DETROIT — Oct. 16, 2023 — Senior Army leaders recently talked about how women of color can achieve their goals in a panel discussion at this year’s Women of Color STEM DTX conference. The panel discussion, which took place on Oct. 13 in Detroit, featured the life experiences of the panelists and their advice for how women of all backgrounds can reach their full potential and achieve career success while embracing their unique identity and values.
The panelists included U.S. Army Inspector General Lt. Gen. Donna Martin; Army Futures Command Chief Human Capital Officer Hong Miller; the Commander of the U.S. Army Reserve 80th Training Command, Brig. Gen. Patricia Wallace; and Command Sgt. Maj. Faith Alexander of the U.S. Army Enterprise Marketing Office. Brig. Gen. Antoinette Gant, chief of the AEMO, moderated the panel.
Dr. Michelle Zbylut, deputy assistant secretary of the Army for Equity and Inclusion, opened the discussion by introducing the panelists and explaining the importance of diversity and inclusion to the Army.
“These successful women are here today because to fight and win today’s wars, we need the best talent both in uniform and within our civilian workforce. The Army has invested in developing leaders across the country to help a new generation of America’s women find ways to be all they can be. These panelists have done just that, and we’re proud to invite them to share their experiences.”
Panelists discussed several topics that touched on the opportunities and challenges that women of color face in the workplace. They talked about the importance of good mentorship as well as confronting stereotypes and biases. Each of the panelists stated that mentorship was something that had a major impact on their lives, as well as the biases and stereotypes that they each had to confront.
“There’s a true need for mentorship within this space,” Wallace pointed out, “but we need to be ready to reach out and pursue those mentorship opportunities wherever they are. Mentorship can come from anyone, and it’s something I benefited from throughout my career in the Army.”
“Working as an instructor for the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute, you learn that you can’t directly control what biases and stereotypes someone has about you,” said Alexander. “Those things exist — I’ve even led Soldiers in the past who were racist and sexist. But when we had to work in the same space and learn how to communicate, we learned how to trust and understand each other. It takes time, introspection and a confidence in the value you bring to your team to succeed.”
Each of the leaders also noted that the challenges they’ve faced have contributed to where they are today. They commented that the challenges persist; however, remaining authentic to themselves while pursuing opportunities allowed them to overcome obstacles.
“It is simply too hard to be someone other than myself,” said Miller. “There are so many expectations for who you should be as an African American woman and as an Asian woman. I found that remaining true to myself and not yielding to those expectations has been the foundation of so much more success in my personal and professional life.”
As Martin also remarked, “You often walk into a lot of rooms [with people who] don’t look like you. It doesn’t mean that you don’t belong in that room or at that table. To get a seat at the table, you pull a seat out for yourself, and you sit down. What I’ve learned over the course of my Army career … is that if you’re prepared for your success, if you know your goals and what you’re capable of, nothing can stop you.”
The discussion ended with a question-and-answer session in which the panel members fielded questions from women in the audience.
When asked what her advice is for the next generation of women of color, Wallace replied, “Every day, as women of color, we’re working against stereotypes. But we have to continue defying them to show that we really are capable of being all we can be. We get there by taking things notch by notch ... and by not being persuaded by what anybody else thinks we should be. You keep going. You bring to the table what no one else can bring.”
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