A Reflection: Walking the Talk

When the INFORMS Board of Directors adopted a new strategic plan earlier this year, one of our five new goals was designed to reflect the type of community and organization we aspire to be: “Advance diversity, equity and inclusion in all we do.”

With that in mind and given disturbing recent events, I’ve been reflecting on the one-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd and the global anti-racism movement. Although tragic, racially motivated murders have gone on for centuries, I have guarded optimism that Floyd’s murder changed the conversation in pursuit of racial equality.

You may recall that after Floyd’s murder, INFORMS made a public statement calling on our members to stand together for a “diverse, inclusive, fair and just future” (see the June 3, 2020 Instagram post; original graphic seen to the right). I was not INFORMS executive director then; in fact, I read it in the middle of the interviewing process. The statement itself, combined with what I saw as INFORMS’ underlying commitment to a more fair, just and equitable world, significantly impacted my decision to take the position. What struck me about INFORMS’ statement was its clarity that we must “work together” and it was a call to action. The Board’s decision to directly include as a strategic goal “advance diversity, equity and inclusion in all we do” was a major step in this regard. But importantly, it is by no means the only one.

Derrick Johnson, NAACP president and CEO, recently said, “The statements are fine, but it’s the commitment and the longevity of the commitment that’s most important” [1]. I agree.

INFORMS’ Efforts and Continued Commitment

While it is challenging to tease out what INFORMS has done over the last 12 months as a result of our June 2020 public commitment or what was already in motion, I want to share some of the efforts from the past year that hopefully have helped chip away at systemic racism in the world and within INFORMS. One year won’t fix the problem that has been building up for 400+ years in the United States, but we are committed to moving in the right direction. It is important to recognize that efforts in the past year have been built on the shoulders of giants including the Minority Issues Forum (MIF, formed in 2001), Women in OR/MS Forum (WORMS, formed in 1995), INFORMS Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee (DEIC, formed in 2015), the Board of Director’s endorsement of official DEI statements in 2017, and other forward-momentum initiatives.

The following list is not comprehensive and includes examples from INFORMS volunteer leaders, members and staff.

• In June 2020, current and former leaders of MIF sent a letter to the president of INFORMS and the chair of DEIC. The letter clearly outlined recommendations while also stating, “INFORMS should avoid giving the impression that its minority members are responsible for identifying and implementing the changes that our community needs; this is an institutional responsibility that involves all of its members.” 2020 INFORMS President Pinar Keskinocak responded to the letter, and she, the Board, INFORMS staff, DEIC and I have used it to influence priorities.
• The 2020 INFORMS Annual Meeting in November featured a DEIC-sponsored keynote speaker for the first time. Work is underway to insert a requirement in the Annual Meeting Guide to ensure this happens each year. Additionally, I have had discussions with all current and upcoming organizing committee chairs asking them to pay deliberate attention to ensure that the conference they are organizing is diverse, equitable and inclusive in all aspects.
• The 2020 INFORMS Teaching Effectiveness Colloquium included a DEIC-sponsored session on “Anti-racist Pedagogy for the STEM Classroom and Curriculum,” and the Combined Colloquium included a panel discussion on “O.R./Analytics Career Development to Support Diversity, Equity and Justice.”
• The DEI Ambassadors Program is strong in its second year and has already made gains with projects such as “Building an Empowered Community for Women of Color (WoC) in OR/MS” and “INFORMS – en ESPAÑOL: Online Lecture Series.” (You can see a full list of the 2020 Ambassador projects in OR/MS Today [2].) Most recently, in May 2021, there was a live panel webinar to discuss “Stimulating Participation of Underrepresented Groups in INFORMS Editorial Boards,” which is a 2021 DEI Ambassador project.
• INFORMS publications group has made strides including publishing a virtual special issue of Management Science on DEI [3], increasing the diversity of editors-in-chief and among members of search and review committees, and adding language to its Policies & Procedures to advance DEI.
• The INFORMS Nominating Committee used a nominee’s commitment to DEI as one of the criteria used for selection. (See related article in this issue here.)
• In response to an increase in violence against the Asian community, we issued a statement in March to reiterate our stance against sexism, racism, xenophobia and bigotry.
• We are working on revisions to the INFORMS Code of Conduct that will include adherence to DEI principles, and introducing implicit bias training for INFORMS volunteers.
• Recognizing that INFORMS members play a valuable role in informing public policy, the DEIC is launching a webinar series focusing on DEI academic research in operations research, analytics and related disciplines. 

In addition to the above, INFORMS has also instituted changes to ensure that we take the broadest possible approach to DEI. This includes a newly integrated AccessiBe code on our website that enables adjustments to accessibility profile, content, color and orientation. Work has begun to increase the accessibility of PubsOnline. Additionally, during the 2021 INFORMS Business Analytics Conference, many sessions included closed captioning for the first time.

On the staff side, I, along with several other staff leaders, recently completed the University of South Florida Muma College of Business Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate.

My Hope

If we work together as one INFORMS to build a culture that is diverse, provides equitable access, and is welcoming and inclusive, we will see true and meaningful change. I firmly and passionately believe that our ability to get closer to INFORMS’ vision of “Better decision-making for a just, prosperous and sustainable world” requires us, as one collective community, to embrace DEI. The benefits will include advancing and elevating the impact of science and technology on decision-making, increasing the number of professionals in our fields, and savings lives, saving money and solving problems.

On a final note, I’ll repeat a statement I’ve said many times over the last year – I am listening, and I commit to doing better and doing more. Please share your feedback.

References

1. David Gelles, 2021, “Corner Office: Racial Justice and Corporate Responsibility,” The New York Times, April 23, p. 3.
2. Kara Tucker, 2020, “DEI Ambassador projects underway,” OR/MS Today, Oct. 8, https://doi.org/10.1287/orms.2020.05.15.
3. Virtual Special Issue Papers on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Management Science, https://pubsonline.informs.org/page/mnsc/papers-on-diversity-equity-inclusion.