Transcript of video interview with Michael and Janet Fiore of The Sierra Group by Stacey Adams of the Rohm & Haas and Company.

October 16, 2008
Philadelphia, PA

Stacey Adams:  “Hello, my name is Stacey Adams and I am the Global Diversity Director for Rohm and Hass and Company.  I am here today in our Philadelphia Headquarters joined by Janet Fiore and Michael Fiore founders of the Sierra Group, an organization that specializes in disabilities and workplace issues. Janet, thank you for being with us today.  We are here in the Philadelphia Headquarters, recognizing Disability Awareness month, October, and also Disability Mentoring Day.  Can you tell us a little bit about the Sierra Group and the connection to Disability Mentoring  Day.” 

 

Janet Fiore:  “Absolutely.  Thank you, Stacey.  The Sierra Group was founded in 1992 with the premise that technology can level the playing field for people with disabilities that want to compete in the workforce.  Since that time many advances in technology have come along that have allowed people with disabilities to gain training and skills to become valued members of the American workforce.  Sierra Group works in Vocational Rehabilitation, Workforce Strategies and Candidate Sourcing, which is like a recruiting division of the company, helping businesses hire individuals with disabilities to fill their growing workforce needs.”

 

Stacey Adams:   “Now, when people think of disabilities or hear the word ‘disabilities’ in the workforce we often think of visible symbols, such as wheelchairs, walkers, and other types of devices.  We often don’t think about the invisible disabilities.  Can you share with me a little bit more about not just the visible disabilities but also the invisible disabilities that companys such as Rohm and Haas need to be informed and aware of as we look to that talent pool as a critical element in our recruitment strategy?”

 

Janet Fiore:   “Certainly.  As you said, disabilities come in all shapes and sizes and forms.  People that are in your existing workforce may in fact have disabilities that would benefit from an accommodation.  Many times a disability like multiple sclerosis is something that comes on largely when a person is in their 30’s or 40’s.  That is a disability that may not manifest itself right away in any sort of visible symptom.  In fact, a person may seem to start to stumble a little bit or slur their words a little bit and be mistaken for someone who’s not feeling well or who is having effects from alcohol or something that is completely different.  It’s really good to know that invisible disabilities can in fact be accommodated in the workforce.”

 

Stacey Adams:  “As an employer when I hear ‘accommodation’ or ‘adaptive technology’ often times we think of cost associated with that and that appears that this can be very expensive.  Is that true?”

 

Janet Fiore:  “That’s a really good question.  Actually, accommodations, if you look at national statistics like those of the Federal Job Accommodation Network, which states that most accommodations are $500.00 or less.  That’s if you are looking at it as a cost.  Another way to look at that accommodation is as an investment in your workforce.  It’s an investment like training and education that allows the person with a disability (hidden or otherwise) to be accommodated.  A person with a learning disability may require certain accommodations in the workplace, things like auditory feedback.  They might be able to hear information on the computer and process it better than looking at it.  That’s an accommodation for a hidden disability that is not very expensive and you can look at it again as an investment in a worker that is going to be able to remain on the job and remain productive.”

 

Stacey Adams:  “As I mentioned earlier, we are in October, in recognizing Disability Awareness Month, which many people are aware of, however, today we are here in our Philadelphia studios recognizing Disability Mentoring Day.  Can you tell us a little bit more about Disability Mentoring Day and how long it’s been around and the scope in terms of…is this National or is this a Global effort?”

 

Janet Fiore:  “It’s actually become a Global effort.  National Disability Mentoring  Day started 9 or 10 years ago.  The AAD (The American Association for People with Disabilities)  based down in Washington started Disability Mentoring Day with an outreach to link businesses and job seekers with disabilities for the exchange of information.  Last year more than 16,000 people with disabilities were mentored across the country.  This year’s projection for this event that we are participating in is that 20,000 people with disabilities will be exposed to businesses on this day such that mentoring can happen and job tips can happen, people can explore their careers.  It’s a wonderful outreach and in fact it is taking place not just in all 50 states but in numerous countries across the globe.”

 

Stacey Adams:  “Great!  Michael,  thank you for joining us today.  As we all know, disability is a workplace challenge that transcends geographic boundaries and technology appears to be a great equalizer and enabler for many companies to tap into the workforce that is comprised of people with disabilities. Is technology at most companies compatible with today’s adaptive issue?”

 

Michael Fiore:  “It’s becoming more so.  So as IT infrastructure continues to standardize its security issues, continues to kind of force some kind of a standardization it is.  You can’t say it’s universally so, because there are still a lot of legacy older software packages that are run.  It doesn’t mean, however, on those legacy systems that accommodations can’t work.  It just means now that we have to look for more unique and customized applications to the solution.  One of the biggest opportunities and one of the biggest changes is that IT departments now are becoming more aware of creating an assistive technology or AT infrastructure within their IT plan so organizations are recognizing the same way they would update operating systems, applications, security packets that there is now an infrastructure in place to allow the easy migration of this accommodation and the easy support remotely.  So absolutely, these technology enhancements are having a profound effect.”

 

Stacey Adams:  “How can more people with disabilities compete in the Global Environment?”

 

Michael Fiore:  “Well, how do you compete in the global environment in general;  you do so by differentiating yourself, by focusing on your skills and your assets and I think that’s actually something that people with disabilities can do and do successfully because they are able to demonstrate uniqueness, the ability to overcome problems, the ability to use technology.  There are a lot of studies that speak to a person with a disability being more likely to stay employed at one company before moving.  Sometimes people with disabilities are less likely to switch jobs more quickly.  This is a huge asset and this is an asset that some employers are beginning to recognize becomes a strategic asset for them so not only do people with disabilities have the skills that are requisite for the competitive employment job but they have the secondary tertiary benefits that some employers are beginning to recognize are assets.  Then in general, just to expand the question, as companies create more and more accommodations more and more valued employees, the aging workforce, workers with effects of medication or whatever, become more likely to stay employed - you retain expertise and that ultimately is a competitive advantage as well.”

 

Stacy Adams:  “Definitely.  And any time we can attach a business case to the bottom line, that becomes attractive to us as well.  Exactly.   How well do the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 affect America’s workforce in the Global economy?”

 

Michael Fiore:  “Well, take everything we know about disability and the economy and set it aside and create a whole new paradigm.  The definition of disability under the new act is so expansive that the number we we used to be talking about, 54 million American’s with disabilities, is likely to mushroom to 150-175 million people.  Half the US population could be considered disabled under the new regulation which means that companies are going to have an even greater incentive to provide accommodations to maximize the productive effort of the employee and potential new employees.  Now I think this is going to radically change how organizations promote productivity within the workforce and promoting productivity is ultimately the key to unlocking competitive advance.”

 

Stacey Adams:  “Thank you.  Last question.  We are facing in the US an aging population of workers.  How would you advise an organization such as Rohm and Haas to proactively address some of the challenges that may come with an aging workforce that may encounter a disability (an invisible or visible one) somewhere in their work life cycle?”

 

Michael Fiore: “ I’ll answer this question.  I think the way you do that is that you start to become aware of productive tools that make it better.  Janet said something I think very key before.   You look at accommodations as an investment.  The larger monitors, the more defined display resolution.  These are accommodations that make screens easier to see - typing training, software training, multi-module  as part of the accommodation effort; understanding the features and benefits of the software package that you have and just creating other worlds of opportunity within that.  So, as the workforce ages, the fundamental skills, the fundamental knowledge of that workforce is only intensifying so the real opportunity continues to be how do we unlock that potential if it is a multiple array screen panel, if it’s scanning documents to make more materials electronic so paper handling is less, all of those could be strategies for the right person to continue to unlock that potential;  and I think companies that build in that level of accommodation and accessibility as a strategic investment for harvesting opportunity, if you are asking for advise that would be the advise I would give.  Create that infrastructure, create that culture, promote that culture, early intervention, discovering opportunity before the opportunity becomes a loud siren….there’s your opportunity.”

 

Stacey Adams:  “Janet, Michael thank you for being with us today and Rohm and Haas looks forward to partnering with The Sierra Group as we seek to raise our awareness on the issues and challenges accompanying disabilities in the workforce.”

 

“Michael and Janet:  Thank you.”