"The real challenge is hiring and retaining a diverse workforce."
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew is the Founder and CEO of Soulstice Consultancy, specializing as a Partnership Broker and Leadership Expert for companies and organizations to thrive with measurable and meaningful impact. She also is the VP of Community Affairs and Strategic Alliances for the State Fair of Texas. Dr. Booker-Drew is a passionate philanthropist and Co-Founder of HERitage Giving Circle. Her connectivity expertise and notable research is highlighted in quotes and profiles in major media such as Forbes, Huffington Post, Bustle, Ozy, and other outlets around the world.
As a national and international professional speaker, Dr. Booker-Drew educates and expands upon various subject matter such as social capital and networking, leadership, diversity, and community development. She is currently a lecturer at Tulane University, a research affiliate at Antioch University, partner at Diversity Crew, and the author of 3 books with an upcoming book to be published by Baylor University Press this Spring. Froswa’ is the host of The Tapestry podcast which is featured on 450 platforms and in 148+ countries.
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Table of Contents
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: I am the founder of Soulstice Consultancy providing leadership/management, DEI and CSR consulting for nonprofits and businesses.
I am also the VP of Community Affairs for the State Fair of Texas. In my role, I am responsible for educational programming, community initiatives and philanthropic giving. In addition, I created and implemented of several State Fair signature programs including the South Dallas Employment Project to address opportunities for those impacted by incarceration, Cohort for Concessions, Fairs and Expositions (CFFE), Community Engagement Day Convenings, and NXT FEST, a college/career fair for high school students.
I also convene nonprofit organizations to solve for community challenges, build capacity of nonprofit organizations and small businesses and create collaborations to share resources and share social capital. Under my leadership, I have awarded more than 70% of the State Fair’s grants to organizations led by people of color, changing the narrative of philanthropy
2020 and 2021 threw a lot of curve balls into business on a global scale. Based on the experience gleaned in the past couple years, how can businesses thrive in 2022? What lessons have you learned?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: The past couple of years reinforced for me the importance of relationships. We needed relationships to deal with all the uncertainty we experienced both personally and professionally. I think in the past, we have seen networking as something to check off our to do lists but in this new normal, we have had to learn how to create not just transactional relationships but ones that are transformative, mutually beneficial, and impactful.
I have also learned more about the importance of trauma informed care to realize that we need to ask our teams what happened instead of what is wrong with you. I live in Texas and after experiencing Snowmaggedon, I saw that many of us went right back to life as normal. We did not address the pain and frustration and fear we dealt with. We need space for lamenting, spaces to process and so often, we are programmed to just continue. It has not worked, and we must do something differently to make sure we are seeing our teams beyond the work they do.
The pandemic seems to keep on disrupting the economy, what should businesses focus on in 2022? What advice would you share?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: I think companies must focus on their teams and how do we ensure their success. It is important that we create spaces to listen and learn from those who are on the front lines in our companies. We often bring in experts without recognizing the social, cultural, and human capital that lies within those we employ.
How do we tap into their resources and relationships to build more effective and efficient organizations? Companies need to focus on building trust, rewarding talent, and creating spaces for talent to grow and develop beyond lip service and tokenism. I often tell clients that you do not have a money problem–you have a relationship issue. We do not become successful in isolation. Our success is usually contingent upon others. How do we become more relational leaders and recognize the power of social capital to change our teams, our companies, and our communities?
I would also say that companies need to revisit how they invest in communities. Writing checks will not solve issues alone. Community transformation is also about relationships. How do you create space to listen to those around you? What are their needs and not your assumptions and just data? It is critical to make sure that we allow those with lived experience and proximity to those issues have a say in what is important and needed.
After the murder of George Floyd, companies must go beyond just lip service of pledges and really begin to examine their investment in local communities, engaging local leadership (that may not have the titles and positions that we often go after) and begin to build the capacity of organizations so that they can grow and continue the work they are doing on the ground.
How has the pandemic changed your industry and how have you adapted?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: The pandemic has changed the Fair industry. We have had to adjust making sure guests are safe differently. This impacts programming and so many areas of the work. I know for my work, it changed the way I engaged in the community. Community engagement involves contact and I had to find ways to continue to support nonprofits. Initially, I was worried if it would work but it did. I think if I did not already have relationships, it would have been almost impossible to keep the work going but we were able to serve our neighbors and continue building partnerships.
As it relates to my consulting, it created a surge in companies identifying the need to engage in social justice and re-evaluating the way they connected with internal and external constituents.
What advice do you wish you received when the pandemic started and what do you intend on improving in 2022?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: I was not prepared for the loss. To witness so much death and sickness up close and personal was challenging. To also deal with the isolation especially as a person who thrives on contact and relationships, it was difficult. I know throughout the pandemic, it was a time of preparation and I tried to use my time wisely to build. I think the best advice I could have received was a primer in dealing with enormous transition. In 2022, I intend to continue what I started.
During the pandemic, I started writing more and even completed a book that is being published by Baylor University Press this Spring. I started a podcast during the pandemic. For me, it is about leveraging relationships and building to make lives better.
Online business surged higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for 2022?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: We are going to see a huge shift in the way people learn. We all worn out from long zoom meetings. I think you will begin to see more concise, shorter segments of information not just for adults but even for children. I also expect to see the increased need for mental health. Companies will need to allocate even more time and resources to employees in this area.
How many hours a day do you spend in front of a screen?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: You really don’t want to know. If it’s not my laptop or my phone, it’s probably more time than I should.
The majority of executives use stories to persuade and communicate in the workplace. Can you share with our readers examples of how you implement that in your business to communicate effectively with your team?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: As you can tell, relationships are so important to me. I really believe in sharing personal examples with my team. I not only share stories of success, but I am also open about when I have made errors and the lessons I have learned throughout my career. A lot of that is due to my leadership style. I am firm believer in coaching your team and learning your staff.
Stories are a fantastic way to help build connections and create safe spaces for sharing. I do not have a problem with being authentic or even vulnerable. I do not know everything, and I am comfortable in being able to say I do not know to empower my team to know that we all can contribute in some way.
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as the real challenge right now?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: The real challenge is hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are missing opportunity populations like those impacted by incarceration, young adults, seniors, and the disabled as well as people of color. We are not creating pipelines of leadership. According to LeanIn.org, “Black women are paid less than white men—and white women.
On average, Black women in the U.S. are paid 37% less than white men and 20% less than white women. “Black women enroll in college at higher rates than men overall and—most notably—at higher rates than white men. But the gap is largest for Black women who have bachelor’s degrees and advanced degrees—35% less than white men on average. Even in the same job, Black women get paid less than white men.
Black women ask for promotions and raises at about the same rates as white women and men—yet the “broken rung “still holds them back at the first critical step up to manager. For every 100 men promoted to manager, only 58 Black women are promoted.” Companies need to do some real soul searching, realize that there is a lot of untapped talent and address it ASAP.
In 2022, what are you most interested in learning about? Crypto, NFTs, online marketing, or any other skill sets? Please share your motivations.
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: I’m interested in learning more about Crypto Currency and FinTech. It’s all so fascinating!
A record 4.4 million Americans left their jobs in September in 2021, accelerating a trend that has become known as the Great Resignation. 47% of people plan to leave their job during 2022. Most are leaving because of their boss or their company culture. 82% of people feel unheard, undervalued and misunderstood in the workplace. Do you think leaders see the data and think “that’s not me – I’m not that boss they don’t want to work for? What changes do you think need to happen?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: This is exacerbated for diverse populations. Carla Campbell-Jackson, a former State Farm claims section manager stated that the insurance company retaliated against her for reporting racist and discriminatory behavior. In February, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued a determination of reasonable cause over Campbell-Jackson’s claims. The commission found Campbell-Jackson was “harassed due to her race and discharged in retaliation for complaining about harassment.” Sadly, this is not a one-off occurrence.
In addition to racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination, companies must also address toxic work culture. According to the article, ‘Toxic Leadership: The Most Menacing Form of Leadership’, “…toxic leadership responsible for 48% decrease in work effort and 38% in work quality. Another survey in 2017 by Life Meets Work consulting revealed some scary number as large as 73% turnover due to a toxic leader.” Companies must stop focusing solely on revenue generation and pay attention to the way leaders relate to their teams and colleagues.
It is short-sighted to not pay attention to the way leaders are leading their teams. The way we evaluate staff must change and there must be safe spaces for people to share and know that something will be done. People get tired of remaining in environments of inconsistency, favoritism, and not feeling valued. Leaders need to learn to listen and conduct some serious deep reflection. Companies need to also invest in coaching for their teams. So many people are promoted into leadership who do not know how to lead. They believe that dominating others is the way to get things accomplished and are surprised when they are sabotaged by those who work with them. Training cannot be the only solution–there must be incentives for great leadership and consequences when people mistreat our most valuable commodity–our people.
On a lighter note, if you had the ability to pick any business superpower, what would it be and how would you put it into practice?
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: One of my favorite books is Reframing Organizations: Artistry, Choice, and Leadership by Lee Bolman and Terrence E. Deal. They discuss four frames of leadership. Earlier in my career, I saw everything through a human relations frame without recognizing that often, we are dealing with cultural, power, and structural dynamics. My superpower would be to recognize all of these at work immediately. Sometimes, it takes a bit especially if you are highly relational that you may not always see the other frames operating.
What does “success” in 2022 mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision.
Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew: I share often that there is a difference between success and significance. Success can be short-term. I really want to focus on the significance and creating a legacy that impacts those today and future leaders. It is my dream to help others build and maintain relationships that help them fulfill their purpose, live out their passion, and positively impact the lives of others at the same time.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drew for taking the time to do this interview and share her knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Dr. Froswa’ Booker-Drewor her company, you can do it through her – Linkedin Page
Disclaimer: The ValiantCEO Community welcomes voices from many spheres on our open platform. We publish pieces as written by outside contributors with a wide range of opinions, which don’t necessarily reflect our own. Community stories are not commissioned by our editorial team and must meet our guidelines prior to being published.
