Punk Rock HR 030: Why Minorities Are Leaving Corporate America with Jose Pinero
Employees aren’t that complicated. If they’re happy, they stay. If they’re unhappy, they leave. When women and minorities are leaving Corporate America in droves, the problem is obvious: these underrepresented groups aren’t happy. What’s causing the mass exodus and what, if anything, are we doing about it? Jose Pinero, the CEO of Latino Leadership Performance, talks about the importance of understanding and implementing cultural visibility, as well as how inclusion and diversity strategies boost workforce productivity and engagement.
- Jose Pinero is a Fortune 100 business coach, speaker, and author. With over 20 years of corporate experience, Jose has seen the disparity within the ranks of organizations. Women and minorities aren’t able to climb the corporate ladder, something he’s seen again and again. Jose has made it his mission to empower these groups of people, to help them become successful leaders, and to improve visibility, inclusion, and diversity in corporate hierarchy.
- What is Jose’s take on work being broken? He starts by saying how everyone wants the same thing: to live fulfilling lives. But it’s difficult to achieve this if you’re working in an environment that disconnects you from everybody else. Work is broken because organizations have discouraged employees from being their authentic selves. By denying people the right to be themselves, we deny them the opportunity to put in their best effort.
- In his article, Why are Latinos leaving Corporate America?, Jose shares how it’s not only Latinos who are leaving Corporate America in droves. Women and other minorities are marching out too. There are a variety of factors that force these talents to leave, and some of them might surprise you. The article is a great read and will shed a lot of light on the problem, especially since it’s becoming more difficult for companies to find great talent.
We got down to the heart of the problem next, and Jose shares three reasons why he believes that minorities and women aren’t happy in Corporate America.
- Lack of high-level role models. When people don’t see themselves represented within the corporate hierarchy, they end up feeling discouraged. They will question whether the job is a fit for them, and if they're in the right place to begin with. It’s either, “There’s nobody there that looks like me,” or “There are too few of us who can make it there.”
- Lack of sponsorship and mentors. The idea of the Lone Champion is a myth. Nobody gets to where they are without any degree of support. Everybody needs somebody to help them understand how things work. How do we expect people to do their best and become better when we don’t give them the opportunity to learn from the best? No one wants to be in an environment where they do not feel supported or valued.
- Cultural blind spots. People have different communication styles. If we want to bridge the gap in our cultures, we have to be more understanding of how our employees tend to communicate. When managers lack this understanding, the disconnect becomes even greater.
- Laurie and Jose touch on how multicultural marketing works and how it supports underrepresented communities by getting them involved. They talk about how businesses have the social responsibility to contribute to society. After all, there’s always room to make money AND still make a difference in the world.
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Jose Pinero