Staffing & Culture | 04.26.23

Reaching New Heights: Overcoming Diversity Challenges in the Workplace

by: Takeaways from the BISA Convention panel, featuring Brett Carmichael, Rona Guymon, Wallace Harris and Gina Riepel

Everyone has a different story; everyone comes from a different walk of life. Talking about what makes us unique — and the challenges and strengths this brings — is imperative to fostering understanding around how someone’s personal life can affect their work life. 

At the 2023 BISA Annual Convention, four BISA members discussed challenges they’ve experienced in their careers, simply because they were different from those around them. After moderator Brett Carmichael set the stage, he was joined by Gina Riepel, Wallace Harris and Rona Guymon, who shared their stories and efforts to fight for change in the workplace and beyond.

Sharing Their Experiences

Each panelist shared experiences that made them feel “othered” in the industry, leading to a conversation on the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace. Read on to hear how each individual adapted during each circumstance that they faced.

As Wallace Harris was starting to show promise early on in his career, he was up for a promotion, but was told he didn’t have that “defining moment” needed to get it. He thought about others being promoted around him, and he couldn’t pinpoint what defining moments they had that he didn’t. His organization had set a standard for him that didn’t apply to others. Wallace compared this to running the 100-yard dash, with yours the only one that has hurdles in it. 

He shared: “Even in this room, every single one of you has had exposure to inequality and inclusion. As a kid, you didn’t get picked for the team. There’s a party that you weren’t invited to and everyone’s talking about what happened. Even in our companies, there’s an important meeting and you find out what happened, and you weren’t there. You think about how you feel from those experiences and what you do to recover from that. That’s the same thing we’re talking about. We simply have an acronym for it now. It’s about equality, inclusion, about creating variety and diversity in our workplace.”

Being in the LGBTQ+ community, Rona Guymon was not out for the first 16 years of her career. In the late ‘90s and early 2000s, she was an internal sales person and wasn’t considered for those external roles. She was once told, "I see you working so hard, but you’re never going to get promoted here because the current national sales manager at the time is not putting women in the field.” She was able to leave the toxic culture that she was in and find an external wholesaling opportunity. 

That opportunity early in her career was a major influence on why she didn’t come out. Many more doors would close in her mind because of that, as she didn’t want to risk losing clients and future promotional opportunities. It wasn’t until 2013 that Rona was up for her first leadership role. The hiring manager saw her and gave her a safe path to be her full self. He was an ally. He asked about Rona’s personal life. He learned her wife’s name and invited her wife to events. He is still a mentor to her today because of the safe space he gave to her.

For Gina Riepel, her barriers have often sprung from the fact that she looks young. She would hear the same comments, and after a while, they would wear on her. Gina once had to prepare a presentation with her manager to pitch their products to a company. Naturally, Gina memorized the entire presentation, because, “you have to be better prepared than anyone in the room — you can’t mess up. The pressure was real.” Her manager wasn’t prepared for the meeting, so she had to step in and do his part of the presentation, answer questions and complete her own portion. He told her she has the opportunity to be memorable because of who she is.

He put Gina out in the field and continued to support her and give her more opportunities. He told her, “Gina, you were the best chance I ever took, and I am so proud of everything that you’ve done.” This is a conversation that needs to happen always. “As an organization, we have a responsibility to have people’s backs and to find people who need us and that’s the only way things are going to change,” she said.

Making a Change

In order to create an inclusive industry, having tough conversations and doing the work to make a change is essential.

Wallace acknowledged how, at the end of the day, we all want our organizations to feel inclusive. “Because I’m a dad, I think about how I tell my kids they can be anything they want to be. But that’s not necessarily true if they encounter obstacles to the business. For our organization, relevance is important, but most importantly, creating a culture where people want to work and clients want to do business. I’ve learned that either you have a diverse team or you don’t. I think that’s symbolic of where folks are moving. At this point to remain relevant, you can’t talk about it, you have to just do it.”

Gina agreed that creating a more diverse, inclusive and equitable environment is the way of the future: “We are going to stay stagnant if we don’t show effort to make a change. Our demographics are changing, and if we don’t match that, we’re missing the boat and the opportunity. If we don’t look to capture that with different approaches, we are going to lose, and we are doing a disservice. We really shouldn’t be in the business anymore if that’s the case. It’s one thing to be in the room for change but what will you do in the room? I’ve been invited to rooms to check the box. That’s not good enough. We have to invite people to the dance to dance — to be on the floor making things happen.”

Rona’s biggest piece of advice is “language matters.” She explained: “Being inclusive means bringing belonging. People know they can come to me and feel safe — a signal that I’m open to that conversation, if they’re open to having it. Using inclusive language to create a safe space for people is essential, because otherwise, microaggressions can weigh on you over time.”

What Can We Do?

There are many opportunities to make a change. For example, you can join your company’s DE&I committee or get involved in BISA’s committees. As a BISA member, you can also reach out to Executive Director Jeff Hartney to share your ideas for our committee, even if you’re unable to join. At the end of the day, we are a people helping people business, but in order to get there, we have to be cognizant and have to understand the walks of life people are in. Allyship is key — it means being an ardent supporter, walking with every single individual in the room and standing together as one.