IAAPA 2017
Several members and leaders of Harriet B's Daughters spoke at the HR Creates: Techniques for Addressing Gender Issues in the Workplace session.
Resource links
The pages linked here are reading lists based on the 5 major buckets of issues discussed by the panel, plus general resources:
- Recruitment + hiring
- The meeting battlefield
- Hallway/Coffeepot chatter, the social sinew of work
- Review, promotion, benefits, raises
- Allyship, analogies, authenticity + failure
Cheat sheets
In addition, during the breakout discussions at roundtables, individual subtopics were workshopped. Short cheatsheets on each subject can be found here. These are 'quick hits' intended to help you get started with these issues. Please note that there is some repetition in content due to overlap between tables.
Allyship – This cheatsheet explores how to be an ally, various scenarios, and how to be an active, engaged 'co-conspirator' in 'doing the work'. Good place to start if you're new to allyship or trying to figure out how to engage.
Allyship in the C-suite – Executive leaders must balance both their own allyship journey with the challenges of running an organization. This cheatsheet provides an array of strategies coupled with dos and don'ts.
Building Teams and Meetings – Responsible for resourcing onto teams? Found yourself as the only woman or POC on a team? This cheatsheet provides both guidance for how to construct teams in a health manner and also how to deal with specific bias scenarios in the context of team structure and meetings.
Dress Code and Gender Norms – Corporate dress codes can be a minefield of a variety of biases, including subtle (and not so subtle) racial and religious bias and encoded gender norms. This cheatsheet explores the types of bias, things to look out for, and suggestions on how to push back if you're on the 'wrong' side of the dress code equation.
Emotional labor – Women often find themselves expected to perform the heavy lift of managing feelings and tending to others, even when it's most certainly not 'part of their job'. Learn to recognize it, how to avoid placing it on women and marginalized people, and how to push back if you find yourself on the receiving end.
Family Matters – From being a parent to being a caregiver, juggling work and family is challenging. Often policies are out of step with the modern workforce.
Gaslighting – This is a serious form of emotional abuse, manipulation designed to make the victim question themselves and no longer trust their own judgement. Learn what it is, how to recognize it, and how to cope.
LGBTQIA – Just as women of color face intersectional issues (experiencing bias simultaneously both on the basis of gender and race), so too LGBTQIA colleagues. This cheatsheet addresses the unique biases, stereotyping, and problems they face.
Inclusive Social Gatherings – Those after work team building exercises aren't as inclusive as we'd like to think. Tips and tricks for organizing more inclusive activities, as well as things to think about in terms of how open these events are to a wide range of employees, are addressed here.
Pushing Back on Bias – This cheatsheet provides a variety of types of bias and scenarios, with examples of systemic bias and how to recognize/address it, how allies can intervene, and how to push back if you're the victim. This cheatsheet works well coupled with the Ally and Building Teams sheets.
Self Evaluation and Review – Women are trained to share the credit and be modest, and that doesn't serve us well when it comes time for a performance review. Learn language to avoid, how to spin your achievements, and more.