328: Blended – Breaking the Class Ceiling

Sarah Barnes-Humphrey
March 15, 2023
5:23 pm
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It’s episode 30 of Blended: I’m joined by a brand new panel of inspirational professionals and, today, we’re talking about classism.

Now, some people believe that we’ve left classism behind. But, sadly, studies show that it’s alive and well – and its impacts are huge. The bottom 80% of the United States holds only 12% of its wealth; the bottom 60%, is just 3% of its wealth. And despite this huge disparity, little is being done to drive change.

In a world where we’re working hard to tackle issues around gender, race, sexuality, religion and more – why are conversations around socioeconomic groupings still so often missing from the conversation? Surely it’s high time we address class barriers, build bridges and work harder to become a more equitable society.

So today, our guests will be diving into classism and what it means to them; sharing their personal experiences; reflecting on education, privilege and pedigree; and discussing what organizations can do to tackle classism in the workplace and create more truly diverse communities.

IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS:

[01.01] Introductions to our Blended panelists.

Elise – VP of Customer Experience at Parade
Courtney – Co-founder and CEO of Renewal Logistics and ReNew
Amanda – Associate Director at Savills
Christine – VP of Product Marketing and Go-to-Market at Nulogy

“When I think about classism, it’s really class discrimination. We live in a system where people are valued and treated differently based on their perceived class…. It’s so systemic and it reaches every single part of our system.” Elise

[05.27] The group discusses classism, the complex issues that feed into it, and what classism means to them.

“It goes beyond how others perceive you – classism is also about how you perceive yourself. You grow up in a particular socio-economic group, and often you can self-limit.”

How others see us
How we see ourselves
Self-sabotage
Imposter syndrome and mindset
Privilege
Access to/relationship with education
Etiquette and formality
Generational money/mindset/networks
Communication between classes
Building communities and relationships
Meritocracy
Criminalization of poverty
Entrepreneurship, financial security as a safety net and how money allows you to take more risks
Perceptions, and Illusions of social media
Power of networks

“We would be so much further along as a society if everyone was comfortable talking to other people with an open mind, more like ‘what can I learn from this conversation’ rather than ‘what am I going to disagree with.’” Courtney

[47.17] The panel shares their experiences of classism in the workplace, and the impact of pedigree and education.

“I didn’t think I was enough, I’m not good enough, I don’t have the pedigree – I never saw myself being someone that could be at an elite level. And it wasn’t because intellectually I wasn’t enough, it was because of that class that I was born in and what I saw all around me.” Christine

Christine’s experience of educational hierarchy and her reflections on classism in the Ivy League
Elise’s experience of start-ups, the ‘typical’ type of founder, leader and C Suite member, the ‘boys club’ and how she developed her own biases
How we can work on ourselves and tackle bias

[58.02] The group share their ideas for how organizations can help to tackle classism in the workplace.

Amanda shares how Savills are helping to support young people entering real estate
The importance of mentors
Stepping out of your comfort zone
Celebrating small wins and sharing expectations
Creating opportunities for success
Creating development plans for staff
Respect
Thinking about people holistically and making changes
Innovative thinking
Potential classism in remote work
Ensuring class is part of DEI policy
Team-building
Education and training
Translating values into behaviors
Tackling classism through supplier diversity