“Diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) in the workplace is more than policies, programs or headcounts. Equitable employers outpace their competitors by respecting the unique needs, perspectives, and potential of all of their team members. As a result, diverse and inclusive workplaces earn deeper trust and more commitment from their employees.”
That is the important message conveyed by S&C Electric Company during the Powered By Diversity Luncheon that took place at DISTRIBUTECH 2023 in San Diego.
The lunch opened with the awarding of the first annual Powered By Diversity Award, sponsored by S&C Electric. Recognizing a utility for its DE&I initiatives, Mel Montes, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Lead at Clarion Events presented Dominion Energy with the award. The utility was recognized for its actions on the D&I front. Latoya Asia, Director, Talent Acquisition, Workforce Planning and DE&I at Dominion Energy, accepted the award.
“We put our money where our mouth is,” she said, explaining that Dominion moved from a decades-long focus on DE&I to really becoming intentional about it. That intentional process, which involved elements like annual DE&I training for all employees on issues such as sexual harassment or unconscious bias, is not something that is accomplished once and then checked off the proverbial list. “This is a marathon not a sprint,” said Asia.
At Dominion, leaders are also required to make a personal commitment to DE&I complete with three different actions they plan to take and, because transparency is also part of the utility’s commitment, the leaders are expected to share those three actions with their team. Finally, Dominion puts together an annual DE&I report with “all the numbers in there,” said Asia.
Asia said the utility was “honored and humbled” to receive the award.
Panel discussion
Following the award, Felicia Kohlenberger, Chief Human Resources Officer, S&C Electric led a fascinating panel discussion with DE&I heads at Sempra, Exelon and Dominion.
Robert Matthews, Vice President and Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, Exelon Corporation said DE&I is a business imperative at Exelon. He said that the utility started by asking leaders to explore their own privilege.
Mitch Mitchell, Senior Vice President, Diversity & Community Partnerships with Sempra said his utility started its DE&I journey by getting people comfortable with talking about diversity.
We knew other things would happen along the way but we started with how to talk about it, he said.
“Some people were afraid it was always going to be about race,” Mitchell said but “true inclusion means you are taking about all areas that have an impact.”
For example there are many holidays celebrated by different cultures around the world so one easy step companies can take to be more inclusive is to refrain from scheduling major meetings during a holiday that someone in your company celebrates, such as Yom Kippur or Diwali, he said.
Next the panel discussed gender transition. Asia said Dominion is “constantly looking at our benefits” to make sure it is able to meet the needs of people who are transitioning. Mitchell said Sempra did an educational session on pronouns.
Matthews brought up safety as a key tenet for Exelon and added that psychological safety was as important as keeping people physically out of harm’s way. “How do we make it safe for people who are experiencing a transition,” he said.
Panel moderator Felicia Kohlenberger said S&C Electric developed a toolkit for leaders and HR representatives to help them navigate potential issues that could arise for people going through a gender change.
The panel discussion also tackled issues such as disabilities, job differences, privacy, and even extending DE&I training to suppliers.
Mitchell said when Exelon learned an employee who was visually disabled was having trouble navigating one of its buildings, the utility created a way that employees could email the facilities team with suggested accommodations.
S&C Electric plans to give out a DE&I award at DISTRIBUTECH 2024 in Orlando, Florida next February.
