Thanks to all of you who sent comments on last month’s article - "Employer Awards: The "Specialness". I was glad to hear that it rang true for so many of you. One organization reported that they distributed it to all the members of their Awards Planning Committee – using the article as a special “item for discussion” at their next meeting.

I ended that article by saying “I hope that these thoughts will… perhaps encourage and help some organizations to rethink and redesign how their own award ceremonies are framed and executed.”  I particularly appreciated one reader’s request for more detail on how to practically incorporate these ideas into an awards event. In large part, this issue is a reply to that query.
 

Employer Awards: Shaping the Future By Default or Design

I believe that most employer award ceremonies that give recognition to employers for supporting the employment of people with disabilities need to be dramatically and radically overhauled. It isn't the basic format that I take issue with - award ceremonies of all kinds follow a similar basic pattern. It is what we hang off that basic structure that distinguishes each event. It is the focus of the awards and the flavor of the language that give each event its unique identity. What are the awardees being recognized for? How are the awards and the event itself portraying people with disabilities as members of the workforce? As public events, award ceremonies can be powerful tools for social change and for influencing public awareness. We have to be extremely careful about what particular attitudes and behaviors we are reinforcing through them.

As I understand them, the basic purposes of an awards event are to: 1.Recognize and reinforce the behavior/actions of the awardees; and 2. Encourage other organizations/individuals to emulate those behaviors/actions. In this context, award ceremonies are essentially about behavior – reinforcing behaviors, changing behaviors and encouraging behaviors. I believe that any recognition should clearly focus on “best practices” – what the company did, in an outstanding way, to recruit, hire, accommodate and/or retain employees with disabilities; how that practice was good for their business (or how it was an exemplary practice in advancing human rights and workplace equity); and how the practice can best be emulated by other employers.

By design or default, these events are educational in nature. In the context of people with disabilities (and similar groups who are striving to overcome bias and achieve equity), these award events are equally about asserting positive attitudes, perspectives and information. We are all well-aware how the roles of people with disabilities in our society (and in our workplaces) are restricted by erroneous and rampant beliefs about their incapacity, lack of true talent, inability to lead productive lives, unlikely career prospects, etc. Those of us who are privileged to have influence over how these award events are orchestrated should do so with a reverence for the many ways that our event is going to influence the perspectives and beliefs of each attendee.

Will employers leave with their chests puffed up – self-congratulatory for their benevolent efforts to “help the handicapped” or will they depart even more committed further eliminating barriers in their workplaces that might restrict people with various disabilities from forming a larger part of their work force? Will people with disabilities leave wondering if they will ever be lucky enough to find a kindly-disposed employer who will give them a chance at a job, or will they leave inspired by employers who have learned to look beyond disability, more focused on their personal talents, and more confident in their career journeys? 

To demonstrate how events can be more effectively postured to both encourage “best practices” and to instill constructive attitudes and awareness, I have selected (and slightly altered) some actual and recent awardee profiles – and suggested how they might be reframed. I am hopeful that these “Before” and “After” profiles will illustrate the power that we have to communicate a new and exciting depiction of people with disabilities as current and aspiring participants in the workforce.
 

Gord’s Ski Shop

Before: Gord’s Ski Shop is a long time supporter of The Transitional Collaborative, a partnership program of South Bend Human Services, the Kenora High School District and the Department of Rehabilitation. They are always open to placements of young people at their store and have frequently hired the person after their placement is completed. The job trainees learn valuable skills, such as customer service, bagging, stocking and janitorial routines.

After: Gord’s Ski Shop is a long time partner in the Transitional Collaborative; a joint program of South Bend Human Services, the Kenora High School District and the Department of Rehabilitation. Gord’s Ski Shop routinely engages students in internship placements. Often, at the conclusion of the internships, they have directly hired student who have excelled. While Gord’s Ski Shop benefits from what the interns contribute to their business, the interns also acquire skills and experiences that will serve them well as they build their future careers.   

Note: The focus of the original write-up is almost entirely on what the company has done for folks with disabilities, rather than on what the experience has done for the company. It praises the company for frequently giving the students jobs – without highlighting the program for providing a valuable talent pool for the company.
 

The Human Bean

Before: The Human Bean coffee shop has been an exemplary employer of people with disabilities over the past several years. Management and staff show great compassion and acceptance towards employees with disabilities, while still ensuring all employees share the same expectations and goals of reaching their maximum potential. The staff have been very good at communicating when there is a need for intervention and are professional and pleasant to work with, always listening to both the client’s and job coach’s views and accepting advice and feedback regarding ways to best deal with issues as they arise.

After: The Human Bean coffee shop has been an exemplary employer of people with disabilities over the past several years. Management and staff appreciate the value that these workers bring to the company. The Human Bean is keen on giving all their employees the opportunity to grow, succeed, and make their best contribution to the company. On an ongoing basis, they are conscientious about quickly addressing any performance issues that might arise with their employees with disabilities and they readily welcome any concerns or suggestions raised by the employees themselves and/or their job coaches.

Note: While the focus of the first profile recognizes the company for showing “compassion and acceptance” and having “pleasant” and cooperative staff, the second one praises the company for valuing their employees with disabilities and affording them equal benefit from its exemplary H.R. practices.
 

Pizza Hut

Before: The Pizza Hut of Hadashville has shown their commitment in the area of hiring and retaining workers with developmental disabilities for over ten years. Currently, Pizza Hut has three clients of Independence Road on their direct payroll. One of these employees recently celebrated his fifth anniversary of employment at their 4th Avenue store.

After: The Pizza Hut of Hadashville has shown their commitment to hiring and retaining workers with developmental disabilities for over ten years. They currently employ three people who they recruited through the services of Independence Road. One of these employees recently celebrated his fifth anniversary of employment at their 4th Avenue store.

Note: The first profile portrays the three individuals as agency “clients” who have been put “on direct payroll”, while the second one portrays them as Pizza Hut employees who have received support from the agency. The first one portrays the company as a support to the agency’s goals, while the second one portrays the agency as a support to the company’s goals.

In summary, I believe that we have to take award events very seriously, as they are powerful tools for influencing the way our communities perceive people with disabilities and their roles in our workplaces. By default, we can be cavalier about how we approach them and we can unconsciously let them carry whatever messages they may to their audiences. By design, however, we can choose to orchestrate them, to craft even their smallest details, in a manner that clearly communicates the valuable talents of people with disabilities, their right to equitable participation in our workforces, and the importance of enabling all citizens to contribute productively to the strength of their economic communities. 

~ Rob McInnes 

© Rob McInnes, Diversity World, August, 2009 (If not used for commercial purposes, this article may be reproduced, all or in part, providing it is credited to "Rob McInnes, Diversity World - www.diversityworld.com". If included in a newsletter or other publication, we would appreciate receiving a copy.)

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