Describe some of the delusions that women of colour grapple with in the corporate workplace.
I interviewed more than 500 women for my book, and it became clear to me early on that women of colour (WOC) are working within a system of delusions. Based on my research, 10 delusions are at the heart of the corporate environment. Some of us contort ourselves to these delusions in order to fit in and get ahead, while others opt out to find new opportunities or create their own businesses. If we have any hope of changing things, we need to recognize these delusions and talk about them.
The first delusion — and one of the most pernicious — is the idea that the pipeline for WOC is broken, leading recruiters to say ‘we just can’t find talent.’ That is a myth. Research shows that people tend to correlate and congregate with others like them. One study found that white people’s social networks were 91 per cent white. This suggests that white recruiters and HR leaders also have predominantly white networks, which cultivates a white pipeline. Many of the individual WOC I met told me they could easily name 100 qualified women in their networks. The real issue is that white leaders are not looking in the right places.
In addition to corporate delusions,
