4 Ways to Level the Playing Field Yourself: Don’t count on DEI!

Last week, we discovered a little-known piece of proposed legislation called the Dismantle DEI ACT starting to make its way through committees in Congress. Briefly, the proposal calls for closing every federal government diversity, equity, and inclusion office, and then firing all DEI workers “with no possibility of reassignment.” While this particular proposal may or may not become law in the near future, it should focus attention on what you can do on your own to improve your chances for career advancement.

Here are four things to start doing right now to advance your own chances for equal opportunity, no matter what policy the federal government or your corporate leadership adopts:

1. Take advantage of low unemployment and labor shortages to open opportunities for yourself,
2. Build your soft skills,
3. Improve your technical and professional skills, and
4. Differentiate yourself through education

Unemployment rates are low so finding qualified workers can be a challenge for employers. Nationally, the unemployment rate is less than 4%. It is below 3% in some metro areas, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employers are receiving more applications than ever, but many applicants don’t have the right skills. So, if you can demonstrate the right skills, now is the time to apply.

Take advantage of low unemployment and labor shortages.

Historically, low unemployment has created opportunities for those that may not have had an opportunity to enter certain fields under other circumstances. As so well documented in Margot Lee Shetterly’sbook “Hidden Figures, African-American women such as Katherine Johnson had opportunities to pursue technical careers during World War II. According to the book, thousands of African-American women found jobs at Langley Field, later part of NASA, during the War. They remained to play a vital role in the subsequent space program. (Read the book—it’s better than the movie!)

Today, there are more open jobs than qualified applicants in some fields. Employers and recruiters say they are being deluged by applications from candidates that lack the right skills because some jobseekers apparently use AI systems to generate thousands of applications. So, the low unemployment rate may still offer unprecedented opportunities, but you will have to stand out from the madding crowd.

Build your soft skills.

As discussed in our Guide to the Post-pandemic Job Market, every employee must have soft skills, also referred to as leadership and people skills. People skills could be more important than ever because workforces are becoming more diverse. That means employees will interact with co-workers, customers, and suppliers who come from different cultural and economic backgrounds.

In July 2020, we spoke with Dr. Elnora Tena Webb, a leadership coach, and Tomoko Ha, a certified career management coach, about soft skills and hard skills during a webinar you can watch on LinkedIn. Dr. Webb suggested a list of leadership skills she believes all employees should demonstrate. A few skills on her list included:

• Effective communications,
• Reliability,
• Authenticity,
• Integrity.
• Honesty,
• Flexibility,
• Persistence,
• Work ethic,
•  Problem solving, and
• Continuous learning ability.

The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) considers soft skills, such as teamwork and communications essential for new graduates entering the workforce. Students, NACE says, should also recognize the value of equity and inclusion in the workplace.

While employers value soft skills, they also hire candidates with the specific technical or professional skills needed on the job, HR people call these “hard skills.”

Improve your technical and professional skills.

Each employee also needs the technical skills, or “hard skills” to do their specific job. These are skills you may want to list on your resume and LinkedIn profile. They are also skills employers will test you on to verify your competency. For example, a few of the skills a client and I agreed to include on her resume targeting business analyst positions included:

• Business process improvement,
• Functional documentation,
• Requirements elicitation,
• Solutions design, and
• System implementation.

Both technical skills and people skills can be acquired on the job and in school. While employers place a high value on professional experience, there is strong evidence employers also recognize the role education plays in developing technical skills.

Differentiate yourself through Education.

According to the US Department of Labor, education pays. You can improve your competitive position in two ways—long term college and graduate schooling, and short-term professional training.

Department of Labor statistics we reported on in our guide and subsequent posts demonstrate the value of formal education. For example, workers with bachelor’s degrees earn about 167% more than workers with high school diplomas, while those with advanced degrees earn more than twice as much.

Although a college degree is still the “gold standard” for the education you tout to employers, this could be changing.  Recruiters have told me they have found that the college degree is not the only credential which makes a difference. This is true for at least two reasons. First, industry certifications have increased in importance. Second, short-term courses indicate you have gained additional skills and can add valuable keywords to your career marketing materials, especially your LinkedIn profile.

Concluding comments

The “hidden figures” of World War II and the space race did not get their history-making jobs because someone decided to create a more equitable workspace. They had essential skills that their organization and their country needed at the time. Whether the federal government and the larger business world want to explicitly support DEI programs or not, they still need to fill jobs with talented individuals. Take advantage of the low-unemployment economy to market your current skills and develop new skills to break through the AI-generated wall of applicants and get a better job.