Black EOE Journal www.blackeoejournal.com 55 Emily Dickens, chief of staff for SHRM, poses at the SHRM Inclusion 2022 Conference in San Diego, California.
to see their reflection behind successful leaders, like Dickens, the only Black female in her executive team. We don't do enough building communities HBCU is a community because I wouldn't meet Johnny C. Taylor Jr. without the HBCU. Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., the president and CEO of SHRM, played a notable role in Dickens' career, serving as her sponsor and men- tor. As he passed down the ladder to countless team members, he revealed the importance of a true leader. This revelation bridges the connection between job seekers and decision-makers who are in the position to invite dismissed talent to a seat at the table. Today,
So, in your workplaces, find your community and leverage it!"
- Emily M. Dickens Dickens received one of the most significant rewards of her career, the ability to pay it forward. I spoke to my former assistant, so I asked, what are you doing now; he said, I don't have a job. I told him I got a position here, said Dickens. The gentleman who was my assistant when I worked at Fayetteville State, now has my old job, and he's now an assistant vice chancellor, she continued. I'm so proud of him because it's what I saw that position being ... and now he's in that seat. I asked Dickens if she finally saw herself the way others saw her, and to my surprise, her answer was no. Thankfully, diversity and inclusion conferences like this allow us to gain wisdom from trailblazers who don't see themselves because their eyes are fixated on the birth of the next generation of Black leaders.
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