I must admit, I wasn’t the least bit surprised when news broke last week that Indiana Black Expo staffers issued a letter to the organization’s board expressing their concern with President and CEO Tanya Bell.
As a matter of fact, the first word that came to mind as I watched the news report was “courageous.” It takes a tremendous amount of courage to take such an overt stand against one’s boss, and many people would never do such a thing, even when considering the obvious issues. The aspect that most impressed me was that 17 full-time employees signed the letter rather than leaving it anonymous. Doing so not only took guts, but it is also indicative of the seriousness of the issues associated with the historic organization.
Shortly after Bell’s tenure began in 2008, so too did the complaints from the staff. I have written repeated editorials voicing my concern for the organization and even my criticism for some of Bell’s actions. I think it is important to note that I really do not have any personal ills towards Bell. Despite what some people think, it’s actually quite the contrary. I was happy when Bell began as the head of such a historic organization at a relatively young age. I am always happy to see Blacks succeed and grow professionally, especially Black women because I know they’ve had to work three times harder, be three times smarter and have to endure significantly more challenges and obstacles in their quest for advancement. I believe Bell is an incredibly intelligent and hardworking person – there was never any question about that. However, her leadership style over the years is in question. So too are her interpersonal skills.
While no one has to like the people they work with, nor do we have to be overly nice to employees, we do have to be fair and exercise a basic level of respect towards each other. I’ve spoken with several Expo employees over the years, many of whom are no longer in the organization, and the unsatisfactory sentiments have always been the same. I really do not believe that all those people are wrong or overreacting. Let me be very clear, I am not an employee at Indiana Black Expo, nor do I interact with Bell on a regular basis, so I cannot fairly say what she does or does not do at work, but I can look at things from an objective standpoint and see the potential for disaster if things don’t improve within that organization.
The fact is this: there are and have been major issues with Expo in recent years. I’m not saying that there weren’t problems before Bell took the reins, because I’m sure there were, but the problems were not to the magnitude that they are today. Sponsors are backing off and employees are unhappy. While some of the reduced sponsorship dollars can be attributed to the downturn in the economy, from speaking with various companies I also know poor customer service played a part in determining the amount of money they were willing to give Expo. Poor customer service isn’t something that can be blamed solely on Bell; the organization as a whole has to take responsibility for that.
For years Amos Brown and I have offered commentary about Expo and the problems the organization faces. But we didn’t just complain, we also offered possible solutions. In his column below, Brown says the Board of Directors dismissed his criticisms “as the doddering of a man nearing his senior years.” I believe Expo’s board dismissed my concern as a woman who either disliked Bell or was jealous of her success. Neither is true. As Brown and I have said over the years, the board needs to take control and not only listen to the concerns of the community, but also consider the suggestions of outside sources. The board can’t do as it has done in the past and close itself off from the community and ignore the problems. There are so many highly respected and talented individuals that currently serve on the board, so I am optimistic that things will improve. My optimism soared when the current chairman of the board, John Thompson, made himself available to speak with me before my deadline this week. This is the first time that has happened, but it will not be the last, because Thompson promised me he would make himself available to the Recorder at anytime. Perhaps things are indeed changing for the better. While I can’t go into all the specifics of our conversation, I can say that Thompson said the issues are going to be addressed.
“We are going to work on it until we see dramatic improvement throughout the organization.”
Part of what Thompson and the board did to address the issues is hire the consulting firm Performance 3 to do some organizational development and access management effectiveness. Thompson says the improvement process will continue until they reach an acceptable level of “overall organizational effectiveness.”
Many people in the community have felt that the current board has a particular allegiance to Bell that transcends the traditional board/president relationship. When I asked Thompson about those rumblings, he said, “The board formally voted its support behind Tanya as president and CEO. She does have our support, so that’s accurate. But at the same time, we do see needs for coaching and are making that happen. Tanya can benefit from some coaching.”
I want Indiana Black Expo to succeed and thrive for another 41 years, and I’m pretty confident that those 17 staffers who signed the letter of complaint want the same thing. I strongly believe they genuinely love that organization and the community it serves. If they didn’t, they would not have put themselves on the line in the manner they did. My prayers are with those 17 staffers as they work through what I imagine is a tense and awkward time. My prayers are also for Bell as she deals with all the criticism and challenges that she currently faces.
I want things to improve at IBE and perhaps they can improve with the current people in place, including Bell. If not, I can only hope the next person is able to usher the organization back on track. The board has a lot to prove to the entire staff and the community. The way they handle this situation will be a make or break time for Expo. It will be interesting to see how this all turns out.
You can e-mail comments to Shannon Williams at shannonw@indyrecorder.com.
