The Myth of Meritocracy

Dear friends - 

I do a lot of speaking, consulting and teaching on DEI-related topics, such as how to overcome hidden biases, how to create cultures that are more inclusive, and how to address the leadership gender gap.

In a recent article, I stated that "Talent is equally distributed in our world, but opportunity is not". We all want to believe that we live in a world where the playing field is even, and everyone has equal access the the same opportunities. Some people truly believe this in their heart of hearts - and I used to be one of them.

I thought that if you wanted a job bad enough, then you just had to work harder for it. If only it were that simple.

When speaking on the topics of DEI or bias, I ask the audience, "Do you hire the best candidates at your company?" The answer is usually mixed with half of employees believing they absolutely hire the best candidate and the other half sheepishly skeptical.

Unfortunately, we do NOT live in a meritocracy.

Even if your company has made great strides towards equity and inclusion, bias is still embedded in the beliefs, mindsets and behaviors of your employees. These beliefs often manifest as microaggressions - defined as verbal, behavioral & environmental indignities that communicate hostile, derogatory or negative slights & insults to a target person or group.

In other words, these are everyday interactions that send signals to others about whether they are part of the ingroup or outgroup.

You may hear statements like, "Everyone can succeed in society if they work hard enough." The unspoken message this sends to people of color (POC), for example, is disparate outcomes result from laziness.

Or "Are you the new diversity hire?" The unspoken message here is that women or POC could not have gotten the job based on qualifications alone. We often offend others by these types of statements even though that's not our intention.

The bottom line is that we need to let go of the belief that we live and work in meritocracies - and start embracing the fact that opportunity is not equally distributed in our world. Once we do that, we can start addressing the core issues of inequity, and begin creating cultures that foster more inclusion and belonging.

You can find more information on my website drshawnandrews.com or my book, The Power of Perception: Leadership, Emotional Intelligence, and the Gender Divide.

Wishing you the best of luck in your career!

Dr. Shawn