington: I think there needs to be more opportunities for mentorship for the two [generations] to come together, because… often there’s no communication between the two.
9:17 | Remington: When we connect with each other, let’s look for what’s similar about your life that’s similar about my life. Even though we exist in different times, how can I relate to you in a way that every human can?
14:03 | Remington: [On assumptions that Gen Z employees are ‘lazy’] I think it’s all about reframing how we have these conversations… Instead of assuming that they don’t want to do anything, ask questions first and then lead with empathy, lead with emotion, lead with vulnerability—that’s effective for this new generation.
15:30 | Victoria: When I think about what that really means [to have a truly inclusive workplace], it comes down to feeling safe, feeling inspired, and wanting to create and be productive and do something in the world.
16:13 | Remington: A story is the voices of many, right? And if you only have one type of person telling that story, then to the people reading or watching or looking at that story, they start to feel like their voice doesn’t matter.

Research you can use

Statistics & References

Deloitte: Understanding Generation Z in the workplace
World Economic Forum: Gen Z Demands Diversity and Inclusion in the Workplace
European Parliament: Next generation or lost generation? Children, young people and the pandemic

Get the Latest Episodes

The post Episode 103: What Does Gen Z Want in a Workplace? appeared first on Catalyst.

Episode 101: Why The “Why” Matters

Tuesday Hagiwara — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 22:16:27 +0000

Welcome to season 1, episode 1, of the Catalyst podcast, Breaking with Tradition: Why The “Why” Matters.

Catalyst founder Felice Schwartz embraced a vision for the future of the workplace in her 1992 book Breaking with Tradition based on “fulfillment, both personal and professional,” where everyone is “able to define and pursue their goals freely, regardless of gender.”

From this initial vision, the Catalyst of today strives for “workplaces that work for women.” This is the future of work we at Catalyst seek to create at workplaces everywhere. This is our why.

How an organization communicates its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) work makes an impact—both to the outside world in this moment of anti-DEI pushback, and internally to employees who want to know their company cares.

For this first episode of Breaking with Tradition, hosts Lucy, Victoria, and Erin sit down to set the stage and discuss both the Catalyst “why” and why it matters that we talk about it. And as can be expected from a research organization, we bring in some evidence-based insights to back us up!

Hosts

Lucy Kallin, Executive Director, EMEA, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

Victoria Kuketz, Director, Corporate Engagement, Canada, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

Erin Souza-Rezendes, Vice President, Global Communications, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

In this episode

1:07 | The origin story. The inspiration for this podcast, Catalyst, founder Felice Schwartz and her 1992 book Breaking with Tradition.
4:28 | Building a human-focused workplace. Women are half the population, but they’re also not a monolith. Victoria, Lucy and Erin discuss why gender equity is critical to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
9:35 | Finding your voice. Why it’s important for companies to talk about equity and what it looks like.
15:35 | World-class employers. Why some companies are building workplaces that work for women despite the DEI pushback.
19:35 | Modern-day rebels. How our hosts break with tradition.

Favorite moments

1:41 | Erin: As someone who works in communications here at Catalyst, you know, I think about our work as breaking with tradition all the time. Because really, what we’re focusing on is our shared humanity.
2:18 | Victoria: From a productivity crisis, AI upskilling and adoption across industries, we’re constantly facing new and emerging challenges. So this breaking with tradition theme really resonates with me because we need to innovate and from a DEI perspective, upskill and leverage the entirety of the workforce to meet these challenges…
10:32 | Lucy: 76% of employees want their companies to take action. And I think that’s where Catalyst comes in. I’m leaning forward because I’m getting too excited now.
12:33 | Victoria: DEI is for everyone. And it really makes cultures better. It leverages talent, it lets people lean in. Because there is that slippage in that understanding we are seeing DEI backlash.
14:10 | Erin: It’s true there is DEI backlash. I won’t minimize that. But is it true that companies are stepping back or not fully embracing it? I think for organizations that were committed, they’re unapologetically so.
14:35 | Erin: Diversity, equity and inclusion, if it’s working well, what does it really look like in someone’s life? It looks like sitting here on a podcast at home while my daughter is getting on the school bus because I’m working from home.
16:42 | Lucy: The ones we’re working with are the ones that are looking to embed it as a cultural shift. That gives them what I said at the beginning, a competitive edge, a differentiator in the market and an attractiveness to an employee.
17:48 | Victoria: What I’m actually seeing with the incredible supporter organizations that I work with is that they’re actually doubling down in these times. They’re actually saying that, you know, what’s going on social media as a political project is actually not going to affect our commitment to be world-class employers.
21:22 | Lucy: I think I’ve always broken the tradition because I always start from there. From the why have we always done it that way?
22:47 | Victoria & Erin | You’re an Innovator. Yea, that’s just your energy.

Fun Facts

93% of employees say that it’s at least somewhat important for their organization to be vocal about its DEI efforts, yet 1 in 4 employees say their senior leaders never or rarely engage in DEI.
76% of employees want their companies to take action – and ensure their workplace is diverse and inclusive to all.
More than 50 countries will go to the polls in 2024.

Research you can use

Your guide to DEI messaging
Shaffer, E. & Torrez, B. (2024). How to talk about diversity with employees to achieve your company’s objectives. Catalyst.

Get the Latest Episodes

The post Episode 101: Why The “Why” Matters appeared first on Catalyst.

Episode 102: It’s Not All Doom & Gloom: State of DEI

Tuesday Hagiwara — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 22:10:31 +0000

Introducing: Season 1, episode 2, of the Catalyst podcast, Breaking with Tradition: It’s Not All Doom & Gloom: State of DEI.

It’s easy to become disheartened by the backlash against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) movements in the workplace. It’s a time of inflamed political rhetoric and multiple overlapping global crises that threaten to roll back the clock on our efforts to make more equitable work environments for women.

On this episode of Breaking with Tradition, we’re reminded of words from Felice Schwartz as she looked at the radical changes she saw in her lifetime: “We can’t go on the way we have been—living new lives in the old patterns.”

What is the state of DEI in 2024? Is it all doom and gloom, or is there reason to hope for “new patterns” emerging? Our host Erin is flying solo this week and sitting down with Ruchika Tulshyan, expert, speaker and author on DEI and founder and CEO of Candour to discuss her predictions for our work this year and beyond.

Our conversation will tackle some of the biggest Future of Work trends impacting women today. Spoiler alert: There’s a lot to be excited about!

Host and guest

Erin Souza-Rezendes, Vice President, Global Communications, Catalyst

LinkedIn | Bio

Ruchika Tulshyan is the best-selling author of Inclusion on Purpose: An Intersectional Approach to Creating a Culture of Belonging at Work (MIT Press). The book was described as “transformative” by Dr. Brené Brown. She is working on her next book: “Uncompete: Dismantling a Competition Mindset to Unlock Liberation, Opportunity, and Peace” (Viking Books).

Ruchika is also the founder of Candour, an inclusion strategy practice. A former international business journalist, Ruchika is a regular contributor to The New York Times and Harvard Business Review and a recognized media commentator on workplace culture.

LinkedIn | Website

In this episode

1:35 | About Ruchika. Who is Ruchika Tulshyan and what is her approach to DEI?
6:01 | Ouch, 2024. It’s been rough. Are the DEI doom and gloom headlines true? Ruchika weighs in.
12:57 | What’s your advice? How do we shore ourselves up during these challenging times?
18:45 | Imposter syndrome is a systemic issue. Ruchika shares how we can make systems-level change.
25:35 | What does the future of work look like? Will inclusivity be the norm?
30:57 | Sneak Peek. The Catalyst community gets a sneak peek into Ruchika’s next book

Favorite moments

1:51 | Ruchika: I think of the work that I do or my approach to diversity, equity and inclusion as multi-faceted. So much of it is driven by various identities I have and hold throughout my life.
5:48 | Erin: I think it means so much to marry those two things and have both, the personal storytelling and the receipts of the research to uncover what is happening in workplaces around the world, particularly for women.
8:06 | Ruchika: I’d say the most important part of this is that a lot of these attacks are not new. They’re not using, they might be using new language, they might be using different packaging around it.
8:21 | Ruchika: Ten years ago, when I was in the technology industry, at that time, even using the words diversity, equity and inclusion were basically completely new.
9:35 | Ruchika: I think actually think now we’ve come to a place now where it’s [microaggressions] so widely understood, we can actually update it to say microaggressions are not that micro. They actually have a very macro impact on people in their lives, on their careers.
10:35 | Ruchika: Some part of this, I think is also the zero-sum thinking that I think a lot of people and leaders and organizations operate with. Like this idea of winner takes all.
11:45 | Erin: If the workplace is a place where women feel like they can show up authentically, where they’re going to experience inclusion, whatever that means to them, however that feels to them and be able to succeed on their terms, whatever that means to them. Then that’s good for everybody.
22:49 | Ruchika: Once you start to unpack the systemic issues at play it because really hard to keep saying or keep believing that it is an internal issue [imposter syndrome] that you are struggling with.
23:47 | Ruchika: How do you win? Until you stop taking it [imposter syndrome] on as an internal burden?
24:02 | Ruchika: We need to widen the table. We need to show different styles of leadership. We need to show that someone who pounds her fist, especially a woman who pounds her fist or is just her personality is such, that her leadership style is to be you know, strong, commanding, domineering, etc. is just as acceptable as someone who identifies as an introvert who’s really quiet, who leads sort of in a different way.
26:22 | Ruchika: Gender inequity isn’t necessarily men doing inequity to women. Some of the most challenging and concerning examples of gender bias I’ve seen in the workplace has been from women upholding very patriarchal very gender-biased norms against other women.
26:52 | Ruchika: I think some of the backlash is the idea of like we’re separating people out into groups, we’re creating more divisions, rather than understanding that systemic biases impact everyone regardless of their identity.
28:51 | Ruchika: I think these examples of people being able to really be their full, authentic selves is the type of future of work that I really want us to see.
29:39 | Ruchika: To hear from, you know white men to say to me, I identify as an introvert. I don’t like speaking up at meetings. And, you know, being so commanding and domineering, it’s expected of the workplace that I work at. And since we’ve sort of been working on inclusion much more thoughtfully and intentionally, I feel like I can bring my more quiet, more introverted self to meetings and to my leadership style.
23:54 | Ruchika: If we are truly going to rise, if we’re truly going to create this future where everyone wins, we need to stop believing and stop only focusing on the gains that we can make as individuals or just our own community.
34:22 I Erin: I can think of times in you know, what I would consider fairly inclusive workspaces, being told by bosses like, oh you know, watch out, watch out for her kind of thing. And thinking 20 years ago, that doesn’t seem right to me.
35:14 | Ruchika: A lot of what we were conditioned with, a lot of the norms, we were told about the workplace, about society don’t hold true anymore.
35:16 | Ruchika: Just because we’ve done things a certain way, now that we know better we don’t have to continue in that way.
36:26 | Ruchika: The opportunity is there, but we have to imagine it.

Mentioned on the Pod

Research you can use

What’s really causing the DEI backlash and how to fix it
33 ways to address the backlash against diversity, equity and inclusion
7 facts that prove America Ferrera’s speech in Barbie is true
Erskine, S., Brassel, S., & Robotham, K. (2023). Exposé of women’s workplace experiences challenges antiracist leaders to step up. Catalyst.
Is DEI authentic? Caroline Wanga says we need a reframe
The Double-Bind Dilemma for Women in Leadership (Infographic)

Get the Latest Episodes

The post Episode 102: It’s Not All Doom & Gloom: State of DEI appeared first on Catalyst.