Why So Many Organizations Stay White

We’re thrilled to welcome the incoming Institute for Business in Global Society (BiGS) Racial Equity Fellow Victor Ray. Victor Ray is the F. Wendell Miller Associate Professor at the University of Iowa. He has built a strong body of scholarship on topics of race in organizations, and how social constructs of race are replicated in the workplace. Professor Ray has also presented at our Race, Gender, and Equity Symposium in past years, including his stirring 2022 presentation on racialized organizations.

We asked Professor Ray about his background, his current research, and his upcoming year at HBS. Read on to learn more about his work.

RGE: Can you share a bit about your background and what inspired you to pursue research in your specific field?

I study how organizations use race, in part, because of my personal experiences. I write about this a bit in my book, noting that I was two years-old the first time the police were called on my family. One of my Black uncles took me to a parade, and someone thought he must have kidnapped this light-skinned kid, and they called the police. The police were also called on my dad once when we were playing in the yard. I’ve had a ton of other experiences like this, and these firsthand interactions shaped my academic interests.

RGE: What have been some of the most surprising findings in your research? What implications do they have for individuals or organizations trying to make change?

The notion in my work that organizations are not race-neutral is often suprising to people who think about race as just an individual identity. I think of race as a structural feature of organizations that often shapes how resources are distributed (who is more likely to be promoted, whose ideas are deferred to). This has major implications for how organizations think about dealing with racial inequality. Lots of policies try to deal with inequality through changing hearts and minds. But the implication of my work is that what matters is changing resource distribution.

RGE: Your research examines race within organizations, arguing that race is not just an external factor but embedded within organizational structures. Can you give us an example of how a racialized organization perpetuates inequality?

I think there are lots of ways to answer this question. There are the obvious factors such as employment discrimination at the point of hiring or racial harassment once someone has the job. I think there are also more subtle factors, such as rules around hairstyles and grooming that can be presented as universal but are often more likely to be norms for only one group. There are also decisions such as where to place a workplace or hospital that has potential implications for accessing jobs or healthcare. Because race shapes so many different aspects of American life, there are multiple ways organizations can end up reinforcing patterns of inequality. Leaders can anticipate and attempt to head off these patterns by thinking about potential unanticipated consequences and how race might shape processes they think of as neutral.

RGE: What is one key recommendation you have for practitioners (leaders and managers) working to improve their DEI initiatives?

Practitioners looking to improve their DEI initiatives should look to evidence-based practices that are proven to help. For instance, providing mentors for new employees can help to acclimate folks to the workplace and help managers identify talent.

RGE: How do you see your research evolving in the next few years, and what new areas are you interested in exploring while at HBS?

While I’m at HBS I’ll be working on my book on racialized organizations, which expands upon my theory. I also hope to research how organizations are responding and adapting to the new regulatory environment around DEI given recent Supreme Court decisions. There is a lot of change in this area right now and I think a lot of room to innovate on policies and practices that will work going forward.

RGE: Is there anything about you that we don't know yet that you'd like to share? This can be about your hobbies, interests, or something non-academic you're looking forward to while at HBS.

I’m looking forward to exploring Boston for the year with my family. And I’m looking forward to taking advantage of the many intellectual opportunities available on Harvard’s campus.