top of page
bgImage

Our Blog

A resource on diversity and inclusion highlighting education, experience, and best practices for elevating your leadership, your business, and your teams. 

First Minute of a New Day

January 19, 2021

The pandemic shifted nearly every part of our lives — including workplace dynamics. Some workers feel empowered by the changes, such as with the rise of hybrid working arrangements; others left their jobs or transitioned to new careers as part of what’s been dubbed the Great Resignation. Meanwhile, the recent discussion around “quiet quitting” has sparked conversations about its inverse: “quiet firing.”


Watch Video

Beyond Inclusion: Looking in the D&I Crystal Ball

February 28, 2021

As we close out Black History Month for 2021, it’s worth noting that the scope of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has expanded and evolved over the years alongside changes in how companies function, how teams are managed, how employees set their expectations for work. Every year we anticipate trends that we expect within the field of DEI. However, I don’t believe anyone could have pictured a year like 2020. DEI professionals must focus their attention on people management to continue providing engaging and exceptional work experiences for their people.


Full Story

Crystal Ball: Looking Ahead to the Future of Work, Workers, and the Workplace

January 24, 2021

Following the pandemic, social unrest, the presidential election, the most important and complex workplace challenge facing CEOs and CHROs in the future of work, workers, and the workplace. Company leaders are losing sleep at night because they must wrestle with exactly what it means and how to best prepare their organizations for a future that is increasingly hard to predict.


Full Story

First Minute of a New Day

January 19, 2021

As a long-time resident of Atlanta, where Martin Luther King Jr., Maynard Ferguson, and C.T. Vivian. and the Rev Joseph Lowery once lived, I see first-hand the legacy they left behind every day for all of us. Their teaching is precisely what companies, communities, and the country need to begin the painful process of unification and reconciliation.


Full Story

People First: The Business Case for Measuring Workforce Diversity

October 15, 2020

I often tell my clients that "that you need to get comfortable being uncomfortable if you're going to want to advance and accelerate your diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts. I know this might be an over-used phrase, but it's the absolute truth! The thing that makes companies the most uncomfortable when it comes to DEI is sharing workforce planning data such as workforce diversity. It's an inconvenient and uncomfortable truth − any serious DEI strategy must count people.


Full Story

People First: Emphasizing Culture over Counting

September 29, 2020

In many organizations, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) decisions are made and evaluated on numbers and ratios. Companies only count bodies! Diversity We have this many women on staff, that many African-Americans in leadership, this many people identifying as LGBTQ employees or managers.


Full Story

Courageous Conversations: Moving From Awareness to Action

July 12, 2020

It’s no secret that this year has been full of tremendous news stories. From the impact of the #Black Lives Matter movement and the controversy over the Confederate monuments to the Supreme Court’s decision on DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) to the seemingly eternal 2020 presidential election campaign, there has been a ton to talk about.


Full Story

Authentic Leadership: Increasing Trust by Reducing Bias

July 1, 2020

I remember when I was being recruited for a job, I refused to talk to a persistent executive recruiter - until the recruiter told me she was an alum of the University of Alabama. I immediately said, "Roll Tide!" And the next thing I know, I said: "of course, I'll talk to you about the position." All my rational reasons for not wanting to talk to her went out the window because we attended the same college where people are passionate about the football team.


Full Story

Moving From Nice Statements to Sustainable Actions

June 22, 2020

The death of George Floyd and the ensuing protests and violence have uncovered yet again the underlying, structural racism that persists in the US. It is easy for most of us (myself included) to go about our lives and forget the racism experienced every day by people of color. Sadly, it requires an event like this to bring it again to the forefront.


Full Story

Call to Action for Allies

June 5, 2020

Icarus Consulting joins with the entire DEI community and the families of the martyrs in calling for national legislation aimed at ending racial violence and increasing police accountability. We look forward to partnering with other DEI thought leaders to create forums and programs focused on anti-racism awareness, promoting diversity and inclusion, and fostering equal opportunity. We call on our business and academic partners, civic, faith and philanthropic leaders, as well as other organizations and people of goodwill to join with us in committing to the difficult, long-term work of improving racial equity and ensuring greater accountability for equity and justice.


Full Story

Diversity Apocolypse

April 15, 2020

At a recent national diversity and inclusion conference, I addressed a gathering of more than 1,000 human resource and diversity professionals from organizations throughout the country. For decades, these professionals have talked about and demonstrated how differing perspectives in the workplace could improve innovation and problem-solving. But today, some of those differences are setting up opposing camps. Diversity, in the form of differences in thoughts, opinions, and beliefs, is now being used by some to divide.


Full Story

Even Authentic Leaders Have Their Kryptonite

April 1, 2020

When I think about leadership, I am reminded of the credit card company famous for the slogan "membership has its privileges." It's a slogan those of us lucky enough to be in a leadership position should remember – being a leader is, in fact, a "privilege." Being a good leader is hard work, and all leaders screw up. But that means that we're human, that sometimes we are flying by the seat of our pants, and that we don't have always have all the right answers.


Full Story

Executive Presence: The New Superpower?

March 8, 2020

What exactly is executive presence?

In its simplest terms, executive presence is about your ability to inspire confidence-inspiring confidence in your subordinates that you’re the leader they want to follow, inspiring confidence among peers that you’re capable and reliable and, most importantly, inspiring confidence among senior leaders that you have the potential for significant achievements.


Full Story

Bridging the Gap Between Equity and Equality

February 13, 2020

Earlier this year, I published my third book, Crisis as a Platform for Social Change from Strawberry Mansion to Silicon Valley  . In my book, I discuss bias, and since that time, I have noticed an awareness and openness to talk about what bias is, who has it, and how it is used. In January, I spoke on the issue at a Diversity and Inclusion Conference, and the room was full – some individuals were strongly interested.


Full Story

Creating an Inclusive Culture by Addressing Micro-Inequities

February 22, 2020

Once you have made the final decision to address the offense, indeed, be assertive, this does not mean be rude or show how upset their comment made you feel with a shot and a stomp. Being assertive in this interaction is to assist in letting the person know how you were affected by their comment or actions. You don’t want to jokingly tell someone that they offended you because, more than likely, it won’t be taken seriously.

Full Story

Authenticity - The Key to Being an Inclusive Leader

January 2, 2020

Members of inclusive teams demonstrate transparency and authenticity. This level of teamwork requires team members to make themselves vulnerable to one another without fear that their vulnerabilities (weaknesses, skill deficiencies, mistakes, requests for help) will be used against them. To cultivate an inclusive team, the leader must him/herself demonstrate authenticity and transparency and create an environment that does not retaliate against vulnerability.

Full Story

Check back for more!




Discover how ICARUS can help organizations pivot from command-and-control leadership styles and create “people first” organizational cultures. With the latest thought leadership around diversity and inclusion using best and next-generation practices to help organizations create sustainable change that will propel them forward.


bottom of page