Ep 19 - Building partnerships through the art of communicating clearly with Lauren Darnell
Ep 19 - Building partnerships through the art of communicating clearly with Lauren Darnell
Lauren’s work is to advocate for better work environments and connect partners to provide more equity resources to operators and owners to improve the work spaces for the hospitality industry in Nola and beyond. The work is relational and you have to bring your whole human self to do it so Lauren invites anyone that is ready to walk with her through the process to do something meaningful that will impact their business, team and culture.
A few key takeaways:
- Ask for feedback - how is this landing for you?
- We have a relationship to the partnership. What is your relationship to partnership? It will help you filter bais and uncommunicated needs and wants.
- Alignment of your goals and values with your partners should always be discussed.
- Develop a system to prepare for breakdowns. They are going to happen and plan for them. When a breakdown does happen, address it within the week.
- Asking people to explain what they mean if you are uncertain or the information is too vague.
- Leadership means taking care of myself so I may be available to others.
About Lauren
Lauren A.K. Darnell is doing groundbreaking work to cultivate a more inclusive and equitable future. Born in Lafayette, LA., raised in New Orleans and wired for pioneering.
Her family history includes escaping hurricanes and the pursuit through time of making a way out of no way. She is the daughter of a civil servant, attorney, and a costume designer who in 1969 became the first Black Crawfish Queen of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana. Lauren dissolves barriers.
As Executive Director of Made in New Orleans (MiNO) Foundation, her work is centered on increasing access for the advancement of BIPOC hospitality professionals and creating a more equitable industry for all. She is a passionate advocate, promoting equity and consulting for business owners. Her work is anchored by the ability to find and carve a path forward.
In 2023, Lauren founded Porch & Okra Consulting that offers leadership consulting and provides customized professional development support to foster healthy, strong team culture and climate across industries. Porch & Okra Consulting (POC) serves profit and nonprofit leaders and organizations through coaching, evaluation, training, advising, and a resource connection that enables clients to sustain transformative work environments with a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging foundation.
For more resources on leadership and eliminating the sticky energy from team culture, visit The School of Hospitality from Within
