Calling All Men: We Want to Hear from YOU!

So much has changed in the past few years. Remote work and changes in gender, race and generational attitudes have forced us all to look at how we work together. Last year, our groundbreaking PowHER Redefined study made huge inroads into understanding the lived experiences of Women of Color at work. This year, we want to hear from men. PrismWork, with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation is conducting a landmark study to get a clear and candid picture of men’s experiences in today’s professional workplace through our own words. We want to learn:

• What skills do we men need to be great leaders today?

• What are our successes or struggles with things like leadership, work relationships, and career growth?

• How can we men use their strengths to benefit everyone?

We’ll weave men’s meaningful insights into our ongoing dialogue of what it means to create inclusive workplaces and what actions we can take together to build a thriving workplace culture for all.

We want thousands of men to participate in our survey because it’s our turn to be heard.

Listen, I know that last statement reads like men haven’t been complicit in the current state of terrible workplace cultures. Complaints about workplace environments fall between problematic and downright toxic. The majority of companies are led by men, so why on Patagonia’s green earth are we seeking men’s input?

In my journey through corporate America, I’ve seen and heard a bit of everything from men at all levels. Of course, I’ve experienced wonderful acts of leadership and inspiration that make everyone feel seen. I’ve also witnessed sexist, bigoted, and exclusive actions of men where my response varied anywhere from confrontation to silence. Today, it’s clear that different behaviors and responses from men are required. For instance, the issues that women and non-binary people face in the workplace aren’t new, so how do we as men engage in the solution? I ask other men, and after an initial shrug of the shoulders, the conversations get real.

         “I will put my foot in my mouth if I try to speak from my heart.” 

         “How can I show up to be this inclusive leader for others without completely denying my self-interests?” 

         “I need new tools.” 

I feel that. This is why the survey is important. We need more conversations like this to disrupt the workplace status quo, and men, we have to speak up.

Men’s voices are vital in the effort to build inclusive cultures.

It’s true. Our attitudes, behaviors, and experiences must be considered and included in the plan, or it’s incomplete. We’ve spent months interviewing men and hosting roundtable discussions to understand what challenges and successes are emerging for us as we navigate workplace changes like remote working, new levels of accountability, and seemingly louder voices than our own. Those conversations led to this survey.

The good news is men are working to understand the wealth of unique power and leadership we bring and how we can wield it with intention and purpose. How do we know this? The 21st-Century Leadership Lab for Men we launched last year with senior leaders from corporate America showed us that men in leadership want to participate in shaping and cultivating places of belonging at work. Fortunately, companies are seeing the value men have in this process too. We are conducting custom leadership labs for men with enterprise clients and look forward to doing more.

What will we do with the insights? As we did with PowHER Redefined, we’ll develop a leading-edge white paper and a series of tool kits that provide specific actions to make a change. And, we’ll continue to do what we do best: create solutions for leaders and companies to help improve the workplace for all.

What can you do right now?

All men, please take the survey and share this link with other men you know. Here is an email you can send to the men in your network to help you spread the word. All women and non-binary people, please share this link with the men in your network.

Amplify our survey on social media:

• LinkedIn
• Instagram
• Facebook

Sign up here to get early access to the research results.

For all the men out there, thank you for engaging with us. Together, we can be the change we want to see.

Men, please participate in our survey here.