The Journey and Impact of Getting Proximate - Seite 2

• Understanding how Proximity is different: Proximity is not about advancing one's career. It is not a mentorship or sponsorship program. It is an intentional, inclusive action leaders and participants take in the spirit of creating a conscious culture. We view this as an opportunity to make a self-less contribution towards our transformation by sharing our lived experiences, empathically seeking to understand, and self-reflection for personal development.
• Proximity requires intention: Some leaders believe that casually meeting with people and having a general conversation is getting proximate, but it requires so much more. Leaders must be intentional about holding space, staying open and a willingness to lean into curiosity and empathy. To honor the experiences of those sharing stories, leaders must move past a "check the box" meeting and invest in authentic conversations.
• Proximity crosses the full spectrum of diversity: It extends beyond race and gender and it's inclusive of all aspects of identity. Our focus is underrepresented and underserved communities. The idea is to have a conversation to understand how we all experience culture differently.
• Vulnerability: Proximity meetings are deep and intimate conversations focused on sharing our life experiences. To make meaningful Proximity connections, leaders need to lean into the discomfort of being vulnerable and be curious with an ambition to learn. Leaders must be transparent regarding the intentions of the meetings and take responsibility for creating an atmosphere of safety and trust for inclusive community participants. Leaders and participants need to be open about their own experiences and how those experiences have shaped their perspectives.

When having vulnerable and courageous conversations, it requires a new capability - a mindset of being humble, transparent, and willing to learn in those moments of discomfort. We are working to build this capability with each leader in the organization. At Cisco, we believe that listening and learning with empathy is a leadership superpower, and over the last three years, it has become a leadership expectation.

Engaging in Proximity drives connection

Our original intention for Proximity was to have in-person meetings, but the pandemic forced us to quickly change how we get proximate. We found that meeting virtually levelled our ability to connect, as we were no longer bound by physical location barriers. We estimate over 90% of Proximity meetings are now completed through Webex.