Watching radar and news coverage of the super storm Sandy we viewed vastly differing damage across the regions or even in mirco-areas. For example, downtown NYC lost power while those roughly above 39th street were mostly untouched. Go further up to The Dagoba Group’s headquarters in central NH and the impact was equivalent to a long summer thunder storm.

Being in the D&I industry, it was hard for us not to think about the analogy of the storm system as compared to a corporate system. Executives in corporations often are unaware of the disparate impact of a non-inclusive culture because they can be so far away from the storm. If we did not have a 24 hour feed of Sandy’s path of damage, those in upper NH would not have an awareness of how the slight rain they were receiving was of any more volume further south. In the corporate world, it is often the case there is less organizational impact knowledge as one moves up the ladder.

Executives do not have a 24 hour feed of corporate cultural shifts or how their policies or speeches are being received by the frontline. A storm of high attrition, unproductive teams or client engagement may not bubble up until well after it is on its way. Even when these metrics make their way to the boardroom conference table, the cause may well be misinterpreted.

The value of affinity groups, inclusion champions and the D&I team allows for not only the proverbial weather stations to provide information upstream, they also allow for a downward funnel to implement action. They allow for the disparate impact of non-inclusive policies, procedures or leadership to be better managed.

Like in the corporate world, one event can wreak havoc on select groups for the long term. We must not solely judge the impact from our unique vantage point. Reaching out to be informed from a diversity of sources will allow us to better weather the storm and mitigate the resulting impact.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to those heavily impacted by this storm. Please consider a donation to the Red Cross in this time of need.