Ify Walker - When Values Are Clear, Decisions Are Easy

In the fight to create more equitable job opportunities, transparency is a must.

Ify Walker is the founder and CEO of Offor, where she leads with her values to ensure equitable opportunities for marginalized groups in the executive search industry. From teaching to attending law school, Ify has followed her passion for identifying and understanding broken systems and designing equitable solutions.

It’s no secret that we still live in a world where meritocracy is overshadowed by the unfortunate truth that opportunities are awarded to people inequitably based on race. We must pave the way forward by increasing friction, disrupting norms, and calling out industries and organizations that lack transparency in their values.

When values are made clear, it’s easier for businesses to hire the talent they truly need, and for that talent to feel aligned with and empowered by their work. Let’s challenge the power dynamic and create a new and diverse generation of leaders!

👧🏽 The oldest of six children and daughter of Nigerian immigrants: Ify was the only black girl in her school. 01:51
👉🏽 Going forward to teaching: opening moment for fighting against inequity. 02:50
👂🏽 Meritocracy myth dispelled: different rules for different sets of people. 05:47
🤩 Growing up in an immigrant family means being innovative and solving problems with the tools you’ve got. 10:30
🛡️ How “family armor” became a guide in Ify’s professional life to fight corrupt and inhumane systems. 
🙃 The cultural differences in immigrant families. 20:41
🤯 Figuring out the rules of the system: how genius is equally distributed, but access is not.  24:59
🧐 How to challenge power imbalances, and prioritize cultural alignment to create opportunities for black women and promote inclusivity in the process. 27:22
🆚 High-level fluff and lack of information vs. buddy treatment in executive hiring. 32:21
📘 Ify is the Visionary in Ron’s book: balancing the tension of doing what is right and what it can feel like to do it right. 35:01
😇 When values are clear, decisions are easy: change in one company is not an easy thing to do, but being open can result in amazing opportunities. 38:52
✌🏽 Putting myself first: there is a cost to being so close to the ‘fire’ of racism, and Ify has a new chapter ahead of her. 42:53
🎙️ Building a career portfolio: the creation of this podcast was a sub-product of years of Ron’s work with people and interviewing. 47:35
💎 Ify’s RONdering:  The most difficult part is making the decision - the rest falls into place. 51:07
🎯 When we are upfront about our values, that attracts the energy of the universe and people to the pathway of where we want to go. 53:43
🔥 The question that makes all decisions very clear for Ify: what do I want to tell my kids I did? 56:54
⚡ Building powerful and impactful executive teams: culture is everything, and diversity is the path to excellence. 57:34

Links:

Connect with Ify: www.linkedin.com/in/ifywalker

Check Offor: www.offor.co

Connect with Ron: www.linkedin.com/in/rapatalo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/phenomeron

Instagram: www.instagram.com/phenomeron