Checklist for men (everyone) who want to be allies for women (everyone) at work (and in life)
“Allyship is a continuum from awareness to advocacy. It takes time and growth.”
Review your prepared “lines” or phrases that you’ll use in any scenario of inequity or unfairness or micro-aggressions. Post them in your office!
Do your housekeeping — ensure that your pronouns are visible, that you are not using exclusive phrases, that you are responding to folks in a timely fashion, etc.
At the start of every meeting, whether or not it’s “your meeting,” make sure everybody is there, and everybody has equal seating or access.
At the end of every meeting, open up the discussion for anybody that you haven’t heard from.
DAILY
Email yourself a self-assessment of your own allyship. Every Friday!
Do an audit of next weeks meetings and make sure everybody who needs to be there is included.
Review your calendar of activities at the end of the week and make sure that you connected with teammates equally or fairly. This includes reviewing cancellations and reschedulings.
Find a moment of (successful) allyship and celebrate it publicly.
Make at least a half hour a week of time for mentorship to someone — anyone — who you are in a position to help (even if it’s just by listening).
WEEKLY
Review your company’s values and reflect on how you’ve been living those values.
Look at the calendar and be aware of key holidays / commemorations (Women’s history month, Hispanic heritage month, religious holidays, etc.
Check in with all of your teammates and ask if their schedule is working for them or if they’re facing any logistical challenges that you can help address.
Schedule any forthcoming performance reviews that need to be scheduled.
Check in with every teammate and ask them a simple question: “Are you feeling included these days?”
MONTHLY
Set goals related to your own allyship and track your succes!