{"id":98685,"date":"2024-01-10T19:36:30","date_gmt":"2024-01-10T08:36:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.steelcase.com\/asia-en\/?p=98685"},"modified":"2024-07-05T20:20:31","modified_gmt":"2024-07-05T10:20:31","slug":"how-words-matter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.steelcase.com\/asia-en\/research\/articles\/topics\/people-planet\/how-words-matter\/","title":{"rendered":"How Words Matter"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Last fall when Steelcase Corporate Compliance Manager Zo\u00eb Wilson filed a help ticket with the Information Technology department for a computer issue, she received a jolt. In the ensuing thread of communications to fix her issue, a particular set of language caught Wilson\u2019s eye. \u201cWhen I saw the terms \u2018whitelist\u2019 and \u2018blacklist\u2019 come through, it was arresting, to be honest,\u201d says Wilson. \u201cIt got my attention.\u201d That pang of injustice would spark a journey that not only inspired Steelcase to adopt more inclusive language but one that would ripple change to global partners as well.<\/p>\n<p>While Wilson\u2019s reaction to seeing this language in her own workspace was jarring, controversy has enveloped these terms for years. Whitelisting and blacklisting have existed in the cybersecurity and IT realms for decades, but a <a href=\"https:\/\/jmla.pitt.edu\/ojs\/jmla\/article\/view\/490\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2018 Journal of the Medical Library Association article<\/a> made the argument that such language is inherently racist. That sparked scholastic dialogue on the use of the terms in mainstream communications, and eliminating the terms \u201cwhitelisting\u201d and \u201cblacklisting.\u201d In 2020 a number of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vice.com\/en\/article\/v7dd3d\/we-need-to-stop-saying-blacklist-and-whitelist\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">companies<\/a> across the U.S. began exploring eliminating the language, including the companies that helped develop the Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge browser software. In 2021, the U.S. government group that pushes for industry standards across the cyber world suggested <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nist.gov\/news-events\/news\/2021\/04\/nists-inclusive-language-guidance-aims-clarity-standards-publications\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u00a0moving away from the words<\/a>, which it labeled biased.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Whitelisting,\u2019 writes Frank Houghton in the JMLA article, is commonly used in our collective lexicon to refer to options that are \u201cgood, respectable and safe\u201d while \u2018blacklisting\u2019 commonly denotes \u201csuspicion, shame or ill repute.\u201d Blacklisting is akin to words like \u2018black sheep,\u2019 \u2018black balled,\u2019 and \u2018black market\u2019 \u2013 illicit, underground, to be avoided. \u201cThe use of such terms does not merely reflect a racist culture, but also serves to legitimize and perpetuate it,\u201d Houghton asserted in his 2018 research.<\/p>\n<p><strong>CULTURE OF INCLUSION + DISTRIBUTED DECISION MAKING<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Steelcase has a long legacy of equity rooted in its core values and a commitment to distributed decision making. Its stated objectives are to build diverse teams, ensure equitable opportunities and create a culture of inclusion. The company believes the best people to take on those initiatives are the ones closest to them: its employees. \u201cI commented in the thread of the IT ticket and said, gently, maybe we need to take a timeout on this. Maybe those aren\u2019t the best terms to use,\u201d Zo\u00eb Wilson said. \u201cI think we can do better, and I know that being just plain good human beings is important to us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s within that culture that Wilson said she felt comfortable enough to press the issue with people who have the ability to implement the changes she felt strongly were needed. She brought the issue to key leaders in Steelcase. They agreed with Wilson, and the terms were eventually changed to \u201cBlocklist\u201d and \u201cAllowlist.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While Wilson says she\u2019s surprised at how much credit she\u2019s received for helping spur those changes, her peers point to Wilson\u2019s call-out as an example of employee-driven decision making. For Wilson, that\u2019s where representation matters. She believes that as she leads as a voice for change, it will influence more people to do the same. \u201cI hope over time I\u2019m able to encourage women and people of color or marginalized people who don\u2019t feel empowered to gain the confidence to speak up when there\u2019s a problem,\u201d says Wilson.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"pull-quote pull-quote-center \"><p>\u201cThat\u2019s what I really want to impact; to see more people speak up. I want to show them that this company will be fair. The company will hear them out. It\u2019s not just lip service.\u201d<\/p><cite>Zo\u00eb Wilson<span>Steelcase Compliance Manager<\/span><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>SMALL CHANGE, BIG IMPACT<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>While making the decision to change two simple phrases may have come easy to Steelcase leaders, the physical effort to expunge the words from corporate vocabulary wasn\u2019t as straightforward. It took weeks to come up with a solution and make the adjustments \u2013 an effort that ended up inspiring change far beyond Steelcase.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe did the work, met with the right people to ensure it was possible for us to make this change,\u201d says John White, Steelcase senior applications engineer. \u201cBut we needed to make sure all internal and external literature was also changed to reflect this effort \u2013 so that we wouldn\u2019t have this offensive language lingering anywhere within the processes we control.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"u-shaded u-shaded--light\">\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-761086\" src=\"https:\/\/images.steelcase.com\/image\/upload\/v1703513000\/23-0216392-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Steelcase Impact Report 2023 banner\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">Learn more about how we are helping the world work better by downloading the 2023 Steelcase Impact Report.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a class=\"button button-gray\" href=\"https:\/\/www.steelcase.com\/asia-en\/resources\/documents\/steelcase-esg-impact-report-2023\/\" rel=\"noopener\">GET YOUR COPY<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Steelcase Corporate and Marketing Communications Leader Brad Grace, who helped devise the strategy for change, agreed a thorough effort was needed to ensure the words were eradicated everywhere.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith all of our technology, it was no small task to find that term wherever it exists,\u201d Grace says. \u201cThere are so many different technologies with their own documentation, but we\u2019re confident now that we\u2019ve changed it across the company.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But the change didn\u2019t end with Steelcase. During discussions on changing the language at Steelcase, the company engaged several major partners in the process. In one case, a major technology vendor\u2019s executives responded by changing the same language globally across all of its software. A worldwide impact had been sparked by a small group of Steelcase employees.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s huge,\u201d Wilson says of the changes beyond Steelcase. \u201cTo think that we had a part in that is phenomenal. We should be proud of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>ONGOING COMMITMENT<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This is not the first time Steelcase has tackled tough language to create a more inclusive environment for all. Last July, mere months before Wilson called attention to the blacklist and whitelist language, the Steelcase IT department made a decision to change the agile role names of \u201cScrum Master\u201d to \u201cAgile Delivery Lead,\u201d and \u201cProduct Owner\u201d to \u201cAgile Product Lead.\u201d The concern was that the terms \u2018master\u2019 and \u2018owner\u2019 could be offensive. Steelcase\u2019s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion teams continue to investigate the evolution of other words and phrases within the company that could be seen as insensitive. The initiative to root out such language is part of Steelcase\u2019s DEI commitment to taking action on enhancing inclusiveness.<\/p>\n<p>Zo\u00eb Wilson believes that establishing relationships with leaders and with others through the company\u2019s DEI channels is key to effecting change. \u201cIt\u2019s never too early to build a relationship. Build it before you need it,\u201d Wilson advises. \u201cAnd then when there\u2019s a bump in the road, you can feel comfortable reaching out to that person \u2013 a person who knows you and who understands that you\u2019re coming from a place of good intentions.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">For resources, connections and to learn more about Steelcase\u2019s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><a class=\"button-gray button-dark\" href=\"https:\/\/www.steelcase.com\/asia-en\/people-planet\/diversity-equity-inclusion\/\">Explore Now<\/a><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When commonly-used IT industry language stood out to Zoe Wilson as non-inclusive, she knew she needed to act. What followed was a lot of support, a global change, and the discovery of a new way to lead.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":37261,"featured_media":98687,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"topic":[14297],"class_list":["post-98685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","topic-people-planet"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How Words Matter - Steelcase<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.steelcase.com\/asia-en\/research\/articles\/topics\/people-planet\/how-words-matter\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How Words Matter - Steelcase\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When commonly-used IT industry language stood out to Zoe Wilson as non-inclusive, she knew she needed to act. What followed was a lot of support, a global change, and the discovery of a new way to lead.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.steelcase.com\/asia-en\/research\/articles\/topics\/people-planet\/how-words-matter\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Steelcase\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SteelcaseAsiaPacific\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-01-10T08:36:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-07-05T10:20:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/images.steelcase.com\/image\/upload\/c_fill,dpr_auto,q_70,h_600,w_1200\/v1659457041\/22-0181974.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gema Perez\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@steelcaseap\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@steelcaseap\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Gema Perez\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How Words Matter - Steelcase","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.steelcase.com\/asia-en\/research\/articles\/topics\/people-planet\/how-words-matter\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How Words Matter - Steelcase","og_description":"When commonly-used IT industry language stood out to Zoe Wilson as non-inclusive, she knew she needed to act. 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