Travis Gilmer

I have really enjoyed listening to and hearing what DEI means to the other members of the committee. As a father of three young boys, I am not shy about having to have difficult conversations, and I feel it is time to sit down and have a quick talk about the elephant in the room. There is this unconscious bias and assumption that DEI is a zero-sum game, that the inclusion of new people, especially in leadership, leads to exclusion or expulsion of those who are already there, and they might lose their power or status. And I get it, change can be hard and at times a bit awkward and fearful of the unknown. The problem with this mindset and perception is that it is just not true. Clinging to this thought is detrimental to an organization’s culture and health in the long run. The key there being “in the long run”. The persisting influence of our inequitable history can still be seen in social, educational, cultural and professional spheres. You don’t have to really look hard to see these elements in play. The most visible marker of this is the scarcity of women and people from minority or marginalized groups in leadership positions across industries and fields, and public accounting is no different. This is because inclusion is not a zero-sum game! Inclusion will, without a doubt, disrupt old power structures and the imbalances built into them. This change, however, is necessary to move forward into a space of equity where the potential of diversity can be maximized effectively. The whole process can be successfully guided and managed to leverage talent, leadership and profit. Negative effects to the operational processes or existing leadership can be minimized, as long as top-level leadership teams plan and navigate the changes well. This is the only way to create sustainable and positive change toward a more inclusive and healthy organizational culture. We learn infinitely more by leveraging the diversity of thoughts and perspectives. When we allow for the possibilities of different types of power coming in through the inclusion of diverse thoughts, perspectives and people, we can begin to see just how limitless the potential of growth and power is.

Ultimately, that is our goal, we want to achieve and have an inclusive and healthy organizational culture. When you talk to Millennials and Gen Z’rs (who I might remind you are the leaders of our future), besides the obvious motivators of compensation and work-life balance, is the desire to work for a company with a fun, positive, and diverse organizational culture. So it is not only imperative that we adapt and grow in this area to recruit and obtain top talent but to also adapt to the changing times and meet the needs of our clients, whose demographic is rapidly changing, and will continue to increase and change into the future. By fulfilling the needs of our employees and clients, the possibility of growth for Brown Edwards is endless!