Is being ‘professional’ at work black and white?

Last week, we held the first in our series of events to provide prospective members with an insight into our vision, mission and membership offering. It was a chance to meet other UK based Black PR and communication professionals, albeit virtually. 

Our guest speaker was Nels Abbey, the author of Think Like a White Man - a satirical guide to conquering the world while Black, who read several excerpts from his book. His open and honest approach to Q&A made for a lively and engaging session which touched on everything from the value of mentorship, the power of collectivism and the retrospective revisions he’d make to his book. However the most shared quote of the night was a comment Nels made about the challenge of professionalism in the workplace. 

“Professionalism is predicated on middle class whiteness”

— Satirical Novelist, Nels Abbey

The dictionary definition of professionalism is defined as: the competence or skill expected of a professional, so why did Nels’ comments seem to resonate with so many of our attendees and those who followed the conversation on social?

As an industry we pride ourselves on attracting creative communicators with a keen ability to express themselves yet so often when people talk about professionalism it extends beyond the competence or skills displayed by an individual. It becomes a judgement on the way someone sounds or looks rather than their ability to carry out their role they have been hired to do. This is often to the detriment to many Black colleagues and is an issue which was recently discussed last week on BBC Radio 4. 

At the same time that business leaders are espousing the importance of colleagues being able to bring their whole self to work, accents, hair, names and personalities are being flattened in order for people to be deemed professional and progress in their careers. 

Full disclosure: Bringing your whole self to work has always seemed like a bizarre thing to ask of colleagues. If all of us were our whole selves how many of us would be available for work at 9am or agree to another ‘wash up’ meeting that could have been an email? How many of us would choose to wear a shirt and tie every day of the week?  

To a certain degree, everyone is putting on a show while working. However, if businesses want to be able to benefit from the diversification of their talent pipeline, and eradicate the risks associated with groupthink they need to be truly inclusive. This means creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable enough to demonstrate their professionalism.

One of the greatest skills of a communicator is the ability to listen and understand. Perhaps we as an industry and as communication leaders need to focus more on the solutions being offered by their talented workforce rather than how they are delivering it.

What are your thoughts on the norms of professionalism in communications compared to other industries? Do you feel comfortable bringing your full self to work? What does being your full self mean to you? We’d love to hear your thoughts.

Join our community by giving us a follow on Twitter, Instagram or Linkedin, because it’s feedback like this which keeps us going.