The Executive Leadership Council (ELC)’s Post

📖✨ Let me introduce you to a tale of audacity. 📖✨ In a world where the rise to executive leadership often follows a well-trodden and pedigreed path, our narrative tells the captivating stories of Black leaders who dared to chart their own courses, challenging both the shortcomings of the corporate system for Black leaders, and our own assumptions about the paths to reaching “the top”. TLDR. Our research finds that the experiences of Black leaders in the corporate world often revolve around three themes: ✍🏾Focus: Black leaders come into the workplace with high ambitions and clear goals. They are focused, resilient, and often come from families with high expectations. 💪🏾Worth: Many Black leaders recognize their own value and are unwilling to settle for less, even when advancement opportunities do not match their accomplishments. They often face higher promotion bars than their peers. 🫶🏾Purpose: A strong motivation for Black leaders is to address the inequities they have personally encountered or seen in their communities. This sense of purpose shapes their leadership and business models. For companies looking to expand Black representation at higher levels, the paper offers the following recommendations: 1️⃣Level: Ensure assessment processes are based on meritocracy and that the company compensates and supports talent equitably. This involves addressing compensation disparities, defining demographics accurately, and understanding retention metrics for diverse talent. 2️⃣Accelerate: Be intentional in supporting the development of rising Black leaders. This includes creating dedicated task forces to accelerate development, implementing accelerator programs, rotational programs, and increasing role responsibilities. Support systems like sponsorship and mentorship should also be bolstered. 3️⃣Expand: Challenge and redefine notions of what is required for success in a role. Start succession planning earlier, focus on competencies rather than educational pedigree or industry experience, and align around organizational values to avoid the "culture fit" trap. ⚠️Those who do not address these issues risk falling behind in the creation of Black history within their walls! ⚠️ https://lnkd.in/eCfdM9QM

I am walking away from the 2023 Black Corporate Directors Conference more educated, energized, and encouraged than before. What an incredible event to be a part of! We discussed the importance of diversity in the boardroom, the progress we’ve made so far, and how leaders can keep DEI at the forefront of their agendas in today’s global environment. As a first-time attendee, sharing my top takeaways here: 1. Long-term, collective, and steadfast commitment is the key to progress. Being in a room full of people who are committed to the same cause is special, but we need every room to look and feel that way to truly move forward. 2. Curiosity is key. With guests and speakers from a range of industries, geographies, and backgrounds, we all had something to learn and something to teach. 3. Corporate diversity is not exclusively a talent matter—it’s a business imperative. When a diverse group of people are considered and included, the best ideas, solutions, and opportunities come to the surface. Thank you to all who participated! #Inclusion #Progress #ModernGovernance

Unlocked story!🔓 Read this Leader Board that discusses the impact of Black business leaders in OC, written by Mark J. Smalls, Founder, T. Bryce Consulting. #OCBJ #OCNews #OrangeCountyBusiness #BusinessJournal

Today is Black Leaders Awareness Day! A day to celebrate and uplift Black leaders and also an opportunity to support the next generation of Black leaders in business succeed. This year, we reached out to two of our incredible Black Empower Role Models who shared their career wisdom and advice for emerging Black leaders in business. Hear from La-Toya Hackney, Senior Vice President, Saint-Gobain: https://lnkd.in/ehfuZGrw And hear from Bamidele F., Pathology Quality Manager and Governance Lead, NHS: https://lnkd.in/ejgFpVWn Here are three ways businesses can nurture the next generation of Black leaders: 1. Invest in talent development programs Do you have targeted talent development programs in place, like Mentoring, to provide your Black employees with the equitable tools to succeed? Now's the time to invest in their success. 2. Sponsorship Did you know that Black Managers with a sponsor are 65% more likely to progress to the next level, however only 5% of Black employees gain meaningful sponsorship opportunities. How are your organization's senior leaders providing Black employees with sponsorship opportunities? https://lnkd.in/eM87EE2U. 3. Diversifying senior teams Do your emerging Black employees have a) tangible paths to senior leadership opportunities b) have Black Role Models within the business who show them that success is possible? Business' need to diversify senior leadership teams to be more inclusive of Black employees, Audeliss can help with that. Shout out to all the incredible Black Empower Executives and Future Leaders within our Empower Role Model Lists for all the incredible work they do in business to advocate for change. Your leadership is inspiring and motivates us all to do commit to ambitious personal and professional goals for career advancement and inclusion. Learn more about how INvolve and support your emerging Black leaders here: https://lnkd.in/gqd6rA6 #BlackLeadership #BlackLeaders #DEI #Advocacy #RoleModels #Diversityandinclusion #EMRoleModels23 #Seniorleaders #BlackLeadersAwarenessDay

Here's why Black executives are critical in the boardroom.

As part of my ongoing research, I've interviewed remarkable Black women leaders who hold C-suite positions, demonstrating operational and executive leadership at the highest levels within their organisations. Their achievement is a testament to their unwavering determination, strategic manoeuvring, and active exercise of corporate agency. These trailblazers didn't passively accept the prevailing structures (primarily white men and women in senior roles) or the organizational culture (racial beliefs, stereotypes, and tokenization). Instead, they articulated their goals, sought support from allies sympathetic to their mission, and strategically pursued professional development, informal job openings, mentorship, and coaching opportunities. They expressed interest in future roles, sought performance feedback, and applied for external higher-paid and senior positions. They entered or formed organised groups that promoted the interests of underserved employees, demonstrating their corporate agency and successfully challenging the constraints and enablements that either impeded or facilitated their career progression. By becoming the most senior Black female leaders within their organisations, they've deliberately transformed their workplaces and created pathways for upcoming Black women leaders to follow. At the heart of my research lies a compelling question: How have organisational structures and cultures shaped the environment for Black women's agency as they aspire to climb the leadership ladder? What are the specific conditions within organisations that either hinder or foster their agency in reaching senior leadership positions? These questions form the backbone of my investigation, promising to shed light on the complex dynamics at play and the resilience required for Black women to shatter glass ceilings and achieve executive excellence. The findings from this research hold immense power to catalyze change. Join me on this journey by staying tuned for revelations that could reshape the leadership landscape for Black women.

Disappointing news to say the least. Without representative leadership, substantive change will remain elusive. We can't afford to let off the accelerator. On the critical first promotion to management, new McKinsey data now show U.S. companies are no longer elevating Black professionals at the higher rate of a couple of years ago, and have reverted to nearly the same promotion rates for Black staff as in 2019. The downshift suggests that as companies’ focus has shifted to trimming corporate budgets and getting more workers back into offices, many have gotten distracted from earlier commitments to hire and promote more people of color, human-resources and other corporate executives and consultants say. https://lnkd.in/gspn9g-3

Black leadership growth at ad agencies has remained stagnant. Our own Reonna Johnson, co-founder of the industry collective, Three's a Crowd, who helped create the ‘In for 13’ Pledge to increase Black leadership to 13% by 2023, shared insights on why this is happening since launching the initiative in 2020 with Adweek's Jameson Fleming. While there are many takeaways over the course of three years from participating “IN” agencies (we're one of them!), here are the top 5 findings Reonna has compiled that highlights both real progress and ways agencies can continue to make strides to increase Black leadership within their ranks. No. 1 | INCREASE IN BLACK LEADERSHIP  (Leadership = VP and above)  “In for 13’ data suggests there’s been an uptick in Black leadership at advertising agencies.  2020 – 3.1% 2020 – 6.5% 2021 – 6.1% 2023 – 6.3%   No. 2 | AGENCIES ARE HIRING MORE BLACK TALENT, BUT NEED TO FOCUS ON RETENTION. As of 2023, 9.6% of agency talent were Black, a 44% increase from 2020.   No. 3 | WHY IS THE PERCENTAGE OF BLACK LEADERS FLAT AT AGENCIES?  Agencies have not focused enough on retention or investing in Black, mid-level talent to help them achieve leadership roles. It’s important to provide professional growth opportunities and mentorship programs to help people get to the next level. In addition, 20% of agencies are facing downsizing in an uncertain economic climate. There are not many new roles, and many are staying in existing roles which creates stagnation.     No. 4 | HOW ARE THE AGENCIES INVESTING IN BLACK MID-LEVEL TALENT Agencies are recognizing the value of their talent and increasing the rate of promotions for exemplary employees. Also, there has been an effort to reassess the most visible projects in an agency to provide people with opportunities for both growth and exposure. Lastly, changes in agency culture through on-boarding, recruitment, and annual performance reviews has assisted in keeping talent engaged.    No. 5 | 13% REPRESENTATION GOAL IS THE DESSERT The 13% leadership objective serves as the dessert. It is only when internal changes are meticulously executed and assessed (main course prepared, served, and consumed) will the representation goal (dessert) become visible and attainable.   https://lnkd.in/ge6VTTSC #representation #diversityandinclusion #talent #equity

This past year there were small, but promising, gains for Black representation in the workplace. Coqual released a new white paper on its Black Equity Index (BEI), a benchmarking tool created for companies to understand and stay accountable for racial equity at work. Key findings: ✅ Only 7% of people managers—and only 3% of executives—are Black. ✅ 67% of participating companies include a DE&I-related focus in C-suite performance evaluations. ✅ Nearly all respondents (81%) have an organization-wide DE&I task force, council, or working group that is separate from their DE&I team. ✅ Of companies that provide anti-bias training, 5 out of 10 companies (55%) make it mandatory for senior leaders. https://lnkd.in/ehnKcEYG

This report from Coqual has some great insights and recommendations for companies and organizations to create a more equitable work environment for Black people. This quote stuck out to me: "Responses from the 2023 BEI survey indicate that corporate America is working hard to increase Black representation, including in leadership, taking valuable steps towards accountability, and continuing to cultivate the college to career pipeline. Our findings also suggest an air of increased caution among companies." Representation matters - and it is not enough. I love to read that progress is being made here but without intentional redesigning of how work and people are led and managed to be more equitable, inclusive, and just, Black people (and frankly all people) cannot thrive. There are headwinds, yes, thus the increased caution. There are deliberate efforts being made to stop and reverse progress so those in the dominant group can maintain their hold on power and control. But what I know to be true is that operating in systems of domination and oppression harm EVERY ONE. No one truly wins in our current system. Our humanity is destroyed. More liberatory ways free us all. So we must stay the course and change our workplaces for the better.