Written by: Dr. Alex Iannucci: Founder & CEO Blueprint Evolution
This Margins to Center approach is critical, not just for equity, but for transformational organizational change.
When we center the most marginalized identities, everyone benefits. (If you missed why, read our previous article, “Why Understanding Equity Requires Organizational Development.“)
As bell hooks theorized in Center/Margins Theory, in any defined group, especially one with any power, influence, or control, there is a center and a margin. The center has more power, influence, or authority than the margin. The margin is a space of powerlessness and restriction. People on the margin can only move so close to the center.
As leaders, we must intentionally create experiences that center on those most marginalized experiences. Our responsibility is to assess the power imbalance and take steps to rebalance it.
If you design a building and only construct steps, only those who are non-disabled will be able to enter.
If you design a building and construct a ramp, in addition to steps, those who need the ramp can enter, AND those who can use the steps can enter.
A Margins to Center approach is an expansive and innovative way to redistribute power.
Our environments thrive from a hierarchical approach that favors those in the center and perpetuates systems to keep others on the margins. Change and progress feel so slow and sometimes impossible. Burnout fatigue is intentional because the system is designed to exhaust anyone on the margins.
This is why we must approach equity through a strategic, organizational lens. It isn’t enough to advocate for diverse communities. It won’t change the perpetuation of discrimination. Discrimination is intentionally infused in all we do and experience to maintain power.
Equity work isn’t just about supporting that one minoritized person or group. It is about understanding the tangled, infused, interconnected systems that perpetuate exclusion. It is about the systems and environments locked in place before the identities even enter them.
Environments, systems, and organizations are experienced in four significant areas:
- Ideological (mission),
- Institutional (policies and practice),
- Interpersonal (supervisors, colleagues, etc.),
- Internalized (our own experiences).
One person or group that feels isolated is experiencing bias at each level of the environment. They represent a flawed system that generates power’s ongoing production and reproduction.
Margins to Center charges us to think about the overall system, not just the individual. Leaders and organizations thrive when they are anticipatory and responsive.
This is the secret to staying competitive, agile, and innovative.
Four questions equity asks these four areas:
- The Ideological (Mission): In what ways does our company unknowingly assume dominant experiences as the universal standard?
- The Institutional ( policies and practice): Are our policies and practices reflected in all identities? How do our hiring practices intentionally recruit from diverse pools to attract and retain diverse people?
- The Interpersonal (supervisors, colleagues, etc.): How do our biases influence how we make decisions about people in our communities
- The Internalized (our own experience): Even if not outwardly expressed, do our minoritized people feel comfortable showing up authentically?
Margins to Center helps organizations anticipate and be responsive. Anticipation helps organizations stay competitive, agile, and innovative. Using a Margins to Center lens helps organizations get ahead and prepare for potential needs. The answers to these questions invite an approach to utilizing an essential tool that will support your competitive edge to get ahead and prepare for future needs. How will you implement this approach?
