The Museum of Public Relations, in partnership with Diversity Action Alliance, kicked off Black History Month with a dynamic virtual conference, “Black PR History: The Imperative of Belonging,” hosted by Sabrina Browne, vice president, corporate at BCW. The panel explored a common thread shared by diverse PR professionals around feelings and experiences of marginalization in the workplace. In this time of the Great Resignation, retaining top talent is more challenging than ever, with more employees prioritizing mental health over the day-to-day grind of office culture.
Undoubtedly, this is also a part of a larger conversation – employees are no longer okay with suffering in silence all in the name of a check. The Diversity Action Alliance pointed to recent stats which show a staggering number of Black and Brown employees have no interest in returning to the office. When given the option, they reportedly also prefer to work remotely as a way to minimize their experiences with microaggressions and other forms of toxic hostility which happen frequently when there are little to no initiatives in place to support widespread claims of a “diverse workplace.” As the panelists observed, in order to effect change, one must impact a business’ bottom line. And in this time of the empowered consumer and cancel culture, brands would do well to check their biases at the door.
What are the ramifications of being oblivious in this current climate? We can consider Bath & Body Works’ current PR scandal around the “launch” of its oblivious Black History Month collection which caused the brand to begin Black History Month with its Twitter mentions in shambles. An overwhelming number of customers were dismayed to find that the limited-edition collection comprised already existing signature products dressed up in kente-cloth designs. On a more positive note, Bath & Body Works has pledged to donate $500,000 to the National Urban League. While it may have started out as a well-meaning and fantastic idea, it was executed poorly, leaving the brand to look inwardly for resolutions that will satisfy employees and consumers alike. Unfortunately, the immediate assumption from various stakeholders is that the company did not do its due diligence which could mean anything and everything from not hiring enough Black decisionmakers to insufficient prioritization of reliable and up-to-date research.
Instances such as this one, should remind businesses to routinely evaluate their organization’s social and political DNA. Employees can be the biggest champions for a company if they are genuinely aligned with a company’s mission and feel supported. Bottomline – consumers and employees are not interested in performative recruitment and advertising campaigns.
– Ernestine Belgrave, Account Manager