Rethinking How to Build Inclusive Organizations Race, Work, and Leadership is a rare and important compilation of essays that examines how race matters in people's experience of work and leadership. What does it mean to be black in corporate America today? How are racial dynamics in organizations changing? How do we build inclusive organizations? Inspired by and developed in conjunction with the research and programming for Harvard Business School's commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the HBS African American Student Union, this groundbreaking book shines new light on these and other timely questions and illuminates the present-day dynamics of race in the workplace. Contributions from top scholars, researchers, and practitioners in leadership, organizational behavior, psychology, sociology, and education test the relevance of long-held assumptions and reconsider the research approaches and interventions needed to understand and advance African Americans in work settings and leadership roles. At a time when--following a peak in 2002--there are fewer African American men and women in corporate leadership roles, Race, Work, and Leadership will stimulate new scholarship and dialogue on the organizational and leadership challenges of African Americans and become the indispensable reference for anyone committed to understanding, studying, and acting on the challenges facing leaders who are building inclusive organizations.

Amidst the violent racism prevalent at the turn of the twentieth century, African American cultural elites, struggling to articulate a positive black identity, developed a middle-class ideology of racial uplift. Insisting that they were truly representative of the race's potential, black elites espoused an ethos of self-help and service to the black masses and distinguished themselves from the black majority as agents of civilization; hence the phrase 'uplifting the race.' A central assumption of racial uplift ideology was that African Americans' material and moral progress would diminish white racism. But Kevin Gaines argues that, in its emphasis on class distinctions and patriarchal authority, racial uplift ideology was tied to pejorative notions of racial pathology and thus was limited as a force against white prejudice. Drawing on the work of W. E. B. Du Bois, Anna Julia Cooper, Alice Dunbar-Nelson, Hubert H. Harrison, and others, Gaines focuses on the intersections between race and gender in both racial uplift ideology and black nationalist thought, showing that the meaning of uplift was intensely contested even among those who shared its aims. Ultimately, elite conceptions of the ideology retreated from more democratic visions of uplift as social advancement, leaving a legacy that narrows our conceptions of rights, citizenship, and social justice.

Much has been written about a model of leadership that emphasizes women's values and experiences, that is in some ways distinct from male models of leadership. This book redirects the focus to a view of leadership as a multicultural phenomenon that moves beyond dualistic notions of "masculine" and "feminine" leadership, and focuses more specifically on leadership as the management of meaning, including the meanings of the notion of "organizational leader." This volume focuses on leadership "traditions" revealed in the history of Black women in America and exemplified in the leadership approaches of 15 African American women executives who came of age during the civil rights and feminist movements of the 1960's and 1970's and climbed to the top of major U.S. organizations. It advances a vision of organizational leadership that challenges traditional masculine and feminine notions of leadership development and practice, providing insights on organizational leadership in the era of post-industrialization and globalization. Additionally, by placing African American women at the center of analysis, this book provides insights into the ways in which race and gender structure key leadership processes in today's diverse and changing workplace. It is a must-read for scholars and researchers in organizational communication, management, leadership, African American studies, and related areas.

Building anti-racist companies by design creates great places to work for all. Business leaders ready to take a bold stance to make the world better for employees, for consumers, and for the greater community: Read this book. As leaders, you have the unique ability to reach thousands of employees and millions of consumers. It's time for you to build a truly diverse, equitable, and inclusive work environment and, by extension, a more just society. This book provides a comprehensive plan for leaders who are ready to get serious about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and to create an anti-racist company culture. As a Black man at the highest levels of corporate America for over thirty years, James D. White has built a deep understanding of how to operationalize and integrate DEI agendas. As CEO and Chairman of the global smoothie chain Jamba Juice, he led a remarkable turnaround to make the company a model of strong performance built on a foundation of a diverse, anti-racist culture. He also draws on the experiences of other leaders at the vanguard of DEI. White writes with his daughter, Krista White, who brings to this book the heart and sensibilities of a younger generation devoted to equity and inclusion and intent on justice. Practical lessons and real-world examples of techniques used by seasoned experts will empower leaders who, at this urgent moment, are asking themselves what so many have asked James White: What can I do? You can start by reading this book.

Nearly sixty years ago, Lincoln and Eleanor Ragsdale descended upon the isolated, somewhat desolate, and entirely segregated city of Phoenix, Arizona, in search of freedom and opportunity?a move that would ultimately transform an entire city and, arguably, the nation. Race Work tells the story of this remarkable pair, two of the most influential black activists of the post?World War II American West, and through their story, supplies a missing chapter in the history of the civil rights movement, American race relations, African Americans, and the American West. ø Matthew C. Whitaker explores the Ragsdales? family history and how their familial traditions of entrepreneurship, professionalism, activism, and ?race work? helped form their activist identity and placed them in a position to help desegregate Phoenix. His work, the first sustained account of white supremacy and black resistance in Phoenix, also uses the lives of the Ragsdales to examine themes of domination, resistance, interracial coalition building, race, gender, and place against the backdrop of the civil rights and post?civil rights eras. An absorbing biography that provides insight into African Americans? quest for freedom, Race Work reveals the lives of the Ragsdales as powerful symbols of black leadership who illuminate the problems and progress in African American history, American Western history, and American history during the post?World War II era.

This book provides a reasoned, unflinching description of how race and paid work are linked in U.S. society. It offers readers the rich conceptual and empirical foundation needed to understand key issues surrounding both race and work. Loscocco trace current patterns to their historical roots, showing that the work lives of women and men from different race and ethnic groups have always been interrelated. The chapters document the U.S.’s multicultural labor history, discuss how labor markets and jobs became segregated, and analyze key racial-ethnic patterns in work opportunities. The book also addresses common misconceptions about why women and men from some racial-ethnic groups end up with better jobs than others. It closes with a look at contemporary developments and suggests steps toward a future in which race-ethnicity will no longer affect work opportunities and experiences. Race and Work deepens understanding and elevates the discussion of race, racism, and work in an engaging, accessible style. It will be an essential resource for anyone interested in work, race-ethnicity, social inequality, or intersections among race, gender, and class.

"Leading for equity requires the ability to look beyond surface-level, technical fixes and meet ever-more demanding adaptive challenges. While all stakeholders must own a common vision of systemic equity, building-level leaders play an especially critical role in realizing such a vision. And, at this particular point in our history, the need for principals to cultivate the will and skill to educate all children in safe and affirming environments has become more acute than ever"--