April 20, 2023, by Hilary Jenison
Over the past year, I’ve been honored to participate in the Leadership South Shore program. Leadership South Shore was established in 2016 by South Shore Bank in partnership with the South Shore Chamber of Commerce. This program selects participants from a pool of applicants and leads them through a yearlong immersive learning curriculum, resulting in a group of individuals who are committed to transformative leadership in our community.
Leadership South Shore is not a starting point but rather a process for emerging and established leaders to connect and inspire others to increase civic engagement, build vibrant communities and strengthen the South Shore and beyond.
Each month, the leadership cohort participates in a day-long community learning program on various topics, including Health and Human Services, Education, the Justice System, Economic Development, Arts and Culture. Last month, the program day focused on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and the Leadership South Shore planning committee brought in the experts from Mass General Brigham to share their knowledge with us.
Mass General Brigham was recently named by Newsweek as one of “America’s Greatest Workplaces for Diversity in 2023” and it is easy to see why. At Mass General Brigham, diversity, equity, and inclusion are central to every aspect of the organization.
“Healthcare organizations have a growing responsibility to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts not only for our employees, but to better serve our patients, their families, and our local communities. But I would say that it should be the impetus of every business to build in DE&I programming at a foundational level. Diverse perspectives—both employees and leadership—help organizations evolve in a changing world. Unique insights from people with diverse, lived experiences strengthen workplace culture, bring new ideas to life, and approach problem solving in new ways. Inclusive culture is essential to our collective success,” says Carla Carten, PhD, Executive Director, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer at Mass General Brigham.
We learned first-hand from their team of DEI experts how to integrate DEI into the DNA of your organization. This session wasamazing, and I truly wish every single resident and workplace could have participated in this day. We learned about the unconscious bias that exists within our society, how to look at issues within the workplace from different perspectives as well as the unique challenges minorities on the South Shore are facing in the workplace, community, and government today.
The day was moderated by Ciara Gogan, a Leadership South Shore alumni and Senior Manager of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Car Gurus. Ciara was instrumental in bringing this program day to Leadership South Shore three years ago, and she started the day by setting the tone for an honest and open dialogue throughout the workshop. The team at MGB kicked off the day with a mind-blowing warm-up exercise that encouraged all of us to let go of any preconceived thoughts we may have had surrounding DEI within our own minds and communities. The “F Exercise” clearly illustrated how a fixed mindset can create “blind spots” in our thinking and inspired everyone to relook at what else we might be “missing” based on this mentality.
“The Brigham and its Harbor Medical community division have been serving the south shore for decades, and we were honored to work with the Leadership South Shore program to bring MGB DEI expertise to area business leaders. Events such as the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Day hosted by the South Shore Chamber of Commerce and South Shore Bank, help leaders gain new perspectives on DE&I issues and inspire employees to make a difference. Through learning and engagement opportunities, we foster a diverse and inclusive professional community where we want everyone to feel a sense of belonging and connection,” says Cynthia L. Peterson, MBA, Vice President, Regional Ambulatory Operations and Business Development at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
The day concluded with a panel discussion with panelists, including Philip Chong, President & CEO, QARI/Wutabon, Hingham’s own Daniel Miller-Dempsey, Board Member, Hingham Pride Project; Carla Carten, SVP & Chief DEI Officer, Mass General Brigham; and Abigail Parrilla-Sarria, CEO, The ARC of the South Shore, Inc.
I’ll be the first to admit, sometimes in our community it can be uncomfortable to talk about race and minority issues and I often am afraid of saying the wrong the thing. However, this day made me realize the importance of having an open mind and open dialogue to understand the unique challenges and differences our community members face every day.
I’m extremely grateful to Leadership South Shore, South Shore Bank, the South Shore Chamber of Commerce as well as the DEI leaders at Mass General Brigham and Ciara Gogan for opening my mind and heart through this Diversity workshop