In 1981, literary great Toni Morrison spoke at the annual meeting of the Ohio Arts Council where she eloquently shared, “If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” In the spirit of these words, Planted Leadership is the book that I’ve been called to write.
In June 2018, I founded Planted Leadership, a leadership coaching and training firm devoted to supporting the next generation of leaders. Our mission is to help leaders at all levels embody exceptional leadership skills. At Planted Leadership, we work with professionals from all backgrounds, however, we are passionate about designing tools, resources, and training modules that support professionals of color.
A study by Catalyst — a global nonprofit working to build workplaces that work for women — for Asian, Black, Latinx, and multiracial employees; exclusion, discrimination, and bias can be daily experiences in the workplace. In this study of 1,569 professionals working at both corporations and nonprofits across the country, research shows that over 40% of Asian, Black, Latinx, and multiracial respondents report being on guard because they anticipate racial/ethnic bias. The study also found that women of color (24%) are more likely than men of color (11%) to be on guard because they expect both gender and racial bias. This study and a multitude of research show that professionals of color are experiencing the workplace differently from their peers.
We at Planted Leadership believe that a good business strategy incorporates leadership coaching offerings and targeted leadership development programs for underrepresented groups. Leaders of color can greatly benefit from leadership development programs that take into account their lived experiences and training opportunities that courageously tackle topics that are top of mind. Through Planted Leadership, we hope to provide the tools and resources necessary to promote and support leaders of color as they step into greater roles.
19 years as head of HR has prepared me for this work
Prior to founding Planted Leadership, I served as the head of HR for both private and nonprofit companies for the last 19 years. I’ve listened to countless employee concerns, fears, desires, aspirations, and disappointments. In the case of women and leaders of color, these conversations centered around silencing, navigating the double bind, lack of a sense of belonging, not being able to bring one’s full self to work, or not getting direct feedback in time to course correct before a performance review. After decades of these conversations, I’ve committed myself to be of service to women and leaders of color in workplaces everywhere. Together we will boldly and bravely discuss these challenges and provide practices and tools to help each client thrive at work.
Our work is an extension of diversity and inclusion training and a concrete way for companies to invest in the talent they need to grow and thrive in today’s competitive marketplace. We believe that a world-class diversity, inclusion, and equity program should include an intentional effort to provide an avenue for underrepresented employees to find their leadership power. In our experience, women and leaders of colors who receive targeted leadership development training and coaching report a greater sense of ease, confidence, impact, and effectiveness.
How to work with us:
Become an executive sponsor for a leadership coaching opportunity
For underrepresented leaders in your organization, our 1-1 leadership coaching program is an impactful opportunity for each leader to meet with a coach over the course of a few months. This coaching opportunity is designed to tackle issues that matter most to the leader.
Host one of our tailored leadership development training for your employees
We have a number of training offerings including Leadership Presence, Communicating as a Leader, Navigating Imposter Syndrome, Leading Teams, Managing Difficult Conversations, Gathering Performance Feedback, Managing Workplace Stress, and Authoring your Leadership Voice. We also offer customized training based on your needs.
Join our Women’s Leadership Cohort
Our Women’s Leadership Cohort program provides an opportunity for leaders to meet with other women leaders and learn leadership best practices in a welcoming and energizing community.
Sit with our team to create a blueprint on how to bring D&I best practices around belonging, equity, and inclusion into your organization.