DEI-Speak Can Become Business-Speak With Companywide Use

For Nicole Hughey, the most innovative work is the result of transparent and meaningful conversations. Now vp of diversity and inclusion at SiriusXM/Pandora, Hughey has invested her time and power into helping people realize the value of their own diversity and helping all underrepresented populations go above and beyond. Check out our Q&A with Hughey, starting with the new program at SiriusXM called "Can We Talk?" Also read about how the audio platform is understanding the racial implications of the sonic color line as more media turns to audio in the social space, and finally how diversity, equity, and inclusion work is crucial for all business strategies to succeed. Adweek: How did you get to where you are today? Any noteworthy "aha" moments along the way?Nicole Hughey: Five years into my career, a manager asked if I had thought about training as a career. It set me on the path of working with people to uncover their talents and develop skills to be successful. I found my calling: helping people discover the value of their own diversity and find ways to support, empower and amplify members of all underrepresented populations to ensure they can thrive. My most recent "aha" moment was joining SiriusXM (which also encompasses Pandora and Stitcher). Maybe it was the year-and-a-half of listening to SiriusXM on a four-and-a-half-hour commute that made me say to myself, “Wow, I never thought about working at an audio entertainment company.” I love doing this work at SiriusXM because it is a company whose very success comes from having a diverse platform where many different voices and perspectives are genuinely honored and celebrated. What's the most innovative thing you recently worked on?Transparent and meaningful conversations are the anchor to sustainable DE&I work. Innovation sparks when employees engage in conversations that allow for an appreciation of differences and perspectives. This belief has manifested itself at SiriusXM through the creation of “Can We Talk?”, a multipronged initiative aimed at increasing cultural awareness and promoting dialogue across the organization. “Can We Talk?” includes three initiatives: The Inclusive Language Project is a companywide effort to address noninclusive language from within our walls with the potential to influence the rest of the tech and media industries. It starts with removing noninclusive terms from our existing documents and processes.Conversations About Race is a leader-led workshop series that provides an opportunity for real conversations about race, encourages deeper learning and inspires continued actions that support inclusion.Crucial Conversations is a monthly webinar series covering diversity, equity and inclusion topics, terms and concepts, with a call to action to employees to continue the conversation with someone they might not regularly interact with to build new levels of understanding and appreciation. https://twitter.com/SIRIUSXM/status/1223277912700440578 What new or up-and-coming innovations are you most excited about, and how do you think they will change the future of marketing?I’m always amazed when diversity, equity and inclusion can manifest in unique ways beyond the normal influences. The Stand for Sonic Diversity initiative is one of the most impactful ways SiriusXM has supported our own DE&I efforts and influenced others outside of our own walls. It is a call to action to diversify voices in media and advertising. At SiriusXM, we say we must “talk the talk” and “walk the walk” to make progress with DE&I efforts. For us, doing both is asking audio brands to take a stand with us and make a measurable commitment to casting more Black voices on our collective platforms. The sonic color line exists, and we in the advertising and marketing industries need to understand that racism is not just a visual or textual issue. It is a sonic issue as well. These sonic color lines impact our marketing and messaging decisions, amplifying white voices and creating an atmosphere where Black voices are forced to adapt to be heard. Crossing these sonic color lines requires us to retrain the way we listen, diversify the sonic spaces we inhabit, and change the creative choices we’re making that serve to perpetuate systemic racism in sonic structures. ‘Stand for Sonic Diversity’ Pledge Aims for BIPOC Talent to Make Up 50% of Ad Voices What’s one piece of work from your career that you’re the proudest of?I helped build a company’s first DE&I strategy and created initiatives from the ground up: Diversity Speaks, an employee engagement series that cultivates a work environment that honors difference and promotes conversations. Employees heard from various internal and external DE&I experts, learned more about the importance of differences in propelling the organization forward, and engage in dialogue, supported by facilitated questions, that led to a better appreciation of one another. Ten-plus years later, Diversity Speaks is still a critical anchor of the company’s DE&I efforts. Was there ever a time where you questioned your career path? How did you handle that?Never. I’ve always believed in the power of manifestation. I landed in a career that was tailored for me and all my experiences and led me to exactly where I am today! I have, however, in recent years, questioned where to lend my talent and experiences. I feel strongly that SiriusXM, an audio entertainment company where the very success of the company relies on having a platform that values and brings diverse perspectives and voices to all of our stakeholders, is the right place for me. What is one skill that you think is currently underdeveloped in your field?People often undervalue and underestimate the importance of DE&I to the success of any business strategy. DE&I initiatives are most impactful when they can be tied directly to supporting the company’s strategic imperatives, and everyone in the organization can articulate how they support the company’s success. DE&I sustainability is critical; sustainability happens when those of us that do this work can transform our DE&I-speak to business-speak that resonates on all levels within the organization. How do you pick and develop the talent on your team?I pick talent based on four critical things: core skills and experience, differences they can bring that will make the team better, a high level of emotional intelligence, and the potential to grow and develop. Developing talent is a partnership that requires transparency and flexibility to design a development plan that works for the person and the team. What's a way that you predict marketing will change as more people begin traveling/going out again?The country’s reliance on digital modes for communication and gathering information is here to stay. Companies that do the best job pushing out messages and images that make people feel connected to the company and to each other will win whether people are home or traveling/going out again. What’s the first post to come to mind when you hear “best-in-class social”?Nike. We all know their slogan, “Just do it,” but what Nike does best is making sure we don’t forget it by flooding social media platforms with clever ads featuring a variety of people and content. Nike understands that there is always more than one way to reach an audience, and pushing out content featuring diverse images is a great way to reach the masses. What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?“If you want what you’ve never had, do what you’ve never done!” The saying has kept me grounded in a healthy dose of risk-taking while helping me move forward.

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How DEI-Speak Can Become Business-Speak With Companywide Adoption

The vp of diversity and inclusion at SiriusXM/Pandora talks DEI's importance for any business' success

Julian Gamboa

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Julian Gamboa