My boss said there’s going to be a reorganization and my colleague is going to lose her job, while I’m going to get promoted and take on her team’s responsibilities. This is my friend. How can I take her job?
Can you say conundrum?
I do think it’s a good sign that you are conflicted rather than being excited — it means you have heart — but never was “it depends” more true when having to make a difficult decision.
The question that you have to ask your boss is, would the fate of your friend change if you declined the promotion?
And if the answer is yes, would you turn down the role and put your career development at risk?
If so, does that matter to you?
If your friend’s position is being eliminated regardless, would that influence your decision?
Is your friend happy at work or looking to leave anyway?
If the friendship is strong, and this outcome was going to happen anyway, you shouldn’t feel guilty.
I don’t believe in the diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives that give preferential treatment to minorities. But that doesn’t make me a racist. I abhor disrespect or discrimination of any kind, but I have taken a lot of flack for pushing back on hiring specifically for race. How can I navigate in this environment, where careers can be destroyed for saying the wrong thing?
Your views are shared more widely than you think, because as you say, the fear of being misunderstood and making a mistake is high, because the risk is real.
But we need leaders to be allies and vocal supporters of DEI initiatives, without fear of retribution for challenging practices that are inconsistent with those values.
It’s unlawful to discriminate on factors of race, gender, religion, etc. — that’s for everyone, not just minorities.
You always want to hire the best available talent for each job.
Affirmative action is about proactively taking actions to have a diverse talent pipeline, tracking if hires and promotions are reflective of the talent pool.
Otherwise, you do a disservice to diverse groups by implying that they were hired because of race and not because of their qualifications.
Keep the dialogue open — don’t shut down.
Gregory Giangrande has over 25 years of experience as a chief human resources executive. Hear Greg Wed. at 9:35 a.m. on iHeartRadio 710 WOR with Len Berman and Michael Riedel. Email: [email protected]. Follow: GoToGreg.com and on
Twitter: @GregGiangrande
