Hello!

This year marks the 156th observance of Juneteenth — when word of the Emancipation Proclamation (finally!) reached African American slaves in Texas. Juneteenth, which is celebrated each June 19, is celebrated across the country by way of festivals, concerts, and other community-building events. Our Simply Good article this week suggests another way to participate in the celebration by supporting Black-owned businesses with our dollars.

On a similar note, I recently challenged leaders to stop talking about their DEI strategies and get to work on implementation. This week’s Simply Diversity article is a similar call-to-the-mat for organizations that claim to support the LGBTQ+ community, but lack the substantive action to back it up. Don’t get me wrong, effective changes absolutely begin with a spotlight on the topic and communication of the intent, but it’s all for naught if we fail to actually execute those strategies.

Finally, I’ll be headed to Alberta, Canada, to speak at the 2nd annual World Diversity in Leadership conference on June 20 (which also happens to be the federal observance of Juneteenth this year). I’ll be discussing the path that leads us from unconscious bias to unconscious inclusion. Check out What’s Happening for more details.

With appreciation,

Stacey Gordon, MBA
Rework Work CEO