Conference Agenda

Strengthening Black leadership is essential for a more efficient, innovative, and diversity-aligned public administration. The Black Leadership in Management Program: A Diverse Future is designed for this purpose—to equip Black managers and leaders, at various levels of government, to act and make a meaningful impact in public administration. The program employs active learning methodologies, focusing on an experiential and practical approach to its content. The following methodologies were primarily used: Action Research—a form of investigation based on collective self-reflection promoted by participants within a social group.This methodology allows participants to analyze and reflect on racial inequities and management issues within their institution, addressing problems and developing innovative solutions while considering the context and institutional dynamics of the public sector. Problem-Based Learning (PBL) this methodology identifies a problem situation that learners investigate, analyze, debate, and propose solutions for through group work. The role of the instructor is fundamental in facilitating and guiding the learning process. PBL follows a structured problem-solving approach which aims to integrate theoretical content, knowledge, and skills development while using small collaborative groups to foster reflective learning and the acquisition of new knowledge. Significant transformations occurring in public administration highlight the need for greater governmental efficiency and effectiveness, as well as improved quality of public services, demanding better qualification and professionalization of public servants. Public organizations must rely on personnel, particularly leadership, that reflects the sociodemographic characteristics of the population, especially in terms of race/ethnicity and gender. These organizations need to incorporate discussions on ethnic-racial relations and diversity into their training and daily activities as a way to promote cultural change and develop professionals who can critically engage with the societal realities they serve, formulating and implementing public policies. Racism in Brazil is a structural and foundational phenomenon that permeates all spheres of the lives of Black people, creating and perpetuating significant inequalities. Tackling these inequalities requires vigorous public policies, as well as cultural changes that value diversity and promote racial equity. In Brazil, 56% of the population is Black, according to the Institute for Applied Economic Research (IPEA, 2021). Additionally, according to this institute, 25% is the average percentage of Black individuals in leadership positions in the public sector, and only 3% is the average percentage of Black women in leadership roles. These figures indicate that, if we aim for racial equity, it is essential to invest in a more effective and representative public administration. In the federal public service, according to IPEA data (2021), 35% of federal public servants are Black, with 43% occupying mid-level positions and 27% holding higher-level positions. Regarding positions of senior management and advisory (DAS), 29% of these are filled by Black employees. In this article, we will present the strategies, methodological tools, and content used in the program to promote self-awareness, skills development, and empowerment of Black leadership, alongside the practical application of the program’s teachings through action plans addressing the challenge of overcoming ethnic-racial inequalities in organizations, as well as the sharing of experiences and the strengthening of participating leaders.

In the context of rapid development of the digital economy, the global labor market is undergoing profound structural changes. Among them, the employment difficulties of low-income women are particularly prominent. The innovative combination of China's "motherhood" policy and technology platforms in recent years is reintegrating low-income women into the economic system with low enter barriers, high flexibility, and task-based characteristics. The development process of China's "mom job" reflects the deep logic of labor market transformation.

This study collected public data on several digital platforms, 300 questionnaires and 32 in-depth interviews. We found that Chinese technology platforms have lowered the threshold for women's employment while at the same time incorporating housewives into a highly flexible, low-security labor track through institutionalized design, forming a “semi-marginalized employment structure” that is both embedded in the family and subordinate to the platform. This forms a “semi-marginalized employment structure” that is both embedded in the family and subordinate to the platform. Firstly, Platforms have weakened the traditional “qualification” restriction, and provided women of childbearing age with a fast track to employment. However, the platform skipped the skills recognition, contract security and training, results in female practitioners are highly replaceable, high mobility and no promotion mechanism. Secondly, the “freedom of time” claimed by flexible employment has not really empowered women, but is instead deeply coupled with family responsibilities, resulting in the overlapping of labor and living time. Thirdly, platforms rely on performance quantification and behavioral tracking mechanisms to reinforce “emotional labor” and “self-expression”. Emotional labor becomes a buffer between platform rules and user evaluation, and the meaning of labor changes from “earning a living” to “making a living”. Fourthly, platforms do not effectively provide support such as training and childcare, and practitioners of “mom’s job” are highly dependent on the “alternative security networks” of their families, neighborhoods, and communities. This kind of flexible mutual assistance has exacerbated the “deinstitutionalization” of institutional responsibility.

The “mom job” is an important channel for low-income women to re-enter the labor market, but it needs to address the lack of job security and ambiguous rights and interests. This study suggests building a systematic support system to promote its transition to sustainability, standardization and inclusion, such as Establish a labor security system for “mom’s job; Constructing a differentiated responsibility system for platforms; Promote a “childcare-employment” community linkage support system; Improve statistical monitoring and identification; Advocating an Inclusive Vocational Culture.

In conclusion, the “mom job” created by technology platforms is a complex attempt to respond to the plight of low-income women's employment in the digital age. China's promotion of the high-quality development of the digital economy needs to emphasize the “quality” of flexible employment on platforms, with particular attention to vulnerable groups such as women. The sustainability of “mom jobs” is not only about the well-being of millions of women and their families, but also about social justice. This is a systematic project to be promoted by the government, enterprises, workers and society.

In light of recent anti-DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) challenges, policymakers may turn to behavioral science approaches to complement existing policies and develop alternatives to equity-focused initiatives that face increasing political resistance or legal challenges. Nudging has emerged as one potential alternative to DEI policies or regulations. Nudge theory, or subtle changes to the decision-making environment that can predictably alter people's behavior without restricting their choices or significantly changing their economic incentives, can assist public administrators in advancing social equity by employing non-coercive strategies to overcome resistance and promote equity without legal mandates. This article explores how choice architects and policymakers can leverage nudge theory and nudging to promote a more just society via pro-self or pro-social nudges. This approach offers an alternative to imposing forceful methods or restrictions through policies and regulations that may be difficult to implement or pass into law.