Diversity and Inclusion Matters

Chapter 1How to Become an Exceptional DE&I Organization: Four Shades of Brown

Four Shades of Brown

When my daughter Piper was in her second year of college, she came to me and said, “Dad, look at this!” Piper put a makeup advertisement under my nose and said, “This makeup company makes twenty shades of makeup for White people and only four shades of brown! This company needs a diversity and inclusion program!” We both laughed, but the reality of this statement hit too close to home. For my daughter, her brown skin is both beautiful and a reminder of the work we need to do.

This experience with my daughter was an example of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I), both literally and metaphorically. DE&I work is about more than four shades of brown. The makeup ad provides an entry point to the framework I use to think about diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Using the ad, I considered the company that developed the makeup and asked myself some questions related to DE&I.

• Diversity: Were any of the company's employees from non-dominant ethnic groups, genders, or countries? Did anyone working on this ad or product line have brown skin?
• Equity: Did any of the employees of the company realize the disparity in the ad?
• Inclusion: If so, did they believe they could speak up?

I also wondered about the process this company used to make decisions. Was there a group of employees who sat together in a room to approve the ad? Was it possible that a group of employees saw the ad, and everyone ...