This conversation took place with one of our incredible clients and partners in this work, Melissa Valle, Director of the Office of Equity of the County of Sonoma. Equity First’s Founder had the pleasure of sitting with her and discussing the importance of building intentional Communities of Practice as a driver for systems change and culture shift.
We hope you enjoy listening in on this conversation as much as we enjoyed having it!
[This conversation was edited for length and clarity.]
Ana Lugo (AL): Hi Melissa! Thank you so much for agreeing to be in dialogue with me this morning! Today, we are reflecting on the incredible work the Office of Equity has been doing building a Community of Practice as a way of developing the County’s Racial Equity Action Plan. Okay, let’s dive right in! I’d like to start by talking about the power of building a Community of Practice.
Melissa Valle (MV): [Equity First] does an amazing job at creating spaces where people can flourish, and I think that has been one of the most transformative things for us as an institution, trying to create something so outside of the culture of the institution itself. I don't think it would have been possible without that level of support and container setting, like creating agreements by which we want to hold ourselves accountable and the respect and love with which we want to approach our conversations. And so to be able to imagine something so different outside of the culture in which most of us have worked for so long was hard to picture.
I think that [Equity First] was instrumental in helping us create the foundation for that space that then we were able to come in and help develop and enhance ourselves with the things that made the group feel like they belonged, and that they were in a space where they could feel safe and get to a place of safety themselves eventually. I don't think that it would have been possible without your support.
And, we were able to also bring things that are tangible to executive leaders.
AL: Yes, let’s unpack that a little. Why do you think tangible products matter?
MV: You know, we all need to process, and we all need to heal. But in order for this work to continue to be carried on, we need to produce deliverables, and that's the nature of where we are in the institution. This idea of being able to produce them in this way - I wouldn't say that it is not harmful - because I know that there were places of harm, but to be in a space where we were honest and open about the challenges, the rough patches, and figure out ways to acknowledge that, to have a conversation about it, and then continue to work together and not let it be like this thing that stops everything. That was different.
AL: As you are talking, I'm going back to the beginning of our partnership, which was really about doing work internally with your own team. I think about that transformative process, and the intentionality you brought into creating space together. It was transformative, and you were planting the seeds for building this Community of Practice with the Steering Committee.
MV: Yes, yes, I agree. Also, the fact that Equity First has the opportunity to see this play out in different spaces brings that external knowledge that we don't have, because we're sort of breathing the same air. You bring that visibility of the possibility of what can be created, to guide us through what this process could look like. I think one of the pieces that is important to say is that sometimes when you work with consultants, it's super prescribed. And so to have you come in with the knowledge of this process and approach brought us into understanding of why it was important to approach things in a certain way, and it also gave us the freedom to co-create something based on knowledge we had of the institution. So that idea that you bring the possibilities and we say, we love that, now let’s apply it within our local context. Here's what I think I need the most in this space. Here's what I've heard people need the most. How do we hold both your value set and create something that is responsive to the gaps that we're seeing within the institution; and let this group, the Steering Committee, also dream and co-design some of that space within that set of boundaries and the value system that you set as a foundation?
AL: It is like holding the container to play together and then letting people decide what kind of games they are going to play. What do you think were the most significant moments of learning for you as a leader?
MV: Yeah, I've had so many. I'll say the ability to be supported through challenging times in developing something that doesn't exist within an institution has had so much value in my professional development, because it is challenging to be sitting both in a leadership position and a position of deferment. Right? Because you bring in this group, and you want to co-create, but you also hold responsibility for what it is that you're creating. And so I think the balancing of those two things, and they don't have to compete. I can step in and step back and in moments where I see they're a little lost we can put our heads together and present something where we might be able to provide better direction, and see whether they agree or not, as opposed to having both things compete which is, I think, traditionally, the way that we see it like. If I'm leading these, then I do the things the way I want them. But there's a juxtaposition of things where you're like, well, I'm leading these, and I'm also co-designing, co-creating with a team. So I have to switch the way that I operate to be able to do both. And the key moment is realizing that, yes, in fact, you can actually do both, even though sometimes it feels like they're the complete opposite.
AL: The intentionality with which you work through power dynamics is one of the reasons we really enjoyed working with the Office of Equity, because you can really hold your positionality and not be afraid to share the power with the folks you are working with. You know that you are both in community with each other, and you are collectively trying to build something different.
At a larger scale [in other spaces], what we see is the struggle you are speaking to, trusting that you can let go of control, and that the final product, or getting to the other side will be much more transformative then if you are afraid of letting go of what you consider to be your power. To allow yourself to let go of that, while simultaneously acknowledging that you do have a specific type of positionality within the group, that’s what is powerful about the work you have done as the Office of Equity.
MV: And I'd say that I think the most stressful part for me was not that I felt like I held all the power, but mostly the responsibility to be able to show something at the end of the process. The function of institutions can really create the pressure of producing something. And when you start a journey like the one we did for the first time. It's hard to fully envision the end point, you have to relinquish some of that and trust in the process. So you say, Okay, we're going to do this together. And we're going to figure out what comes at the end. I was able to get to a place where I could trust that the group itself would get there with us. Trust was something that was developed through the process that I initially didn't fully have because we were a new group of people coming together, but eventually, through facilitation and the leadership sessions, we were able to build the team and develop that trust in the team that I'm like, okay, you know, they, we will carry each other through, and we will produce, because we all have the same goal of this change and the same purpose of creating this racial Equity Action Plan. We developed his trust to know that everybody's going to be accountable for their piece, and we can co-create and also be responsible for that ultimate outcome.
AL: I think trust is the key takeaway because there can be a huge lack of trust at the very beginning of building an internal Community of Practice. Institutions, whether intentionally or unintentionally, can be harmful, because of the systems and culture they have for their employees. There are institutions that have been doing a lot of work to improve that. What do you think helped people to trust? And what helped you to trust?
MV: Well, I mean obviously time, but I think the biggest thing is this ability to know that there would be somebody in the room, facilitating an effective discussion of what isn't working and so, for example, in that one activity where they were sorting themselves out into different spaces and roles, no one wanted to step in or back. I think that was a pivotal moment where we had to rely on the facilitation to have that conversation instead of sweeping it under the rug and pretending, we had an authentic discussion about these challenges, going back to our agreements and knowing that it would be facilitated to be conducive with our development, understanding these challenges as part of the work and part of the expectation that at some point we're gonna hit a place like that, and that we would be able to use that moment to build trust in our relationship instead of those moments breaking the relationship.
And so I think there was a place of, at least for me, a place of safety knowing that there was someone qualified and equipped in the room to facilitate a tough discussion that I've heard many times go wrong in different spaces. And so to have that trust, that okay, we have somebody in the room, and we all know and acknowledge that this discussion will be hard, and we also know that in order to authentically move forward with this group operating as a team, this discussion needs to be had. And to acknowledge the patterns that can happen and acknowledging it and putting it on the table and saying, let's talk about it. We see this happen. It is happening here. Now let's talk about how people are feeling, and how we create a process to move forward. I think that was like a big piece, because then it felt like anything after that could be brought into the space, and would be accepted as something that we could talk about, and something that we need to sort through as opposed to something that would create harm or would deter from the relationship, and so accepting challenges as part of the process, and knowing that we were supported in going through those challenge; I feel like that, made us feel safer together, because, instead of falling apart, we felt like we got closer together, seeing a new perspective to the bumps in the road.
AL: What would be your advice for leaders who are afraid of a Community of Practice or a community-led effort not being efficient or effective, or taking too long?
MV: This kind of work is always going to take longer than you think. So surrendering to that and having the support to be able to spend the time building the relationships and the trust is really important. I feel like we started this process knowing and calling in the people who wanted to do this work already. So even then, we started this idea, we started the journey with this idea that the people that are here are the people who want to make this happen. And I think, assuming [best] intention[s] throughout the process is what has carried us through, assuming and knowing and being grounded on the fact that the people who signed up for this work are the people who want to do it. It has been really something that has helped me in the moments where I felt like things were difficult. And so relying on those same relationships and making sure that you really do build authentic relationships are going to be the guardrails that carry you through the process.
AL: I think it bears mentioning that there was a very intentional process for helping people understand what this role meant, and what their responsibilities would be. The application process was intended to help people reflect on their role and also to support them in making the decision to participate. The application process itself was different and transformative.
MV: I think that is always helpful to have a roadmap and to understand that there will need to be places where you may have to pivot, and it's not a step back, but a step forward, that will keep you from kind of like a bottleneck that you're going to find at the end of the road because you didn't address it earlier.
AL: I think your clarity in describing the roles really helped, and also allowed for flexibility in the process. You provided both clarity and space for change.
MV: Yes.
AL: I think it's powerful. It's not super prescribed, but you do know what your end goal is. It's basically your internal strategic plan for racial equity work.
MV: Yes, and I think it is about making sure that the first piece was relationship building is what felt like a true community rather than a performative effort. It was about getting to know each other and doing this work together. And so, and again going back to your last question, this is what takes time.
AL: Let’s talk about the writing process of the Racial Equity Action Plan. I experienced this as one of the most transformative and beautiful phases of this work, because I think writing sometimes can be so prescriptive and exclusive, with only some allowed to be witnessed as writers in this world, and to be able to give the opportunity for people to contribute in different ways to the writing process, I thought that was a beautiful way to build community.
MV: Personally, that phase was hard for me, and I think that it was designed to do exactly what you said, to meet people where they are and to help demystify this skill, which is kind of tied to perfectionism too. The writing process took us to the next level of ownership of our work together in that. It wasn't just the process alone, but the “I played a part in writing X number of sentences for the plan, because this process has been my experience too” and so to facilitate it in this way, I think it creates that next level of ownership and pride, and everybody who participated in the Steering Committee presented the plan to the board. They all wanted to do it. I mean, I feel like even senior level staff feel nervous about these public presentations, and to have a group of people who felt so comfortable, and who owned the process as well as the materials so much that they were willing to sign up to voluntarily present said a lot about what the process had been like for them. That they had been through it, this was their experience, and they owned so much of it that they were so comfortable presenting it to other people. I wouldn't do that with just anything, right? You wouldn't just sit on a presentation for something that you are not familiar with, and I think that was a way to preserve their own experience with this project.
AL: Truly beautiful. So now that we're kind of on the other end of this process, a multi-year process of not just building a Community of Practice with the Steering Committee, but building your own internal Community of Practice with your team. What are you left with?
MV: What am I left with? That's a good question. I think the key thing that we have from this is having experience, and knowing that it can be done. We have gone from a 3-person team trying to create a whole new department to creating a Community of Practice to develop this huge Racial Equity Action Plan for the Board. Having gone through that experience and having the support, to be able to not only lead, but also hold participants in the process is the most important piece. We have felt it and experienced it, and we can speak to it because we went through it. We see the promise, that if other people were to lean in and receive the support that we received to embark on this journey, that more of this can be done and racial equity work can actually be institutionalized in other spaces and we are an example that it can be done. And by no means are we saying we are done, there's a lot more that needs to happen, but the reflection in and of itself is that, in my experience, this is the first time that a local government institution like ours has been able to direct staff to create and implement their racial Equity Action Plan. We can serve as a model for other organizations and institutions within the area. This is a big deal.
AL: It sure is.
MV: I'm reflecting on something that you know one of our Steering Committee members has said in some of our conversations, which is that we've been able to act as an incubator and the incubator has finally produced this final outcome that people had been expecting for years since the office was created, the Racial Equity Action Plan. The ability to look back and say that we created this, you know, with humility, in partnership with County staff and with intentionality makes me very proud.
AL: As you should be! This process was truly exceptional. Thank you for allowing us to be part of this powerful partnership and for such good conversation.
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For more information on the County of Sonoma's Office of Equity and their work visit: https://sonomacounty.ca.gov/administrative-support-and-fiscal-services/office-of-equity
For more information on the County of Sonoma's Racial Equity Action Plan visit: https://sonoma-county.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=6819789&GUID=91DC25BC-AD19-42BC-99AD-33277A5787E0
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