A Very FWD February 2021: Our Virtual Summit
Undoubtedly, 2020 was a pretty tumultuous year. With a stressful election, a rising civil rights movement, uncertainty around the global pandemic, and changes in our day-to-day routines, there had and has been a lot of anxiety, unrest, and of course, screen time.
But in all of this, one thing has stayed consistent with all of us here at FWD—our dedication to professional inclusion—and despite the shift to online events, we were both excited and thankful to host the ‘A Very FWD February’ event, our first virtual summit and kick off 2021 in a purposeful way and on a happier note.
We worked to create an intentionally accessible event where content was released live throughout the last week of February, and available to watch/re-watch for a set period of time post-event (and indefinitely for FWD members!) to accommodate the varying needs of our ever-changing schedules.
Content was a mash-up of traditional action-packed professional development presentations...AND...a celebration of arts, culture, and community, ranging from on-screen collaborations, to off-screen adventures and activities.
As we continue to navigate our virtual world, we are determined to create meaningful ways to connect and move FWD together. Whether you were able to attend our virtual summit or are looking ahead, here is recap of what we did at #FWDFeb21 and why you should plan on joining us next time
Day 1: At the Table with Morgan Malone, Founder of Resisting in Place
The pandemic shifted a lot for each and every one of us. For day one of A Very FWD February, we invited Morgan Malone—social impact strategist, economic development practitioner, and anti-racism advocate—to share about launching her latest platform, Resisting in Place.
Resisting in Place is a nationwide anti-racism effort showcasing the breadth and depth of Black contribution across industries and institutions. Morgan talked about why this platform is important, the importance of paid social impact work, and how we can celebrate and invest in others (especially during this time).
Notable Quotes:
When it comes to social impact work towards being less additive and more integral. - Morgan Malone (Click to tweet this)
Society building is iterative. - Morgan Malone (Click to tweet this)
When working on your diversity / DEI structure and planning out your KPI's you have to think about every touchpoint and not just the number of people in the room. - Morgan Malone (Click to tweet this)
Key Takeaways:
Pay attention to communication around you (opportunity to say "what did you mean by that" -- when you see something that not right, say something)
Affirm, acknowledge, give credit, elevate ideas (while giving credit), collaborate, support, and hype people up (follow on social, like their stuff, buy their products, support their work, [FWD note: 'vote them up' with your words and your dollars]
Day 2: WorkFWD — How to Measure Inclusion
This past year has brought about many conversations around diversity and inclusion and what that really looks like in the workplace. As companies streamline new DEI efforts and practices, our featured speakers shared how to truly measure inclusion, ways that both individuals and organizations can make active change, for employers: actionable tactics on how to hire, and for job seekers: how to position yourself to be hired
WorkFWD Session Breakdown:
Workshop: How to Measure Inclusion, featuring Lisa Magill, Aleria
Panel: Let's talk about it: Hiring, Culture, Building a Diverse Team, Finding Your Dream Job, featuring Joy Pittman, HR For The Culture, Swati Garg, Melo Associates, & Lisa Magill, Aleria
Lisa Magill, Co-Founder & CEO of Aleria, leverages her passions and expertise to help take the guesswork out of diversity & inclusion. She lead us in an informative workshop on tangible ways to measure inclusion, and understanding the differences in counting metrics from the past, versus meaningfully planning towards your future. In the WorkFWD panel discussion, she dropped some serious knowledge and talked about her focus on seeing inclusion as ‘health’. She reminded our audience that when you lack strong DEI in your organization, the ‘health’ of the company suffers.
Joy Pittman, Founder of HR For The Culture—the premier HR Outsource & Direct Hire Staffing Firm for black e-commerce and services businesses—is an HR Strategist working to close the racial wealth gap for Black business owners and the people they employ. She shared that when working towards inclusion, the first step is to examine and challenge your own truth. She also shared with us about the different roles people of different ethnic backgrounds have in creating true diversity.
Swati Garg is the Founder and Managing Director of Melo Associates, a small recruiting firm in Chicago that focuses on Customer Success hiring. She challenged our #FWDFamily to take a closer look at their own biases and how they structure their hiring patterns in order to make change truly happen. Swati also shared advice for job seekers encouraging them to ‘do the research’ about the companies they are exploring working for, as well as the industry as a whole to make sure they are prepared and putting their best foot FWD!
Notable Quotes:
Diversity metrics are a delayed sign of progress, you only get these numbers when hiring and firing. - Lisa Magill (Click to tweet this)
Inclusion is like health, you tend to notice it when you don't have it. - Lisa Magill (Click to tweet this)
When it comes to truly working towards inclusion, be prepared to challenge your own truth. - Joy Pittman (Click to tweet this)
Many times for Black women, inclusion is holding space for those who have been traditionally excluded. - Joy Pittman (Click to tweet this)
When it comes to your hiring practices, look for patterns, and unpack those patterns to move toward understanding your potential bias. - Swati Garg (Click to tweet this)
When looking for a job, especially when switching industries you need to spend time learning the language. - Swati Garg (Click to tweet this)
Key Takeaways:
Spend time to unpack your (or your organization’s) potential biases when it comes to hiring practices or DEI efforts. Having a critical eye can help you see things in a new light and can prevent you from falling into negative patterns.
Take one step at a time. Change isn’t something that happens overnight, but it is something you have to actively and actionably work at.
Day 3: WellnessFWD — Creating Space & Working Towards Goals Without Losing Yourself In The Process
In the midst of a global pandemic, ‘work-from-home’ quickly came the norm. For many people, finding those clear personal and professional boundaries has been a challenge. In this panel, our featured speakers tackled topics of wellness, including creating space, slowing down, shifting priorities, and ‘leveling up’ without burning out.
Wellness FWD Session Breakdown:
Guided Journaling: Creating Space, Working Towards Goals Without Using Yourself In the Process, featuring Marisa Donnelly, Be A Light Collective
Panel: Next Level Mentality, Slowing Down to Level Up, Featuring Tristan Lewis & Andrew Smith of The Healing Chi, Nick Hallmon, Connector, People Developer, + Cultural Thought Leader, & Marisa Donnelly, Be A Light Collective
Marisa Donnelly, founder of Be A Light Collective—a creative marketplace, writing/editing service, and online community for creatives, business owners, and entrepreneurs—opened up about her business pivot and how she’s learned to prioritize self-care amidst moving forward. In addition to sharing some serious knowledge on the panel, she led our audience through a powerful series of guided journaling questions to help us reset and realign as we head into the new year, a new month, or even just head into tomorrow.
Tristan Lewis and Andrew Smith, Co-Founders of The Healing Chi—a dedicated space for black men to achieve their best selves wholistically—shared about their journey of emotional wellness and creating space for themselves and others to open up with one another. Both Tristan and Andrew discussed the importance of caring for your mental health and the immensely positive impact normalizing seeking guidance has had on their lives as well as the lives of their peers. They also talked about separating their business and personal lives in meaningful ways in order to ‘level-up’ without losing themselves in the busyness of the day-to-day.
Nick Hallmon, Connector, People-Developer and Thought Leader based in Chicago, dropped his epiphany moment about self-care (which lit up the chat as attendees expressed being able to relate to his journey) on how we should shift our perspectives to see it as valuable and natural rather than selfish. Nick has joined FWD in the past as the Emcee for our Chicago Summit in 2018 and always brings his full self! ur
FWD Collective’s Founder & CEO, Michael Donnelly joined the panel and chimed in about how caring for our physical AND emotional selves in prioritizing, shifting our focus, and learning to take care of and train our minds as a muscle that needs attention rather than just continually trying to check off items on the to-do list.
Notable Quotes:
When working towards your goals, create processes you can lean on for the days (we all have) when you get off track. - Marisa Donnelly (Click to tweet this)
For the longest time, I had it backward, I thought #selfcare was selfish. - Nick Hallmon (Click to tweet this)
One of the biggest forms of #selfcare is really focusing on what I say yes to, and what I say NO to. -Andrew Smith (Click to tweet this)
Self-advocacy actually benefits the collective (both in our personal and professional lives. - Tristan Lewis (Click to tweet this)
We have coaches for our bodies, so WHY wouldn't we get a coach for our minds, our most important muscle that controls literally ALL the things - Michael Donnelly (Click to tweet this)
Key Takeaways:
Learn to listen to your body in order to create space, slow down, and avoid burnout.
Find places and people with whom you can be open with and become a person whom others feel comfortable opening up around, too.
Create a balance between work, self-care, and play so that you can continue to level up professionally without losing yourself in the process.
Day 4: BuildFWD — Building A Brand That Converts & 🎶 Live @ FWD
As we look ahead to the next year, each of us has a goal of improving from 2020 and putting the past behind us. Professionally, that can look like building a strong brand and leveraging online platforms for true growth and success.
BuildFWD Session Breakdown:
🎶 Live @ FWD Musical Performance, featuring Kira Anna Lee
Panel: Building a Brand That Converts, featuring Morgan Owens, MAO Brands & Alexandra Frumberg, ALX Creatives
We kicked off the BuildFWD session with a LIVE musical performance by the incredible Kira Anna Lee accompanied by her guitarist. Kira Anna Lee is an up-and-coming artist who brought so much energy to our virtual stage audience members expressed “getting goosebumps” requesting a post-panel encore (which Kira Anna Lee so graciously granted us!). Kira Anna Lee performed a few songs, most notably her new single Teamwork which you can check out here.
Morgan Angelique Owens, author of "Finding My Sparkle" and Founder & CEO of the MAO Brand, Professional Pretty, and Curvy Cardio, LLC., talked about what it means to really own your brand and create content that is unique and purposeful for your audience. She shared tips about engagement and how to really leverage yourself without compromising, rather than celebrating who you are to grow with purpose and flair.
Alexandra Frumberg, Founder & Creative Director at ALX Creatives, shared the importance of authenticity backed by analytics. She honed in on the focus of social media as entertainment and how creatives should focus on giving to their audience in meaningful ways to build longevity of the relationship with the brand and vested interest over time.
Notable Quotes:
You don't own your brand, it's what others think of you. - Morgan Owens (Click to tweet this)
People come to social media to be entertained, educated, or informed, with every post you have to think about how you are doing these things for your audience. - Alexandra Frumberg (Click to tweet this)
When it comes to setting KPI's, go back to your why, know what you're there for, and use that to set your benchmarks. - Alexandra Frumberg (Click to tweet this)
If you don't have time, invest money, if you don't have money, invest time. - Morgan Owens (Click to tweet this)
Key Takeaways:
Your online brand is crucial to your long-term success because it’s what your potential customers see when they search for you.
It’s important to focus on what you can give rather than the followers you gain so that you can stay true to yourself and your message.
Focus on what your purpose behind using different platforms is and make sure that everything you share is in alignment with that purpose.
We concluded the summit with an informal happy hour and some virtual networking. All in all, A Very FWD February was one for the books! If you’d like to see the full event page and access speaker bios, click here!
To learn more about our speakers and the latest FWD Collective news, click here. If you’re curious about our next event and ways you can get involved as an ambassador, sponsor, speaker, or attendee click here, or head to our membership page.
