Authenticity Over Assimilation

Joanne Lockwood is joined by DEI consultant and former finance leader Jenny Chen for a wide-ranging conversation about what it really takes to choose authenticity over assimilation

They explore how political rhetoric and workplace norms can turn inclusion into a zero-sum fight, and why performative gestures
do little to shift the lived reality of people facing racism and sexism. Jenny shares her personal journey as a Chinese Canadian immigrant and former political refugee, and how early pressures to fit in shaped her relationship to language, identity and belonging.

Moving from story to strategy, Jenny and Joanne discuss why DEI cannot sit in an HR silo, and why employee resource groups can be misused as containment rather than change. They make the case for redesigning systems that were built for a different era, grounding the work in respect, compassion and courageous leadership that can hold difficult conversations and drive sustainable cultural change.