(1 bookmark) Scenario: A Tale of Discrimination Complaints at Promotion Interviews After interviewing employees from your project team for a new Deputy Project Manager on your side. After reviewing the job description, you interviewed three candidates that are already a part of the company. You realized that they are all talented employees with great personalities. As you reflect on the resumes, interviews, and professional references from their current supervisors, you consider their characters. First, there is Francisco Torre. He is very athletic and a bit of an international sports fan. You learn in the interview that he won an athletic scholarship and came from Puerto Rico to college on US Mainland. He was proud to let you know his college baseball team went to the national championship for their conference. His managers and coworkers describe him as one of the most helpful people they have ever worked with on any team. He is always willing to help members of his team. He is a patient and thoughtful mentor and coach to those he supervises. His professionalism and resume demonstrate his accomplishments, and in the interview, he humbly spoke about things that his managers expressed as phenomenal and heroic. However, he is a self-admitted introvert, but that did not come across in the interview. His supervisor spoke of as a natural born leader. Francisco was someone that motivated the team to preserve and strive to achieve excellence. He inspired his team to win “Project Team of the Year” for the past three years. Francisco was well-spoken, articulate, and had a smug sense of humor. You feel he will be great at tracking the details of the project and would be a great leader, counselor, and advisor to help you build a highperforming team. Next, you interviewed Shereen Rostami. Your first impression is that she is Hilarious! She has a quick, intelligent wit and a great sense of humor. She is assertive, ambitious gogetter. When 2 Written by John H. Coleman, Ph.D., Adjunct Professor at Virginia International University (VIU) leading the diverse project team you were planning to build. Finally, you interviewed Rashad Ahmed. Your first impression was that this gentleman was an immensely likable human being. During the interview, you learn that Rashad was the valedictorian at his college commencement while serving as Student President. He has a very smooth and polished persona. He always seems to have the right answer for every question. His supervisor describes him as an excellent communicator. His business presentations often left the audience feeling positive and hopeful about his projects. Rashad’s teammates told stories of how he was a prankster. He often playfully teased people to make them smile and feel better. The consensus was that he was a very charismatic leader and destined for great things. Rashad’s managerial talent appeared to be in relationship building and stakeholder management. His customers requested him by name to manage any projects we performed for them. He always seemed to attract the best talent in the company because everyone wanted to work for him. After the interview, you were so impressed you felt that one day, you would gladly be working for this guy. You realized that having Rashad as your Deputy Project Manager would help win new business because he brings top talent that delivered results that increased your customers’ loyalty to the company. As you leave your office, Sharlene, the Human Resources manager ask you if you have decided. You tell her, “yes,” but you want to think about your decision over the weekend before you would give her you’re an answer. She reminded you of the office’s family appreciation cook-out tomorrow, and you told her you would attend. The Family Appreciation Cookout When you arrive at the cookout, you realize that all the candidates are there with their family and friends. As you are in line at the stand for drinks, you overhear a European-American woman telling a friend about a how proud she is of her husband overcoming a harsh life in the urban south. She was expressing how well he has done in life despite his experience in gangs and juvenile prison. As you listen, Rashad comes over and greets you and introduces the woman in front of you as his wife and his three biracial children in following him. His wife welcomes you with a stunned and embarrassed look. Feeling a bit embarrassed yourself, you get your drink and go to a semi-private place in the park. As you are sitting there one of your peer-managers comes over to talk to you. Moreover, he decides to share some gossip with you. He tells you, “I hear you are considering Shereen for your DPM position.” Then he tells you, “you know she is the one that got our boss fired. She claimed he sexually attacked her in his office. She filed a lawsuit against the company and the guy is facing criminal charges.” If that was not enough, he goes to tell you that she is single, a party girl, and has dated four men and a one woman in the company in the past five years. As he leaves a slightly inebriated woman comes over and introduces herself as Shereen’s best friend and unwittingly confirms what you just heard. Her friend goes on to tell you that they met in Iran when their parents worked at a US oil company. As kids, their Christian families and as friends of US business people, they had to escape in the middle of the night to 3 Written by John H. Coleman, Ph.D., Adjunct Professor at Virginia International University (VIU) avoid persecution or execution. They have been in the US since age four where they applied and received political asylum. As you decide to leave before this gets any more uncomfortable, an Asian man introduces himself as Mr. Torres’ husband. He wanted to thank you for considering Francisco for the new opportunity. He was making a case for how Francisco was a great human being. He pointed out their two kids. Fransico’s spouse told a love story of how Francisco moved to be with him in his home-state so they could get married. He was disappointed when they moved back to a southern state that did not recognize the gay-lesbian marriage. They only took the position because the company offered benefits for “significant life partners.” Francisco came over to greet you and asked his spouse to return to the party. Francisco politely questions you about your thoughts of his spouse. Then he asked that you would not let this information negatively influence your decision for the promotion. Your Chosen Candidate is…? When you return to work on Monday, the HR Manager is there to greet you. She questions, “what happened at the cookout?” She goes on to inform you, that all three candidates have come to her office to suggest that if you do not, hire them; then, they will consider filing an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) discrimination claim. She tells you, Francisco fears he will be forced to file a suit for LGBT discrimination suit with EEO, the state, and anyone that will take his case. He’s terrified that he moved his family to this state and had limited employment options to provide for his growing family. He is frustrated because this is the 4th promotion he was denied at this company. Shereen told her that she knows she has little rights in this state for LGBT discrimination, but she will file an EEO complaint about sex discrimination and retribution for her previous sexual harassment complaint. Finally, Rashad feels that now that you know his past, that it will negatively influence your decision. Rashad explicitly noted that we have only three other African American Project Managers out of the 136 project managers on staff. Moreover, none of them are Project Directors. She asks you, “What is your decision?” Justify Your Decision You share your decision with the Charlene the HR Manager. She tells you to spend the rest of the day doing three things . 1. Complete the Interview evaluation sheets stating your ratings. 2. Write an Issue Resolution Report to document in preparation for the pending complaints. 3. Call the those that were not selected first, then call your chosen candidate and congratulate them before the day is over. As you ponder these tasks, you wonder how something that started out so fulfilling could become so negative. The Task at Hand As you begin to write your Issue Resolution Report, consider the following: 1. What have the aggrieved employees felt and experienced that causes them to respond with a formal EEO claim? 2. What are the facts in your decision? Why did you choose the candidate you selected? Justify with facts. 3. What can you do to help resolve the situation? What can you offer the candidates not selected, to address their concerns? 4. Search your heart and mind and determine if you do have any biases that may influence your decision . 5. What is your plan of action? What steps will you recommend to resolve the issue and minimize the impacts? 6. Finally, consider any relevant laws or legal cases you can reference.