Diageo’s outgoing Head of Inclusion & Diversity, Tolulope Oke, believes that DEI should be a vehicle for “business enablement and cultural transformation”, which is why she is, this month, launching a consultancy specialising in this.
While some professionals are shying away from even using the words “diversity” or “inclusion” Oke is intent in showing businesses they are even more important than ever, especially when it comes to an employer’s bottom line and, especially, in the age of AI.
As she says in this interview, she has seen various backlashes towards DEI over her career – which has spanned stints at not only Diageo but Amazon and Sainsbury’s – and isn’t phased by this one.
We spoke to her to find out more.
How has your role in DEI evolved?
When I first started, it was ‘side of desk’ work, purely outreach and engagement for the purposes of talent acquisition.
Then we started to look inward, looking at if people join our organisation, what can we do to keep them here and engaged.
Are you worried by the current DEI backlash?
I’ve been doing DEI work now almost 15 years, working in it during #metoo, Black Lives Matter, Brexit and Covid, so I have, perhaps, a different response to the current DEI backlash compared to practitioners who haven’t been practicing as long.
I’ve been through pushbacks before and we’ve always continued to weather the storm. I can say with some level of assuredness that DEI work isn’t going away. Though it might change in what we call it. It might pause, for a bit.
But, ultimately we know that this work makes sense, from a talent attraction perspective and from an experiential perspective, let alone from a commercial perspective, which has been my focus over the last six years when I’ve been honing my craft.
What skills are necessary for DEI professionals to ‘weather’ these storms?
We don’t always have the practitioners who have the dynamic skill set necessary.
To be a practitioner in this space, it takes more than passion and more than your lived experience. In fact, lived experience can become a trauma response to work and that is not helpful. And, I think, that’s what’s happened in many cases and that’s why we’ve got this backlash.
While this work started off about inclusion for all, it became very specific and centred. Most people would say that we need to bring other voices back in the conversation.
Having said that, I would say there’s always been a contingent of practitioners (and I would include myself) who have always done this work centring on all, and focusing not on ‘either or’ but ‘both’.
But there was also backlash around people saying ‘all lives matter’ during the Black Lives Matter campaign. Can you tell me your thoughts on that?
Yes. When BLM was being talked about, saying ‘all lives matter’ was being used to silence and drown out a very specific conversation. That was about co-opting a conversation.
‘What about all lives?’ is a valid question but – at that present moment – we were having a particular conversation. Context really matters. What this question was doing was changing the conversation.
Language seems to be really tricky in DEI…
DEI is both an art and a science. Like if you’re a writer writing about politics, there’s a way in which you can write about a broad spectrum of political views without endorsing one or silencing another. It’s that constant art of juggling.
You’re also an AI expert and been looking at AI in regard to cultural change. What gets you excited about what AI can do in terms of positive culture change?
Using AI to do things like help people who’ve come back from family leave, or other types of leave, and don’t know where to start. Platforms like Copilot, for example, help you synthesise your inbox and pull out the key threads and actions from your emails.
We actually did a trial on this, supporting employees with ADHD / autism when they came back from family leave.
We’ve also used AI to test out Copilot for those experiencing the menopause, and symptoms like brain fog, so they feel more productive and supported. Another example is using AI to sift through CVs and sorting through payroll data.
From a DEI perspective, I would love to see more great innovations using AI to close gaps, like the disability working gap and the employment gap.
What worries you about AI?
I think we need to be very careful around governance and many organisations have rushed into using AI and their employees are using open-source AI putting confidential data into the market.
What’s your advice to others responsible for AI?
You need to create your own internal AI because the reality is that people will be using AI regardless. This is costly, but I don’t think there’s a way around it.
Also, employees need to learn to be AI-enabled in their roles for employers to maximise productivity. Employers need to develop inhouse systems and create good governance around these.
How impactful do you think AI will be in the workplace?
It’s one of the biggest shifts we’ve ever seen in culture in the world. We can’t bury our heads in the sand. I’d compare it to the transition from the horse, to the cart to the car. From the candlestick to electricity. AI is going to be that transformative.
And if used for good, it can do some incredible things, that serve great social causes and needs. But this cannot be done in isolation, without understanding the impact – quite often detrimental – of AI on certain groups, especially those in the global south.
Right now, AI is very much a ‘good news’ story with businesses talking about what it’s enabling them to do and, in the Western world, we’re forging ahead with it – fast. But people are being left behind. So we also need to have an equity of education and understanding, too.
You have a strong faith and are a spiritual person, which you talk about openly on your LinkedIn. Do you feel this comes into play when you think about AI?
Yes. That’s the reason I do this work. If not, I’d probably be in something like sales, and get paid more!
I have an altruistic view of the world. I believe that we have been given this world to steward and to be our brother’s keeper, quite literally. That means I want to show up and make this world better. So yes, my faith helps me to stay grounded in this world and gives me a real sense of responsibility to others.
