The Impact and Importance of Diversity and Inclusion

February 24, 2021

The Impact and Importance of Diversity and Inclusion

Natalie Tenner and Rob Crowley are the chairs for SanMar’s Diversity and Inclusion Council, which works to foster an open-minded and equitable environment in the company’s workplaces.

In this episode, Natalie and Rob discuss their role models, lay out their strategies for workplace education and conflict resolution, and suggest methods for making SanMar an even more welcoming place than it already is.

THE FINER DETAILS OF THIS EPISODE

• Natalie explains what got the ball rolling with creating SanMar’s council, and Rob specifies why this group is a council, not a committee.
• Rob and Natalie discuss the personal reasons and values that lead them to join the Diversity and Inclusion Council.
• What is psychological safety, why is it important, and how can it be fostered in the workplace?
• How the Diversity and Inclusion Council has faced resistance since launching, and how Natalie strives to listen to people and meet them where they are.
• The reason Rob thinks it’s difficult for people to understand the concept of privilege.
• Who have been major inspirations for championing diversity and inclusion in Natalie and Rob’s lives?
• Which companies they feel are leaders in promoting and fostering diversity and inclusion.

• “He viewed a council as something that was constant and never going away; it would never expire and would last the life of SanMar.”
• “I want to make sure that future generations, and even people who are here now, have a place where they feel that they’re included.”
• “There’s a lot of great things about SanMar but I think we have some work to do in this area.”
• “How much better can people be at their jobs if they feel truly empowered and emboldened to be who they are?”
• “The people who are hiring and firing and promoting need to understand what a bias is.”

• SanMar U: http://www.education.sanmar.com/
• SanMar’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sanmarcorp/
• SanMar’s Twitter: @sanmar_corp
• SanMar’s Instagram: @sanmar_corp