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DR. DELMAR LEE
Global Vice President - Institute for Diversity Certification
Unmasking the Advantages of Unconscious Bias
We are all becoming more and more mindful of and/or sensitive to the results of negative bias and its impact on our workplaces, communities, and lives…and rightfully so. However, there is another aspect of our acute awareness and deliberateness to eliminate bias that needs to be remembered. Bias is not ALL bad!
In our zeal to create an open and welcoming workplace, an extreme focus on the negative impact of bias may have unconsciously created a place of exclusivity, isolationism, and a reticence of people to speak. The ultimate impact of this action is people who are hesitant to speak, to not speaking at all, and fearful of retribution for speaking freely. These actions are easily seen in an environment where people are more concerned about being PC (politically correct) when they speak than saying what is on their minds and being appreciated.
If the desire of the DEI leaders is the have CEOs who are transparent, HR Managers who are able to reconcile issues with policies, and any other person whose job is understanding workplace dynamics, there must be an air of openness.
Seeing bias as bad is antithetical to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion work. Therefore, having a discussion about bias in order to embrace the positive attributes of bias is required; this must be a part of our consciousness and is essential to open communication, transparency, and inclusion.
During this presentation we are going to illuminate three points
All bias is not bad
Bias is a natural process that must be understood
Previous efforts surrounding bias training is still necessary
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Speaker Bio
Dr. D. I. Lee, CDE® currently serves as the Vice President for Education and Training at the Institute for Diversity Certification (IDC)®. He is a veteran of 22 years of service in the United States Air Force, where he served as a Master Instructor of Avionic Technology, Superintendent of Training, and Avionics Section Chief. Dr. Lee’s educational accomplishments include Associate of Science Degrees in Avionics Systems Technology and Instructor of Technology and Military Science from the Community College of the Air Force, Bachelor of Science and Master of Science Degrees in Workforce Education, Training, and Development from Southern Illinois University, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Postsecondary and Adult Education from Capella University.
Dr. Lee is a Certified Diversity Executive (CDE)®, who owned a small consulting agency, SINA Management Services, LLC, where he a Professional Success Builder providing consultation and training in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Leadership, Human Resources Development, Conflict Resolution, and educational success. He is certified to instruct 32 competencies of the Certified Diversity Executive (CDE)® and Certified Diversity Professional (CDP)® programs for IDC®, the leading Diversity credentialing company in the world. He has been training and instructing DEI courses and sessions for over 13 years. He has designed and facilitated leadership and management consultation and training for more than 15 years in private and public venues and facilitated courses in postsecondary education for more than 25 years.
Dr. Lee is currently a content expert for Grand Canyon University and the University of Phoenix working primarily with doctoral learners, a Visiting Professor at Southern Illinois University in Charleston, SC, where he teaches Adult Learning Theory and Methods and Material of Instruction, and he is a certified expert in the field of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) with client companies in five states. He is the past Board President for IDC. Dr Lee was the past Lead Faculty Area Chair for the University of Phoenix, where he was responsible for three departments: Humanities, Communications, and General Education for University of Phoenix, Raleigh Campus and was the Senior Manager for Velox Global Services where he was responsible for coordinating strategic movement of personnel for Businesses relocating and/or temporarily working on five continents.