Author: Kathleen Harris

With more than 20 years experience in the media world, Kathleen Harris has been an editor, writer, and content strategist for media companies, premier brands, and startups alike. Her specialties include business and career insight, leadership advice, and lifestyle trends. Her track record includes working as the Editor of RealSimple.com and Deputy Editor at The Knot. She has written for Huffington Post, Washington Post, Pop Sugar, Real Simple, and more. She was trained as a journalist at Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism.

10 Ideas for Celebrating International Women’s Day at Work

Every year on March 8, people all over the world celebrate International Women’s Day. But this is no everyday holiday — it’s a moment and a movement to honor the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women and reflect on the progress we’ve made toward gender equality. Clara Zetkin first proposed the idea more than a century ago, in 1910 at the second International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen. Her vision was to recognize female advancement while also having an actionable purpose — to build support for suffrage, raise awareness about women’s equality, and lobby for accelerated gender parity.

How your company can celebrate International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day is a day of recognition and activism. Here are 10 creative ways to capture that spirit, honor the legacy of Clara Zetkin, and celebrate the women of your organization.

1. Hire an inspirational speaker to drop in on a meeting

Think beyond traditional panels and speakers’ lunches, and surprise your employees with a dose of inspiration and motivation during a regular team meeting. Invite a speaker to pop in on the middle of the meeting to liven things up and empower women in the workplace. Recently, Holly Dowling, an award-winning global keynote speaker, made a 10- to 15-minute guest appearance at client meetings to inspire their teams, talk about women and wellness, and instill hope.

celebrate International Women's Day with women showing togetherness

2. Create #InspireInclusion care packages

Every year International Women’s Day centers on a theme. This year it’s #InspireInclusion.

Incorporate this spirit of challenge into the day and host a contest for your employees to conceive the perfect gift basket or care package that celebrates all women’s achievements. Then, send the winning design out to all female employees.

3. Give back in honor of your employees

The most meaningful ideas are often ones that make a difference in someone else’s life. A wonderful way to create an impact on International Women’s Day is to fundraise for female-focused charities in honor of your employees. Make it personal by sending out a custom thank you email that details the charity gift and suggests some causes to consider. Check out the International Women’s Day charities of choice, or look for local charities for which you can help amplify their awareness.

Challenge your employees to learn about new, perhaps lesser-known yet equally inspiring, women in your industry. Every year to honor International Women’s Day, Prize Rebel, a market research survey site, encourages all employees to co-create a presentation about admirable women and share one sentence about why they are grateful for this person. “We have been doing this since 2010 and spend a lot of time researching inspiring women,” says Chief Marketing Officer Jerry Han. “Women who have led in business and science, women who have stood up against social constraints, even women who are influencers on Instagram! The presentation doesn’t last long, but its impact stays with you awhile.”

5. Rewrite history together

Have you ever heard of an edit-a-thon? It’s an educational, activist-minded activity that helps raise the visibility of women throughout history. According to The Atlantic, less than 20 percent of biographies on Wikipedia are about women, and an estimated 90 percent of Wikipedia editors are men. Change the narrative and plan your own edit-a-thon event where teammates get together to write and upload articles about women or update existing articles where information about women may be incorrect or missing. Provide delicious treats and let the research commence! Wikipedia fully supports these events; check out its edit-a-thon guidelines.

celebrate International Women's Day with five businesswomen

6. Host a fun themed event

Amp up the celebratory part of the day with a fun group activity perfect for history buffs, such as a women’s history trivia night (find questions here). Customize it for your company like fashion-focused brand The Nines did, with a living history cocktail party where employees dressed as their favorite female fashion designer. The company sent home cocktail-making kits and a few delicious bites. “After some fun chats and drinks, we host a fashion-riddled trivia night,” says Lisa Sanchez, fashion editor. “The winner received a gift card and bragging rights for the whole year!”

7. Establish a ‘Say Yes’ networking day

It’s no secret that having a strong support system and network at work can help propel your career. The challenge is many women often don’t have access to the same networks or social bonds as their male counterparts. On this Say Yes day, encourage every woman to reach out to a new person to grab coffee, say hello, ask a question — and every person asked must say yes!

8. Support local female-run businesses

Use your wallet as a force for change. On this day, encourage your team to buy food, gifts, and flowers only from female-owned businesses (provide a suggestion list for ease). If you’re ordering lunch or special treats for the office, take the extra step to find a female local vendor who you can help support. “One employee engagement activity that has worked for us is having our staff nominate black women-owned restaurants, cafes, coffee shops, food trucks, and pop-ups where the management can have food from these businesses delivered to employees to inspire everyone to take care of each other during this period,” says Michael Hammelburger, CEO of The Bottom Line Group.

9. Welcome challenging conversations

Change happens when people feel safe to speak their minds, but too often conversations about equality and inclusion are avoided or couched. Instead, lean into these topics and hold a lunchtime vision session where everyone is given the opportunity to share one big idea for what your office can do to create a more equity-minded environment. For maximum impact, stress psychological safety — that every employee is free to share without repercussion. End the session with coffee and sweet treats, and the chance for employees to learn from each other and meet people outside your team.

10. Highlight the women in your office on International Women’s Day

On a personal level, send an email to a fellow female colleague telling her why you think she’s a superwoman. It’s a simple, sweet, and impactful gesture. Then, go broader. At Expandi, a LinkedIn automation platform, they use International Women’s Day as an opportunity to feature female colleagues’ work. “This is an important activity because it gives acknowledgment and praise to women who work as hard as their male counterparts but might not get the same recognition,” says CMO Sharon van Donkelaar. Raising the visibility and excellence of the females in your office is one step toward helping promote their equality.

Holiday Gifts for Employees: 12 Amazing Picks to Lift Office Spirits

We all know how challenging it can be to shop for the holidays, especially when it comes to those you work with. Whether it’s a gift that’s useful, indulgent, or just for fun, giving gifts to your employees should be more about showing you care than checking a box.

Below are 12 amazing gift ideas for the holidays that will seriously impress coworkers with your thoughtful and creative gift-giving.

Focus on the experience with a holiday gift

Some of the most memorable presents foster an immersive experience. From delicious food to comforting gifts that evoke feelings of warmth and well-being, try one of these thoughtful gift gestures that tap into all the senses. Our curated picks transform corporate gifting with presents that aptly show employee appreciation.

holiday gifts for employees Holiday Mug Blanket Cocoa and Cookie Gift Set

It’s nesting season — encourage your team to cozy up and relax on the weekends with this plush sherpa fleece-lined blanket, one of four holiday-themed mugs, and some eatable and drinkable goodies to warm them up. It’s the perfect recipe for self-care.

Virtual Flower Arranging Workshop

Farm-fresh flowers: check. Stylish vase: check. Putting it all together: not yet. Give the gift of knowledge with a virtual master class from Alice’s Table. It comes complete with a flower kit and on-demand video lesson on how to create a beautiful floral arrangement.

holiday gifts for employees Eggs Benedict Box

Gourmet Eggs Benedict Box

Rise and shine! Just add eggs and you have all the fixings for a delicious gourmet breakfast. The Eggs Benedict Box serves around four people — perfect for a lazy, Sunday morning feast.

Holiday gifts for employees that they wouldn’t buy themselves

The most undervalued gifts are ones that your recipient didn’t even know they needed. It’s not necessarily a luxurious splurge, but it’s the practical and useful gifts that are high on beauty and fun, too.

Cherry Blossom Spa Gift Set

This gift set lets your employees know that they’re covered when it’s time to clock out and unwind. The essentials spa kit includes such self-care favorites as a luxurious shower gel and lotion set, packaged in an artisanal wooden cabinet that has a second life as a display case.

Magnetic Succulent Trio

These three small succulents go beyond basic desktop accessorizing and will add a bit of life to unexpected places. The trio of magnetic, stylish containers can be affixed to file cabinets, refrigerators, you name it, for a surprising pop of plant.

Hand Cream Gift Set

Keep hands smooth from the car to the office with this kit that’s rich in oils but also absorbs very quickly, leaving no stickiness behind. Rich scents of lavender, coconut, aloe, jasmine, honey almond, jojoba, and green tea will delight the senses as well.

Surprise and delight with holiday gifts for employees

Opening a gift should be a moment of unexpected happiness. These gifts are fun, festive, and, above all, memorable.

Deluxe Christmas Gift Box

A holiday-styled box full of gourmet treats will put a smile on anyone’s face. It’s stuffed with some of the very best, such as Royal Riviera® Pears, dark chocolate, and Christmas tree shortbread cookies.

Holiday Flower Tree

This classic flower tree brings festive flair to any space. It’s got fragrant evergreens, decorative ornaments, and a merry red bow on top for an original and surprising holiday gift.

Traditional Bakery Gift Tower

This festive assortment of baked favorites is sure to be a treat! With a variety of holiday cookies and bite-sized snacks, anyone’s eyes will widen when they see this festively wrapped gift tower.

Give gifts with personalized meaning

It’s indeed the thought that counts. The best gifts share a personal message or meaning and amp up the sentimentality.

Jar of Smiles

Words matter. Each jar is filled with 31 encouraging messages to help put a smile on their face and make their day just a little brighter.

Money Tree

Brighten up someone’s desk with a beautiful money tree. Not only do live plants boost happiness and air quality, according to feng shui enthusiasts, but the seven leaves also are said to bring extra luck and attract the energies of wealth and prosperity.

Magical Unicorn Truffle Cake Pops

Got a one-of-a-kind employee? Show them their unicorn abilities by gifting them impeccably crafted truffle cake pops. These decadent and adorable treats are lovingly made by hand, and will convey to your employee how truly unique they are.

7 Ways to Strengthen Your Connections for International Women’s Day

It’s no secret that your relationships are the key to better business opportunities and new partnerships. Yet, between hybrid workforces, packed schedules, and personal obligations, maintaining these connections can be challenging, and before you know it, a great deal of time has passed since you’ve caught up with your network.

The good news is that it’s never too late to reconnect, says Dr. Chloe Carmichael, a psychologist who works with C-suite executives and author of Nervous Energy: Harness the Power of Your Anxiety. “It can be delicate if you haven’t been in touch, but there’s always an opportunity to strengthen a relationship,” she says.

Be open about the fact that, because of International Women’s Month, you’re thinking of the women in your network.

Dr. Chloe Carmichael

Psychologist

Author of Nervous Energy: Harness the Power of Your Anxiety

If you need an extra oomph of motivation, March marks International Women’s Month, a global celebration of the achievements of women. (International Women’s Day is March 8).

Use this time to reach out to the women in your life. “If you’re feeling awkward, don’t hide the ball,” Carmichael says. “Be open about the fact that, because of International Women’s Month, you’re thinking of the women in your network.”

Here, Dr. Carmichael shares her recommendations for strengthening connections and improving your business relationships.

1. Be honest about your intentions

If life has been busy and you haven’t reached out in a while, own it. “Try narrating your experience, where you take your inner feelings and say them out loud,” Carmichael says. For example, say, “Hey, Sue, I know it’s been a long time since we have been in touch. I think it was me who dropped the ball, but I’m thinking of you and would love to reconnect.”

2. Keep it personal

While a group text or email may feel efficient, it lacks intimacy. “It could feel like a mixed message and that you’re saying ‘Hey, I’m interested in you, but I couldn’t even take the time to copy and paste and tailor an individual message to you,'” Carmichael says. The only exception would be if you’re trying to spark a group get-together with former colleagues or your employee women’s group.

strengthen connections with women networking

3. Schedule connection time

When you are busy with work, family, and personal obligations, it can be difficult to stay in touch with the women in your network. To ease the challenge, establish a regular check-in cadence. “If it’s a welcome reconnection, introduce the desire to make it happen regularly and find a way that it happens almost automatically, to take the pressure off,” Carmichael says.

Ask to make it a monthly or quarterly check-in and add it to your calendar immediately. Also, consider scheduling a walk-and-talk. “When you connect while you’re walking, it activates both sides of your brain and allows you to think about things differently and have new perspectives,” Carmichael says.

4. Build relationships within your company

Strengthening internal connections can be great boosters for your career. To do this, join employee resource groups, get active with company events, and say yes to lunch dates. If you’re feeling shy, use the framework of International Women’s Month to reach out. Carmichael recommends saying, “International Women’s Month has inspired me to get to know the women in my life, and you’ve been such a great colleague — I would love to connect.”

5. Be a connector

“We all have the power to connect someone to someone else we know to create something really fantastic,” Carmichael says. Think about how you can amplify the women in your life while opening connections to someone new. Plan an event where everyone has to bring along someone else that they admire and respect. Or, boost your own credibility and influence by connecting two people you believe would benefit from knowing each other. You could say, “Hey, I know this person who’s also really interested in X. Why don’t you get together and see what happens?”

6. Be a good ally to your female colleagues

The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day is #EmbraceEquity. Support the cause by uplifting your fellow female coworkers. In a meeting, if you feel that someone’s input is being hijacked or credit is being taken, counteract it with public praise.

“Bring it back to the original person and find ways to highlight or share positive feedback about what your coworkers are doing or have done,” Carmichael says. In the meeting, you could say, “I know that this conversation actually originated with you, Minda, so do you want to tell us more about what sparked that for you?”

Additionally, you could email a compliment to someone on your team and copy lateral management to give that person the spotlight.

7. Ask the women in your life how you can help

Supporting one another will build better bonds. “Women are gatherers and communicators, and we like to connect with each other,” Carmichael says. To be most helpful, ask her what she needs. A new connection may want to boost her social media profile and would appreciate a photo share from your coffee date. For small business owners, writing an online review about their company may be the best amplification.

Corporate Gifting Trends & Tips for the New Year

There’s an undeniable joy when you receive a thoughtful gift. A present can say thank you, I value you, and you’re appreciated all at once. When done right, giving gifts in the workplace can have the same positive impact. And now, with the rise of distributed teams and hybrid workforces, the power of the business gift has reached new heights.

corporate gifting for the new year with Businessmen holding gift box

“Workplace culture has changed dramatically in the last two years, leaving a lot of space for social cohesion,” says Monika Kochar, CEO of SmartGift, the Brooklyn-based startup that partnered with 1-800-Flowers.com to create Hero. “Typically, we would have all celebrated at a company end-of-year party, but now gifting brings these connections to real life. The emphasis on events has moved toward giving meaningful tokens.”

The Hero gifting platform’s recommendation engine allows companies and managers to send personal, authentic, and meaningful gifts based on user preference and data. It makes it a seamless process, allowing recipients to choose which gift to receive and where to send it. Hero eliminates the gifts that collect dust on a shelf or end up in a landfill by offering products and services that matter to today’s workforce.

Business gifting at work can confuse even the most thoughtful gifter: Should I get my boss a gift? How much should I spend? Is it tacky to get everyone on my team the same thing? Do clients talk about the best and worst gifts they receive?

Here’s what you need to know — and shop for — to make a mark this holiday season.

1. Lists are getting bigger

Virtual work environments have led to more collaboration across departments and cities, fostering connections that may not have previously existed. “Traditionally people would send big gifts to their clients and employees,” Kochar says. “But now, because of the increased connection between a broader set of employees, people are sending gifts to everyone, from the executive assistant to the boss.”

2. Spending per person is getting smaller

With the increase in the number of giftees, the amount being spent per gift is decreasing. For the VIPs on your list, expect to spend in the $125 range; for everyone else, $25 does the trick, Kochar says. And those VIPs aren’t necessarily your clients. They could be team members or colleagues who have gone above and beyond. Your best strategy is to start with your overall budget, make your recipient list, categorize them by price point (high, medium, low), and do the math to figure out how much to spend per person.

3. Personal is preferred

Don’t send the same gift to everyone because it eliminates the human touch. It’s OK to give all your coworkers a bottle of wine or beautiful plant, but choose specific iterations of that gift that feel more personal (i.e., a red Italian for the person who loves to cook Sunday night pasta). If you’re not familiar enough with someone’s preferences, try to give them a choice in the gift selection. “That’s why HERO’s intelligent automation is so great, because the recipient gets a link to a collection of items that they can choose from, eliminating the one-size-fits-all strategy,” Kochar says.

4. Don’t send a gift card

Gifting is an opportunity to create loyalty and closeness, and the impersonal nature of gift cards defeat the purpose. “Gift cards remove that creation of bonding and say that you couldn’t be bothered or didn’t have the time to pick up something personal,” Kochar says.

As you think about what to send each group of people, ask yourself: What am I trying to convey with each gift? Thank you. Take time for yourself. Splurge a little. That will help guide you toward the perfect pick for each person.

Need ideas? Here are Kochar’s guaranteed gift pleasers.

For the people who went above & beyond ($100+)

corporate gifting for the new year charcuterie and cheese collection

Charcuterie & Cheese Collection

If your end-of-year party is looking a little different this year, send them a gourmet feast with food they can share with their team or those they love. The Ultimate Charcuterie and Cheese Collection will make for a memorable night.

Deluxe Hearthside Gift Basket

Brighten up someone’s home with a sweet-and-savory collection of premium treats. The Deluxe Hearthside Gift Basket arrives in a handsome basket adorned with a hand-tied bow.

corporate gifting for the new year Magnificent Roses Preserved Roses

Magnificent Roses® Preserved Red Roses

Got a one-of-a-kind employee? What’s better than an everyday reminder of your appreciation? These stunning roses will last for up to a year and are the perfect desktop decor.

For those meaningful connections ($50-$100)

Wood Star
Succulent

Long-lasting plants make a great addition to your workspace and a wonderful thank you gift. Send those superstars a Star-Shaped Succulent garden.

Simply Chocolate Nuts & Confections Basket

Re-create the New Year’s Eve party at home with the help of the Simply Chocolate Nuts & Confection Basket. The combination of fun and festive sweets will keep the celebration going well into the new year.

May You Find Joy
Gift Box

Give time to relax and rejuvenate with the Gift of Joy Box filled with notecards, essential oil, and crystal. The box includes a selection of self-care items to create a daily practice of intention, mindfulness and well-being

For the everyday heroes (under $50)

Personally Yours Custom Paper Note Cube

Monogrammed gifts, like this custom paper note cube, always feel personal, at every price point.

Fleur de Chocolate® Thank You Bar & Truffles

Let the sweets do the talking. These thank you chocolate truffles and bar are a literal and delicious way to show your appreciation.

Smile Farms® Hot Sauce

Some of the best gifts are the ones that give back. With every purchase of Heat with Heart™ hot sauce, you’ll benefit Smile Farms, a nonprofit that creates creating meaningful employment solutions for people with different abilities.

Introducing Hero: A Corporate Gifting Platform That Simplifies Office Rewards and Recognition

The series “Rules of Workplace Gifting” offers business gifting tips that will help you make a lasting impression on clients, employees, and others. In this article, we explore 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc.‘s new Hero platform for simplifying corporate gifting.

Photo of a young manager delivering a gift to her employee as part of their company's corporate gifting program

When you hear the word “Hero,” what do you think of? Commonly, it’s a person you admire for courage, outstanding achievements, and altruistic qualities. 1-800-FLOWERS.COM sees the Hero in every leader, every manager, every employee. Being a Hero is prioritizing employee happiness and retention; being a Hero is taking the time to motivate and reward teams through engagement and coaching; being a Hero is sharing recognition for a job well done.

As the workplace evolves, businesses have turned to 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. to help nurture their relationships with employees with ease and effectiveness. In addition, the demand for corporate gifts and recognition programs has skyrocketed as offices transition from in-person to hybrid or remote-work models. That’s why 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. created Hero, an engagement platform that uses innovative technology to make it easier than ever to send remarkable gifts that get measurable results, whether they’re sent to employees, customers, or business prospects.

“Hero allows team managers, HR managers, sales teams, admin assistants, and their leadership to have the right individual touch at the right time with the right gift, plus satisfy common workplace goals like lowering the cost of client and talent acquisition, creating new revenue opportunities and increasing company loyalty,” says Monika Kochar, CEO of SmartGift, the Brooklyn-based startup that partnered with 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. to create Hero.

Hero allows team managers, HR managers, sales teams, admin assistants, and their leadership to have the right individual touch at the right time with the right gift,

Monika Kochar

CEO

SmartGift

For busy managers, Hero is the ultimate time-saver. It allows them to create universal recognition triggers, like birthdays or sales milestones. And it reminds them of two important tasks: to send the gift in the first place and to write a personalized note, which has been shown to have the most powerful effect on employee satisfaction. Even better, you can give via email, Slack, LinkedIn, making it easier than ever, especially in a remote world.

With Hero, managers are empowered to seamlessly build loyalty, reduce churn, and recognize employees for a job well done across their teams. Here, Monika Kochhar shares more of her behind-the-scenes insight.

What makes Hero unique in the world of corporate gifting?

Hero offers the most comprehensive platform, and it’s really a result of our innovating in this space for over five years. We have the deepest gift data that we use for machine learning and AI recommendations to nudge and suggest the right gift or appreciation to the right person at the right time. On the tech side, we offer a robust self-service platform, address-less gifting, the ability to drop gifts in real-time into a Slack channel, any Zoom-, Meet- or Teams-hosted event, conference, or webinar. Gift recipients can choose their perfect gift and select their personal preferences such as size, color, taste, shipping location, and delivery date.

Hero saves time and effort, creating a seamless, unique journey to recognition and authentic relationship building. We offer same-day and international delivery, white-glove service, the most loved corporate gifting products like gift baskets, food items, flowers, plants, personalized swag at scale, plus a network of 40+ top global brands for spot awards.

How does Hero save managers’ and companies’ time?

Anyone can get up and running and start engaging with employees, customers, and prospects in minutes. Through our self-service product, address-less gifting campaigns product, and automation, Hero saves hundreds of hours a month by eliminating the upkeep of the traditional spreadsheet method or setting up tedious technologies. In addition, we have a gift recommendation engine to help managers make effective picks and offer end-to-end visibility into the gifting process while providing measurable ROI.

How does Hero increase employee satisfaction and loyalty?

Hero makes gifting personal, authentic, and regular. We find that the highest positive impact on retention are frequent appreciations in meaningful moments in employees’ lives, whether it’s a work milestone or anniversary, birthday, pet recognition, or expressing sympathy on a painful occasion. Employees want to feel seen for their work, purpose, and what’s going on in their personal lives. Hero helps with all those outcomes. Research shows that people leave a company more often for not feeling appreciated than for a higher-paying job. By making sure that users of Hero never forget an important milestone like an employee’s birthday or a contract renewal date, the gifts sent are actually meaningful to their recipients because their selections were informed by data sets and include the recipient in the process.

How does the platform still make corporate gifting feel personal?

We know how to delight people. Our Hero platform blends innovative technology and traditional aspects of gifting so that it always feels easy, personal, delightful, and enjoyable — as gifting should be! Hero provides personalized recommendations, greeting cards, thank you notes, and sustainable gifts that speak to the values of today’s workforce. By gathering insights into people’s interests, likes, dislikes and meshing that with our gift graph, recipient feedback loops and timely delivery, we make sure that the Hero experience always feels unique and genuine. It eliminates the gifts that collect dust on a shelf or end up in a landfill by offering products and services that matter to today’s workforce.

How does the platform help prevent bias in recognition?

Hero helps to promote a greater sense of belonging and celebrates all recipients’ unique strengths. Through inclusivity and de-biased outcomes, Hero helps recognize not only the top-of-mind people but also the quiet warriors of the office. It also turns away from the one-size-fits-all traditions of corporate gifting. By creating an equal playing field based on occasions, events, and milestones for all, and adding choice empowerment to the gifting experience, the Hero experience always includes the recipients.

How to Reinvigorate Workplace Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Efforts

Whether you’re just starting out or are a seasoned entrepreneur, “Inside Business” provides you with advice and best practices to help you better manage your business. This article offers tips on how to reinvigorate workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts.

Inside Business badge linking to other related articles in the series.

Companies have rushed to declare their commitment to workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), but despite some progress, many can still do more. Disability:IN, a nonprofit organization, determined that in 2020, 86 percent of companies measured on its Disability Equality Index had an employee resource group specifically for people with disabilities, but only 32 percent of those have hiring targets for people with disabilities.

Likewise, the gender pay gap in 2020 remained consistent with that of years past, with women earning 84 percent of what men earn. Last year white men were also one of the few groups to increase in representation as they climbed the corporate ladder; men of color, white women, and especially women of color all saw massive decreases as white male rankings increased.

There is hope. Organizations will continue to make progress in DEI, say Stacey Gordon, CEO of professional DEI counseling company Rework Work, and Dr. Sabrina Volpone, a professor at the University of Colorado Boulder specializing in diversity and identity management in the workplace. After all, it’s a competitive disadvantage not to: Both experts believe companies that don’t take DEI seriously will witness an exodus of workers. In fact, one-third of job seekers reportedly won’t apply to companies that aren’t prioritizing these efforts.

With this in mind, it’s important to ensure that leaders continue to push progress forward. Here’s how.

Start with belonging

Diversity has become a catchall phrase for increasing representation and equality at work, but for lasting change, start with an inclusive mindset. “If you don’t have an inclusive culture, you can’t capture the diversity from within,” says Monika Kochar, CEO and co-founder of SmartGift, a leading corporate gifting platform. “Many companies do a lot of lip singing to actively promote DEI at the hiring stage, but they’re not following up through the life cycle of the employee’s time at work.” Understanding your employees’ needs and desires and recognizing and engaging them will give them a sense of belonging throughout the year.

Ask yourself why workplace diversity is important

The single most important thing you can do to improve DEI in your organization, says Gordon, is to take a good, hard look at yourself and your motivations. In other words, why do you want to diversify the workplace? Is it because you need to tick some boxes, or is it because you truly want to uplift historically underrepresented groups? And if it’s not for the second reason, why not? The most important thing is that your intentions come from a place of compassion and openness.

“For leaders to be able to embrace diversity and make it actionable in the workplace, they really have to internalize it,” Gordon says. “What I’m seeing is that when they don’t do that, it turns into an initiative that HR or the chief diversity officer or somebody ‘over there’ has to take care of. And when they do that, they’re going to have some short-term wins but they’re not going to have long-term sustainability.”

When you remind yourself and your team that a diversity of perspective, background, and experience leads to better ideas, solutions, and more profits, it will fuel lasting effort and blow the doors open to access and opportunity.

Get personal with others

Relying on press releases from your organization or emails to reassure staff that the workplace is becoming more inclusive because you’re afraid to talk about DEI isn’t going to cut it. It’s vital that you get involved and have conversations with people about their own experiences in your workplace.

Photo of a one-on-one meeting to illustrate the importance of workplace diversity

“Talking to your team, talking to your employees, creating that kind of culture or climate of ‘We’re going to talk about this’ is vital as a leader,” says Volpone. “If the organization is not doing much, the leader can still do a lot,” she adds. “And that impacts employees and how they react, to how engaged they are in the workplace and how committed they are to diversity at work.”

Ask questions that dig into each person’s point of view: What do you like about working here? What is most challenging? Is there anything that prevents you from doing your job to your best potential?

If managers are not willing to get vulnerable and personally put in the work to ensure that the people and environment they oversee benefit from DEI efforts, nobody will ever benefit, says Volpone. If employees don’t feel comfortable sharing, use anonymous pulse surveys throughout the year in which they can talk about their ongoing journey.

Put yourself in someone else’s shoes

One-size-fits-all solutions don’t breed inclusivity. In today’s business world, we often don’t consider other people’s situations and what they may be going through. Someone who is the first in their family to go to college and work in a corporate environment does not have the benefit of a passed-down playbook of how to get ahead at the office. Personalized learning plans, mentorship opportunities, or assigning an “office buddy” would set up this person for success.

It’s important that leaders invent new norms to better include groups already marginalized. For example, if you’re interviewing candidates for a position and you see a woman who is lacking a year of work from her résumé, it’s crucial to examine your own thought biases in response to that: Is she unreliable, or is it because she had to take on full-time child-care responsibilities at home? That’s the unconscious bias Volpone uses as an example to show how leaders and hiring managers can unknowingly cut off their own diverse workforce.

Likewise, next time you invite your employees out for drinks after work, think about how you might be excluding sober individuals and working parents. Suggests Volpone: “Doing things on lunch breaks can be a better idea.” Questioning norms and why you always doing things a certain way will help you make efforts to consciously implement DEI.

Photo illustrating the workplace diversity at a business meeting

Allow others’ voices to be heard

Social movements are all about amplifying the voices of historically underrepresented groups, so when you shut someone down, you roll back your DEI efforts. Next time you’re given the opportunity to listen to those you lead, take it.

“Meetings are the place to start. They’re usually pretty frequent, and it is so common [as a woman] in every meeting just to be cut off or treated like a secretary,” says Volpone, who advises that leaders “make sure the meetings are good for everybody and that voices are heard.” You can do this by putting a system in place where everyone has at least five minutes to speak, or helping to amplify a speaker’s idea by reiterating it and adding, “That’s a great point, Jennifer. Are you saying ____? What do you think about this idea?”

From listening to how people feel when they’re at work to acknowledging and respecting team members’ experiences of harassment to letting people finish speaking in meetings, listening is vital to transforming your organization into one of inclusivity.

How to Authentically Celebrate Heritage and History Months in the Workplace

Whether you’re just starting out or are a seasoned entrepreneur, “Inside Business” provides you with advice and best practices to help you better manage your business.

Companies have adopted cultural heritage months, like Black History Month and Pride Month, to celebrate the rich identities and contributions from historically overlooked groups. But are these promotional campaigns truly supporting the communities in which they highlight? Do the efforts made by businesses positively impact consumers and employees?

Yes, when they help foster an inclusive work culture where employees can be true to themselves and celebrate their identity and heritage. “Helping someone feel seen, heard, and valued is the best way to celebrate them,” says Daisy Auger-Dominguez, Chief People Officer at VICE Media. “That’s what will lead to greater retention.” What doesn’t work is a check-the-box approach to commodifying awareness. That’s why terms like Slacktivism and rainbow-washing, the act of using LGBTQ-friendly colors and language without actually supporting LGBTQ-friendly policies, have entered the vernacular. Employees can see beyond the rainbow logo. A Glassdoor survey found that nearly 50 percent of LGBTQ+ employees believe being out at work could hurt their career, and 10 percent of LGBTQ employees have left a job because the work environment did not actually accept LGBTQ people, notes a report from Human Rights Watch.

Helping someone feel seen, heard, and valued is the best way to celebrate them.

Daisy Auger-Dominguez

Chief People Officer

VICE Media

“Having Taco Tuesday during Hispanic/Latinx Heritage month heritage month is one big eye roll,” says Daisy. Especially when 76 percent of Latinos surveyed say they can’t be themselves at work and repress some facets of their culture in the office such as how they communicate and present themselves, and another 63 percent feel their ideas are not valued or heard on a team, according to The Harvard Business Review. Instead, here’s how to pay homage to heritage and history months and create a more inclusive work culture.

Listen, learn, and do the work

Go to the source: Ask your employees and employee resource groups how they would like to celebrate and support members of the respective cultural groups. Ask for creative contribution, then create a company-wide committee to execute on the ideas. It should not be the sole responsibility of minorities to organize their own recognition; it should be a collective effort of all employees. Be sure to formally and publicly recognize those who helped with the planning. At the end of the month, survey your employees to learn what went well and what could be improved in the future.

Shoppers expect company heads and brands to take a public stand against political issues. In turn, companies will often post social media proclamations of solidarity, but are not backing up these public statements with internal action. Don’t just publish a famous person’s quote; publish a quote from someone who works at your company. Show off what you’re actually doing. And if you’re not doing enough yet, share articles or posts about other companies’ best practices, and be honest about how you want to emulate their actions in the future. The worst thing is to be paralyzed by a fear of saying or doing the wrong thing. “Doing something is better than saying what everyone else is, or worse, staying silent,” says Daisy.

Highlight your employees

Create opportunities for your employees to connect and better understand each other and the facets of their cultures. Panels and keynote speakers are always a good idea, but it’s important to celebrate the voices from within your company, too. Who on your team would be willing to lead a discussion? Create an event where you highlight the stories of your own employees. Internal discussions can have the biggest impact on an organization. To build cross-cultural awareness, SmartGift, a gifting platform with offices around the globe, launched a newsletter that highlights employees and information about their cultures. “We start from a place of curiosity, like ‘This is what Eid al-Fitr is,'” says Monika Kochhar, CEO and cofounder. “It’s about how we seed thoughts and water them through the journey,” she says. They also strive to be aware of important events for every culture, like sending baskets with dates to celebrate Eid, the end of Ramadan. Additionally, once a month on Zoom, she has employees show off their city, whether it’s San Francisco or Prague. “That way we get to travel through the diversity of our team,” she says.

Foster conversations

Two women with rainbows painted on their arms

“Be willing to go deeper in honoring the diversity and complexity of voices and lived experiences of those being celebrated,” says Dr. Vanessa Monterosa, an educational consultant focused on literary programs and policy development. “Heritage month is really a recognition of intersecting identities and often painful histories.” For example, Women’s History Month takes on a deeper meaning when you fully explore and honor the lived experiences and triumphs of women of color. Pride Month is a time to not only celebrate the opportunity to love who we love, but to also examine the tragedies that drive this movement forward and require justice. To facilitate these conversations, consider doing a team-wide book club. Reading and discussing a book by an author from a marginalized group can be a meaningful way to celebrate heritage months. Books to read may include:

●Between the World and Me by Ta Nehisi Coates

●White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo

●We Are Everywhere by Matthew Riemer and Leighton Brown

●How We Fight for Our Lives by Saeed Jones

●We Have Always Been Here by Samra Habib

●Heavy by Kiese Laymon

●You Can’t Touch My Hair by Phoebe Robinson

Donate to honorable organizations

Supporting local organizations is an excellent way to connect with your team members and even motivate them in the workplace. A percentage of profits on any rainbow merchandise you sell, for example, could go toward organizations that house homeless queer teenagers (who are at a higher risk of experiencing homelessness due to at-home discrimination). Or, align your heritage month efforts with an internal donation program that already exists. Companies like Pfizer, General Electric, and Nike have impressive corporate gift matching programs — spotlight a charity every month that supports and raises awareness for those who identify with the culture. You could also organize a volunteer outing: Apple, for example, will donate $25 for every hour an employee volunteers with an organization.

Celebrate and make change

“What I find most lacking in heritage month conversations is a forward-looking view of what’s possible,” says Daisy. Honor culture and prioritize policy and practices to create a more inclusive work culture. “Each heritage month has been established so we don’t forget the contributions and realities of how each community contributes to our diverse society, and each heritage month also serves as a stark reminder for all the work we have left to do for equity, justice, and liberation,” says Vanessa. Share a company-wide summary of your Heritage Month programming along with lessons learned, and your commitment to changing one to two organizational practices where bias negatively impacts marginalized talent.

Be inclusive all year round

Learning and growing doesn’t begin and end with a month. Companies need authentic experiences throughout the year. Instead of hiring a Black catering company solely in the month of February, book them for several meetings a year. It’s important to maintain an active effort to be an ally to marginalized groups and keep your efforts on top of mind. PolicyGenius, an online insurance company that creates a custom Zoom background to honor each heritage month. “The work you do today will ensure that next year’s heritage celebrations reflect progress made forward, not another cursory look back,” says Daisy. If you are consistently open about your efforts in the office and through your products and services, then no one can question your authenticity.

Finding Success Again: How Magazine Editor Kristin van Ogtrop Pivoted Her Career

Kristin van Ogtrop had an enviable career. As the editor-in-chief of women’s interest magazine Real Simple for 13 years, she loved going into the office every day. But when the publishing industry took a downturn and Kristin’s love for creating content and brand innovations was blocked by budget cuts, her frustration grew. “I felt like I was dying on the vine,” she says. “I decided to take a leap into the unknown and leave my beloved job, hoping that my skills could translate into another successful career.”

But changing careers can be a challenging task. When contemplating a career change, Kristin says it’s helpful to acknowledge what’s driving you and support that with some kind of strategy. You also have to ask yourself tough questions: Are you comfortable with risk? Do you have safeguards in place? During this time of uncertainty, Kristin did some career soul searching. “I had the privilege of a supportive spouse and savings to allow me to figure out my new destiny,” she says.

Navigating challenges in a new career

After leaving her job, Kristin tried nonprofit work and writing a novel — things that she always contemplated doing — but nothing was hitting the mark. “It was like Goldilocks trying beds and realizing that nothing fits,” she says. “It took a lot of trial and error to figure out what I wanted: to work in an office again with a group of creative people on something artistic that I feel passionate about.”

Once Kristin had that a-ha moment, she recalled a conversation she had with her literary agent, Richard Pine of Inkwell Management. Kristin had written the book Just Let Me Lie Down while she was at Real Simple, and after she left her magazine role, Richard said to her, “You either need to write another book or come work here as an agent.” Nearly two years later, after many work experiments, Kristin finally knew what she was meant to do. At the age of 54, she embarked on a brand new career as a literary agent at Inkwell Management.

When you start in a new industry after achieving success, you get knocked down a few pegs.

Kristin van Ogtrop

Literary Agent

Inkwell Management

It wasn’t all roses. When Kristin started the new job, she already had a successful career under her belt. “Now I was back on the bottom and I had to ask a lot of stupid questions,” she says. “People say there are no such thing as stupid questions, but they do reveal that I’m still learning the industry. The 28-year-old me would be much more concerned with looking like an idiot, but I know that I just don’t have all the answers yet.” Her self-assurance allowed her to embrace her journey to become a great literary agent. What also gave her confidence was finding the core commonalities with her previous skillset. “Working as a literary agent and magazine editor are both about looking for good written content that people will pay money for,” she says.

One of the hardest transitions for Kristin is being her own team. In her previous role, she worked with a full magazine staff that relied on each other for inspiration. Now, she depends completely on herself, and it isn’t always easy. Fortunately, she found that a long walk or cup of tea usually gets her creativity flowing.

In hindsight, Kristin is grateful she made this career pivot. “When you start in a new industry after achieving success, you get knocked down a few pegs, which is a really good lesson in humility for anyone,” she says. She also wrote a second book, Did I Say That Out Loud? Midlife Indignities and How to Survive Them. An appropriate title, as Kristin knows a thing or two about that — she didn’t just survive her midlife career change, she’s thriving in it.

The Power of Your Network: How Tiffany Dufu Sends the Elevator Back Down

Tiffany Dufu is quick to share credit for her success. “I’m the cumulative investment of a lot of people who have poured themselves into me through their mentorship, sponsorship, and opening doors,” says Tiffany, the founder and CEO of The Cru, a peer mentorship community and platform, and the author of Drop the Ball: How to Achieve More by Doing Less. Tiffany moved through her early career under an apprentice model, building quality relationships along the way. “I was told, ‘Go find this woman and tell her I sent you,’” she says. “I was passed from woman to woman who gave me incredible opportunities.”

When someone gives you an amazing introduction, you want to live up to it.

Tiffany Dufu

Entrepreneur

One of those influential women she was sent to find was Marie Wilson, founder of the Ms Foundation. She brought Tiffany on board to run the White House Project, an organization that worked to increase female representation in government. “You have to surround yourself with people who fundamentally believe in you, love you, and speak their truth to you,” Tiffany says. “That’s why my own peer mentors are vital to me to guide me and to push me. It’s so important to have people that support you. If I have haters, I don’t want to work with them every day.”

Tiffany’s strong support system is partly what led her to launch The Cru. But she also realized that she wasn’t alone: Countless women she spoke with were looking for the same kind of support and accountability partners. “We all have people in our lives — like our friends and family — who have a vested interest in our decision-making, but an objective group of people can push you to be accountable to what you want to achieve in life,” Tiffany says. Her mission is to foster these connections and relationships to help women advance in their careers and lives.

Accountability is a key value for her team at The Cru, too. As a leader and a founder, Tiffany has realized that being clear on your own vision is not enough — your team needs to understand that vision to lay out a road map or journey that people are excited to follow. Tiffany admits she has clarity about the end goals and what needs to happen immediately, but she says that the middle, the road-mapping phase with resourcing and prioritizing, is where it gets messy. “That’s where you need a great team because leaders who are rudderless are going to have a much harder time,” she says. “It’s magical when I can see on their faces that they know what needs to get done.”

Why showing workplace appreciation matters

Nurturing and developing her team is one of Tiffany’s favorite things, and she prioritizes empathy above all. “It’s important to acknowledge when things are tough and to be flexible when someone needs it,” she explains. To show her appreciation for her team, Tiffany’s go-to is a beautiful flower arrangement. “I love receiving flowers myself, and I think they’re an amazing way to express your gratitude to the people around you,” she says. Especially when it’s unexpected. When Tiffany was stuck with a social media challenge, someone in her network stepped up to lend a hand. She showed her appreciation with a beautiful bouquet.

Tiffany has a wealth of these leadership hacks — like encouraging the team to take deep breaths and use lavender oil for peace at the start of a meeting. By showing appreciation for others and scheduling moments of shared reflection, Tiffany has strengthened the bonds between her team. She also writes down positive feedback she’s received on a notecard to revisit for a boost when she’s feeling frustrated.

Coming full circle, Tiffany attributes her favorite leadership lessons to her mentor and sage Marie Wilson. First, she says, Marie told her always to introduce a woman in a way that she would want to know herself. “When someone gives you an amazing introduction, you want to live up to it, Tiffany explains. “It helps you realize your full potential.” That’s the power of your network. Marie’s other defining saying: It can get lonely at the top if you don’t send the elevator back down. That’s been imprinted on Tiffany, and she uses it to fuel her drive to raise up other women and bring them along for the ride.