Corporations have a responsibility to give back. The Certificate in Corporate Social Responsibility (CCSR) produces leaders who think through that and who respect their consumers, says Dr. Ryan Ross, President and CEO of the Urban Leadership Foundation of Colorado

Through a partnership between The Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility (CESR) and the , diverse leaders in Denver have increased access to professional development opportunities in corporate social responsibility (CSR). CESR and ULFC awarded the first of these scholarships to six community and business leaders from the Denver metro area for the spring 2022 Certificate in Corporate Social Responsibility (CCSR) at Leeds. 

We believe we must all work to increase the number of diverse people in every room where important decisions are being made about companies’ social and environmental impacts,

says Kathryn Wendell, Executive Director, CESR

The Certificate in CSR trains people in the skills they need to drive conversations about corporate social and environmental responsibility. The that communities with higher numbers of BIPOC residents are disproportionately impacted by climate change due to systemic issues of social injustice. Companies are  they have, and are increasingly hiring employees with this skill set. In creating this scholarship, CESR and ULFC are improving access to opportunities for nontraditional and under-represented corporate leaders. 

All scholarship recipients have completed ULFC’s 10-month leadership development program called ULF Connect that aims “to continuously improve the professional and social trajectory of minority leaders through effective leadership training.” Scholarships were made possible thanks to support from the Office of Outreach and Engagement at CU Boulder, ULFC and CESR.

Scholarship Recipients

Meet the six scholarship recipients in this spring 2022 CCSR cohort.

This scholarship will allow our community to share our expertise and talent in new ways with corporations. It will increase opportunities for income, and for support of our communities.

says Dr. Ryan Ross

: Learning more about CCSR, is an opportunity to gain skills to empower employees to leverage corporate resources at their disposal to do good. This new knowledge, paired with my accounting and finance background will assist me in boosting employee morale and leading to greater productivity in the workforce.

: My company has a corporate responsibility department and I have always been interested in what they do. I want to let my company know this is something I know about and that I plan to bring these skills into my work.

: I think we are on the cusp of something great coming from corporations and I want to be on the front lines of that.

My goal is to work at a corporate level to improve opportunities for people of color in ways that are aligned with the community work I already do.

: I believe helping employees is the most important thing. You take care of them, they take care of you. I want to bring change before I leave.

Get Involved

If you, or your company, are interested in supporting this scholarship please reach out to Justine Roberts, Program Manager with CESR.
 

For the past three weeks CESR has been hosting a series of conversations about how the pandemic and the racial justice movement have been shaping workplace procedures and policies. We have explored how employers can support employees’ mental health needs during times of crisis, how the role of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) departments is changing as companies re envision their workplaces in terms of worker safety, and how businesses acknowledgement of diversity in their workforce can lead to greater engagement and help build equity.

We have learned a lot from our expert speakers, and from the thoughtful questions asked by attendees. If you missed the series you can watch each of the panels at the links below: 

Here are a few takeaways from some of the panelists who participated in this series:

Corporate Social Responsibility Manager, Delta Dental of Colorado

The one statement that keeps playing in my mind was a comment Russell Cropanzano made, “Anxiety collapses into depression.” This statement has led me to revisit things like the decline in our intranet engagement, water cooler talks, etc. Is it because people are busy, is it the summer, or are people feeling even more down and stressed out? Probably a combination of all three. I guess my point is to keep reinforcing those resources, dream up some new things and connect with people to see if they are okay. I’ve checked in with lots of team members since hearing that. I think it helps. 

Russell Cropanzano, Chair of the Organizational Leadership and Information Analytics Division / Chair of the Social Responsibility and Sustainability Division: 

• The pandemic is a unique crisis, as it is unfolding over a number of months. People are afraid of being sick, of course, but there is also secondary damage to well-being – job loss, lack of social contact, loss in earnings, etc. It’s the reverberating effects of the pandemic that worry me the most. This could be with us for many years.
• We know from research that supportive organizations can benefit people. It’s important to have regular communication and to maintain social networks. We discussed some ways to do that. However, as many Americans receive their health care through their jobs, this won’t reach many people. They are further hampered by the lack of a uniform and consistent national policy.
• People’s personal situation is important. Those who are older are at greater risk. Those engaged in elder care or who are living in multi-generational households could also experience a great deal of anxiety.
• Don’t underestimate the social effects. Being home effaces people’s support networks. Of course, if they lose their job, then this is even worse. 

Sabrina Volpone, Assistant Professor, Organizational, Leadership, and Information Analytics PhD Program Director

The topics that we talked about in the panel are universal - BLM, COVID, leading in a pandemic … they are impacting each and every one of us as workers in ways that we have not experienced work and life before. We can have a tendency to think 'this pandemic is impacting the careers of working mothers’ or focusing on one or two groups within the workforce. This is impacting everyone in different ways and it is necessary that organizations revisit their policies and procedures over and over again through multiple lenses to make sure that the experiences of all employees are being considered.

, Sustainability Community Engagement Coordinator, CESR

I appreciated the discussion in our panel on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion about how employees can rethink the boundaries between their identities in their private lives, and as employees. Working from home means that certain barriers have broken down - we see into each other’s private lives in new ways from a dog barking to a child asking for a snack. This is not necessarily a bad thing. It allows us to bring more of ourselves to work, allows us to be more authentic, and more empathetic. There is an opportunity here to recognize one another’s humanity and to make corporate decisions that respect and support our needs as people, not just as workers.

There is so much more in these conversations that is relevant and actionable. We hope you find the discussions as interesting as we did.

Leeds School of Business faculty are involved in a wide range of research projects that are advancing our understanding of business, and leading to insights that will help companies become more resilient, inclusive and sustainable. Here are some of the incredible thought leaders with whom we at the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility (CESR) have the privilege to work:

Stefanie Johnson

Stefanie K. Johnson is an associate professor of management at the Leeds School of Business and was just named to the . She is the author of the bestselling new book which helps managers build diverse and inclusive teams. Her is an interactive tool that let’s users benchmark their own leadership approach to diversity. She writes “This book is for leaders who understand that diversity is a reality, but [who] just don’t know how to lead in a way that maximizes its benefits and gets the most out of their teams. My mission in life is to help leaders examine their own lives and behaviors through a stronger lens than the one most of us have used until now, so the path to Inclusifying becomes clear. Everyone has the desire to be themselves while being part of the team. In a competitive talent market where engagement drives retention and innovation is the key to continued success, leaders must find ways to transform diverse groups into Inclusifyed teams – or those leaders won’t survive.”

In this July 7, 2020 Stefanie turns her attention to the urgency of the current moment and looks at the gap between what companies are saying about their values to their customers, and what they are actually doing to support diversity within their organizations. She argues that a true commitment to inclusivity requires policies and procedures at every level of the company from recruiting, training and promotion practices, to transparency and accountability, to culture. Three years after the #Metoo movement, Stefanie asks what it was that successful companies did, and what lessons can be learned for companies ready to make a commitment to doing better on racial diversity and equity given today’s renewed focus on the #BLM protest movement.

In a new working paper titled , , assistant professor of finance at the Leeds School of Business, and co-author , Stanford Graduate School of Business, examine the role of home ownership (and how it is financed) in wealth accumulation. The common wisdom has been that owning a home is a path to financial security. Asaf and Peter argue that it is actually the mortgage, not just the house itself, which builds wealth. By forcing repayment, mortgages force savings. And because you have to wait to cash out those savings until you are older (mortgages are typically 15-30 years long) mortgages function similarly to a 401K. Access to a mortgage, they conclude, is therefore critical for wealth building. 

Black Americans who have been discriminated against or who don't have the ability to buy a house for other reasons can struggle to build intergenerational wealth. Asaf explains, "our findings may help explain the black white-wealth gap. The existing literature attributes this gap, at least in part, to historical differences in homeownership driven by differential access to financing (ex. Charles and Hurst 2002; Appel and Nickerson 2016; Aaronson et al. 2017; Anders 2018; Krimmel 2018). Our results suggest that it is not just the ability to purchase a home, but also the differential access to mortgages, usually linked to a fixed amortizing schedule, that can explain wealth differences."

You can see Asafpresent live today - July 14th from 12:50-1:40pm EST - as part of the on .

Sabrina Volpone 

Sabrina Volpone, assistant professor organizational, leadership, and information analytics PhD Program Director at Leeds studies diversity in the workplace with a focus on how employees with marginalized identities manage those identities at work. Her paper (published in the Journal of Applied Psychology), , with co-authors , Wake Forest University and , University of Washington looks at how salary negotiations perpetuate race-based income inequality. The paper argues that “Black job seekers are expected to negotiate less than their White counterparts and are penalized in negotiations with lower salary outcomes when this expectation is violated; especially when they negotiate with an evaluator who is more racially biased (i.e., higher in social dominance orientation.).” In other words, their research suggests that White managers punish Black job seekers for self-advocacy in salary negotiations with lower wages. 

You can hear Sabrina talk about the long lasting implications of companies’ responses to the pandemic for diversity in the workforce as part of an upcoming panel discussion . Join her, , VP of Community Engagement, Education and Inclusion, The Butterfly Pavilion and VP of Human �ƹ���Ƶ at Charlotte's Web, HR, OD, Talent and Culture Leader, July 23 from 2-3pm for this conversation.

America is in crisis and our hearts are breaking. It isn’t just one thing. It is the combination, and the fact that things are all happening at the same time: the the , the data showing that and that, with NYC coming in at #6. The crisis isn't just the murders of , , and so many others, or the fact that . It is everything at once that is so intolerable and so combustible. It is the fact that these current intolerable injustices are just the latest in centuries of violence against black and brown people on this land.

At CESR we work on issues of Justice, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Identity. Our focus is on the business environment. But the business world is a reflection of society. Who gets a seat at the table is first established in childhood with . It starts with , the ways , and the ways our public officials respond to the need for , and . This is the context in which corporate diversity and inclusion programs operate, and which makes them necessary.

We are heartened to know that our school is committed to creating an environment in which all students can reach their full potential, which believes that diversity is strength, and which actively works to instill a sense of purpose and strong values in future leaders. In that spirit we are sharing with you some words of wisdom and insight from thought leaders at the Leeds School of Business and First Peoples Worldwide, as well as a roundup of resources that we urge you to use in your own journey toward justice. We are grieving alongside communities of color, and recognize that their anger and pain are far greater and more important than our own. We believe fundamentally that we can make the world better, but not without those of us who benefit from racism and systems of oppression recognizing our responsibility to fix what is so broken in our society and taking meaningful action. 

As CESR Interim Director, Julie Waggoner, says “We need to recognize that we are a white-woman-led organization, and for all white folx social and racial justice has to start with the internal work of recognizing our own racism and constantly questioning and challenging our own thoughts and actions. Asking not the unhelpful ‘Is what I just thought/said/did racist?’ (if you have to ask, the answer is likely yes), but rather ‘How much did my own racism play a role in that thought/statement/action, and how so?’”

We invite you to join us.

Phil DiStefano, CU Boulder Chancellor:

As I see national news stories about the death of , I reflect on the conversations I had earlier this year with our students about these very issues. 

Even though a global pandemic is keeping us apart from each other, I share in your pain, anger and sadness. When we see acts of racism, it affects us deeply and takes a physical, mental and emotional toll. We must reach out and support each other as we process what has happened. For me, I will not lose hope. . . These intolerable injustices, whether they happen in Minnesota, New York or here in Colorado, strike at the core of everything we believe. Let me be clear: I am committed to diversity and inclusion of everyone on our campus. . .

As a campus community, it is incumbent on us to encourage civil discourse that lifts us all from this darkness. Universities can be, and must be, at the heart of social change. As a campus, we continuously work to cultivate a diverse, inclusive and welcoming community. We best illustrate this through our moral actions when we see injustice, close to home or far away. . . 

Carla Fredericks, Director, American Indian Law Clinic, University of Colorado Law School, Director, First Peoples Worldwide, University of Colorado and Faculty Affiliate, Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility, University of Colorado Leeds School of Business:

Native Americans are disproportionately impacted by both the negative effects of COVID-19 and the under and over-policing of their communities. Historic and ongoing human rights violations have created conditions such as under-resourced health care systems and lack of access to running water that have predisposed Indigenous communities to the worst impacts of the global pandemic.

Additionally, Native Americans experience a disproportionately high rate of violence and death from police interactions. The militarized use of force that we are witnessing across the country is reminiscent of the force used against the water protectors during the #nodapl Dakota Access Pipeline movement.

First Peoples Worldwide is collecting resources and suggested reading on the website and have also written a couple articles including:

• Indigenous Peoples and the 2020 Human Rights Review of the U.S. during a Global Pandemic
• The Time We Are In

Additional Recommended �ƹ���Ƶ include:

• by

Sabrina Volpone, Director, , Leeds School of Business:

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for society -and organizations- to consider the topic of ethical leadership and to do so through a diversity and inclusion lens. This need is illustrated with statistics that show successful COVID-19 crisis-related outcomes (e.g., reduced hospitalizations, infection rates, and deaths, the ease of country-wide lockdowns) are associated with the type of leadership that heads of state are exhibiting. Ethical leadership focused on diversity and inclusion could truly make a difference in society and in our organizations. For example, COVID-19 is disproportionately affecting Black and Native American communities. This is in addition to ample reports of overt and subtle racism that many members of the Asian community have endured related to COVID-19 and the concerns about domestic violence victims confined at home with their abusers through stay at home orders. These societal concerns impact organizations and workers alike, but there are further employee-specific concerns that show why the topic of ethical leadership and diversity are needed in our organizations specifically to address additional concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic. For instance, requirements to wear masks in workplaces present barriers for the deaf and hard of hearing community (many of whom use lip reading and facial expressions as key elements in their communication) and the trend to work from home has shown that women’s careers have been disrupted as they become increasingly responsible for childcare and homeschooling while also working from home. These are just a few examples to show why organizations need to focus on the topic of ethical leadership and to do so through a diversity and inclusion lens.  

Ruby J. Batalla, Director, Office of Diversity Affairs, Leeds School of Business:

I’m having a hard time processing George Flyod’s murder on top of Ahmaud Arbery being hunted and killed-  and what has unfolded over the past week; the killing of a bystander in Louisville, KY, the attack of our press at rallies, peaceful protestors being cleared out for Trump to have a photo op and his continuous threats to communities of color. It’s a lot! And I think that’s what I want to share with you. Being from a minoritized group, with family members with mixed status, it continues to be exhausting being in an elevated and constant state of fear, on top of helping family survive (physically, economically, emotionally) through COVID-19. Trump’s policies were clear as he was campaigning and he’s delivering on them. To attack, vilify and kill all people of color in a variety of ways. That’s why I hope (and I’ve seen instances of this hope), that our white allies will become comrades in the fight and protect our brown and black bodies against his aggression and violence that he’s inciting. They have the most power to make necessary changes, they are in those positions of power to make it happen. And I ask that they continue to show up, not just when a public lynching happens.

Want to take learn more or take action? Check out these resources below. This is by no means an exhaustive list, it is just a way to get started.

Read some of the responses to current events from Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) practitioners, public leaders and news outlets:

• on the impact of COVID-19 on Indian Reservations 
• , author of and
• on The Daily Show
• on the deadliness of racism
• Barack Obama on and on
• Atlanta Mayor ’ address on the murder of George Floyd
• by
• professor of ethnic studies at CU Boulder 
• Unemployment is hitting black communities harder 

What can you do? 

• Support local black owned businesses. Here is a to get you started
• National Museum of African American History and Culture
• blog
• KGED  
• ’s
• , a Toolkit for White People
• , a Toolkit for Healing Justice
• , Tools for Addressing Conflict
• Check out these - including where to donate and petitions you can sign - compiled by working on "a crisis response that Builds from Emergency to Transformation"
• Donate to organizations working against police brutality: 

Want training, or to join a conversation about race and justice? CO based resources:

• tools and trainings for businesses, local governments, nonprofits and community organizations 
• (DJP) works with historically marginalized communities to address systemic racism by transforming law enforcement and the structure of the criminal justice system
• offers training and action for white people who work for racial justice
• is a fiercely faith-based, Black Womxn-led, racial justice organization focused on Black healing and Black liberation. 
• Creative Strategies for Change offers training and consulting on racial justice and related issues
• run by Dr. Timothy Tyler, the Pastor of Shorter Community AME Church, Denver & Dr. Nita Mosby Tyler, The Chief Catalyst/Founder of the Equity Project, LLC and the HR Shop, is a 9 -week study action group on how to lead active conversations about racism and white supremacy 
• is a place to learn about Race in our lives through monthly conversations
• - “Connecting Inclusive, Responsive Communities Leading Education” promotes a commitment to diversity and inclusiveness 
•  

Follow or get involved with Colorado based organizations working on racial justice:

•  
• Colorado Criminal Justice Reform (CCJR)
•  

Some resources that have been helpful in our journeys:

• by Paul Ortiz
• by
• ’s and her book
• and her
• by
• and by
• offers online courses and her is unapologetically action oriented
• -
•  
• An from ’s upcoming book on the connections between slavery and contemporary policing 
• Roundup of
• JEDI Collective’s of nonfiction and fiction books, articles, reports, case studies from the business world, blogs, podcasts and videos
• Othering and Belonging Institute that help move systemic change forward

For educators working with children:

Katie Pribyl Dobbins, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Director at , recently completed her Certificate in Corporate Social Responsibility (CCSR) at the Leeds School of Business, seeking to enhance her professional skills. Her interest in CSR originated from her career in nonprofit management and passion for volunteering, but she decided it was time to expand her experiences outside of the nonprofit industry.

“Late last year I was ready for new challenges and my search brought me to Wana,” Pribyl Dobbins says. “I feel very fortunate to be our first CSR Director. Implementing our CSR program is exciting and the potential for us to make a positive impact in our community is sky high.”

Worth the time and money
Pribyl Dobbins’s optimism and passion for the work has helped her to succeed in this challenging position, and her Certificate in Corporate Social Responsibility, achieved through the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility (CESR)’s executive education program, has helped her to harness her potential, broaden her perspective and strategically drive change at Wana Brands. 

“This class is worth it - the time and the money,” Pribyl Dobbins says. “With the experience I brought to the table, completing the certificate course gave me the extra leg up to do this important work to the best of my ability.”

When asked how she was able to incorporate what she learned into her role, she responded, “How have I not? I would come into work on Thursday morning after my Wednesday evening class bursting with best practices, aware of common challenges, and ready to rock!”

Not only did she rave about the applicability of the information she learned, but about the instructor and the people she has met as well. 

“Pete Dignan is a knowledgeable and humorous teacher,” Pribyl Dobbins says. “I really appreciated the content (especially learning from super experienced CSR professionals). Meeting my classmates and creating a solid CSR network has been really beneficial.”

Pribyl Dobbins is not the first to mention the strong network that students build in this course; many others, including Amber Peacher of Optiv, have commented on the benefits of having such diverse backgrounds and experiences among classmates, allowing for deep conversations about the variety of CSR issues addressed in all areas of business. Most students also appreciate the frequent guest speakers that discuss their roles and challenges they face in their careers, providing important insights into the world of CSR. Each week, the class hosts a guest speaker that discusses the week’s CSR topic in depth and with real life application. To learn more about guest speakers and content, read CESR’s previous blog, recapping the Spring 2019 cohort of the CCSR program. 

Driving impact at Wana Brands
Currently, Pribyl Dobbins is focused on reducing the company’s environmental impact through recycling initiatives and as a part of the . They recently recycled over 18,000lbs of unused vials with help from Eco-Cycle, and they have increased their volunteer hours as a company. They are continuing to build strong partnerships with nonprofits to best use their volunteer time and resources. According to Pribyl Dobbins, the founder and CEO and everyone at Wana Brands are passionate and supportive of the CSR initiatives that she works so hard to implement.

“Our CSR program is successful due to the team effort!” Pribyl Dobbins says. It takes support from all levels of a company to drive change.

If you are interested in pursuing a career in CSR or want to incorporate aspects of CSR into your current role, visit our website to learn more about the Certificate in Corporate Social Responsibility, which is now offered both in person and online. For biweekly updates on CESR events, research and blogs, sign up for our newsletter.
 

As companies are realizing that sustainability is here to stay, they shift attention to how they can communicate sustainable strategies to get their return on investment. Leeds School of Business Social Responsibility and Ethics (SRE) Alumni, Nathan Sanfacon now helps large, public companies better tell their sustainability story. 

Background as a Buff
Nathan began at Leeds with an interest in finance, but soon realized his desire to generate a greater impact in the business world. To bring his two passions together, he enrolled in CESR courses where he was introduced to the concept of using business as a tool to solve the world’s largest challenges. Additionally, he participated in the 2016 Business Ethics Case Competition and took home first prize, solidifying his knowledge on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and ethical decision making.

Founding CESR Fellows
Although Nathan got involved with CESR at Leeds, he didn’t learn about it until junior year and wished he had known about it earlier. Realizing the unique value that CESR brought to Leeds, he set out to help grow CESR and engage more students. His senior year he collaborated with Executive Director Mark Meaney to found the CESR Fellows. He envisioned a strong community for current, prospective, and past students to get engaged in CESR. As he and his peers laid the foundation for CESR Fellows, they prepared the organization for success in the years to come. 

After Graduation
Nathan expressed that he didn’t know exactly how he would translate his interests in marketing and CSR into his after graduation plans. When he became aware of a position at thinkPARALLAX,a branding and communications agency focused on sustainability communications, he realized that he could marry his interests by simultaneously helping businesses get better returns and helping people.

As a recipient of the Social Responsibility and Ethics (SRE) Certificate, Nathan attributes his success to the sustainability experience and competitive advantage that the certificate had provided him. He noted that the socially responsible perspective fostered from the certificate is invaluable when looking for companies are best suited to your values, and a total differentiator when you are in the company. Coming to the table with that deeper understanding helped set him apart from his focus in marketing and incorporate it into his organization’s strategy. 

Now Nathan is a strategist at thinkPARALLAX, an agency focused on helping brands share their sustainability story with appropriate audiences and helping them get a return on investment on their programs. In this position, he is constantly incorporating CSR with business strategy and says that what he learned in CESR helps him every day.

How can large companies authentically pursue sustainability initiatives while catering to customers?
This is the challenge that large companies face, and one that Nathan faces every day as a strategist at thinkPARALLAX. He told us that large companies are doing a lot of good, but do a poor job of communicating it. In order to improve the way that these companies share their efforts, Nathan encourages companies to cater their message to a specific audience based on their overall goal of communication. 

How can companies shift toward more sustainable operations with sustainable profits?
A company still needs to be profitable while striving to be more sustainable. Nathan provided some insight on how companies can perform at the highest level while continuing to benefit stakeholders: if companies can shift their focus from short term gains to a long term strategy with imbedded gains, a more holistic view of objectives will be created, including strategy for long term profit. 

Be a Sustainable Buff
Follow in Nathan’s footsteps toward an impactful career! Take the first step by checking out CESR’s Impact Internship Program. Make sure to subscribe to the CESR Newsletter to get all the latest new job opportunities!

Leeds School of Business researchers Elizabeth Embry, Jeffrey G. York and Jessica Jones collaborated on a recent publication that dissects progress on human-induced climate change and evaluates what more can be accomplished to make an impact on the issue. Their book chapter, “” in the Handbook of Inclusive Innovation: The Role of Organizations, Markets and Communities in Social Innovation, analyzes climate change from ecological, societal and human-health perspectives (which coincide with the authors’ professional backgrounds) to make this massive global issue more approachable through innovation and entrepreneurship. 

In this book chapter, the term entrepreneur is used in the broad sense of having an entrepreneurial mindset; it is not exclusive to those who have started their own business. Rather, it is relevant to those who think creatively in their work and inspire innovation in business. Therefore, this can apply to an individual in any career and with any degree.

What Makes Entrepreneurship So Promising with Regards to Climate Change?

“Where we have the ability to think about these things differently is in the entrepreneurial space,” Embry says. “Entrepreneurship is thinking differently and creating new solutions. We need that innovation, and it’s not coming from our governmental agencies or large corporations - to whom we have traditionally looked to solve our issues - but neither are flexible or have the docility or incentives to change their processes.”

As global challenges constantly develop from human-induced climate change, it becomes increasingly important to ask what we need to do differently, which is where entrepreneurship becomes pivotal. Since climate change is so large-scale, deciding where to begin can be overwhelming. One goal of this chapter is to break down climate change into sections, making the choice of where to begin less daunting by targeting areas where individuals and organizations have the greatest capacity to make an impact. This chapter also addresses the intertwined disposition of people, business and the environment.

"Entrepreneurship offers a way for us to break down the false separation between economics and ecology,” York says. “Entrepreneurs create for profit ventures that can address climate change in a way that governmental and activist solutions cannot. But, they need a supportive policy and cultural environment to succeed. I hope the chapter helps to explain how entrepreneurship can help address the interconnected issues of not only the environmental, but also social and health impacts of climate change.”

Using Entrepreneurship to Drive Change

This entrepreneurial potential can be harnessed by aligning business with your passions; intertwining the two allows us to make progress because we move forward best with the issues that we care about most.

“Start with the part of the issue that you care about because that passion is what is going to drive your success,” Embry says. “If you don’t care about it, you won’t continue to have the energy to see it through. You don’t have to care about all of these issues related to climate change, but find the one that you do care about and run with that.”

To cultivate the greatest success, for both the business and for inspiring environmental and societal change, Embry recommends starting local. 

“Entrepreneurial solutions that are local are going to have the biggest impact and make the biggest difference because they are culturally relevant, and you will have a better understanding of how to make a change in that area,” says Embry. 

More Information

For a deeper analysis of the relationship between climate change and entrepreneurship, . To receive biweekly emails with the latest events, research and news, sign up for . 

At the Leeds School of Business, a number of faculty have focused their research efforts on investigating the impact that diversity and inclusion (D&I) has in the business world. David Hekman, Stefanie Johnson, and Sabrina Volpone are some of these professors. Sabrina Volpone, Assistant Professor and Doctoral Program Director for the Organizational Leadership and Information Analytics division at the Leeds School of Business, has recently conducted several research studies that examine D&I issues in the workplace to better understand the opportunities that D&I can create for organizations and employees. 

Why is D&I Important?

“Diversity and inclusion are commonly referenced in a singular, intertwined phrase (D&I), because we can’t have one without the other” Volpone explains. “We have to leverage both simultaneously to drive success.”

According to Volpone, successful D&I efforts can improve the lives of employees and the quality of the work being produced in organizations. That is, these efforts can contribute to employees’ feelings of belonging and importance at work, resulting in higher levels of productivity in the workplace when employees are more engaged. Many companies mistake D&I for an added benefit, but Volpone insists that it is a core component of any business.

“Creating a diverse and inclusive work environment stems from a core idea in business that we have to take care of our resources. Employees are perhaps our most expensive resource and we often fail to manage them correctly. When you’re not thinking about D&I, it’s a huge missed opportunity for businesses,” says Sabrina Volpone.

How can Businesses and Organizations Better Incorporate D&I?

Many companies “have good intentions when implementing D&I programs, but fail to get diverse people through the door,” Volpone says. She offers the following advice to help correct common mistakes that prevent recruiting efforts targeted at increasing diversity from achieving success:

“The first step is to recruit differently,” she says. “Many organizations recruit only at the places where they are familiar with - the schools they went to - or where they know individuals like them. Instead, they need to be more strategic and recruit outside of these locations to bring in a more diverse crowd.”

Additionally, Volpone warns against relying on diversity goals; D&I is not something that can be successfully implemented if organizations are forcing it to reach a target. In order to have enduring changes, it is important to strategically reform HR practices, starting with recruitment strategies, rather than aiming for some arbitrary goal or number. 

Volpone’s Recent Studies

Study on Negotiation in the Workplace

Today, existing research on the role of demographics in negotiations concludes that differences exist between men and women and the outcomes that result in negotiations; this is one of many possible reasons for the gender pay gap. In Volpone’s study with Drs. Morela Hernandez, Derek Avery, and Cheryl Kaiser, however, she examined the influence of race in negotiations. 

“We researched black male job seekers negotiating a pay increase and found that in doing so, they violated an expectation held by the hiring manager, which often led to that individual being worse off - they are penalized in negotiations with lower salary outcomes, especially when they negotiate with a hiring manager who is more racially biased,” Volpone says.

The hiring managers of black, male employees had unconscious biases that prevented them from making impartial decisions based solely on the quality of their application or negotiation skills. To limit these negative effects in various situations, Volpone suggests ways we can work to eliminate these biases.

“If you hear your colleagues describing an experience atypical from your own, take a moment to pause and think about it,” she says. “Different people have different experiences in the same workplace. There might be a lot of barriers that you don’t personally experience, and you have to consider them. If you can, you should work to break down some of these barriers, particularly if you are responsible for hiring and pay raises.”

Study on Non-Visible Disabilities

Volpone recently published research on non-visible disabilities with Dr. Brent Lyons, Jennifer Wessel, and Ms. Natalya Alonso where she studied the effects of disclosing a disability that is not visible during a job interview. Examples of non-visible disabilities are depression, epilepsy, attention deficit disorder, or diabetes. In the past, there have been studies that showed that disclosing a disability during an interview relates to unfavorable hiring outcomes such as receiving fewer job offers than an applicant without a disability. Volpone’s work expanded upon this conclusion.

“If you disclose the non-visible disability during the job interview and do so quickly, without a lot of explanation, then it could hurt your chances of getting hired,” she says. “Sometimes applicants do take this approach because they think it might make the person uncomfortable if they talk about it too much or they may want to move on to another topic that is more job-relevant. This work shows that if you manage the identity by highlighting the positive aspects of that identity in the interview, then hiring outcomes can be positive; by talking about the different perspective it has given you and relating that to the workplace, the hiring manager’s impression of the disability is managed and that can actually result in more positive hiring outcomes.”
    
Future Studies on Breastfeeding in the Workplace:

Volpone has a personal connection to some future studies on the topic of breastfeeding in the workplace; in a previous position, she began work shortly after giving birth to her daughter. As a result of not having a maternity leave, she frequently pumped during work hours in her office. She recalls meeting her new coworkers when they would knock on her office door to ask what the noise was coming from her office. When she answered that it was her breast pump she thought to herself, “why do I, someone well versed in having conversations about diversity topics, not know how to have this conversation about breastfeeding with my new colleagues? This is a natural body function that plenty of women balance with their work demands. We have to have more open conversations about this in workplaces. It seems that people are finally open and accepting of talking openly about maternity leave, but there are still topics such as breastfeeding that we are afraid to talk about in the workplace.” Volpone has a number of studies that are in progress on this topic. An article from U.S. News referenced her research on the topic last month.

Learn More!

For more information, browse recent journal article publications by the Diversity and Identity Management Research Lab at Leeds, led by Sabrina Volpone. Sign up for CESR’s bi-weekly newsletter for updates on upcoming events, opportunities and research studies.