Lalitha Vaidyanathan

she/her/hers

What do you do?

Senior Advisor

But what do you really do?

I support executives and leadership teams to build and sustain anti-racist institutions - institutions that are diverse, inclusive and truly equitable. This work is both strategic and personal. The strategic (policies, practices, product & service design, learning & improvement) can only be built on a solid foundation of personal transformation (understanding and personalizing racism and its impacts). Through facilitated teaching, learning and transformation, and individual coaching, I support leaders to realize their highest anti-racist aspirations for their organizations. 

And what’s your story? As in, what makes you tick?

I am passionate about contributing to building a more equitable world. That drives everything I do. I move through society as a woman of color of South Asian descent, and as an immigrant. I am also an executive leader with over two decades of experience leading organizations in the corporate and impact sectors. I built my career in largely white dominant environments but always with a heightened awareness of the identities I hold. My lived experience with privilege and oppression in these environments shapes the way I work and how I support leaders in their quest for anti-racism. 

What’s rewarding about working at the Center?

It has been one of the greatest honors of my life to work with the Center. The Center, and the people who compose it, live the anti-racist values they expound. It is the only place I have worked at (and even know of) that strives to operate in integrity with our agreements - speaking our truth responsibly and always, always staying engaged. And we've got each others' backs. It is also a highly innovative organization that constantly reinvents how we approach this work. The learning never stops.