Feb. 8, 2023

Workplace Communications & DEI with Jesse Ross

When it comes to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, or DEI, I feel that there’s often a more nuanced conversation to be had. So to create that conversation, I invited Jesse Ross on the show!

Jesse is a diversity, equity, and inclusion consultant, executive coach, and international speaker who has delivered over 400 speaking engagements at colleges, conferences, corporate and nonprofit companies, with a large number of Fortune 500 companies.

We dig right into Jesse’s work and the specific strategies that he’s used to help create real DEI momentum. You’ll hear about his story, and how he’s working in real time to change the way we think about DEI.

In this episode, we break down…

What actually builds Diversity, Equity and Inclusion! Less performative actions and theorizing, and more of the reality of what really works.
How to understand yourself so that you can better get to know and understand others.
The importance of communication in promoting and enabling DEI.
A fuller, more inclusive definition of what DEI really means and what it covers beyond the most frequently discussed aspects of it.
How to appropriately understand and handle conflict regarding DEI.

Key Quotes & Conclusions…

“Are you answering the question that nobody’s asking? If I’m answering the question that nobody’s asking, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing– but maybe I should focus on what people are asking first.”
“The systemic outcome can’t pre-determine success based on numbers. We can’t say because I have five of these and six of these and seven of those, now we get equity. It just doesn’t work out like that.”
“It comes through spending time, having exposure to people that are different from us, building that vocabulary, doing the trainings and experiencing things together.”
“People don’t actually realize how much time it takes to build that trust. We hear companies say ‘This is a safe space’ and I always tell people, ‘just because you say it’s a safe space, it doesn’t make it safe.’”
“I do think it’s best when it comes from the top, but I do think there’s some spaces where it doesn’t have to, or it doesn’t have to start there.”