Event Details

Julia Méndez, SHRM-CP, PHR, CAAP, CDP, CELS, is Principal Business Consultant for Affirmity, a former PeopleFluent division. She is based out of the New Orleans office.  Ms. Méndez’s current duties include overseeing the training programs for customers as well as creating content and delivering training in areas such as equal employment opportunity (EEO), affirmative action (AA) compliance, and diversity.  She also has over 20 years of experience in assisting clients through OFCCP compliance reviews, and offering technical assistance both to clients and internal customers. She has also been invited to speak at national, regional and local conferences on topics such as recruiter compliance with AAPs, regulatory requirements for veterans, and individuals with disabilities, updates on EEO laws and settlements, as well as recognizing unconscious bias and other diversity topics.

Ms. Méndez is a graduate of University of New Orleans where she obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in General Business Administration and a Master of Business Administration.  She also has a Masters of Arts in Professional Counseling from Liberty University where she graduated with distinction. Ms. Mendez was appointed in 2016 by the governor of Louisiana to the Louisiana Commission on Human Rights. She holds a Professional in Human Resources certification from the HR Certification Institute, is a Society of Human Resources Professional Certified Professional, is a Certified Employment Law Specialist from Columbia Southern University, is a Certified Affirmative Action Professional from the American Association for Access, Equity and Diversity as well as is a Certified Diversity Professional through the Institute for Diversity Certification.

Memberships in professional organizations include the Louisiana Liaison Group (LLG) where she served in 2007 and 2008 as President and continues to serve on the board; Society for Human Resource Management; New Orleans SHRM where she served as Diversity Chairperson from 2007-2011; Society for Diversity, and is a member and past Personnel Committee Chair for the American Association for Access, Equality, and Diversity for which she contributed monthly to their EEO Tips section of their email publication.  She also serves on the editorial board for INSIGHT into Diversity and is active with the Inclusion Allies Coalition.

Program Summary:  We all have biases.  It does not mean that we are bad people.  It means that we are human.  However, it’s the biases that are in the unconscious mind that we should understand in order to help us take steps to decrease the likelihood of these hidden biases impacting negatively how we interact with others.  If you have a decision-making role in the organization, biases can also influence whether or not your hire, promote, mentor, or terminate someone.  It can also influence whether or not you listen actively to someone’s comments or even empathize with them when they are going through a touch situation.  Research shows that more people have negative biases against people with disabilities than against people of different races.  The biases increase when those disabilities are mental disabilities.  This workshop will help identify why people have biases, uncover what some of your hidden biases might be, and learn some steps to help reduce biases.

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