A Conversation with James White & Krista White, authors of Anti-Racist Leadership: How to Transform Corporate Culture in a Race-Conscious World

What does Anti-Racist leadership look like in practice?

Businesses seeking to foster an anti-racist culture within their companies face rethinking policies that have been in place, unquestioned and unexamined, often for years if not since the beginning of the organization. But what does this look like in practice?

James White and Krista White, President and CEO respectively of Jamba Juice and authors of Anti-Racist Leadership: How to Transform Corporate Culture in a Race-Conscious World, were recently interviewed by Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose (CECP) about the leadership qualities needed to effect real corporate change within an organization.

The first priority? Creating space for all backgrounds and voices:

"Anti-racist leadership is also about expanding the conversation beyond Black and white. Not only must it include other races, religions, and ethnic groups, demonstrably important by the recent prevalence of anti-Asian attacks and anti-Semitism, but it must also include every aspect of identity. Queer rights, trans rights, disability rights, and women’s rights, just to name a few, are included in how anti-racism is defined. To proclaim that Black Lives Matter or to Stop Asian Hate, we must first acknowledge and honor all intersections of these identities." --Krista White.

The authors share examples of successfull anti-racist leadership within a business setting, noting that what all the examples had in common were that policies changes were tied to the achievement of measurable goals. New policies were monitored and tracked to ensure they were doing what they were intended to do.

They also emphasize that collaboration -- using teams to assess problems and find solutions, is a more effective tool than a policy that is implemented from the top down. Collaboration is the difference between a new policy that is imposed, and one that is embraced.

"Our three most critical takeaways for CEOs are first – this work is about improving culture; the CEO should never delegate this leadership. Second – a rigorous examination of all people-related systems and processes is critical. Finally – the action and lever for sustainable change involves focusing on the middle management of the company." -- James White

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