Local DEI executive: DEI being 'weaponized,' diversity will be necessary for recruitment in Minnesota
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Minneapolis-based Target is the latest of several large corporations — like McDonalds, Walmart and Meta — that have recently said they are rolling back diversity, equity and inclusion goals or DEI. Many of those initiatives were created or expanded under pressure to respond to racial inequality after the murder of George Floyd in 2020.
Conservative activists have objected to these efforts saying it gives unfair advantages. And on President Donald Trump’s first day in office a week ago, he signed an executive order removing DEI programs from the federal government.
Sharon Smith-Akinsanya is the CEO of the Minneapolis-based marketing firm Rae Mackenzie Group and founder of the People of Color Career Fair. She joined Minnesota Now with perspective on this turn away from DEI.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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Audio transcript
The Minneapolis-based company is the latest of several large corporations, like McDonald's, Walmart, and Meta, that have recently said they're rolling back DEI goals. Goals that were created or expanded under pressure to respond to racial inequalities after the murder of George Floyd in 2020.
Conservative activists have objected to these efforts, saying it gives unfair advantages. And on his first day in office a week ago, President Donald Trump signed an executive order removing DEI programs from the federal government.
Joining me with perspective on this turn away from DEI is Sharon Smith-Akinsanya. She's CEO of the Minneapolis-based marketing firm, the Rae Mackenzie Group, and Founder of the People of Color Career Fair.
Thank you so much for being here with us this afternoon, Sharon.
SHARON SMITH-AKINSANYA: Thank you for having me, Nina.
NINA MOINI: So that was a lot there, I just ran down in our introduction. It's been such a journey in the last five years, and you've really been at the forefront of watching how DEI has evolved. What are your thoughts as you're reflecting on this start to the Trump administration?
SHARON SMITH-AKINSANYA: You know, Nina, millions of Americans and so many Minnesotans are just scared, right, about the rollbacks to DEI and civil rights. You know, civil rights, I might add, that many of our ancestors died for.
And I just want to make sure everybody understands something. I usually talk to CEOs directly, but today, I want to make sure that professionals in our region understand that we have the power. Nina, there are only 51 workers for every 100 jobs. We're going to lose 500,000 white people, and gain 750,000 African-Americans and Latinos in our state.
In order for this region, our Minnesota, to remain competitive, our CEOs must understand how to continue to build relationships with this segment of-- [AUDIO OUT] the population. And so when you think about buying power too, you know, the LGBTQ+ community, African-Americans, Latinos, Asian-Pacific Islanders, $6 trillion in buying power.
So no matter what president Trump does about rolling back DEI programs and trying to trample all over civil rights, the truth of the matter is, is that in order for the region to remain competitive and our nation to remain competitive, those relationships must exist from a marketing standpoint, from a talent standpoint. And every CEO in this region will tell you that talent is the number one-- attracting and retaining world class talent is a real issue, and so they're going to still have to deal with that.
NINA MOINI: And to your point, I mean, President Trump can give this directive to the federal government, but these CEOs, like at Target, they're making these moves on their own. Do you think that it's in response to that? Or you've worked with Target in the past. Were you surprised to hear this?
SHARON SMITH-AKINSANYA: Well, you know, it was very surprising. I think that the political climate is very challenging, and CEOs are going to have to make a decision as to how they want to manage this political climate. And I believe that this one was particularly tough because, you know, for 30 years and many, many years, you know-- we all love Target, right? You know, they-- so this was a tough one.
And so-- and I know that so many of us are feeling like what is really going on? You know, I read behind the headlines, and I see that Target is still committed to a lot of the work that they've been committed to in the past, but the narrative has taken hold. And so one of the things that I would say is that we can't deal with this-- with, you know, lazy press releases, if you will. We have to make sure that we're very clear about what it is that we mean, because this is impacting so many people emotionally.
You know, the companies that have products inside of Target, and, you know, those of us who do business with Target, we're just not quite sure, really and truly, what it means, because we haven't heard from the CEO directly. So-- at least I haven't. So I'm looking to hear more, to see what he's thinking.
NINA MOINI: Yeah. And I just want to note, you know, to your point, MPR News has put out interview requests to Target and would like to hear more about the decision from Target, as I'm sure that a lot of people do.
Looking into DEI, you're saying-- you know, at the top of our interview, you're saying basically the demographics are changing, the country is changing, the makeup of our voters and of our workforce is changing. There's nothing to be done about that.
What do you say to people who say, how are these DEI efforts not just giving an unfair advantage then to someone else instead of, perhaps, a white employee?
SHARON SMITH-AKINSANYA: Well, you know, DEI has been weaponized to mean, if it's a DEI program, that means that I'm not qualified. That's not what that means. What it means is that I have the opportunity to be in the pot.
You see, the thing about it is, is that we sort of-- when you think about talent and you think about recruiting, we tend to sort of attract the people that we know. And when we think about not having many diverse networks at the highest levels of the organization, we hire who we know. So when we think about diversity, equity, and inclusion-- and we all know from the studies that have been done by Deloitte and McKinsey-- you know that it breeds innovation, that diversity is good business, you know, it makes you more competitive.
But if you don't have the opportunity to be at the table for that career opportunity, if I'm not even in the pot, if I'm not even at the table or in the selection pool, then I don't have the opportunity. So DEI was just about making sure that someone who looks like me has the opportunity to have that chance to interview for that position and be promoted.
So it's not about me being better or less than, you know, the next person. I just want to have a seat at the table. We don't want to make sure that the entire selection pool is 100% white, because that means I don't have the opportunity to show what I know.
So that's all that means. And so what they've changed it to is something really ugly and sinister. And it means that if you're in the middle of DEI, if you're in a DEI program, that means it's some sort of tokenism, or that, "You're not really that smart, Sharon Smith-Akinsanya. You don't really deserve that. It's because you're Black."
Well, that is crazy. And so that is the problem, and I want everybody listening to understand that that's not what it is. It's about fairness and being equitable in thinking about opportunity for all of us.
You see, we all have to remember how we got here, Nina. You know, we didn't ask to be here as Black people. We were stolen.
And so-- so as a result of that, we have to make sure that over the years-- and many people have fought and died for us to have the right to vote, to have the right to have a seat at the table, you know, so basically diversity, equity, and inclusion just says, hey, let's make sure that we're reflective of the consumers we serve. Let's just make sure our employee base is reflective of our community. You know?
And when you think about that buying power, how can any CEO ignore the fact that you must make sure that you're issuing a proper invitation to all segments of the marketplace to do business with you, and to consider career opportunities with your organization?
You see, professionals need to ask themselves the question, can I see myself? Can I see myself inside of that organization? Do I have enough people that look like me in the C-suite? Is there an employee resource group that I can go to, to make sure that I'm going to continue to be professionally developed so that I can continue to add more value to the organization?
Do their values align with mine? You see, we have choices, because we will be a majority minority nation, and CEOs and those who are in leadership are going to have to figure this out. And we're going to have to come out of the ivory tower and make sure that they are building real, solid relationships.
It's just like any other relationship that you want to-- it's like having a relationship with your girlfriend or your boyfriend or your wife. You have to keep nurturing and building on that.
So I asked CEOs, you know, who are you golfing with next week? Who are you inviting to your Christmas party? Who are you-- who do you call when you're excited? Who do you call when you're sad?
Who did Brian Cornell call when he decided to make this decision about how to make this change? Did he have enough people with different perspectives to have that conversation with?
And so that's what makes it special, when you can spread your wings and when you can have that diverse group of innovative leaders to have that conversation with.
NINA MOINI: Before I have to let you go, Sharon, and we'd love to have you back, as things continue to unfold, we see now-- you know, we mentioned at the top, Twin Cities Pride saying they're dropping Target as a partner for Pride coming up in June. Before I let you go, when you are working with companies and people, how are you advising them right now to talk about their DEI initiatives so that they are defining them and presenting them in the ways that you're talking about it right now?
SHARON SMITH-AKINSANYA: Very strategically. So we're having good conversations, asking good questions. Who does it impact?
We're making sure that we're bringing all stakeholders in.
You know, how would this impact you if we made some of these adjustments?
Because the political climate is fraught, and companies don't want to be sued and continue to be sued, and, you know, we get that. It is what it is.
But we're here in Minnesota, and CEOs can make the decision on how they want to run their companies. And so we're having good conversations, asking good questions, and being very strategic about how we make any changes, if any.
NINA MOINI: Sharon Smith-Akinsanya, thank you so much for your time this afternoon.
SHARON SMITH-AKINSANYA: Thank you for having me, Nina.
NINA MOINI: Sharon Smith-Akinsanya is CEO of the Rae Mackenzie Group, a DEI marketing firm based in Minneapolis, and Founder of the People of Color Career Fair. MPR News, again, has also reached out to Target for comment on this story.
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