Priscilla is the manager of the College of Engineering Human Resources office. In response to a 360 evaluation that revealed numerous significant interpersonal conflicts, Priscilla has initiated and is leading a conflict resolution process for her team. Priscilla hopes to transform her office culture in which current employees are frustrated and unhappy. Pricilla hopes to mediate potentially high rates of attrition in the near future.
Carl and Sean are both coordinators in the central budget and planning office. As a pair, they approach their supervisor, Miguel, to share concerns about patterns of emotion they find distracting and unprofessional in the department staff meetings. Carl and Sean, who identify as men, assert that their colleagues, mostly women, have expressions of emotion that they perceive to derail conversations. They believe emotions should be mediated so the team meetings can be focused on work.
A sub-committee of leaders from the University Marketing team convenes to deliberate a pattern of feedback they have received regarding their use of language in event and program promotions, which many clients and community members have experienced as insensitive, mislabeling and offensive.
A team of administrators representing university admissions, undergraduate studies, institutional research, and multicultural affairs convene to explore and revise institutional use of the word “minority” to describe the experiences of historically marginalized racial groups.
Dede and Willam are associate deans in the College of Liberal Arts. As a side project to their management responsibilities, they decide to co-author an article on culturally responsive academic leadership. They both recognize the need for more information on culturally responsive leadership in their context and take it upon themselves to fill the gap in the literature.
Trevor, a supervisor in Alumni Relations, is responsible for leading 10 professional and graduate student employees. Trevor is enrolled in a yearlong supervision and leadership coaching series. The most recent session focused on consciousness and inclusion in professional mentorship. The workshop covered how professionalism is socially constructed and how work norms related to clothing, hair styles and other forms of individual expression are somewhat arbitrary and shaped by larger race, class and gender norms.
Mari is an assistant vice president for information services responsible for the oversight of Banner, the institution-wide student records system. Banner collects comprehensive data from students at the time of admission and feeds numerous online tools throughout the university, including learning management systems, student health records and academic records.
Don, an associate director in enrollment management, is responsible for a team of five professionals and more than a dozen student workers. Don receives feedback from one of his direct reports that his heavy reliance on personal anecdotes about his childhood and extended family to illustrate concepts or communicate the organization’s mission and vision is at times confusing or disengaging – and not often relatable for people of color on the team.
