WISE Sponsored Speaker Ingrid Emmons Shines at the Velocity Conference
WISE had the honor of sponsoring a featured speaker at this year’s Velocity Conference in Charolotte, NC on May 16-18. Ingrid Emmons, VP and Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Aveanna Healthcare, enlightened the Velocity audience with her presentation “DEI, the Catalyst for Creativity.”
“As a Gold Sponsor of the Velocity Conference and a speaker sponsor, we were thrilled to have such a significant presence at the event,” says Jen Linke, WISE Chair. “Ingrid not only delivered an emotional and humorous presentation, but she also stressed that if businesses want to make better, well-rounded decisions and grow, each team member needs to feel included.”
Ingrid currently leads DEI and employee experience for nationwide home health care organization Aveanna. The company offers medical professionals who go into homes and provide care primarily for children and our geriatric population. “It’s such rewarding work,” notes Ingrid. “There’s no environment that requires you to be more inclusive than when you’re going into someone’s home. You truly see DEI through a different lens.” She actually transitioned into HR after getting her undergraduate degree in business/marketing and then her MBA. She felt a calling into HR as she believes the role touches every aspect of the business. All pertinent functions, marketing, finance, legal, come together collectively to move the business forward.
As a champion of DEI both professionally and personally, Ingrid likes to get right to the point when she talks about the why DEI efforts are so important. “I try to tackle the elephant in the room,” she points out. “It’s important to address the fact that DEI isn’t something that you do to check a box. Think about any organization. If only the CFO would have to build and manage the budget, the business would fail. DEI has to be a part of how an organization thinks and acts. It has to be deeply entrenched.”
She also stresses that internal & external relationships have never been more important than today. As many as 70% of individuals have experienced trauma in their lives, which ultimately affects someone’s actions within their current roles. The art of inclusion is about understanding the human dynamic. You have to be able to read body language, interpret fear and determine why someone does not have a sense of belonging. When people feel valued, they add value. In many instances people leave an organization because they don’t feel a part of a team. “As a leader, you have to say,” I’m going to get to know you. I’m going to vulnerable,” so that we understand the humanity of an individual and so there’s a connectivity that you’ve not had before.”
In short, the business case for DEI is simple. Today, a business can’t afford to be status quo or it will have a catastrophic failure. Companies like to talk about being disruptive in their space. DEI is that catalyst for creativity. Essential to that is effectively recruiting the right talent. “You can’t recruit a diverse person. There’s no such thing,” notes Ingrid. “Diversity is built through the team dynamic.” She advises that when you’re hiring people with varying backgrounds it’s important that people feel like they are insiders in the room. Every employee has the responsibility to contribute to the comate built around a team. “Your goal should be to make people who feel outside of a status to feel inside that status,” says Ingrid. “It’s complicated to get there, but that should be your mission, your vision and your purpose.”