Practical Anti-Racist Practices for Your Organisation

This blog series follows our recent webinar 'Driving Change: Anti-Racist Leadership Strategies' with Lou Chiu and Sohini Petrie. Lou and Sohini shared incredible insights into what anti-racist leadership actually looks like in practice.

We’ve broken down their insights into three practical blogs that cover what anti-racist leadership actually means, how to embed it when resources are tight, and how to sustain yourself in the work. 

"We don't have time or resources for this." 

We hear this constantly from charity and non-profit leaders. Everything feels like it's on fire right now. But here's the reality, as Lou puts it:  

“Not all fires are equal. EDI work often slides down the priority list because it doesn't feel like an immediate crisis. But if people experiencing harm in your organisation don't feel heard, they'll find their own space to process what's happening. And you can either be part of that conversation or not.” 

The solution when resources are stretched? Build anti-racist practice into your existing work rather than treating it as an add-on. Here are practical examples that Lou and Sohini shared that might spark ideas for your organisation.

Seven Anti-Racist Practices

1. Rethink Your Meetings 

Sohini shared a brilliant example from her work as chair of South East Integration Network. They changed how they run board meetings to create genuine space for connection. They recognised that everyone comes from different backgrounds and language heritages, and they needed to slow down to understand each other better. It's not something you can rush. 

2. Transform Your Recruitment 

Sohini's organisation moved beyond just "un-biasing" their process. They ran what they called an "un-interview." After conversations with potential new board members, they'd immediately reflect: 

• What biases and assumptions came up when someone responded in a certain way? 

• What was I bringing into this space that might have affected how I received their answers? 

These are simple reflections, but they're powerful. 

3. Build in Reflection Time 

At Atkinson HR, every in-person team meeting includes time to reflect on one of our values, what we're doing well, where we're not getting it right, and what we can learn from clients or other organisations. 

We're disciplined about protecting that time because it matters. 

4. Intentionality and Slowing Down 

Notice the theme?  As Sohini shared, this work requires intentionality and slowing down, even when that feels counterintuitive.  

Schedule anti-racist reflection into your one-to-ones, team meetings, and existing processes. Protect that time the way you'd protect any other business-critical meeting. 

5. Be Proactive, Not Reactive 

   
   

When there's social unrest or acts of harm affecting communities, are you actively checking in with colleagues? Or are you waiting for people to come to you? 

Remember: racism isn't a "people of colour problem." It's everyone's problem because we all experience it in one way or another. Being proactive about coming together and creating space is part of being an anti-racist leader and a good ally. 

If you're wondering how to hear from staff and create space where they can share experiences, here's the balance: 

Trauma-informed practice means we're not re-traumatising people by constantly asking them to relive experiences. And we're not putting the onus solely on staff from marginalised communities to educate everyone else. Building trust takes time. Even in organisations with great cultures, if you've never talked about racism before, people will be distrustful. 

6. Do Your Own Learning First 

There's so much content out there created by people who've chosen to openly share their experiences. Learn from that. Show your team you're doing this work regardless of their input. Demonstrate that you're an anti-racist leader whether or not anyone needs to ask. Then, when you do ask staff what they need, it comes from a place of genuine commitment rather than relying on them to do the heavy lifting.

7. Make It Collective Work 

This is community work that none of us can do alone. Lou invited us to consider anti-racist leadership as a relay race, not a solo marathon. When you're feeling overwhelmed as someone not in the direct path of harm, you often have more resources in that moment than somebody who's being targeted. That's when you need to step up and be braver, be more disruptive. 

Your Next Steps 

Choose one practice to implement this month: 

• Add a values reflection to your next team meeting 

• Build in post-interview reflection time for your recruitment process 

• Schedule check-ins with colleagues after significant news events 

• Commit to 30 minutes of self-led anti-racist learning each week 

Start small. Be consistent. Build from there. 

At Atkinson HR, we help organisations reduce workplace harm and build psychologically safe, inclusive environments. If you'd like to explore how to embed anti-racist leadership in your organisation, we'd love to talk. 

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