A Conversation Between
W. Roy Grizzard, Jr., Ed.D.
Former Assistant Secretary USDOL/Office of Disability Employment Policy
and
Ralph W. Shrader, Ph.D.
Chairman and CEO, Booz Allen Hamilton
Dr. Grizzard:
October is Disability Employment Awareness Month. And the Office of Disability Employment Policy in the Department of Labor is the first sub-cabinet-level agency that was ever created for the purpose of enhancing opportunities for people with disabilities to become employed and fully engaged in our society, to be able to live independently and to enjoy all the fruits of life that this great country has to offer.
Just a fortnight after President Bush was inaugurated in 2001, he issued the New Freedom Initiative executive order, and that was the order that called upon federal government agencies to leverage their resources in order to provide opportunities for people with disabilities to receive the full benefits of rehabilitation in their local community, to be reintegrated into their communities in the workplace, and to have the technological resources that would enable them to fully engage in society and in work.
Booz Allen Hamilton was the winner of Secretary Chao's New Freedom Initiative award just a few years ago. And we have invited them to be a part of our Circle of Champions, and at ODEP, we think that it's very important to have a business model for hiring people with disabilities. And so we appreciate Booz Allen Hamilton being one of the major contributors to that partnership in our Circle of Champions.
Dr. Shrader:
I can assure you that we're very proud, also, to be a part of this, and I feel very privileged to be here with you today to talk about what Booz Allen has done and our interests.
We recognize the fact that, while certainly the government can make things easier and they can pass regulations and they can state policy, it really is up to people to implement these policies and make them real.
And you spoke about the fact that the public sector has responsibilities in that area, but the private sector has responsibilities, as well. And I think one of the things that we've found is that it's not only an obligation, but it is a rare business opportunity for us, because the work that we've done with people with disabilities, and adding them and including them into our workforce, has greatly strengthened our organization, our institution. So we see this as very good business.
It's not only something that we think is the right thing to do, but it's something that is right for the organization, and it's right for all the people involved, as well.
One of the areas that we saw where we could do something that was above and beyond, that actually accomplished something, that we saw, which could yield tangible results, was the idea of bringing in some of these young people for internships. And then having us work with them, you know, during a period of time such as the summer, where they could get experience in the work environment and we could get experience with them.
And I think we learned from each other -- we learned what accommodations could be made, how to make those accommodations. They learned how to work in a structured environment, in an environment like ours.
And we actually became a victim of our own success. Because when word spread that we were doing a program like this, we had a number of people that applied and wanted to be part of the program.
Dr. Grizzard:
You know, I often say, to hire people with disabilities to make one feel warm and fuzzy is not the end game. At the end of the day, perhaps that is a collateral benefit, but the reason you do it is because of what they're going to bring to your business or your organization, how they're going to help you meet your organizational goals, your bottom line, whatever it is that you're all about.
And I think that it's important that businesses such as yours have recognized that their employee pool has increased as they consider people with disabilities, and that as businesses compete for skilled and talented employees in the future, that what you're doing here with the emerging leadership program will help to mitigate any of the issues that might come about by a potential worker shortage.
Dr. Shrader:
Well, I think most of us in positions of leadership in business understand that one of the most critical elements of our success is being able to attract and then train, develop, retain, and grow people. And that's what the business is about, and quite frankly, in a firm like ours, that's all we have. We don’t build cars or anything else, we really work with the knowledge of our people. And we've come to recognize the fact that there is a talented group of people out there in the workforce that may suffer from one kind of disability or another, but that, when you work with them to be able to accommodate their disabilities and make them a part of your team and your business and your success, what you tend to find is, you tend to find a very dedicated, loyal, energetic, enthusiastic, high-achieving group.
And they're very valuable employees, because they're at the core of what it is we're trying to do.
One of the difficulties we have as we've tried to share some of the richness of the emerging leaders program is we're having to compete for some of the good people, ourselves, but that's a healthy competition.
Dr. Grizzard:
That is.
Dr. Shrader:
One of the things that we're looking at, also, is geographic diversity. Given the fact that a lot of the people with disabilities are sometimes challenged in terms of their ability to move about the country, we're trying to establish these programs in other geographies, as well.
But if we can actually multiply this program and make it a nationwide program, where we have engagement and involvement across the broad scope of the geographies around here, we'd feel very good about that. We'd like to help be a catalyst for really making that program grow on a nationwide basis.
Dr. Grizzard:
I think that that is a very salient point, Dr. Shrader. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, I think I heard you once use the term of "just a small stone can be a barrier." And transportation and moving about, often, for a person with a disability, is a barrier to employment. We have found, through telework, that people with disabilities are able to work productively. They are able to contribute greatly to businesses, and I think that it's really exciting that, as a business, you are reaching out to other businesses and showing leadership in your own way, of how you're exploring ways to help people with disabilities to become fully engaged in employment and what they are bringing to your particular business.
And we know that in America there are people with disabilities who want to work, and if we want a workplace that's going to look like America, then it's going to be well rounded. It's going to have people with disabilities. And I think that Booz Allen Hamilton is leading the way.
Thank you very much for all that you and your organization here at Booz Allen Hamilton are doing to integrate people with disabilities into the workplace. Thank you very much.
Dr. Shrader:
Thank you, and thank you for the framework that you've created within the federal government. It really helps facilitate the process that we're working through.
Dr. Grizzard:
Thank you.
Dr. Shrader:
Pleasure.
