Leading With Empathy & Allyship

In Episode 52: “Recognizing & Overcoming Microaggressions - Part 2,” Melinda Briana Epler draws from her book How to Be an Ally (McGraw-Hill 2021) for the fundamentals of understanding, identifying, and interrupting microaggressions in the workplace. Melinda discusses nonverbal and environmental microaggressions, as well as some tactics for intervening and treating the impact of microaggressions. You can order your copy of How to Be an Ally at ally.cc/book for a deeper dive into the subject.

About Melinda

Melinda Briana Epler has more than 25 years of experience elevating brands and developing business innovation strategies for entrepreneurs, Fortune 500 companies, and global NGOs. As CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst), Melinda is a strategic diversity, equity, and inclusion advisor for executives, startups, investors, and activists around the world. She is an inclusive leadership coach, trains executive and management teams, and builds learning and development solutions for clients. Melinda is a TED speaker, award-winning documentary filmmaker, and former marketing and culture executive. She speaks and writes about diversity and inclusion in tech, allyship, and empathy, and has spoken on hundreds of stages around the world.

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit ally.cc. There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia/

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April
Intern: Olivia Wirsching
Intern: Gabriella Mahmoud

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo and color photos of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair, glasses, and black shirt, and the orange book cover of HOW TO BE AN ALLY.]

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In Episode 51: “Recognizing & Overcoming Microaggressions - Part 1,” Melinda Briana Epler answers the most often-asked questions about microaggressions: what they are, how humans are impacted by them, and examples of alternative language that can replace common verbal microaggressions in the workplace. This episode is based on fundamentals from Melinda’s book, How to Be an Ally (McGraw-Hill 2021). You can order your copy of How to Be an Ally at ally.cc/book for a deeper dive into the subject.

About Melinda

Melinda Briana Epler has more than 25 years of experience elevating brands and developing business innovation strategies for entrepreneurs, Fortune 500 companies, and global NGOs. As CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst), Melinda is a strategic diversity, equity, and inclusion advisor for executives, startups, investors, and activists around the world. She is an inclusive leadership coach, trains executive and management teams, and builds learning and development solutions for clients. Melinda is a TED speaker, award-winning documentary filmmaker, and former marketing and culture executive. She speaks and writes about diversity and inclusion in tech, allyship, and empathy, and has spoken on hundreds of stages around the world.

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit ally.cc. There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia/

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April
Intern: Olivia Wirsching
Intern: Gabriella Mahmoud

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo and color photos of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair, glasses, and black shirt, and the orange book cover of HOW TO BE AN ALLY.]

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Welcome to Episode 50 in our special Season 4! In “Understanding & Correcting Our Biases,” Melinda Briana Epler, Founder & CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst), shares key learnings from a few chapters of her book, How to Be an Ally (McGraw-Hill 2021). She explores some common workplace biases, how they show up in the workplace, and how to correct them in ourselves, along with some intervention strategies for reducing biases in the workplace. Melinda also addresses gaslighting and making sure we show empathy when people talk about their own experiences. To go deeper into this subject, you can order your copy of How to Be an Ally at ally.cc/book!

About Melinda

Melinda Briana Epler is the Founder and CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst) and the creator and host of the Leading With Empathy & Allyship show. Melinda has over 25 years of experience developing business innovation and inclusion strategies for startups, Fortune 500 companies, and global NGOs. Using her background in storytelling, behavioral science, and large-scale culture change, she is a strategic advisor for leaders around the world, working with them to solve diversity and inclusion together. Melinda is a TED speaker who speaks, mentors, and writes about diversity and inclusion, inclusive innovation, empathy, and entrepreneurship. 

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit https://ally.cc. There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Special thanks to First Tech Federal Credit Union, sponsor of Episodes 49 & 50. First Tech Federal Credit Union is the nation's premier credit union serving employees & family members of the world's leading technology companies. Learn more at www.firsttechfed.com

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia/

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April
Intern: Olivia Wirsching

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo and color photos of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair, glasses, and black shirt, and the orange book cover of HOW TO BE AN ALLY.]

Support the show

Episode 49 kicks off Season 4 with “Why Empathy & Allyship Matter In The Workplace.” Melinda Briana Epler, Founder & CEO of EMpovia (formerly Change Catalyst), shares some key learnings from a few chapters of her book, How to Be an Ally (McGraw-Hill 2021). She talks about what people with underrepresented identities need from allies; why empathy is the foundation of allyship work; and the business case for allyship. Valuable Q&A is incorporated from the live broadcast.

You can order your copy of How to Be an Ally: Actions You Can Take for a Stronger, Happier Workplace at ally.cc/book!

About Melinda

Melinda Briana Epler is the Founder and CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst) and the creator and host of the Leading With Empathy & Allyship show. Melinda has over 25 years of experience developing business innovation and inclusion strategies for startups, Fortune 500 companies, and global NGOs. Using her background in storytelling, behavioral science, and large-scale culture change, she is a strategic advisor for leaders around the world, working with them to solve diversity and inclusion together. Melinda is a TED speaker who speaks, mentors, and writes about diversity and inclusion, inclusive innovation, empathy, and entrepreneurship. 

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit https://ally.cc. There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Special thanks to First Tech Federal Credit Union, sponsor of Episodes 49 & 50. First Tech Federal Credit Union is the nation's premier credit union serving employees & family members of the world's leading technology companies. 

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia/

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April
Intern: Olivia Wirsching

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo and a color photo of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair and glasses, and a black shirt.]

Support the show

In this last episode of Season 3, Melinda Briana Epler, Founder & CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst), talks about “How To Be An Ally In The Remote Workplace." Melinda shares specific steps you can take in a virtual environment to be an active ally for others - often requested during the global pandemic - and answers questions submitted during the live broadcast.

About Melinda
Melinda Briana Epler is the Founder and CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst) and the creator and host of the Leading With Empathy & Allyship show. Melinda has over 25 years of experience developing business innovation and inclusion strategies for startups, Fortune 500 companies, and global NGOs. Using her background in storytelling and large-scale culture change, she is a strategic advisor for tech companies around the world, working with them to solve diversity and inclusion together. Melinda speaks, mentors, trains, and writes about diversity and inclusion in tech, allyship, social entrepreneurship, and underrepresented entrepreneurs.

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit https://changecatalyst.co/allyshipseries There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo and a color photo of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair and glasses, and a black shirt. ]

Support the show

Melinda Briana Epler, Founder & CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst), and Sam Sepah, Artificial Intelligence (AI) Research Product Manager at Google, have an open conversation around “Why Mentorship & Advocacy Are Key To Career Growth." Sam describes his journey as a Deaf Persian in tech. He shares key takeaways from his work in HR and DEI, the difference between having a mentor and having an advocate, and how as allies and advocates we can work to make products and tools like AI universally useful.

About Sam 

Sam Sepah has worked for well-known organizations for more than 15 years: Google, National Institutes of Health (NIH), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), International Business Machines Corporation (IBM), GE-NBC Universal, Siemens, Sprint, MCI, and Apple. Sam was the youngest person appointed by the Governor of Vermont to serve on the Commission on Employment for People with Disabilities. Learn more on his website.

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit https://changecatalyst.co/allyshipseries There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia/

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo, a color photo of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair and glasses, and a black and white photo of Sam Sepah, a Persian man with black hair, white shirt, and blazer. ]

Support the show

Melinda Briana Epler, Founder & CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst), and Aubrey Blanche, Director of Equitable Design & Impact at Culture Amp, talk about why it’s critical to think beyond diversity and representation. With a shift to equitable design, we build equity, right the power dynamics, and create greater access and support for people in our workplaces and communities who are most marginalized. The conversation covers how to build our capacity to create and lead this change. 

About Aubrey 

Aubrey Blanche is The Mathpath (Math Nerd + Empath), Director of Equitable Design & Impact at Culture Amp, and a startup investor, and advisor. She is the inventor of the balanced teams approach and a culture of belonging, and the Balanced Teams Diversity Assessment in the Atlassian Team Playbook. She open sources these methods and releases thought leadership and tools to create positive change on her website.

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit https://changecatalyst.co/allyshipseries There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia/

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo and photos of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair and glasses, and Aubrey Blanche, a Latina with pink hair, glasses, and yellow shirt.]

Support the show

Melinda Briana Epler, Founder & CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst), and Jeff Tidwell, CEO & Co-Founder of Next For Me, explore the often overlooked topic of ageism at work, and share strategies for dealing with this type of discrimination - as the recipient or as a bystander.

About Jeff

Jeff Tidwell founded Next For Me as a new resource that connects and inspires our generation to evolve +50 life through new work, a new purpose, or a new social contribution. Jeff began his career with alternative newspapers and then moved online, where he has worked in Silicon Valley and New York overseeing online communities and user experiences for E*TRADE, WebMD, Oncology.com, MarketTools, Chirp Interactive, and many startups via his consulting practice prepop.

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit https://changecatalyst.co/allyshipseries There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia/

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo and photos of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair and glasses, and Jeff Tidwell, a White man with short hair, glasses, and white shirt.]

Support the show

Melinda Briana Epler, Founder & CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst), and Jeremy Sussman, Senior Product Manager at Google, explore “An Allyship Journey As A Straight, White Man.” Jeremy shared why becoming an ally is so critical to seeing real improvements in diversity, equity, and inclusion at work, and the role of allies in ERGs to actively create change.

About Jeremy

Jeremy Sussman is a Senior Product Manager at Google, working on data privacy. He sits on the Steering Committee for the NY chapters of the Women's ERG and the Allyship ERG. He is actively involved in different mentorship programs in and outside the company. Prior to Google, Jeremy worked at the IBM Watson Research Center. He has a BA in Computer Science from Princeton and a PhD in Computer Science from UCSD. 

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit https://changecatalyst.co/allyshipseries There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia/

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Data Analyst: Sally Moywaywa 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo and photos of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair and glasses, and Two Eagles Marcus, an Indigenous Native American man with glasses, black moustache, and salt-and-pepper beard.]

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Melinda Briana Epler, Founder & CEO of Empovia (formerly Change Catalyst), and Two Eagles Marcus, Founder of MPWRDX, talk about “Centering BIPOC Voices In Business & Social Justice.” They explore what it means to embrace your heritage, reimagine business and social justice to center Black, Hispanic, Asian Pacific, and Indigenous Native American experiences, and bridge our siloed communities through solidarity work. 

About Two Eagles Marcus 

Two Eagles Marcus is a Tiwa Puebloan Indigenous Native American, known also as the Red Willow people. MPWRDX Media Group (Pronounced Empowered X) centers, and amplifies the voices Black, Hispanic, Asian Pacific, and Indigenous Native Americans in business, and entrepreneurship; MPWRD Talent, a diverse job board and talent center that advances opportunities for Black, Hispanic, Asian Pacific, and Indigenous Native Americans professionals and students.

Find Leading With Empathy & Allyship useful? Subscribe to our podcast and like this episode! 

For more about Empovia, and to join us for a live recording, visit https://changecatalyst.co/allyshipseries There, you’ll also find educational resources and highlights from this episode.

Connect On Social
YouTube: youtube.com/@empovia
Twitter: twitter.com/empoviaco
Facebook: facebook.com/empovia
Instagram: instagram.com/empovia/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/empovia/

Production Team
Creator & Host: Melinda Briana Epler 
Producer: Juliette Roy 
Project Manager: Emilie Maas
Finance & Operations: Renzo Santos 
Data Analyst: Sally Moywaywa 
Director of Marketing: Ariyah April

[Image description: Leading With Empathy & Allyship promo with the Empovia logo and photos of host Melinda Briana Epler, a White woman with red hair and glasses, and Two Eagles Marcus, an Indigenous Native American man with glasses, black moustache, and salt-and-pepper beard.]

Support the show