Ep. 66 The Silent Agreement with Wil Shelton

On today's show, David sits down Wil Shelton, author of a new book called “The Silent Agreement: An Illusion of Inclusion in Black Corporate America: How to Fight with Conviction and Avoid Broken Promises.” They dig into his inspiration for the book, the importance of an honest conversation around diversity issues and where the fight for equality and equity in the workplace goes from here.

Throughout Shelton’s professional career, he has often bore witness to Black executives making their own version of the silent agreement with corporate America. Fewer than 1% of Fortune 500 CEOs are Black and only about 1% of board members in the S&P 500 are African American a study by Korn Ferry.

Despite all the talk of D&I efforts and initiatives, there has been what Shelton calls "a truancy of transparency" when it comes to the effectiveness of those efforts and people being held accountable when they fall short.  

“My inspiration for this book is to help African American men and women rise up through the ranks of corporate America and build the generational wealth they have long been denied,” said Shelton. “We need to break through the illusion of inclusion and champion real change when it comes to diversity.”

If you’d like to learn more about Shelton and his upcoming speaking engagements or the book itself, visit thesilentagreement.com.

You can also pick up a copy of The Silent Agreement here.

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