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Choose The Right Franchise Speaker

Risha Grant

Diversity & Inclusion Expert, Corporate BS Finder, International Speaker, Author and Consultant, and CEO of Risha Grant LLC

Many people who have decided to join the efforts of moving diversity and inclusion forward find themselves asking a familiar question: how can I make a difference in this area? Franchisees are likely to follow this line of thinking due to their inability to make large sweeping changes to the franchise structure. It can be easy for a franchisee to feel like their locus of control allows little room for making a significant impact. Companies are full of problems that seem beyond the ability of one franchisee to solve. Can one person truly stop the harmful practices of racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, and gender intolerance? Yes.

A franchisee may not change white-washed marketing materials, biased company policies, binary bathrooms, or costly price points. But a franchisee can practice awareness of unconscious bias. They can make sure they are actively hiring diverse employees. They can ensure that every customer who walks through their door feels welcomed by a smile. They can demand a racist or homophobic customer leave when he/she/ they act in ways that are harmful to diverse staff and customers. One franchisee can do a lot in a world that consistently makes diverse people feel unwelcome and rejected. They have the power to create a safe environment in the communities they serve.

In Permission Granted: Get Rid of the BS Risha shows franchisees how to eliminate their unconscious biases and connect their franchise culture. Through her simple 3-step process, Risha empowers individual employees to identify, own and confront their biases so that they can engage with co-workers and customers in ways that increase team morale, improve customer satisfaction, and add diverse dollars to the bottom line. Risha’s presentations will help attendees tackle tough topics in a manner that feels safe, informative, and rewarding.

Risha Grant’s Demo Reel

Travels From:

Tulsa, OK

Fee Range:

Keynote Live & Virtual:
$20,000 – $30,000

Favorite Food:

Mashed Potatoes

Risha Grant's Bio

Motivated by her passion to correct societal “isms” like racism, sexism, classism, and plain old stupidism, it is Risha Grant’s personal mission to expose the subtleties and values of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion while shining a light on the impacts they create. 

Founder & CEO of Risha Grant LLC, an award-winning diversity consulting, communications, and speaking firm, as well as an edgy, educational, and motivational speaker, author Risha Grant uses honest, humorous, and vulnerable storytelling to motivate audiences to embrace the inner tough work of Radical Acceptance while honoring diversity, equity, and inclusion without evoking feelings of judgment or assigning blame. 

These audiences have included Google, Levi Strauss, Nestle Purina, Xerox, YouTube, Procter & Gamble, Discover Card Financial Services, Samsung Electronics America, U.S. Airforce, U.S. Navy, Intuit, and Harvard University, to name a few.

She’s been featured in Forbes, Harvard Business Review, HR News, The Financial Times, Glamour Magazine UK, Bloomberg Media, and Black Enterprise among others.

Risha has received numerous honors such as being named one of the Top 10 Most Powerful Women Leaders in HR by PeopleHum in 2021, 40 Top Women Keynote Speakers by Real Leaders, and the NBA OKC Thunder Changemaker Award in 2020 among others.

Risha Grant Headshot

Partial Client List:

  • BJ’s Restaurant
  • Boy Scouts of America
  • Exelon Corp.
  • National Basketball Association Franchise Team
  • National Mortgage Industry
  • Oklahoma Women’s Leadership Conference for Women in Public Service
  • ONEOK Corporation – Stand Against Racism
  • Rogers William University
  • Sam’s Club – Women In Leadership
  • Tropical Smoothie Café
  • Urban Financial Services Coalition
  • Wells Fargo
  • "We just completed her session and it was the most well received of our three keynotes, in my opinion. She knocked it out the park. Or, to use a basketball reference, she was draining 3’s all speech long. She did a fabulous job. I truly appreciated her story-telling and transparency. It allowed our team members to connect with her."

    Signet Jewelers/Chief Diversity Officer & SVP NA Field Human Resources
  • “We loved having Risha as our Keynote Speaker for our 2020 Professionals of Color Conference. This year came with a lot of challenges, but Risha and her team made going virtual smooth. Risha’s content challenged the cultural norms and we appreciated her openly speaking her truth and experiences.”

    Amway
  • “Nestle Purina’s Women Leaders Forum invited Risha Grant to lead a (virtual) presentation to our members in August 2020. Risha’s presentation, Authenticity is Everything, was a candid discussion on how to identify and get rid of our biases so that we can show up as our authentic selves. The feedback from this discussion was overwhelming! Our members appreciated the safe space for discussion, asked thought-provoking questions that Risha answered truthfully, and walked away with tools on how to examine and overcome their own biases. Risha has such a dynamic personality that was felt even through the virtual environment (although I bet seeing her in person is even better!) and a disarming manner that made it easy for us to engage with her. If you’re looking for an energetic, no BS speaker to engage your organization on some tough topics, hire Risha.”

    Nestle Purina Women Leaders Forum/Director of Education and Programing
  • "D&I is hard work because we humans are complicated. The bottom line is, when you need an extraordinary facilitator--who is clear-eyed, compassionate, and unafraid to work on implicit bias—call Risha. She steered the conversation to illustrate the unacknowledged, unaware white privilege that was underneath many of the exchanges among the participants, yet always created an environment of safety. Risha is uniquely equipped to lead your people forward into better territory where everybody wins."

    Behavioral Health Service and Student Counseling and Mental Health Service, Harvard University/Manager
  • “Risha Grant did an amazing job at our virtual leader offsite. She provided an entertaining, compelling and informative discussion on the power of Diversity and Inclusion. Risha left us with many tools and provocations in our own journey to be better stewards of Diversity and Inclusion. I highly recommend Risha as a speaker. Thanks to Risha for providing the highlight of our session!”

    ProConnect Group, Intuit, Inc./General Manager
  • "I want to say a HUGE thank you to our bureau team and to Risha Grant. Risha's talk was so impactful and we have received tons of positive feedback from our team. Risha was warm, engaging, and honest with our group. She wasn't afraid to address many of the challenging topics facing our nation's businesses and our social groups when it comes to diversity, equity & inclusion. Risha was genuine and relatable to our fully distributed team across 41 states. I highly recommend booking Risha for a virtual keynote. She truly is such a gift and we are grateful for the opportunity to have her speak with our team."

    Ad Hoc/Staff Support Specialist
  • “Risha provided an excellent presentation that had record attendance - with some of the highest evaluations ever. Risha’s presentation teed up a critical conversation for our membership, one that we plan on continuing. Thank you for helping make it a success.”

    IFEBP/CEO
  • “Risha was wonderful today! She received a standing ovation and was the perfect speaker to wrap up our conference!”

    The Bridge Conference - The Direct Marketing Association of Washington/Senior Project Manager

Risha Grant Keynotes

GET RID OF THE BS AND BUILD AN INCLUSIVE CULTURE

Whether implicit or conscious, bias is the number one threat to humanity and any company’s
success.

If your company’s goal is to create cohesiveness within your organization, increase revenue,
be innovative, and elevate your reputation-the bias in your workforce and community is a
roadblock. You know the problem. Getting Rid of the BS is your answer.

Throughout this session, Diversity & Inclusion speaker Risha Grant allows attendees to
express their biases, while giving them easily applicable tools to get over them, however
screwed up they may be. Although diversity can often be an uncomfortable topic, Risha’s
approach helps attendees to understand the concept, without feeling bored, judged or
blamed.

Attendees will leave this keynote understanding:

  • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
  • A thorough awareness of biases
  • A realization of how biases originated
  • A recognition of the symptoms and results of bias
  • Tools to address bias internally and externally
  • Benefits of Building a Culture of Inclusion
  • The stuff she thinks is important (that you should write down) as you establish your inclusive culture
GET RID OF THE BS TO ATTRACT DIVERSE MARKETS

Companies need to know how to get diverse customers to buy their products and services.
Why? Because of business sustainability, competitive advantage, a constantly changing economy, and trillions in buying power. During this session, D&I Speaker Risha Grant will share with attendees the keys to effectively engage various diverse groups and provide them with tips to increase their bottom line.

Biases are always working against you in business. During this session, Risha will teach attendees to examine their own decision-making processes and identify ways to minimize biases in order to attract diverse markets and increase sales. With a majority of diverse communities holding $14 trillion in disposable income, Risha makes the case for how profitability and diversity can coexist. This session will review the benefits of advertising and marketing to diverse communities in order to attract them to your company’s products and services.

Attendees will leave this keynote understanding:

  • How unconscious bias keeps companies from recruiting diverse candidates
  • How to reach diverse candidates through unconventional methods
  • Marketing ideas for recruiting diverse candidates
  • The buying power of diverse groups
RADICAL ACCEPTANCE: BE BETTER THAN YOUR BS

Empower Authenticity, Confront Bias, and Create a Culture of Inclusion through Radical
Acceptance.

This speech will help audiences and individuals to understand Radical Acceptance and how their BiaSphere, Belief Systems, and BS stop them from welcoming and embracing all of humanity, including their own. Our BS shapes how we feel about ourselves, how we perceive the world, and how we interact with others. Radical acceptance teaches that
through authenticity, we can connect with others on a deeper level, and create a culture of acceptance and belonging. Mental health and psychological safety are more important now than ever before in the workplace, and companies who create an environment where everyone is allowed to be themselves without fear of rejection, are at the cutting edge of what it means to be an innovative and profitable place to work.

Risha’s honest, memorable, and practical presentation on Radical Acceptance: Be Better Than Your BiaSphere, Belief Systems, and BS blends together stories from her life
experiences as a bisexual black woman, former division one athlete, and small business owner to teach audiences how their diversity can become their superpower! Learn how your own behaviors can be shaped by your own BiaSphere, which includes all of the subconscious beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and emotions you have about yourself and the rest of the world around you. Radical Acceptance: Be Better Than Your BS will provide your audience members with the awareness and education to help them become better leaders, employees, colleagues, and people.

Attendees will leave this keynote understanding:

  • The power of authenticity to shift company culture
  • How to use diversity as a competitive advantage
  • The psychological need for belonging
  • How our BiaSphere has shaped our view of the world

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