After delivering our ‘Basic Trilogy’ package to the folks at Hive HR, what impact did our training have on the attendees personally and their workplace?
Over 70% of colleagues who responded to our survey thought that the Unconscious Bias training was most impactful with the other 28.5% referencing being more aware and conscious of every day sexism and stereotypes with cultural change being cited as an area of focus to implement change.
“Understanding how subtle and conscious some biases can be. ‘Small’ things that you consider ‘normal’ and ‘harmless’ can actually be perceived as bias or derogatory to others.”
“As someone who’s personal values include ‘fairness’, it was also a little discouraging at times to learn that something you do subconsciously could be perceived by others as not being fair.”
“To have more introspection. It’s not about magically removing implicit biases we have (hence why they are implicit), but it is about being aware of them and making sure they are in check – essentially just putting your ego to the side and seeing when you are thinking/acting unfairly”
100% of colleagues who responded to our survey noticed changes in their mindset, thoughts & behaviours (personally and/ or in the organisation)
“I have personally been more conscious of ways in which my actions might promote gender stereotyping, e.g. ensuring that meeting notes are taken on a rotating basis by all participants, rather than someone taking the responsibility, even if on a voluntary basis.”
“Yes, I’m definitely more aware of when I am thinking in a biased way or making assumptions.”
“Yes, we have had follow up meetings and focus groups with members of our senior leadership team who took the time to listen, act on and prioritise feedback. I don’t think this would have happened without these sessions, so thank you.”
“Once certain topics were teased out and raised, I feel like behaviours have changed.”
“The metaphor of a 200m race – where contenders are given different starting points on the track to achieve fairness – really resonated with me as well. To make it fair, you have to understand that each runner is running a different bend and therefore, running a different race.
I think it’s important, for me, to change my mindset and be more effective at i) recognising differences and ii) recognising that there is inequality in society – so that I can be better at understanding what measures need to be taken to achieve fairness. “
100% of colleagues who responded to our survey agreed that the learning made an immediate impact (both personally and / or within the organisation)
“There is a more open discussion, more transparency and a genuine willingness for things to improve.”
“Personally, it made me aware of others feeling the same as I do. It gave a minority of us a space to think and speak our minds and know that it’s not just one person that feels the way we do. And on an organisational level, I think it raised an issue which people didn’t know was there.”
“When the BLM movement was prominent a few weeks ago. Some folk on Social Media took the “All Lives Matter” stance. Genuinely, the majority of those folk just think that all lives matter (and they do) but they totally missed the point. I didn’t miss the point and part of that was probably because of the 50:50 sessions.”
“It gave us an opportunity to see what we could be doing better.”
What does the future look like for our attendees and the organisation? Some personal and organisational goals that have been set so far include…
“Taking more time with my decisions and reactions to make sure I am considering others more.”
“Not let it be a short-lived difference”
“I fully intend to make sure we have clear goals and objectives through our ED&I committee which I am a member of”
“Both personally and within the organisation – speaking up more”
“Within the organisation, the goal is to reach a point where the disparity between how men and women experience our workplace is unnoticeable”
“Personally, I’m a white male and as a default, probably view the world through the lens of a white male — without giving enough thought. This is an area I’m committed to improving. I’ve got to be better at understanding what it might feel like to not be white male.”
As a requested follow-up session to the trilogy, we also did some focussed work with the women in the organisation who had some additional areas they wanted support with.
We loved working with the Hive HR team and we know they have the right foundations to become a more inclusive organisation. It takes time for any organisation to embed these practices within their cultural DNA. We are delighted that they are taking proactive steps on that journey towards a more diverse and inclusive workplace and mindset.
“I really enjoyed the sessions and found them eye-opening and useful. They were run with a really open mind and gave a forum for respectful discourse no matter what the opinion.”
“I think the way you spoke about a 50:50 future was great. Realistically, as a middle-class abled-bodied white male, it’s quite easy for me to suddenly get my guard up when anyone is talking about equality of any kind. As I said, there has to be some aspect of putting your ego to the side as it is about giving others opportunities. Because of this, the way any message is put across is so important in making sure it goes through. It is about finding the right balance between making sure the message is strong enough to make sure there is accountability, but also not so much that it seems as if it is a telling off as opposed to a way of helping people. I think you did this really well.”
“The sessions were always inclusive, collaborative and matched our informal way of working together, so it didn’t feel like you were doing something corporate. I also really appreciated the women’s focus group, I think this was vital for the change we would like to see as a group.”
Thank you for all of your fantastic feedback!
We’ll catch up with team Hive’s progress again in future so be sure to watch this space for further developments…
