Working With Racial Equity Practitioners

< Back to Roadmap

Your racial equity practitioner will guide your business on this journey. It can be someone that provides training, insight or guidance to you and your colleagues on a one-time or ongoing basis or anything in between. Portland Means Progress businesses can connect with local racial equity practitioners through the Equity Commons! Portland Means Progress businesses can sign up for our members area to gain access.

This work encompasses many different styles and techniques as well as lived experience. DEI practitioners have different identities and skills that can contribute to your efforts for racial justice. With so much diversity in approach, be sure to think about some of these aspects before bringing in a consultant:

• Have you prepared the time and budget necessary to increase DEI efforts in the company?  

• How will the practitioner be supported when they offer critique or need internal staff to be coordinating with them on a consistent basis?  

• Are you being clear about your expectations? Your practitioner might only specialize in a few different aspects of DEI as it is a wide field with many different frameworks.  

• Try and gather pertinent history and background information if your practitioner is willing or able to review it as part of their scope.  

• Think about how to make the contract execution more simple, such as having one point of contact and brainstorming needs for your consultant’s support before they come on board.