An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis

Work on your own bias. We call it unconscious bias for a reason. It is hard to raise awareness, in general, it is even harder to do the work on oneself. It is never late to start, and the positive results are worthy. Small actions like, for example, not asking women to take notes at a meeting by default will make a big difference towards core change.

As a part of our series about “How Diversity Can Increase a Company’s Bottom Line”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Beatrice Ruiz.

Beatrice Ruiz, CEO of Trampoline Global Consulting and founder of #InspirationCafe, was born in Spain in a multicultural and multifaith family. Growing up in such a varied background, Beatrice saw first-hand the importance of exposure for an open mind and the many benefits that diversity brings to the table.

Beatrice has lived, worked, and studied multiple degrees, including an MBA in the USA and different certifications in DEI, in +6 countries. This sparked the idea to direct the exposure, experience, and knowledge collected over the years to her business Trampoline Global Consulting, which works with small, medium, and Fortune 500 companies (including Salesforce and State Street) to move their Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion efforts forward.

Beatrice is a speaker at DIFEST Global and a regular guest contributor and speaker to DEI podcasts, online magazines, and global events, and she is known as the Fairy Godmother of Diversity.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive into the main part of our interview, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit more. Can you share a bit of your “backstory” with us?

Thank you for having me! My backstory is the big reason for where I am today.

I grew up in Spain and, from a very early age, we were encouraged to lead inclusive initiatives. As a family, we had a strong focus on disability and children from underserved, underrepresented communities. I ran my first Toy Drive when I was eight or nine years old.

I was fortunate enough to study Art in the UK, International Relations in Germany, Finance in Spain, and an MBA in the USA. I worked in very different countries such as the UAE or Poland. Being a foreigner for most of my life allowed me to experience the benefits and challenges that come with being “different.”

It was in the early 2010s when I had my “aha!” moment. I wanted to dedicate the rest of my professional career to supporting companies to move their Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion efforts forward. To make a difference, one company, one person at a time.

It happened when I moved to the USA, and I was classified as “Hispanic Female.” Little I knew what that meant. In the years that followed I learned that a Hispanic Female earns less for no reason, works twice as much to land half of the opportunities, or needs not to have a voice to avoid losing her visa.

This “aha!” moment was both shocking and a blessing. Thanks to it, though, I found what I love to do.

I founded #InspirationCafe as a safe space for industry leaders and HR practitioners to challenge the status quo of DEI. To date, I have had leaders from eight countries and three regions, from small companies to NGOs and Fortune 500s.

Then, I created Trampoline Global Consulting. A safe trampoline from where companies and individuals can jump as high as they want to. I help them understand their baseline through DEI Auditing so they know where they are today.

I support them in translating DEI facts and trends into a strategy. A strategy into actionable items, those implemented items into metrics through DEI Consulting.

I help them make change sink in and last through DEI Adult-Learning Training.

To date, I have worked with Fortune 500 companies, including Salesforce and State Street, or NGOs like Random Acts.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career? Can you tell us the lesson or take away you took out of that story?

The first time I applied to Disney, I was 12.

I grew up with classic Disney movies. I loved drawing, I was good at it, and that’s everything I wanted to do when I grew up.

I wanted to write and draw stories.

At that time, while I loved Disney movies, I could barely relate to any of the princesses. Most dark-haired characters were the wicked ones, while the blond ones were the heroes. As a Spanish child, I had almost black hair.

One Christmas, Reyes Magos, the Three Wise Men, brought me everything I needed to learn how to draw Disney characters. What a wonderful gift.

A few months later, my mother asked what I was doing about my dream of joining Disney. I did not know. “Tell them,” she said.

I did. I sent Disney a letter along with my drawings. And then, we waited.

It turned out I was good…but I had to wait to be legally allowed to work; once that happened, I could contact them again. I did. I networked and networked, and after my MBA, I was introduced to the responsible for MBA internships. This time, the issue was different. I was not a US citizen. That long-wanted door closed, but I learned a few valuable things in the way.

• I learned about the power of support, passion, determination, and consistency. If it weren’t for my mother, who taught me to pursue my passion and knock on the door of my dreams until it opens or until I build the door I need, I would have never made it where I am today.
• I learned about the importance of closing doors so others can open. Sometimes we have to let things go unfinished. Sometimes we don’t have to. We can pursue them until we get a definite answer so we can move on. Closing doors is powerful and liberating. My father, who is the most determined person I know, taught me this, among many other things.
• I learned the invaluable impact of networking to grow as a professional and as a person. On my path to what I thought would be my dream job, I met the most wonderful people. One of them stands out above everyone else. Mike Berry. He is a former Executive Director at Harvard University, former President of Barnes & Noble, former CEO of The Cheesecake Factory, and former SVP of Operations at Disney. Mike not only took me under his wing as a mentee, but he is also a very dear friend. I succeed in my early time in the USA thanks to his support.

For those wondering, no, there’s no Disney hero Spanish children can relate to yet.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you tell us a story about how that was relevant in your own life?

There are a couple of “Life Lesson Quotes” that I remind myself of frequently.

The first one is “Tune your intuition and listen to it.” One of the best things that I did during the pandemic was to re-tune my intuition. I found Women who run with the Wolves, by Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes through Courtney Adamo. This book is intense and, at times, difficult to read. I am lucky to be bilingual as I saw that some parts of the book are easier to understand in Spanish, some in the translated version, in English. I went through it in just a few days, and it made a huge impact. I invested time and energy in reconnecting with myself, and I felt like I was reborn like a butterfly. Literally.

The second one is “What might feel obvious to you, it’s likely to be amazing to everybody else.” Research shows that women suffer from impostor syndrome more often than men. For example, women rarely apply to jobs unless they meet 95% of the requirements, whereas men do regardless. Eight out of 10 women feel they do not have enough support, role models, nor visibility, and research shows that lack of confidence could be one of the root causes. A while ago, I was having one of those days where the impostor syndrome hit me. What if? What if? What if? My other half hugged me, reminded me of all the good that my work is doing in other people’s lives, and told me that what may seem ok to me was probably wonderful to everyone else. He was right. It’s ok to have doubts sometimes, but we can’t lose sight of our dream, our passion, and all the good that we are doing. Even if one day it looks nonsense to you, keep going. The rest of us find your gift amazing.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are?

How long do you have? 🙂

Having a good support network is crucial to move forward in life.

I have been blessed with many people in my life who have helped me in different ways to progress.

I want to highlight the boost we get from people who say no to us as well. When they say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, they have a point. Hearing “no” from time to time not only helps us gain resiliency but also pushes us out of our comfort zone. It makes us think, flex, be resourceful, and adjust our strategy and journey as needed. I can’t tell you the number of “no” I have received over the past few years. And, don’t get me wrong, it hit my self-esteem, and it was hard, at times, to recover. Now, I am so thankful they said “no” so I can be where I am today.

Moving on to the “yes.” Aside from my parents, my partner, and Mike Berry, who I mentioned earlier, I can’t pick just one person, so I’ll share with you a few of them that have been crucial in my life for the past few years.

Orla Nolan, VP of L&D at State Street Ireland. Orla has not only been the mentor anyone needs to progress in a big corporation, but she is also a true friend. Without her support, I don’t think I would have navigated the pandemic the way I did, and I would not have made it this far, this fast, and this relevant with Trampoline Global Consulting.

Paul Francisco, Chief Diversity Officer at State Street. He is a role model in the D&I space. A man of principle, with solid values, who moves forward rain or sun. I was fortunate to meet him through friends when I lived in Boston, and his example impacted how I’d approach my D&I career.

Nicole Thomas, Alex Trusty, Rudinov Vincent, and Loreto Calaf believed in me when I didn’t see it myself.

Thank you.

What do you think makes your company stand out? Can you share a story?

Authenticity. At Trampoline Global Consulting, I focus on core change. DEI is not a trend. It is not about checking boxes or about being politically correct. It is about believing in the uniqueness of each individual and the value they bring to the table. It is about recognizing and embracing that increased diversity is good in every aspect of life, and yes, it does improve your financial performance 🙂

My clients appreciate that I am straightforward, candid, and committed to their success and that of the communities they operate in. After all, that’s the goal. To build companies that are a reflection of the communities they serve. To create safe spaces where you can bring yourself to work without leaving part of you at home. All of you is welcome.

This is what makes Trampoline Global Consulting stand out. I am authentic, candid, and committed to your long-lasting success.

When I look back, there is a particular story that stands out. For many years now, I have been referring to Black people as Black people, not People of Color (POC), not colored people, not any other variant. You can imagine the criticism, the judgmental looks, and the consistent “advise” on how I was being racist.

I stuck to my guns, and here is why.

Joshua Adams, a black staff writer at Colorlines and Communications professor at DePaul and Salem State, wrote a candid and helpful article about this topic:

“(…)

Saying ‘POC’ when we mean ‘Black people’ concedes that there’s a need to describe a marginalized group as ‘less’ Black for people to have empathy for an issue.

(…)

For me, ‘people of color’ feels like a hiding place; like I have to hide a crucial part of me to not tap into the reflexive fear or apathy toward Blackness. Describing myself as ‘POC’ feels like walking into a space with an apology in hand, a preemptive ‘sorry’ for any offense my Blackness may have caused.

James Baldwin once said, ‘The plea is simple — look at it.’ Words can be a mirror that reflects the world as it is, or they can be prisms that have the potential to amplify but also to distort. Our struggle as a society is to find mirrors.

But maybe my simpler plea is for people to know one thing: It’s okay to call me Black. And if you feel it isn’t, I still insist that you do.”

I couldn’t have explained it better.

Are you working on any new or exciting projects now? How do you think that might help people?

I am working on a couple of new projects right now. These are exciting times.

The first one is a collection of Stories of Overcoming. I have been interviewing people with powerful stories for weeks. These are stories of overcoming in the D&I space from all around the world. I record candid interviews in the safe space that is #InspirationCafe. My guests bring their whole selves and share their stories of healing, overcoming, success with the ultimate goal of inspiring others. Different views, different cultures, different faiths, different upbringings, different lives. An extraordinary journey.

Oftentimes, we think that our lives are too mundane to be of any interest to others, but we couldn’t be more wrong. Your story is as unique as you are. The way you face challenges and overcome them is your approach. You can inspire more people than you think.

This is the project I am working on. I am collecting hope and inspiration and sharing it with the world.

The second one is a series of “How To” guides to move D&I efforts forward. From how to start designing your D&I strategy, to how to translate it into actionable items globally and regionally, to how to measure the results. We are endless sources of ideas, but we need to turn them into reality. I am helping companies do just that.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?

I believe that my clients’ success is “bringing goodness to the world;” The more successful my clients and the people around me are, in terms of D&I, the more successful the communities they interact with are, and so it cascades.

Trampoline Global Consulting’s achievements come from our ability to support companies, their employees, and their executives in creating excellent, diverse, equal, and culturally dynamic organizations. Safe, multicultural aware, and collaborative organizations where you can bring your whole self to work.

A recipe to bring goodness to the world: The happier your employees, the more successful the company, the better the communities, the safer the world.

Ok. Thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the main part of our interview. This may be obvious to you, but it is not intuitive to many people. Can you articulate to our readers five ways that increased diversity can help a company’s bottom line. (Please share a story or example for each.)

https://youtu.be/vIIQ-aubftM

1. Diversity correlates with better financial performance — Research shows that diversity correlates with better financial performance, from 15% to 35% ABOVE the national industry median in North American, Latino-American, and British companies. When we think of diversity, we have to think beyond race, gender, or the primary protective classes. Diversity also includes the diversity of thought, which means NEW ideas, NEW products, AND innovation.
2. Diversity Helps You Not to Leave Money at the Table — Your company must be a reflection of the communities it interacts with. When clients don’t have anyone in your organization they can relate too, they may go and find someone else. Diversity is not about checking boxes or being politically correct. Diversity is about believing in the uniqueness of each individual.
3. Diversity Attracts the Best Talent — By being aware of unconscious bias, you will position yourself to attract the best talent in the marketplace. When we look around us, we realize that we choose our friends and our network based on how similar they are to us. And this is comfortable. We are all biased. Unconscious bias is real. And there’s no vaccine 😉 Our brains filter information based on our cultural background, upbringing, values, and so on. This bias impacts our ability to attract diverse talent.
4. Diversity Reduces Employee Turnover — Employees who feel supported are free to be themselves. They feel appreciated and are less likely to leave you. Diversity, along with inclusion, equality, and other factors like happy clients, keeps people from leaving their jobs.
5. Diversity Increases Productivity — Diverse and flexible teams are culturally aware. They learn from each other and fuel each other, and that increases productivity and overall happiness in the workplace. This translates into innovation, engagement, new clients, and better financial performance.

What advice would you give to other business leaders to help their employees to thrive?

• Appreciate your employees and tell them often. As obvious as this might sound, honest appreciation makes a big difference. As business leaders, we have a responsibility for the wellbeing, engagement, and success of our employees. This doesn’t mean that employees are not accountable for driving their careers. It means that as a leader, we walk a step ahead, and what we say, do, and decide matters. Sometimes, we might forget that intention is different from impact. For example, we may want to show appreciation to an employee by saying thank you in private for a job well done, but if we give the credit publicly to someone else, the impact is that the employee feels undervalued and, eventually, disengaged.
• Work on your own bias. We call it unconscious bias for a reason. It is hard to raise awareness, in general, it is even harder to do the work on oneself. It is never late to start, and the positive results are worthy. Small actions like, for example, not asking women to take notes at a meeting by default will make a big difference towards core change.
• Listen. As leaders, we may feel the pressure of having to know everything all the time. It is a false expectation. There is nothing like knowing where to find the answers and who has them to keep moving. Be open to the fact that we don’t know it all. Every employee is unique, and they can teach us something new daily. Be ready to be genuinely curious.

We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this 🙂

I’ll be happy to meet any of the biggest names for sure, but if I had to choose just a couple, I would go with Richard Branson and Indra Nooyi.

Having a private breakfast with Richard Branson would be something. I have admired the iconic, eccentric entrepreneur for a while now. Disrupting industry after industry, doing good, and impacting as many lives as he can. He is a role model of entrepreneurship and social justice. As he mentioned once: “A billionaire is a person who touches the life of one billion people.”

Then, meeting Indra Nooyi would be interesting. She is a strong role model of female leadership, and while the number of women at the top keeps increasing, she seems to be always ahead of the pack. With a wealth of experience in business, family, and the balance between them, Indra is someone I would definitely have breakfast with.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

You can find more about Trampoline Global Consulting, #InspirationCafe, and the work that I do to support companies become excellent, diverse, equal, and culturally dynamic organizations by visiting our website www.trampolineconsulting.com or connecting with me on LinkedIn. I am always happy to get to know new people, their inspiring stories, and be of help where I can.

Thank you for these excellent insights. We wish you continued success in your great work.

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Beatrice Ruiz of Trampoline Global Consulting: How Diversity Can Increase a Company’s Bottom Line was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.