While Twitter/X may be off some people's radar due to its ownership change in 2023, I continue to meet and be inspired by interesting thought leaders on that platform. I recently met Ruchika Malhotra, read her book about inclusion, and invited her to participate in a Q&A here on my blog. Highlights of our discussion follow a brief introduction, but first, today is an appropriate day to feature Ruchika.
That's because today is the International Day of Women and Girls in Science. According to Wikipedia, "The International Day of Women and Girls in Science is an annual observance adopted by the United Nations General Assembly to promote the full and equal access and participation of women and girls in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields. The United Nations General Assembly passed resolution 70/212 on 22 December 2015, which proclaimed the 11th day of February as the annual commemoration of the observance. A theme is selected annually to highlight a particular focus and area of discussion around a focus point for gender equality in science."
Rushika Malhotra, an award-winning inclusion strategist and speaker, is CEO and Founder of Candour, which works with organizations to create diverse teams and inclusive cultures. A former business journalist, she has reported from four countries and writes regularly on inclusive leadership for the Harvard Business Review. She was named to the Thinkers50 list, a global ranking described by the Financial Times as the "Oscars of management thinking."
QUESTION: What are three take-aways you hope all readers will have after reading your book? ("Inclusion on Purpose: An Intersectional Approach to Creating a Culture of Belonging at Work")
RUCHIKA MALHOTRA: Here are my three take-aways:
1. I really hope that managers, leaders, and employees at all levels take time to reflect on, learn, build awareness, get uncomfortable and only then take action towards creating a more inclusive workplace. Good intentions don't always lead to good outcomes.
2. I'd love for a key takeaway to be that we all have a role to play in creating an inclusive environment; it's not just HR or a CEO's job.
3. When I think about the biggest opportunity for meaningful change from an intersectional lens, it is to ensure that Black, Indigenous and other people of color are at the forefront of any major effort around creating culture and belonging.
QUESTION: Please briefly explain your "BRIDGE Framework."
RUCHIKA MALHOTRA: I believe inclusion is a mindset, it's not just hardwired in us, and it requires ongoing, intentional work.
To cultivate an inclusion mindset, you have to ground yourself in a growth mindset. Carol Dweck, author of "Mindset: The New Psychology of Success," has shown that success hinges on believing that you can learn and grow in the face of challenges. By contrast, a fixed mindset keeps us stuck and shying away from challenges, believing our talents are innate rather than developed through practice and perseverance.
Cultivating an inclusion mindset requires us to BRIDGE the gap between our good intentions and true impact. To do this, we must:
~Be ok with being uncomfortable.
~Reflect on what you don't know.
~Invite feedback.
~Don't get defensive.
~Grow from your mistakes.
~Expect that change takes time.
QUESTION: I will never forget one extreme example of online harassment detailed in your book. What actions can women take to stop these types of situations from happening?
(The example was this: The online social media platform Pinterest promoted slave plantations as wedding and event venues, and when an employee discovered that fact and told her manager, she was harassed, her performance was dinged, her pay was affected, and her personal info was posted online.)
RUCHIKA MALHOTRA: I believe that an ally is a verb, not a noun. It's not who you are, it's what you do. To practice allyship means asking: How do I plan to intervene when I see someone being harmed because of their identities? How does my privilege allow me to stand up for them?
In the example of Pinterest in my book, it would be going up to leaders at the organization and standing in solidarity with the woman of color who was harmed, demanding change, and especially, ensuring her pay and position were restored. Too many of us passively stand by thinking that just because we believe in justice in theory, we don't take action in practice to stand up for justice. That's precisely how we perpetuate injustice and harm.
SHARE THIS: To practice allyship means asking: How do I plan to intervene when I see someone being harmed because of their identities? How does my privilege allow me to stand up for them? ~@rtulshyan #DebbieLaskeysBlog
QUESTION: When I was in graduate school in the mid-1990's in San Francisco, one of my tenured professors said to the class, "Women don't belong in grad school. They belong at home in the kitchen." How would you have responded if you had been in my shoes?
RUCHIKA MALHOTRA: I would have walked out and reported them. I don't believe in getting into arguments with people who hold these views. Only when people are willing to listen and learn with an open mind do I get into these discussions – women should not have to prove our humanity or worth to anyone.
QUESTION: In your book, you wrote, "Reading fiction or watching a film that portrays a life very different from ours can help build empathy. When we can temporarily step out of what's familiar and immerse ourselves in the shoes of someone different from us, it can have a strong impact on how empathetic we feel toward others. Research also suggests that we can be better attuned to the social and emotional lives of others by consuming fiction." Therefore, what are some of your favorite works of fiction, and why - and what was the last novel you read?
RUCHIKA MALHOTRA: These are fiction works I come back to really often:
1. Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi, on how the intergenerational effects of slavery and trauma impact the characters in her book for generations and how that has such a material impact on their present.
2. Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue. In general, I've been trying to read more novels from authors from the African continent and diaspora, as I am aware how much our culture lacks accurate representation and portrayals of people from that continent.
3. Anything by Jasmine Guillory. People might be surprised to know that I thoroughly enjoy romance novels featuring a diversity of characters – by race, age, body size, ability, sexual orientation, etc. One of the long-standing impacts of racial inequality in stories is that growing up, romance books, romcom movies, etc., never featured people who looked like me – so it became impossible to imagine a protagonist who could live a funny, messy, complicated life. I love imagining us in "normal" everyday ways as much as extraordinary stories, all that's available to our cis, straight, white counterparts.
SHARE THIS: When we can immerse ourselves in the shoes of someone different from us, it can have a strong impact on how empathetic we feel toward others. ~@rtulshyan #LeadershipTip #DebbieLaskeysBlog
QUESTION: If you could dine with five leaders from history or modern corporate America, who would you choose, and why?
RUCHIKA MALHOTRA: Here are my five:
1. Audre Lorde would be at the top of the list. Her foresight to capture what we’re navigating in the world right now is absolutely remarkable, and although she was not considered a CEO or leadership expert in her time, I'd say she really exemplifies what it means to be a leader.
2. Oprah Winfrey is the GOAT in my eyes. Her ability to bring people together through stories inspired me from a young age and still does.
3. From corporate America (sort of), it would be Chanel's CEO Leena Nair, who is extraordinary in becoming the first non-French CEO of a French luxury brand and very candid about all that has entailed.
4. Thasunda Brown Duckett's leadership in her interviews has been really inspiring - she has especially talked about a strong character as key to leadership.
5. Indra Nooyi's memoir was energizing for me – I am also impressed with how she's made caregiving and supporting employees who caregive her platform after her retirement from PepsiCo.
My gratitude to Ruchika for sharing her insights and for inspiring all of us to be more inclusive in our workplace cultures and in our perspectives.
Image Credit: Amazon.
Read an important article by Ruchika entitled, "Like Kamala Harris, my name has been mispronounced my whole life. Here's how I reclaimed it."
Connect with Ruchika at these links:
Website: https://www.ruchika.co/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruchikatm
Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/rtulshyan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rtulshyan
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCU2QMNy-nMzOtNSCPBhIGg
Learn more about International Day of Women and Girls in Science:
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