Release My Voice The Untapped Talent Pool — Seeing DisABILITY Margaret Spence, CEO C. Douglas & Associates, Inc. http://margaretspence.com/

I would ask you to be non-judgmental Release My Voice “When you see me … what do you see?” Margaret Spence I would ask you to be non-judgmental

Disability and the US Workforce People with disabilities are the largest minority population in the US. 20% of the US population has a disability 79% unemployment rate for people with disabilities

“Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction…” John F. Kennedy I would ask you to have the courage to embrace and become a champion for people with disabilities

Disability Employment Challenges 33 million people of working age with disabilities – only 21% are currently employed 20 million working age people with disabilities who want to work, who are able to work, but they remain unemployed Untapped Talent Pool 4 in 10 companies report difficulties identifying qualified candidates with disabilities 2 out of 3 cite lack of finding candidates as a barrier to hiring Are we making a valiant effort? Most companies report challenges finding and retaining employees with disabilities Mass confusion about what can be done to solve this problem Why are we confused?

Hiring Benchmarks National Organization of Disability – Surveyed 47% of Fortune 500 Corporations and 78% of Federal Contractors on: Climate & Culture Tracking & Measurement Results and Opportunities Employment Cycle 75% of companies in their database have or track hiring initiatives 3% average number of disabled workers employed 16% meet the federal guidelines of having at least 7% employment of disabled workers

Myths About Hiring Individuals with a Disability We question their ability as a qualified candidate We assume that reasonable accommodations are expensive According to the Job Accommodation Network, most accommodations cost under $500 We question their ability to perform like other employees Feel that they could be a disruption to normal operations — customers may not want to interact with someone with a disability or employees may not want to work with someone who has a disability Corporate Social Responsibility to Hire and Retain Individuals with Disabilities

How do you turn the invisible into the visible? “Do the difficult things while they are easy, and do the great things while they are small.” Lao Tzu How do you turn the invisible into the visible?

SWOT Analysis

SWOT Analysis STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

SWOT Analysis OPPORTUNITIES THREATS

Eliminate the Weakness and Threats Results Actions Opportunities Strength

Can you allow me to release my voice? “Employers have recognized for some time that it’s smart business to have a diverse workforce — one in which many views are represented and everyone’s talents are valued. Well, disability is a part of diversity.” Thomas Perez – Secretary of Labor Can you allow me to release my voice?

Strength Opportunities Action Results What are your organization’s strengths? Strength Where are the opportunities to add inclusion to your workforce? Opportunities What actions are you taking to increase inclusion? Action How will you measure your results? Results

Push-and-Pull Model PUSH PULL NON-DIRECTIVE Listening to understand Solving someone’s problem for them NON-DIRECTIVE Reflecting Listening to understand Paraphrasing Summarizing Asking questions that raise awareness Giving feedback Offering guidance Making suggestions Provide Instruction Giving advice PULL Helping someone solve their own problem DIRECTIVE (Myles Downey – “Effective Coaching – 2003 – Thomson Texere, New York)

You Can Embrace Ability And Equality Releasing My Voice Means? A job that makes good use of skills and abilities Having opportunity to receive additional training and learning on the job Feeling communicated to and from management Getting involved in how decisions are made about their future Think differently — See my ability Change what you think? Ask me what I want! Aim higher — Build inclusion as a path to business success Dedicate yourself to eliminating inequality You Can Embrace Ability And Equality

Growth means you see what’s possible Milestones Actions Commitment What WILL you do? Will W Situation Vision Objective What do you want? Goal G GROW What’s possible? What could you do? Options O Evidence Awareness Understanding What is happening now? Reality R

“The less you open your heart to others, the more your heart suffers.” Deepak Chopra The Journey of a Million Miles – Depends on you to take the first step.

Let’s Stay In Touch @MargaretSpence @SAGELeadershipCoach Fb.me/SAGELeadershipCoach Margaret@MargaretSpence.com www.MargaretSpence.com Resource: Job Accommodation Network AskJAN.org