Everything You Need to Know About Equity Work

The term “equity work” refers to the process of building an environment in which everyone feels equally welcomed, accountable, a member of the organization, appreciated, and respected. When companies seek to include diversity in their work, equity work is just as vital, because embracing diversity implies attempting to integrate not just diverse individuals, but also their cultures. The most successful and productive atmosphere is one in which each team member feels comfortable voicing their perspective. This setting brings out the best in both teams and individuals. However, just as technology in the workplace has to be updated, it is also critical to reimagine and reassess behavioral norms around particular principles, such as equality work. Hence, in this TEDx Talks video, Shaundel Spivey, executive director of Black Leaders Acquiring Collective Knowledge, discusses his thoughts while also challenging us to rethink equity work.

Shaundel begins his presentation by emphasizing that while equality and inclusion are difficult to achieve, companies nonetheless choose to do so in order to create an environment in which everyone feels welcomed, respected, accepted, and valued. He claims that pointing towards some cultures is considered unfriendly or insulting. When pointing a finger at others, however, he believes it is far more vital to consider how competent we are to question others. In order to accomplish so, he advises that internal reflection is critical. By doing so, he asserts that it is critical for individuals to take the time to understand their own identities because, in the end, he claims, it will benefit you in terms of your perceptions of others. It also affects your bias and how you interact with people, which has a direct influence on how well your interpersonal relationships in the workplace are, which definitely aids in building equity work. He goes on to say that self-challenge is equally crucial. He believes that the notion of self-challenge is subjective because everyone has various habits and struggles with different things. However, it is necessary to exercise self-challenge in order to move into the stance of action. Last but not least, he advises that we rethink ourselves at work. He thinks that it is critical to continuously rethink and redesign oneself at work in order to find new methods to fit in. He closes his talk by saying that the next time you raise your finger at someone, do so to move ahead rather than blame them because only when we take each one of the team and decide to move forward together, can we truly establish equity work.

Equity work holds great importance for establishing a positive work culture for leaders and employees alike. Listen to Shaundel Spivey, executive director of Black Leaders Acquiring Collective Knowledge, give a presentation on equity work in the YouTube video on the TEDx Talks channel.