Q: There have been a lot of really important initiatives in the last five years in this space within the PSC. What are some things you think have made the biggest impact?
A: I know it sounds small, but some departments host lunch and learns where employees share their values and traditions – everything from the origins of Kwanzaa to defining LGBTQ terminology. That created an opportunity – and in a sense gave people permission to have conversations we could not have attempted before because people were afraid to ask questions that could be politically incorrect or offensive. Those conversations have opened the door to learning and more cultural awareness in the workplace.
We have an annual diversity film festival that’s sponsored by Communications Nova Scotia. It’s a half-day of films from around the world that encourage people to understand cultural experiences and perspectives they may have never encountered before. We also launched a diversity conference, which we run every second year, where employees share how they triumphed over different forms of adversity they have faced. That gives us insights on how we can ease that journey.
But I think the one initiative that has had a major impact is the employee-led networks I mentioned. They have created a safe space for discussions about workplace issues and policy changes that could help remove cultural or systemic barriers to hiring and retention. We then bring these groups together through a diversity roundtable to share those concerns and offer advice on how we can make the workplace more inviting and productive. These efforts are really encouraging conversations about what a diverse and inclusive work environment should be.
Q: So, would you say that your approach to increasing diversity is, in some ways, more grassroots driven than top-down?
A: Absolutely, it’s grassroots led but we’ve paired each employee network with a deputy champion who attends the meetings and takes direction from these groups on what they want to see. That way, each network has a champion at the most senior level in government, so when we review our diversity and equity efforts, we know each network’s priorities.
Q: Have there been any surprises for you in terms of the initiatives that had an impact or did not quite work out?
A: I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how the simple act of opening the door for conversations about diversity has made a difference. People can be cynical or suspicious when you launch something like a lunch and learn, but it has enabled people to share experiences and let others into their lives in a courageous way, and that has really resonated with everyone.
I sometimes wish we weren’t so bureaucratic in our nature. There are so many layers you have to go through just to make a policy change, and we need to be nimbler if we want to remove barriers and enable people from all walks of life to see themselves filling a role. I am buoyed by how everyone is quick to share diversity successes. I got a text from a hiring manager who said three out of five recent offers we were making were to impressive candidates who had self-identified, and that excited me. I know people express concern about self-identifying because they worry it will marginalize them or hinder growth because of years of mistrust and systems that have shut people out. We see that in the surveys we conduct. But we have launched a Count Yourself In census and the information was encouraging because we saw more participation than we anticipated. Ultimately, I think the only way we can address concerns about self-identifying is to demonstrate there are benefits to it, and that will take more time and effort.
Q: How will you address that mistrust in the process?
A: I think one approach is to really look at how we assess people from different cultures and backgrounds. I think we need to look at screening tools that give people more options to showcase their best selves in interviews or assessments because the process has traditionally favoured certain personalities or people over others. We need to constantly ask ourselves, ‘What kind of employee are we looking for, and what’s the skill set that they really need to succeed?’
That is a question we have struggled with. I often hear from people that they were passed over for a job, a promotion, or development opportunities for unknown reasons. We need to look at why that might be the case. We need to look at why we still aren’t recruiting enough people from diverse backgrounds. We need to look at the people we have recruited and determine if they are engaged, happy, and being provided with opportunities to move up. And we need to do that in an equitable way.
