Reconstructing Inclusion S3E13: Gamiel Yafai on Why Most Diversity and Inclusion Programs Were Never Built to Last

Welcome to Season Three of Reconstructing Inclusion!Gamiel Yafai: Why Most Diversity and Inclusion Programs Were Never Built to Last"After 25 years running diversity maturity audits, Gamiel Yafai has learned that most organizations think they've embedded inclusion. They've barely gotten past awareness."In this episode, Amri Johnson sits down with EDI consultancy founder, Gamiel Yafai MBE to unpack why so much diversity and inclusion work stalls before it ever takes root, what real embedding looks like versus what only appears to be embedded, and what the rise of Reform means for practitioners on both sides of the Atlantic.Episode Timestamps:[00:02:00] - Gamiel introduces himself and his path into the diversity and inclusion space [00:05:00] - The teacher who shaped how Gamiel sees the world, and why polished shoes mattered [00:07:00] - Growing up across Scottish, Irish, Yemeni, Indian, Muslim, and Christian heritage in Birmingham [00:12:00] - Two and a half years in a Yemeni village, and the community that ran on shared crops [00:23:00] - Why organizations rate themselves at maturity level four and audit at level two [00:27:00] - The missing foundations behind most stalled diversity and inclusion strategies [00:33:00] - How a profitable, inclusive culture can still be dangerously homogeneous[00:37:00] - Evolution versus revolution: reading the rise of Reform through 25 years of history [00:44:00] - Advice for practitioners watching their roles and budgets disappear[00:48:00] - Why 85% of organizational change comes down to human behaviorStandout Quotes:"I actually see the biggest gift I've ever been given is my heritage." [00:08:00]"You could say the awareness has improved. However, the embedding is still way off." [00:23:00]"I've always seen the work that we do around diversity and inclusion as being evolutionary. We evolve. However, we are going to see revolutions." [00:37:00]"The work that we do is simple. I genuinely believe it's simple. People complicate it." [00:49:00]Guest: Gamiel Yafai, CEO of Diversity MarketplaceConnect with Gamiel Yafai: https://www.linkedin.com/in/linkedingamielyafai/If this episode resonated with you, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone in your organization who needs to hear it.Let's Connect:https://inclusionwins.com/https://reconstructinginclusion.substack.com/➡️ Subscribe to Reconstructing Inclusion for more unfiltered conversations about the future of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit reconstructinginclusion.substack.com/subscribe