The Power of Intentionality

In this powerful episode, I sit down with the inspiring Devoreaux Walton, Founder and Managing Partner at revelant.  Devoreaux shares her incredible journey from her roots in a diverse, underrepresented community to becoming a leading voice in the DEI space.

 

💡 What We Discuss:

👉🏾The personal experiences that fueled  Devoreaux's passion for inclusion and belonging.

👉🏾The real impact of 2020’s racial reckoning on corporate DEI initiatives—and where we stand today.

👉🏾How true leadership in DEI goes beyond checking boxes and into creating meaningful, lasting change.

Devoreaux also gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the challenges and opportunities in integrating DEI into marketing, product design, and corporate culture. Plus, she shares invaluable tips on self-care, resilience, and staying true to your mission.

 

Tune in now to hear Devoreaux's insights and strategies that can help you lead with purpose and make a lasting impact.

 

Connect with Devoreaux:  Website: revelant LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/devoreauxwalton

 

Connect with Angela: Website: www.angelavharris.com Instagram: @coachangelavharris   @theflowpodcastwithangela  LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/angelavharris   Thank you for listening to the F.L.O.W. Podcast.  The F.L.O.W. is released bi-weekly on Wednesdays and is available on over 15 platforms. Listen and subscribe to the F.L.O.W. Podcast on your favorite platform today!

 

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Each episode of The F.L.O.W. is dedicated to amplifying the voices of Black women in leadership. We dive deep into your journey, perspectives, and experiences, creating a space to inspire and empower our community.

 

If you’re ready to share your leadership journey with the world, I’d love to have you as a guest on the show! bit.ly/flowpodcastguest

Episode Transcript

Angela Harris (00:05):
Music. Welcome to the flow podcast, fearlessly
leading our way.
This podcast is a spacededicated to spotlighting the
unfiltered voices of black womenin their unique leadership
journeys.
I am your host, Angela V.Harris, I'm an award winning

(00:27):
coach, speaker, author andchampion from black women. Make
sure you like and subscribe tothis podcast to stay connected
to our conversation,
let's get ready to flow.
Hello, fearless leaders, andwelcome back to the flow

(01:01):
podcast, where we explore thejourneys of Black women leaders.
I am your host, Angela V Harris,today's guest is Devoreaux
Walton.
Devereaux is the founder andmanaging partner at inclusion By
Design Company. She is a thoughtleader, speaker, consultant and

(01:25):
inclusion strategist.
Her passion lies at theintersection of belonging,
inclusion, technology andworkplace culture, focused on
how to amplify inclusion andbelonging in both marketing and
work environments.
Devoreaux is proud to focus onhighlighting the voices and

(01:45):
experiences of historicallymarginalized and
underrepresented ofunderrepresented groups to
impact representation andequity.
She leverages over a decade ofexperience in marketing strategy
and human resources when servingclients in the community.
A proud Southern Belle Devoreauxis a Spelman College graduate

(02:10):
with a bachelor's degree inpsychology, a Washington
University in St Louis graduatewith a master's degree in
business administration and fourcertifications in diversity,
equity, inclusion and belongingwhen she isn't building brands
or elevating corporate cultures.

(02:30):
She enjoys attending Symphonyconcerts, playing tennis and
indulging in interior designstyling.
Welcome to the show Devoreaux,

Devoreaux Walton (02:41):
wow. This is incredible. I'm so excited to be
here, and thank you, Angela, forhaving me.

Angela Harris (02:47):
Well, I am so excited to have you. This is
definitely a topic that I'mexcited to explore and learn
more about and definitely hearyour insights.

Devoreaux Walton (02:58):
Awesome. I've got a lot to say and a lot to
share. Good, good, good. Well,with that, let's jump right in
and get started. Walk us throughyour journey to becoming a
thought leader in the DEI space.Yeah, absolutely. So it really
goes back to, I would say, mychildhood, like just being
brought up in a family and in acommunity where everyone around

(03:23):
me was underrepresented, right?So I am the daughter of two
veterans. They both of myparents served in the army.
That's actually where they metgrowing up, I had siblings and
other family members who wereeither, you know, people who

(03:44):
were disabled or people whoidentified within the LGBTQIA
community. And you know, justbeing an African American woman
myself, I certainly understandthe the differences in terms of
the experience, and you know howwe navigate life being a person
who finds themselvesunderrepresented, especially if

(04:07):
you are in multiple categoriesof being underrepresented. So
started out my career inmarketing, doing a lot of
traditional marketing, a lot ofdigital marketing, and while I
was in the marketing space, Istarted volunteering as an
employee resource group leader.And so a couple of years into

(04:27):
the work of volunteering as a coleader for a ERG, everything
happened in 2020 with themurders back to back of
unfortunately, more than oneblack American at the hands of
police brutality, and that, forme, was the tipping point. I
just could not stand to keepseeing it happening over and

(04:51):
over. And so I decided that Iwanted to be part of the group
who were going to providesolutions.
Provide support to really helpchange the world, making it a
better place for the nextgeneration and future
generations coming behind us.And so I was very intentional. I
studied, I had a lot ofinformational interviews, and

(05:14):
really learned more about theDEI B space, and made that
transition to really get up tospeed on the fundamentals and
become a practitioner. And sonow here we are in 2024 and I
really have found a way tonavigate combining and
integrating the marketingexpertise, especially around

(05:37):
strategy, branding andpromotional campaigns, along
with product design andaccessibility with the deib
experience, and so it's a reallynice blend of the two, and
that's the focus for me rightnow.
So it definitely sounds likeyou're an expert at
intersectionality in yourpersonal and professional world,

(05:59):
absolutely. And I always talkabout how this work is very
personal for me because of myown lived experience, right, but
also the experiences of familymembers. So the people around me
who I have seen, their highs andtheir lows, and this work is, is
not just to check the box. And Iget infuriated to know in when a

(06:22):
lot of the context around theconversation is, let's just
check a box. Let's just do this.It's a federal requirement for
the ADA. Let's just do thisthing. Get it over with. Let's
do this bias training. Get itover with. But this work is very
personal, because the impact isvery large, and when we think
about the black tax, and there'sso many, you know, taxes for a

(06:45):
lot of underrepresented groups,you know, just being able to
relieve the burden of being aperson who is underrepresented,
and so making that change is ispart of the movement I'm I'm in.

Angela Harris (06:58):
Well, thank you for being an advocate, and, like
you said, being the change thatyou wish to see in the world.
And that's actually a greatsegue to the next question. I
wanted to touch on. I want totalk about the current state of
the workplace. You touched onit, but, and you know, in 2020
we saw so many companies rush toimplement dei commitments and
strategies after the murder ofGeorge Floyd in particular, and

(07:19):
in the past year, we've seen deidepartments and budgets
eliminated or slashed, and wasit? Was it all performative?

Devoreaux Walton (07:28):
You know, this is not a surprise,
unfortunately. So when we lookat the DEI space from a
workplace culture perspective,there is a cycle of the pendulum
swinging both ways, with a lotof organizations prioritizing it
and a lot of organizations deprioritizing or not emphasizing
it. And so what I look for in anorganization to really determine

(07:52):
their level of commitment iswhether or not they stay the
course. Right? So if anorganization has just gotten
into the DEI be space in thelast five years or less. That
says a lot to me, becauseorganizations who function and
they are really navigating thecorporate culture space with dei
as a foundational principle,those are the organizations that

(08:16):
are going to really stay thecourse. They're not going to
just cancel, minimize,eliminate, on a whim. Now what
we're seeing with this politicalbacklash is, really, I'm going
to be transparent. It is a
it is a level of fear by peoplein the majority. When I say in

(08:39):
the majority, I'm specificallyreferring to heterosexual,
conservative white males thatare trying to stifle the power
and the progression forunderrepresented groups.
Specifically, a lot of whatwe're seeing in legislation in
2024 and even in 2023
is really targeting race.They're not targeting gender.

(09:01):
They're hurting gender, they'rehurting groups and people with
disabilities. They're hurtingother underrepresented groups,
but their target is really onrace and ethnicity, and it's
very clear in a lot of thelegislation that we've seen, we
look at what's happening withthe educational system, and you

(09:21):
know, it really is a I thinkthese polarizing issues are
really great for us as employeesand as an as consumers, to know
where an organization stands, sothat we can either choose or not
choose to invest our time,energy or dollars with an
organization. So from aworkplace perspective, you know,

(09:45):
I really think that a lot oforganizations that are
disengaging and eliminating deithey really don't see the value
and they don't truly understandthe.
Level of impact that it has nowwith the recession, I've seen a
lot of organizations downsizingpretty much every department,

(10:08):
and there are quite a feworganizations that I've seen
that have had to reduce theirworkforce. However, they're not
eliminating dei teams and deidepartments, and so even though
we see some of the loudestvoices online or on the news
that are in opposition, I dobelieve that there's a great

(10:30):
number of organizations andassociations and groups of
people who are going to continueto advocate and going to
continue to prioritize thisreally important work. I

Angela Harris (10:43):
work. Okay, so what do you think organizations
are doing? Well, when it comesto Dei?

Devoreaux Walton (10:51):
Well, this is a good question. I don't think
that in 2024
we're seeing a lot of positiveexamples, although one of the
examples in terms of continuingthe commitment, I think that is
one thing that organizations aredoing well for the organizations

(11:12):
that are fully committed, thathave been in the DEI be space
within their workplace cultureand systems For 20 years plus 30
years plus, depending on thetenure and the age of the
organization right. And so tosee the organizations that are
still committed to it isrefreshing. I've also even seen

(11:33):
some organizations that arecontinuing to really make an
emphasis. And so it's not justsomething off to the side. It's
not optional or a nice to have,but it's really just a top
priority, if it's a core value,and that's how they're
operating. And there are, youknow, consequences in place and

(11:55):
checks and balances, and there'sa level of accountability. I do
think that is, is anotherpositive reflection. The last
thing I'll say is that there hasbeen a larger interest in
organizations to look at howdeib can be applied to the
organization beyond justculture. And so we're starting

(12:19):
to see things like supplierdiversity have more importance
and some of the work that I doaround inclusive marketing and
inclusive design, whether we aredesigning products, designing
work spaces, there's a lot ofother ways that deib can be
embedded and integrated withinan organization beyond just the

(12:43):
corporate culture, and so we arestarting to see a increase in
the amount of organizations thatare looking beyond just the
corporate culture to really makethings more inclusive and
equitable.
Okay, well, I heard youmentioned, I guess, consequences
and accountability as it relatesto advancing now. What exactly

(13:07):
does that look like? Yeah, so Iknow that a lot of organizations
have had sexual harassmenttraining as an annual mandate
similar to cyber security andsome of the other trainings that
most employees have to take,right? And so when there's
accountability measures for theDEI be space, it could look like

(13:30):
a couple of things. It couldlook like leaders of
organizations being graded orhaving their performance
evaluated. Pardon me havingtheir performance evaluated
around representation, withintheir department, within their
team, it could look like someonewho is violating corporate

(13:52):
policies depending on anorganization's handbook, if they
are prioritizing every employeeto be treated with respect and
dignity, because we are allhumans. Then there, there can be
consequences based on someoneviolating that, whether it's
sexual harassment or, you know,something else. And so I think

(14:15):
the most important thing from acultural perspective is that
deib is not something that'sjust talked about. It's
something that is actively done.And I've seen so many
organizations have trainings andhave the roundtable discussions,

(14:36):
which is great to continue theconversations. The conversations
should never end. However, thereis a great opportunity for us to
take more action and have morethings like accountability
measures in place, becausethat's where we see the actual
implementation come to life.

Angela Harris (14:56):
Okay, that's good to know. I'm curious. I was
looking at like a range.

Devoreaux Walton (15:00):
Random companies diversity report, and
I found it interesting to assistthat they said that in one of
the required trainings that theyhad, they only reached 88%
completion at the leadershiplevel. So what is something like
that indicate if the leadersaren't completing the required
trainings? Yeah, this is abroader topic, because I have a

(15:20):
lot of really strong thoughtsand perspectives around required
training. When we requiretraining, we are force feeding
the people who are going to doit, and they don't care, and
they're not committed, are justgoing to say, let me just get
this done and check the box. Theother people who will rebel
against it will just throw theirhands up and opt out completely.

(15:44):
So required training is is verysticky subject. I know some
practitioners believe that it'sit's a good rule of thumb. It's
not something I recommend. Myrecommendation for
organizations, and when we lookat this perspective of the 88%
is really thinking about havingconversations at the top.

(16:06):
Because for me, my perspectiveis all about the actions that
are being taken, right? And sohaving everyone aligned on that
executive team, that leadershipteam, that this is important.
They agree and they commit toit. And what that means is they
are doing one of five thingsevery quarter or every year, or
whatever those measurements are.That's how we look to see

(16:30):
whether or not impact isactually being made. Another
measure I think that's reallyimportant to look at, is
engagement surveys. Someorganizations, most
organizations that have anengagement survey that data is
anonymous, and so an employee isfree to speak their mind about
giving feedback and giving thatcandid perspective about their

(16:54):
employee experience. Now, interms of the 88% you know, that
really shows us that there's agroup within the leadership, the
people leaders, the executivesthat they don't quite
understand, or they don't quitevalue the DEI work being done
for them to not even engage inthe training. You know, I

(17:17):
believe that every people leadershould not be required, but
should desire to learn aboutways to engage with their
employees and with their teamsin order to honor their
humanity. And that could be in alot of different flavors. Maybe
it's dei maybe it's emotionalintelligence, maybe it's

(17:38):
cultural intelligence. There's alot of different ways that
people leaders can continue todevelop their leadership and
people skills in order to reallyfoster authentic connections and
motivate and inspire theirteams. That's the difference
between being a manager, asupervisor and being a leader.
Being a leader is someone who iscommitted to inspiring, really

(18:02):
being able to support and bringout the best in their teams.

Angela Harris (18:06):
That's great perspective. And I like what you
said about the conversations,starting at the top and
emphasizing that's really not aone size fits all approach, and
that the leaders should be givenoptions and the choice to choose
what resonates with them,

Devoreaux Walton (18:22):
yeah. And I think the other thing too is
that, if there's anunderstanding within a
leadership team, that, okay,this is important. Okay, this is
how I'm going to be, you know,my performance is going to be
reviewed, and how I'm going toreally be able to have an
effective outcome at the end ofthe year. That's why these

(18:46):
checks and balances areimportant. The same way that we
have business revenue targets.Every sales team has a target.
You cannot show me one highperforming sales team that does
not have a target, monthly,quarterly. Some even have them
weekly and daily. And so ifwe're monitoring and we're

(19:07):
measuring business results, deibis just as important, because it
directly ties to businessresults. The benefits have been
well documented from HarvardForbes. The list goes on and on.
I mean, I think that we need tomove beyond having the
conversation of making thebusiness case to just making the

(19:29):
commitments to the actions thatwe will take. Yeah,

Unknown (19:34):
you're absolutely right, and talking about the
benefits from the research thatI've seen, benefits of diversity
include increased productivity,profitability, innovation and
brand recognition, which are allgood things for companies.
Absolutely. I mean, it's it's nosecret that when an employee is
respected and valued, they'regoing to be happier. That means

(19:55):
they're more focused on theirwork. That means they are giving
you.

Devoreaux Walton (20:00):
More of themselves to do a higher
quality of work. They're goingto be more loyal. They're going
to stay at an organizationlonger, and we don't need to go
through the recruitingstatistics, but it is much more
expensive to go out and find anew employee than to just retain
a good one. Yeah, to mentionfrom the marketing side, that
consumers care about how theyare being reflected, and so when

(20:23):
they see an ad, when they see acampaign, and it's
disrespectful, it's missing themark, they are going to use
their dollars to either supportor go find another brand that's
going to align with therespectful representation of who
they are in their communities.

Unknown (20:44):
That makes sense.

Angela Harris (20:49):
Can you share a success story or memorable
experience from your work thathighlights the impact of
prioritizing inclusion andbelonging?

Devoreaux Walton (20:58):
Absolutely so. I was working with a nonprofit
organization, excuse me, andthey had just hired a new HR
leader, and this HR leaderreally wanted to take the
organizational culture to thenext level, and so what we did

(21:20):
was a series of team buildingworkshops, highly interactive
for people to get to know eachother. And instead of teaching
principles around Dei, we wereable to use those principles
during the workshops. So oneexample is psychological safety.
Instead of giving definitionsand PowerPoint slides and

(21:43):
worksheets and quizzes andhomework around what it was, we
fostered psychological safety,and so it was a great hands on
learning for organizations toreally get to know what it looks
like when it shows up and it'sreal life and not just a script
or a PowerPoint slide. And sothrough the series of workshops,

(22:05):
we were able to get somefeedback and do touch points at
the six month post survey pointand the 12 month post survey
point. And it was reallyincredible to see the data
around the employees that wereengaged, that felt more
committed to not only theirspecific job, but the
organization, and it was justreally powerful. And this just

(22:30):
confirms the research that hasalready been documented about
why it matters, and it's thisimpact, right? I mean, if we can
really just take this as apeople leadership skill set, and
we don't consider it as a niceto have to avoid legal legal

(22:50):
problems. I think theperspective and the framing of
it is what's most important,because deib is a skill set from
a workplace culture perspective,that really is a leadership
skill. And so we saw the HRleader at this nonprofit just
have such fantastic results, andwas sharing with other nonprofit

(23:13):
organizations as well. You know,I think the important thing
about this is that when we lookat from a workplace culture
perspective, it has to besomething that is prioritized by
the group at the top. Whetherthe group is one person 10
people, everyone has to be onboard, because if there are

(23:35):
other people essentially rowingagainst the current then
different teams and differentemployees are having different
experiences, and there's adisalignment. And so that's one
of the key things aboutorganizations that are really
getting it right, because wheneveryone is on the same accord,
and they understand that thisdei be thing is how we show up,

(24:00):
it's not just a one off orannual training, then things are
much more different, and it's amuch more positive workplace
culture for everyone there.

Angela Harris (24:14):
Yeah, here what you said, alignment is crucial,
and it really resonates with me,because I can think back to
organizations where I've worked,and if you go to the company
website, the there arestatements that say one thing,
but I often felt like thosestatements didn't reflect my
lived experience working formanagers within those
organizations. So like you said,everyone should really be in

(24:36):
alignment. There shouldn't betwo separate messages.

Devoreaux Walton (24:39):
And unfortunately, Angela, that's
the reality for a lot oforganizations, even the
organizations that were doingthe performative work in 2020,
and 2021,
everyone had website paragraphsand social media posts that said
one thing, but the day to day.

(25:00):
Was very different. And so if,if people can like minded
leaders can come together anddecide how best to show up, that
really does help to make aworkplace a much better
experience, because I can tellyou the research around
underrepresented people beingunhappy, they may stay in an

(25:24):
organization to get a checkuntil they can find their next
organization, but trust andbelieve that 1000s and hundreds
of 1000s of people who are nothappy working where they are are
probably actively looking to gosomewhere else, yep,

Unknown (25:42):
yep.

Angela Harris (25:45):
I'm curious. We've seen so many, you know,
mass layoffs within the lastyear or two, and we know that
underrepresented individuals areimpacted at higher rates with
those mass layoffs. How is thatgoing to impact some of the DEI
initiatives that companies haveput in place in terms of
increasing representation.

Devoreaux Walton (26:05):
Yeah, so this goes back to a lot of
organizations that really haveeither deprioritized or
eliminated and just thrown deiout the window. Unfortunately,
we've seen quite a feworganizations to recalibrate
their priorities. And so in 2021the conversation was increased

(26:27):
representation. We're committed,and we care about it because the
sun is shining. And now in 2023and 2024
we are seeing organizations,specifically corporate,
organizations that have no tieor communication, or, excuse me,
connection. Connection was theword I'm looking for to the

(26:49):
education system to say, well,we're just going to opt out, or
we're going to reprioritize. Andso what's happening is that when
we look at the representrepresentation numbers,
especially at the end of thisyear, or even just at the end of
the first half, if we looked atthose numbers in July, I think

(27:10):
we would see larger disparitiesthan what we had in 2020 and
2021,
now, from a lot of practitionerswho have been in this space for,
you know, multiple decades, theyare really forecasting that
things are going to shift backat some point. It could be one

(27:30):
year. It could be the next fiveyears or less, and then
organizations will again bescrambling for underrepresented
talent and trying toreprioritize deib. Now, what's
interesting about the scope ofwork that I do Angela is that
when we look at underrepresentedgroups that goes beyond race and

(27:53):
gender, I know a lot of peopletend to think diversity only
means gender or race andethnicity, so a lot of the work
that I'm doing specifically inthe inclusive consumer space and
inclusive marketing spacesaround Gen Z Now I'll tell you,
Angela, the data is veryinteresting. Gen Z ers are going

(28:14):
to be entering the workforce,and soon they will be the
majority. Gen Zers care aboutdei the and it's not just what's
on a website. They are lookingto see what companies are doing,
what actions are being taken,what are the commitments, what
is the tangible result andevidence that shows what they're

(28:35):
doing in the space. And so theseconversations around the
prioritize, eliminaterepresentation, targets, all of
these types of conversations arenot going to help organizations
when they're trying to recruitthat Gen Z talent, because their
priorities are very differentfrom what Millennials and Gen

(28:57):
Xers have established, right andessentially, failure to address
this, we won't have a pipelineof future leaders. Absolutely,
there's going to be a largetalent gap, and so organizations
have to be thinking about this.And it's not only from the

(29:18):
perspective of talent in theworkplace, they have to be
thinking about it when they'relooking at how they're going to
market, what's that marketingstrategy? And so really being
able to do do both and handleboth sides of the same coin,
it's very interesting, because alot of brands are are not taking
advantage of the opportunity tothink about what's next? What's

(29:41):
on the horizon? Gen Z is coming,and the demographic as as the
years go on, they they will getolder, they will have even more
buying power, they will haveeven more of the percentage of
the workforce. And so we need tobe thinking about these things.
And you know.
The true visionary leaders arenot just looking at 2024

(30:04):
they're looking at the future.And so those are the
organizations that I think aregoing to get it right. If they
care, they're looking andthey're putting plans in place
and strategies to make sure thatrepresentation and a lot of
these other elements around,whether it's culture or their
marketing is really dialed in tomake sure that it's inclusive,

(30:25):
because it does matter and itwill affect their bottom line. I

Angela Harris (30:31):
want to go back to what you said about the most
likely shift in the numbers isdue to the layoffs that we've
seen. So Can we really trust thenumbers that we see and the
annual dei reports are companiesjust using selective language to
help them their numbers. BecauseI feel like I've never really
seen a company say like, Oh,we've lost, I don't know, 5% of

(30:51):
our underrepresented talentworkforce. We always see the
happy case scenario reported.

Devoreaux Walton (30:57):
Yeah. So dei reports are what's the word to
say they are. I think it's, it'srelative. We think about the
context of them, having workedwith organizations on the DEI
report, content I've seen, youknow, the back end of the
process. And it is, it is a veryinteresting perspective in terms

(31:24):
of what's prioritized, right?Because when a report is made
public, it's going toshareholders, it's going to the
general public. And a lot oforganizations, even if they're
willing to be transparent, don'tnecessarily want to call out the
good, the bad, the ugly,specifically the ugly. And so
really being very intentionalabout their positioning,

(31:49):
intentional about theinformation and the data that is
being shared. You know, I thinkthe unfortunate thing is that I
have not seen any reports thatcall out specifically the impact
of the layoffs and as it relatesto underrepresented groups, I've
never seen it.

(32:10):
I've seen the representationdata. Yet, when we look at,
you know, if an organization isprioritizing a new department or
a new initiative, and they're,you know, hiring some talent.
The data that we're looking atbig picture is not necessarily

(32:31):
the specific point around whohas left. We're looking at end
of the year, whatever time theytook that snapshot. This is the
total current population. AndI'm using air quotes because we
know those numbers can be, youknow what, whatever they decide
to share. I think thatorganizations that are

(32:57):
innovative and
the ones that are the leaders inthe space of really being able
to do things before they'repopular, I think they will be
more inclined to give moreinformation and more data, but
I'm not sure that what we wouldever see an organization to

(33:17):
report on the impact of layoffs,because it's not going to tell a
very good story that's going toput them in a positive light,

Angela Harris (33:28):
right? And what you said kind of reminded me I
want to read this. It's an oldtweet, but it came out in 2022
by Dr Monica Cox, and in thetweet, she says, instead of
showing me your diversitystatement, show me your hiring
data, your discrimination claimsstats, your salary tables, your
retention numbers, yourdiversity policies and your

(33:48):
leaders public actions againstracism

Devoreaux Walton (33:54):
that should be on a billboard.

Angela Harris (33:58):
And also those are the numbers we'll never see
because it probably won't paintthem in a positive light. Yeah.
But I'm like, that's where,that's where, like, the meat is,
like, those are the issues thatI feel we should be addressing
when we just had equal paydayfor women a couple of days ago
and the pay gap is going to bein place for at least the next
100 years. Yeah.

Devoreaux Walton (34:19):
Yeah. I mean, I think that job seekers who are
smart are asking these kinds ofquestions and interviews,
especially if you areinterviewing for a leadership
role, to really know what you'regetting into with a particular
organization before you show upon day one. But the reality is,

(34:40):
you know, a lot of thisinformation is not going to be
shared based on that list youjust read off and and I love
that tweet, because this thethese are the challenges that
organizations are up against,and even the best in class
organizations that are doingwell in the DEI.
Space as it relates to workplaceculture, even they are going to

(35:04):
get some things wrong or they'regoing to miss the mark on some
things, but being able to admitthat and willingly share the
information right goes beyondjust glossing over our goals and
our targets. I don't care aboutyour target. I want to see the
results of what has been done.

Angela Harris (35:26):
Yeah, and you bring up a very good point,
because I feel like, as itrelates to these targets, I feel
like the targets keep moving,like we've been having so my
backgrounds in the techindustry, we've been talking
about increasing therepresentation of women in tech
for years, and I feel like acompany will make a commitment
or a target target, they'll missthe target, miss the date, and
it's like we set it to a newtarget. But like you said,

(35:47):
there's no accountability or nosaying we missed our target.

Devoreaux Walton (35:51):
And see this is the disconnect between sales,
business, revenue and theseother targets. They are being
measured. They are beingimproved. They have a microscope
on top of them. And when itcomes to these other targets,
specifically around the DEI bespace, we we don't have that

(36:12):
same level of rigor, that samelevel of commitment, and really
the perspective that we're goingto make this important, and so
we are going to, in fact,measure it more than once a year
for a report.
That's the opportunity. Sodespite what's going on with the
backlash and the anti deimovement, we still need this

(36:36):
space. This space is not goingto go away in the workplace. In
fact, I think that thispolarizing issue is a great one
for job seekers and again, forconsumers, because we know,
based on what is being said ornot being said, Where
organization stands

Unknown (36:59):
absolutely well, I

Angela Harris (37:01):
want to shift gears a little bit. I came
across that interesting fun factabout you, Devereaux, and I
learned that you were a judgefor the Miss Texas patent.

Devoreaux Walton (37:13):
I was, I was a judge for the preliminary
competition back in 2019 Yes, Igo back to my childhood with
pageantry. So I was formerly acontestant in about three to
five different competitions overthe the course of my life, and
also have been on the side ofcoaching briefly, back in about

(37:37):
2015 2016
and also a pageant judge. Sopageantry, I love it.
Well, I'm competing in the mythcorporate America competition in
June of 2024 What tips can youshare with me from a judge's
perspective? Absolutely. Well,let me just spin a question
towards you. Just real quick.Angela, what is your favorite

(37:59):
part of a pageant competition.Well, this is my first time, so
honestly, it's a new experiencefor me, so I'm just going in
eyes wide open. Okay,absolutely. So for me, as a
former contestant, my favoritepart of the competition was
question answer. I absolutelyloved answering questions on

(38:21):
stage, and that was alwayssomething that I really enjoyed,
not only preparing for, butalso, you know, performing
during the actual competition.So you know, the main tips I
would give to you are definitelyjust be confident in who you
are, because the confidenceshows in your presence on stage,

(38:42):
when you step out onto thestage, when you are moving
across the stage, people willpick up on that. So just be
confident in who you are, andjust know that you have, you
know, taken the leap to get intothis competition, and you're
going to show up and just beyour best and do your best. The
other tip I would share is toreally be authentic. So thinking

(39:04):
about the outfits you're goingto wear, and as you are
preparing for your interviewsand you're on stage questions,
the authentic and what you'resharing, because those the women
who share authentically, thoseare typically the ones who are
most comfortable and will showup and really just own who they

(39:25):
are and enjoy sharing who theyare with others. So I've seen
some contestants who try to saywhat is right, or tell people
what they think they want tohear, but if it's not authentic,
then you're not being true toyourself. So I would share that
as well. And then the last thingis to just have fun. It's it's
going to be a great experience.You're going to meet so many

(39:48):
other people, and you're goingto be in Florida, which is a
super fun place to get some somesun. So yeah, definitely just
have a good time. And at the endof the day.
Just enjoy yourself and enjoythe experience. The time will
probably go by fast, and so youreally want to be able to savor
and enjoy as much as possible.

Angela Harris (40:10):
Well. Thank you for that advice. I appreciate
it, and I'll definitely keep youposted. It's

Unknown (40:15):
going to be so exciting, and June's right
around the corner too, yes.Well, before we wrap up, I do
have one final question for you,what do you do to recharge when
you aren't fearlessly leading?

Devoreaux Walton (40:29):
Oh, I love this question. So I like to
jokingly say that my twohobbies, one is self care, the
other is handbags. And it'sactually true, like I indulge in
self care, whether it's gettinga massage, manicure, pedicure, I
have recently enjoyed soundbaths, and so that sound baths

(40:53):
as well. Yes, yeah, this yearI've really been getting into
sound baths. I love meditation.I love just taking a moment. And
so self care could be a lot ofthings, because I do also love
handbags. It could be looking athandbags online, going to a
boutique and and just checkingthem out. It could be shopping,

(41:14):
actually buying a handbag. Itcould be enjoying a cup of tea,
getting some fresh air going fora walk. I really find that we
all have the power and thecontrol to define what self care
means to us. And so self care issomething that I do make time
for each and every day, even ifit's not hours, and I can only,

(41:37):
do you know, a half an hour or10 minutes, it is something that
I do make the time for becauseit's so important.
Well, I love that. I love thatyou have such a variety of
activities that you incorporateinto your self care plan. Yeah,
thank you. I think it's, it'strial and error. So, you know, I
really got to the point that Iwas burnt out. This was back in

(42:01):
2018 2019 I was just so burntout from work and other time
commitments, and I really had tolearn how to make the time make
a plan. And for a while, I justhad a running list of things
that I enjoyed, you know, toengage in for self care. And it

(42:23):
was just like, okay, when I gotdiscouraged or I just needed a
moment, I would look at the listand say, Okay, well, I'm going
to pick that. I'm going to lightan aromatherapy candle, and
that's going to be, you know,the one I do. And so, yeah, it's
really about having intention.And I would say that really
comes around full circle to thetheme of the topic deib, having

(42:46):
an intention, having anintention for your self care.
Being intentional aboutsomething means that you
prioritize it, and it means thatyou actually follow through. We
can think about things all day.We can think about self care. We
can think about fostering aninclusive culture. We can think
about having an inclusive adcampaign, but what are we

(43:06):
actually doing? And that's wherewe need to make the connection
happen, right? And as the nameof your company, inclusion by
design, there you go. It was notan accident. The name was very
intentional. I'm sure it was.
Well, Devoreaux, it's been anabsolute pleasure having you on

(43:28):
the show today. How can ourlisteners stay connected with
you? Oh, thank you so much forhaving me. This was such a
treat. I was looking forward toit all week. So the best way to
find me is at my website,Inclusion By Design CO, you can
also find us on our LinkedInpage. The company name is
Inclusion By Design CO, we havea podcast coming soon, and that

(43:50):
information will also be on thewebsite. And if you're
interested, you can also find meon LinkedIn. Devoreaux Walton,
you'll probably want to copypaste because the first name is
French. It's nine letters, and alot of people you know always
tease me about my Frenchspelling.

Angela Harris (44:09):
Well, I will make sure I include all of your
contact information in the shownotes. Perfect.
And to our listeners, if youenjoyed this episode, make sure
you leave a review and share itwith someone that's all for
today's episode. Thank you somuch for listening until next
time.

(44:35):
Thank you for listening to theflow podcast as we wrap up
today's episode, always rememberyour unique path, your voice and
your leadership matter. If youloved what you heard, subscribe
now to stay updated on ourlatest episodes. Take a moment
to leave a review and share thisepisode with someone who can

(44:58):
benefit from theseconversations.
Conversations. You can stayconnected with me on Instagram,
at @theflowpodcastwithangela, orvisit me on the web at
angelavharris.com,
until next time, take care. Stayinspired and keep fearlessly

(45:19):
leading in your own way so.