Natalie E. Norfus of The Norfus Firm On 5 Steps We Must Take To Truly Create An Inclusive, Representative, and Equitable Society

Self-exploration. If we cannot relate to ourselves, we cannot relate to other people. I recently read an article where a young woman majoring in journalism and international affairs wrote about how she “hated” her study abroad experience in Italy. When I was reading her examples, it struck me that she was looking at the situation through a very blurry lens. For example, she didn’t like how her housemates traveled to other countries on the weekends and assumed they did so for social media attention. I don’t know her, but this fixed view of who or how people should be suggested that she had not really explored her “why” for choosing a major that would require her to observe many types of people, cultures, and places.

As part of our series about ‘5 Steps We Must Take To Truly Create An Inclusive, Representative, and Equitable Society’ I had the pleasure to interview Natalie E. Norfus.

With nearly 20 years of experience as a labor and employment attorney and HR/DEI practitioner, Natalie E. Norfus (Founder of The Norfus Firm) is the authority on DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) and HR strategies, executive search, conducting internal investigations, and leadership development (coaching and training Boards of Directors and other senior leaders). Natalie E. Norfus is the co-host of the “What’s the DEIL?” podcast for organizational leaders — and those who support them — as they make their way along their DEI journey. In this podcast, Natalie explores how leaders can create space for authentic human connection through the lens of DEI.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to ‘get to know you’. Can you tell us a bit about how you grew up?