🎧 5 Minute Insights: How Trump-Supporting Managers Weaken Inclusion

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Political perceptions in leadership impact workplace dynamics—especially for Black employees.

Our latest 5 Minute Insights segment unpacks groundbreaking research from Dr. Darryl Rice & team, revealing how managers perceived as Trump supporters create more challenging work environments for Black professionals.

🔹 Key Takeaways:

• Perceived Political Affiliation Matters – Managers viewed as Trump-supporting were rated lower on inclusive leadership.
• Black Employees Feel Less Supported – This perception reduces engagement, mentorship, and professional growth opportunities.
• Younger Black Professionals Are Most Affected – Early-career employees rely more on managers for guidance and advancement.
• Inclusive Leadership Is Key – Organizations must address implicit biases and foster psychological safety to create thriving workplaces.

🔹 Why It Matters:
 When employees don’t feel included, companies suffer lower retention, weaker engagement, and diminished performance. Leaders must recognize that it’s not just about what they do—but how they’re perceived.

📖 Full Research Article: Politics and race in the workplace: Understanding how and when trump‐supporting managers hinder black employees from thriving at work - Rice - 2025 

🎙️ Want more insights from Dr. Darryl Rice?
 Check out our full interview where we dive into DEI challenges and resilience with Dr. Rice. Listen here: Advocating for Equity – A Conversation with Dr. Darryl B. Rice

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Episode Transcript

Dr. J (00:00):
Hey everyone, welcome to Top 5 DEI, the premier podcast
for and about individuals whocultivate diversity, equity and
inclusion in their craft.
This is our five-minute DEIsegment, where we break down
groundbreaking DEI research ortakeaways from current news
events in around five minutes.
I'm your host for today'sfive-minute DEI segment, dr J,

(00:22):
and today we're going to diveinto a fascinating and important
study from the Human ResourceManagement Journal.
This one's all about workplacepolitics literally about
workplace politics, as we diveinto a study that tackles a
major workplace issue howpolitics, race and leadership
collide in the office.
So here's the big question howdo managers perceive this Trump

(00:44):
supporting impact Blackemployees in the office?
So here's the big question howdo managers perceive this Trump
supporting impact Blackemployees in the workplace?
Do political views, or evenjust the perception of those
views, affect how managers leadand, more importantly, do they
shape how Black employeesexperience the workplace?
This is a heavy topic, but alsoan important one.

(01:04):
The research team led by DrDarryl Rice, who's actually been
a guest on our show, him andhis colleagues wanted to
understand if and how politicalperceptions of managers shape
workplace experiences,particularly for Black employees
.
They focus on how managersperceive this Trump-supporting
influence workplace dynamics,particularly Black employees'

(01:28):
ability to thrive at work.
They base their research onsocial information processing
theory, which means people pickup on cues from their
environment.
If an employee sees that theirmanager is inclusive, they feel
comfortable, engaged andsupported.
But if the manager signals,intentionally or not, that
diversity and inclusion aren't apriority, it sends a completely

(01:50):
different message.
And here's what they found out.
It really does matter.
First, black employees weresignificantly less likely to see
Trump supporting managers asinclusive leaders, compared to
managers perceived as Trumpopposing.
Second, a lack of inclusiveleadership had a direct negative
impact on Black employees'ability to thrive at work.

(02:12):
In other words, they felt lessengaged, less supported and less
able to grow in their careers.
And here's where it getsinteresting this effect was
stronger for younger Blackemployees.
Interesting this effect wasstronger for younger Black
employees?
Why?
Well, maybe it's becauseyounger professionals tend to
rely more on their managers forguidance, mentorship and

(02:33):
advancement opportunities, orjust opportunities for other
work that could enhance theirprofessional trajectory and
careers.
In other words, if they don'tfeel included or supported, it
can set them back early in theircareers.
And so why does this matter?
Well, leadership isn't justabout what a manager does.
This study shows.
It's also about how employeesperceive them, and whether a

(02:54):
manager realizes it or not,their perceived political stance
can send powerful signals thataffect workplace culture and
inclusion.
For companies, this is aserious wake-up call.
Culture and inclusion.
For companies this is a seriouswake-up call.
If Black employees feel excludedunder certain types of
leadership, that's not just amorale issue, it's a business
issue.
Retention, engagement andperformance all take a hit when

(03:15):
employees don't feel like theybelong.
So what can organizations doabout it?
First, train managers oninclusive leadership.
This isn't about just changingpolitical beliefs.
It's about making sure everyemployee feels valued and
supported, a perspective wherethey value and support all
people.

(03:35):
And inclusive leadership also,in some regards, relates to
understanding how to treat adiverse workforce, because
you're not looking at everyonemonolithically, but you
understand the unique needs ofeach individual employees.

(03:57):
Second, build a culture ofpsychological safety.
Employees should feel safe tobe themselves and express
concerns without fear ofbacklash.
And third, pay attention toworkplace trends.
If marginalized employeesconsistently report lower
engagement under certainleadership styles, that's a sign
that something needs to change.

(04:18):
At the end of the day, workisn't just about what we do.
It's also about the environmentin which we do it in.
Employees pick up on cues andwhen leadership isn't inclusive
about what we do, it's alsoabout the environment in which
we do it in.
Employees pick up on cues andwhen leadership isn't inclusive,
it can have seriousconsequences for their
well-being and success.
That's it for today's episodeof 5-Minute DEI brought to you
by Top 5 DEI Podcast, and if youfound this discussion valuable,

(04:39):
be sure to subscribe, leave areview, share it with your
network and, if you're aprofessional in HR or management
, take this research to heart,because having an inclusive
workplace isn't just the rightthing to do, it's also the smart
thing to do.
Thanks for tuning in and I'llsee you next time for more
insights on the latest researchshaping our world.

(04:59):
Until then, stay curious.
Enjoy your day.
Peace out from Dr J.