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Yesterday an article by Ruben Navarrette regarding “hard work” reminded me of an important lesson I learned long ago. Please read it – it’s wonderful. It’s a lesson that keeps me grounded in what has already been a fortunate life and career.

I started working when I was about seven. Now before you go and contact someone regarding child labor laws, keep in mind this was back in the late 1960’s, and I was working at my elementary school.  At the time, I attended a small Catholic school in Los Angeles along with four other siblings. With three more sisters at a Catholic high school, paying tuition for all of us was always a challenge for my parents. When meeting monthly tuition bills was difficult, the nuns managing the school would come up with creative ways to “balance the books.”

In some instances, it meant my older brother and I would come in early on Saturday mornings to do some school cleaning: washing blackboards, dusting erasers, vacuuming rooms, and mopping hallways. My brother and I had a wonderful time doing it. Not only did we get to run in the hallways (always forbidden), listen to rock music, and invade the cafeteria’s food bank, we took a lot of pride in knowing that we were somehow contributing towards our education. Although we never revealed what we did to other kids in the school, we earned the respect of our teachers because of our work.

Years later as a sophomore in high school, a friend told me that a factory up the street was looking for a couple of students to do some part-time work. Again, mostly maintenance work including scrubbing down the factory floor bathrooms (yes, not fun). Some of the money went in my pocket, some towards paying for high school and the rest for gas money (I had a cool 1964 Ford Ranchero- a classic!).

I never felt embarrassed or regretful in taking on these jobs. I didn’t “miss out” on a regular childhood either.  In fact, these jobs and others growing up probably kept me out of trouble as a teenager – thankfully.  The experiences instilled a strong work ethic. Resilience. Self-respect.

Most important, it implanted in me the belief that anyone doing an honest days work, no matter what it is, deserves my respect.

Having been involved in economic development initiatives many years ago for the City of El Paso, I realize how challenging it is to recruit new organizations into a community. Companies consider so many factors: city infrastructure, employment base, education, transporation, tax abatements, and many other things. Cities like San Antonio were very innovative years ago when they focused on creating economic development opportunities around specific industries like healthcare before it was on anyone’s radar. Now the medical industry is one of San Antonio’s largest employers. Today I came across another innovative idea – this one being driven by higher education to rebuild urban communities. Legislation in congress called the “ Urban University Renaissance Act of the 21st Century” focuses on helping rebuild neighborhoods in urban areas around the country. What a great idea. The law would award grants to institutions of higher education to establish and maintain community outreach partnership centers and expand existing community engagement activities that address urban problems.  What better way to rebuild communities than by investing in education?

8/31 – Update

St. Mary’s in San Antonio is already following this approach. Read how. h/t  @StMarysU

I’m passionate about education. I’ve been teaching online for a few colleges for nearly a decade now. I’m always inspired by students especially those that are single moms, career changers, and working adults. These students and others always remind me of how education needs to be a lifelong experience.  The New York Times has an excellent piece on the importance of continuing education. It profiles one Hispanic college student, too! The article provides a nice overview of how lifelong learning is imperative to remain viable in an work environment that is consistently changing. I’d encourage you to take a look when you have a chance. Great read.

I’m often asked by Latino professionals what the ONE activity they can do to help increase the representation of Latino talent in leadership positions. Obviously, there are many things you and I could suggest. However, when it involves assisting Latino professionals, I always recommend mentoring. Thinking back to the start of my career, I found it challenging to find a mentor that understood my background and experiences. Given my non-traditional educational and career path, I probably wouldn’t have found anyone!

Aside from the counsel, support, and guidance, mentors can also lift as they climb.

Remember that mentoring doesn’t simply involve encouragement; it must also involve career (and leadership) development. Although some organizations have made diversity a priority, many have yet to strike a diverse balance at their senior-levels. There are many reasons for the lack of representation, one of which can be associated with mentoring. People that reach leadership positions are there in part because of a mentor: someone that’s “connected.” Research demonstrates that Hispanics and other minorities are not mentored as much as other groups. This is primarily due to the lack of diversity within senior-level positions. And so it goes – the continual loop.

So ask yourselves: have you created opportunities for Latinos? Have you made the effort to lift as you climb?

Gender is often a factor by which we categorize all our experiences. It’s no surprise then it provides a basis by which we organize our lives, identity, behavior, and viewpoints. This process begins very early in our lives – just think of how many parents choose between pink and blue for a new child’s room. Naturally, all men and women do not have the same perspective, and using gender as a category doesn’t suggest concepts of equality. However, there are still social and cultural forces that compel men and women to follow their “role.” We see this in the workplace as well.

Gender schemas can often be associated with specific industries or functions. This type of conformity is still evident, even in careers women and men pursue (e.g. male/engineering & female/nursing). Despite years of study and research on career segregation, there is no single-factor that explains why this still happens. Clear, however, are the consequences: the continued undervaluation of women in the workplace.

Over the last month I’ve read a couple books: Made to Stick and The Tipping Point. Both books essentially discuss why some ideas spread (like an epidemic) and why others do not. The underlying theme in both books is change – why change happens quickly and why it sometimes does not. This morning I read a post by Seth Godin on the power of slow change. An interesting perspective given that we live in a society that’s often dictated by short-sighted thinking. Our time horizons have shortened dramatically: politicians driven by the next election are always campaigning; organizations pressed by their next quarterly earnings are constantly selling; and the media motivated by ratings is constantly entertaining.      

As the authors of Made to Stick note, change that’s unexpected usually alters the way things get done. But this is rare. Not all lasting change is driven on this time scale. Issues like the environment, for example, work on a much different timeline. Our environmental problems can be solved but require decades to see the solutions or even progress. The same can be said about issues like immigration, education, and diversity. Many organizations or institutions are unable to grasp the idea of addressing these challenges simply because they’re not able to function within a different time scale.

What time has shown us is that many of these challenges are solvable. Today, organizations that took the long-term view of diversity, for example, are reaping the rewards of the multi-cultural workforce needed to function in a globalized economy. Other organizations are trying to accomplish this on the short-term time scale – an approach that’s fast but not very deep. Diversity teaches patience.         

Patience is a vital characteristic of a progressive organization. It’s advantageous and smart for an organization to function at different time scales at the same time. Technology and business can change rapidly – they must. Culture and demographics change at a much different pace – as they do. Because most organizations focus on change that happens quickly, they overlook the long-lasting benefits of profound measured change. Much like glaciers that take centuries to sheer off the side of mountain, slow deep change can leave behind a landscape that’s beautiful to look at and very hard to alter.

I’m honored and excited to have been asked to be part of  leadership summit sponsored by the Center for Hispanic Leadership.

The Summit entitled, Embracing Innovation Through Diversity, will take place September 18th in Los Angeles.

The Summit will explore the role of Hispanic professionals and diversity at-large, as well as its impact and influence on propelling innovation in the workplace. By examining the evolving landscape of business, society and the trends that now define the “new normal” – attendees will learn about the new types of leadership opportunities for Hispanic professionals and multicultural groups at-large.

The list of delegates thus far is impressive coming from various industries, backgrounds, and experiences. I’ll be writing more about the event over the next few weeks leading up to it.

Earlier today, I had a chance to watch the Ronald McDonald House Charities’ (RMHC)/HACER college scholarship recipient webcast. The RMHC/HACER partnership awards $100,000 to fulfill the college dreams of Hispanic college students. This year marks 25th Anniversary of the RMHC/HACER Scholarship Program.

I was truly inspired by the accomplishments of these young Latino leaders. Many are now in college studying economics, biology, and the arts. While each of these students are deserving of a scholarship for academic achievements, it’s also worth noting that all of them give back to their community. As one recipient aptly noted, “It’s up to us to change the world.”

Despite numerous barriers, at times posed by some in their own family, these scholarship recipients shared how they overcame challenges by believing in themselves and with the support of their colleges and mentors; a critical aspect of successful Hispanic college students. The program did an excellent job of having recipients share their experiences in getting ready for college: SATs, admissions, scholarships, and developing relationships. If the recorded webcast is available, I’ll upload the link. Truly worth watching.

More information about the RMHC and HACR Scholarship for 2011 can be found here.

Growing up as a kid in East L.A., I had a lot of dreams. One was wanting to join the Boy Scouts. I remember spending hours browsing through a Scout manual I’d found one day on the street. I would imagine camping in the mountains, building a fire by rubbing sticks together, and eating the fish I’d caught from a roaring river. I’d use first aid tricks to mend someone’s twisted ankle with a brace I’d make from tree branches and a shoelace. Yes, I was a ready to be a Boy Scout!

It was a great imaginary world that would whisk me away from the busy and noisy city street just outside my bedroom window. When I heard a neighbor’s mother was organizing a Cub Scout troop, I joined. Eagerly, I awaited our first trek into the wilderness. And even though our first meeting only attracted four other kids, I knew we’d be eventually grow our troop to include many more participants. I remember the other three children were just learning to speak English so the troop mom would translate the Cub scout manual for them. I remember wondering why the manuals didn’t come in Spanish. In fact, I began to wonder why all the pictures of boys in the books didn’t resemble the kids in my troop. When I talked to other kids at school about joining, many had never heard of the Boy Scouts or Cub Scouts – and really had no desire to join anyway. I remember one kid telling me – “that’s only for White people anyway.” Eventually, our small troop disbanded and the dream was over.

These vivid memories were rekindled as a result of an article I read in the New York Times this morning. When I think about organizations that have resisted to change with the cultural and social environment of this country, I often think about the Boy Scouts of America. The article discusses some of the issues that have confronted the Boy Scouts over the years including a dwindling membership, a lack of diversity, and some legal battles. Ironically, the Boy Scouts is now making a big push to increase its membership by targeting young Hispanics around the country.   

Aside from their issues, the Boy Scouts is a perfect case study for organizations that resist change. Not because they weren’t paying attention but by choice. No organization is immune to its external environment – or change. Organizational change begins by questioning traditional frameworks and appreciating the growing importance of engaging the external environment. Many organizations choose NOT to change because they value their stable and conventional behavior –  they assume no unexpected surprises. Reliability is supplied by boundaries of responsibility, roles, and control. Individual behavior within the organization is directed by specific rules of engagement and interaction; there is no deviation from this narrow scope of expectations.

That many organizations still follow these “rules” can be unfortunate, and even today, they’re not hard to find.

Today, I had the opportunity to attend the “The War for Talent in the Workplace: The Next 24 Months!” webcast sponsored by the Center for Hispanic Leadership (@HispanicTalent) and IBM. An excellent organization. Featured were Glenn Llopis, CEO for the Center for Hispanic Leadership, Andres Tapia (@AndresTTapia), Chief Diversity Office at Hewittt Associates,  and Andrea White, Chief Privacy Officer for Toyota Motor Sales.

The webcast included a lot of great information regarding the importance of leadership, talent, diversity, and Latinos in the workplace. Central to the discussion was the idea of the ‘new normal’ or what Andres Tapia termed an “upside down world.” To compete and survive in this new environment, panelists suggested organizations learn to solve new dilemmas with new approaches to thinking. Similar to what I suggested in a post yesterday regarding diversity of thought, organizations must be able to tap all their talent to succeed in business environment that is increasingly global and fluid.

Part of this transformation includes developing Hispanic talent. Unfortunately, it was apparent from the discussion that most organizations either are not doing so or don’t know how. Panelists stressed that organizations should leverage innate Hispanic cultural characteristics that make Hispanics excellent employees. By understanding and developing these traits, companies will not only foster the development of Hispanic talent but ultimately improve their bottom line.

If you’re interested in these topics and want to learn more, the Center of Hispanic Leadership is sponsoring The Leadership Summit: Embracing Innovation Through Diversity  September 18th in Los Angeles.