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Walmart's pivot, how businesses can address climate change, and why some staffing agencies rely on hiring discrimination.
Plus – our last Conflict Evolution workshop of the year.
Nicole Cardoza
November 27, 2024
News and insights to reimagine how we work and thrive
Good morning and happy Wednesday!
Fortune 500 companies are often viewed as workplace trendsetters, but their actions shouldn't dictate the path for smaller organizations. When major retailers like Walmart make headlines for "moving away" from DEI initiatives, it creates a misleading narrative that all companies should follow suit.
The reality is that most U.S. organizations operate on a much smaller, more intimate scale. Their DEI work isn't about multi-million dollar programs affecting thousands - it's about practical, everyday actions like making meetings more inclusive, creating safer spaces for dialogue, and examining workplace practices for hidden biases.
What's particularly telling about current anti-DEI efforts is that they mirror DEI practices themselves - but redirect these tools to protect the interests of those who already hold systemic advantages. This reveals a fundamental contradiction: if DEI principles are supposedly flawed, why are they being used as weapons against the very communities they were designed to support?
The impact of inclusion work happens at the human level, whether in the workplace, or around the dinner table this holiday season. These efforts continue not because they're mandated or headline-worthy, but because they reflect our basic commitment to creating fairer, more equitable spaces for everyone.
This work isn’t going anywhere, and neither are we. Reach out if we can help you through our consulting, workshops, or strategic planning.
Take care,
Nicole
 | Founder, Lead Facilitator |
 | Effective Facilitation (self-paced)Start today, learn anytime |
 | Power + PrivilegeTuesday, December 3 | 3-5p EST |
 | Conflict EvolutionTuesday, December 10 | 3-5p EST |
A graphic of several people in Walmart colors, arms crossed, with disappointed looks on their faces surrounded by frowning smiley faces. Source: Reclamation Ventures
Walmart becomes the latest — and biggest — company to roll back its DEI policies. The changes, confirmed by Walmart on Monday, are sweeping and include everything from not renewing a five-year commitment for an equity racial center set up in 2020 after the police killing of George Floyd, to pulling out of a prominent gay rights index. NPR >
DOL: The cost of child care is more than rent in some U.S. counties. In most counties, child care prices were high relative to family income, potentially pricing many families out of paid child care. HR Dive >
Views of DEI have become slightly more negative among white, male U.S. workers. American workers’ opinions on the role of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the workplace have become more negative since last year. Pew Research Center >
Using Clack students to criticize DEI is a cynical and disingenuous tactic. Conservative outlets have weaponized Black students’ legitimate concerns about declining Black student enrollment as an indictment of the amount of money spent on DEI initiatives. Diverse Education >
‘People are running for the hills’: Employers brace for Trump’s immigration plan. Attorneys encourage companies to preventively act on items such as Form I-9 compliance and skilled worker visa applications. HR Dive >
Waffle House is suing the National Labor Relations Board, arguing that the board’s administrative law process is unconstitutional. Workers at the fast casual restaurant have been trying to unionize for fair wages and employment protections. HR Dive >
Business tapped out of the climate fight. Here’s how to get back in. To truly address climate change, businesses must go beyond individual sustainability efforts and engage in movement-building and political action: mobilizing customers, rethinking NGO partnerships, pressuring peers and trade groups, and engaging in public climate lobbying. Harvard Business Review >
Samsung gets first woman CEO outside founding family in 86 years. Kim Kyung-Ah appointed as new CEO of Samsung Bioepis, at a time where Korean female executives still struggle to break glass ceiling. Bloomberg >
Howard University’s record applications show boom in Black colleges. Howard applications swelled to a record of over 36,000 applicants. As efforts to support HBCUs becomes more critical, universities are scrambling to handle the growth. Bloomberg >