Your Employer Brand and Your Privilege. (original) (raw)

In a world of increasing noise, your employer brand has never mattered more. Because people are no longer afraid of speaking up. The injustice of George Floyd’s death brought back light to a wheel that has been turning for decades. People are speaking up about their experiences, about their journeys, about discrimination, about stereotypes, and they aren’t afraid to do so. And because they are not afraid, I am not afraid either. That is why your employer brand has never mattered more than it does right now.

More than a decade ago, my dad sat me down and said two things would always be a disadvantage for me as I grew up and started forging my own life and my own career. The fact I was a woman, and the fact I was a coloured woman. He said there would be many who would never see these characteristics and would always treat me as an equal. He said there would be many who would treat me the exact opposite. He told me to be aware but to never let it hold me back. To just work harder and be better.

I want to say I have never been treated differently... but that wouldn’t be true. I remember starting my current job, and my dad called me up to ask me how it was going. I said I loved it, but that particular day I felt really uncomfortable because I had never been more aware of the colour of my skin. I had walked into a floor earlier on that morning where I could only describe it as a sea of white and I felt different, like the odd one out. He didn't know what to say.

When someone asks where you are from, do you find that hard to answer? I do. Are they asking where I am from geographically or are they asking me about the colour of my skin? People presume I like curries as my favourite food – by the way, they aren’t. I have had raised eyebrows when someone has asked about my religion and I have replied I am Catholic. Does it matter? I have had people wonder why I do not speak Hindi, because “shouldn’t I have learnt that as a child?” Early into my career, I worked at a charity and remember answering the phone to someone 15 minutes before we were due to close. She came in, and I greeted her at the door. She looked really confused for a moment and asked if I was the one on the phone to her. When I replied I was, she said “but, you’re Indian!” As someone who usually has an answer for everything, I was speechless. People are surprised at my accent. I come from Sussex and went to a private school so I have an accent that probably reflects that. I don’t give it any thought. But people presume that I will have an Indian accent. And then.. my name. People wonder why I have an English first name and not an Indian one because my surname is "Indian sounding". I don’t know, ask my parents. Had enough of the stereotyping yet? Or the casual assumptions? And that’s all been at work.

I hate applying for jobs, where there is a by-line that says the company is especially interested in hearing from BAME applicants. What does that mean? Because to me, it feels like you are trying to tick a box, and if I am successful, is it because I am a great applicant? Or because I sit in that BAME category? If you’re a white person – does that cross your mind?

I have worked in white-only companies, been the ‘only brown in the village’, once, in a boardroom, got called ‘exotic’, had jokes cracked at work about how I am such a ‘bounty’ and I have just laughed along. Because I wasn’t sure how else to react. I once overheard a director saying they couldn’t use a photo with me in it because the aesthetic would be ruined. The aesthetic being white employees. None of this has ever held me back, but I have never addressed it or talked about it – until now. I sort of just – accepted it. But actually, none of this is acceptable. I can laugh at my own expense. But it is never okay for someone to laugh at me, judge me or treat me differently because of the colour of my skin.

As I was scrolling through my LinkedIn feed over the weekend, I saw a company I used to work at talking about their passion for pride and rights and post the black square for #blackouttuesday before that. They may have drastically changed their culture in the last few years but my gut told me this was another company paying lip service to a cause. To be seen to be doing the right thing but are you really doing the right thing internally? How do your people actually, really feel? To use a phrase from an employer brand guru I have grown to really admire – the truth works. Your employer brand is so vital right now because your people’s experiences don’t lie. And your people are starting to use their voices. The question is, are you listening?

You can change your logos if you want and put out some really lovely, carefully worded marketing posts. And you can jump on as many bandwagons as you like. But if you want to attract the best people to your company, all they need to do is scratch the surface just a little to find those review sites like Glassdoor or the commentary on your social media platforms, to see what your people are saying about their experiences with you. There is no point brushing your mistakes under a carpet and hoping quietly that their voices and their experiences will go away because they won’t. They will keep getting louder and louder like an alarm until that snooze button just doesn’t work anymore. We are living in a time where the noise is getting louder and people are speaking up. I ask again – are you listening?

So if your employer brand isn’t quite up to scratch – then it’s never too late to start working on it. Listen to the noise, and really hear what your people are saying. Use it to drive change if you need to. Start from the inside and work with your employees to start telling your truest, most authentic stories. Take your narrative, whether it’s good, it’s bad or it’s ugly, and tell your story the right way. Don’t do nothing. Do something. Start somewhere. But start.