Shariff Abdullah
- Internationally Recognized Author & Thought Leader on Inclusivity and Societal Dynamics
Shariff Abdullah Biography
Dr. Shariff Abdullah has worked with thousands of leaders in 100+ cultures spanning 45 countries. He is an author, catalyst of cultural transformation and founder of the Commonway Institute,an organisation dedicated to the simple vision: we can create a global society that works for all.
Shariff’s work is informed by his growing up with racism and generational poverty, his legal background as a successful attorney, and his global experiences working on international globalization forums. His efforts contributed to major social shifts, including the historic 2002 cease-fire in the 30-year-old ethnic/ civil war in Sri Lanka.
As an author, Shariff wrote several paradigm-shifting books, including: The Power of One: Authentic Leadership in Turbulent Times; Creating a World That Works for All; Seven Seeds for a New Society and The Chronicles of the Upheavals, He has also written a workbook, Practicing Inclusivity,in collaboration with executive coach and change facilitator, Leslie Hamilton.
Facilitating groups who struggle with their differences, Shariff teaches how to practice inclusivity – the deep connecting with others. By promoting authentic and compassionate dialog, Shariff helps people build positive interactions that lead to creative, effective solutions for our turbulent times.
Shariff’s activist and empowerment background stretches back to the mid-’60s, when, as a teenager, he helped found the Black People’s Unity Movement (BPUM) in Camden, New Jersey, the city then named “Worst City in America” by Time Magazine. BPUM helped create self-help development projects that provided meaningful employment for hundreds of chronically unemployed people including a sewing factory, two day-care centers, 100+ units of affordable housing, a supermarket and a gas station.
Shariff went on to receive a BA in Psychology from Clark University in Worcester, MA and a juris doctor degree from Boston University. Clients in his North Carolina law practice ranged from indigent clients seeking better housing to successful business people seeking new ways to serve their communities. During these years, Shariff received the first of several awards for innovative self-help and community-empowerment activities, including the Spiritual Hero Award from Science of Mind Magazine, Martin Luther King Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Arts Foundation and Hero of Humanity Award, the Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Award for Uplifting Human Values.
Shariff’s focus shifted from economic development as a means of catalyzing community to working directly with inclusivity, empowerment and spiritual transformation. Since 1996, Shariff has been Senior Advisor to Sarvodaya Shramadana in Sri Lanka, one of the world’s oldest and largest self-help, development organizations. His work has been supported by several funding sources, including the Rockefeller Foundation, the Fetzer Institute and US-AID in keeping with the concept of “shramadana” - the gift of love and labor.
His international work also included consulting with the United Nations in Rome and Uganda, along with keynote speaking and leading workshops at The International Conflict Resolution Conference in Russia and the International Coach Federation Australasian Conference in Melbourne.
Currently, Shariff consults with organizations and individuals to shape a world that works for all based on Inclusivity, the concept that our lives are all inextricably linked together.
Shariff Abdullah
- Internationally Recognized Author & Thought Leader on Inclusivity and Societal Dynamics
‘Solutions Beyond Diversity’: Transforming Deep Identity, and Deep Conflict into Deep Connection
Session length: 45 minutes
About Solutions Beyond Diversity:
Diversity is having a rapidly increasing influence on the future of our clients and, as a result, many of them lack the ability to manage the complex human interactions we experience daily. These challenges are more complex than our present coaching approaches. It’s time for us to shift our world view and take a new look at one of the persistent challenges facing our society: Deep Identity.
About Deep Identity:
Everyone brings their ‘identity’ to work. Each person’s identity has the potential to enrich their personal and work environments. However, where conflict exists at work, the ability to understand Deep Identity provides coaches with powerful tools to help themselves and their clients transcend their filters and barriers, transforming conflict into opportunity.
In this Pre-Summit, we explore Deep Identity, a key to connecting authentically with others. Deep Identity is the part of your personality and culture that you acquired BEFORE you acquired the ability for concrete and abstract thought. In other words: Deep Identity is the part of yourself that you cannot think about. It is also the part of yourself that provides the key to finding solutions beyond the issues of our diversity.
Deep Conflicts are conflicts based on differing Deep Identities and are long-lasting, seemingly intractable and can turn violent. These conflicts can cost organizations tens of millions of dollars in lost productivity, communication errors, and damage awards.
There is a solution. By learning the techniques of Deep Connection, the negative effects of Deep Identity can be eliminated.
Supported Core Competencies:
- Co-creating the Relationship
- Coaching Presence
- Effective Communication
- Facilitating Learning and Results
- Communicating Effectively
Key Learning Takeaways
- Participants will explore the nature of Deep Identity, Deep Conflict and Deep Connection.
- Participants will understand the Five Primary Aspects of Deep Identity, and how those aspects have developed in each individual over time.
- Participants will explore three approaches to minimize Deep Conflict and promote Deep Connection.
Shariff Abdullah
- Internationally Recognized Author & Thought Leader on Inclusivity and Societal Dynamics
Panel Discussion: Further Down the Rabbit Hole of “Deep Identity” with Shariff Abdulhah
Session length: 45 minutes
In dialog with Leslie Hamilton, a masterful executive coach and change facilitator, Shariff will explore ways to address practical issues of how Deep Identity plays out in our day-to-day interactions with others and how to harness the value of diversity while minimising the negative impact of it in a dynamic environment.
By presenting case studies and responding to questions from participants, together they will explore how to deal with issues of race/ethnicity, language and gender. This exploration will also shed light on how coaches can support clients experiencing the impact of diversity in the workforce.
Key Learning Takeaways
- Participants will learn 3 key techniques for diffusing Deep Identity situations.
- Participants will identify and acknowledge their own Deep Identity issues.
- Participants will explore how to coach others to identify and acknowledge Deep Identity issues.
Shariff Abdullah
- Internationally Recognized Author & Thought Leader on Inclusivity and Societal Dynamics
‘Solutions Beyond Diversity’: Understanding Invisible, Implicit and Assumed Cultures
Session length: 90 minutes
About Solutions Beyond Diversity:
Diversity is having a rapidly increasing influence on the future of work and, as a result, many of of our clients are not able to sustainably manage the complex human interactions required for people to be agile so organisations are able to succeed in a dynamic environment. It’s time for us to shift our world view, and take a cutting-edge approach to address one of the persistent challenges facing our society: Invisible, Implicit and Assumed Culture.
Invisible, Implicit and Assumed Culture:
Many parts of our respective cultures are obvious, visible and explicit. We see, understand and develop skills to successfully navigate a complex, multi-cultural reality.
However, there are aspects of culture that are not obvious. These are the cultural aspects that we assume, or that we learn about only indirectly - or not at all. Many times, we find ourselves in conflict with others, simply because we did not see or understand the hidden aspects of their culture or our own. In this Summit, we will learn practical tools for dealing with invisible, implicit and assumed cultures in order to harness the value of diversity while minimising the negative impact in a dynamic environment.
Supported Core Competencies:
- Co-creating the Relationship
- Coaching Presence
- Effective Communication
- Facilitating Learning and Results
- Communicating Effectively
Key Learning Takeaways
- Participants will explore how invisible cultures, stereotyping, implicit cultures and assumed cultures influence behavior.
- Participants will increase their awareness and moderate the impact of invisible influences on their coaching capability.
- Participants will explore three coaching techniques for supporting their clients to resolve the negative responses to invisible cultures in dynamic environments.
Shariff Abdullah
- Internationally Recognized Author & Thought Leader on Inclusivity and Societal Dynamics
Panel Discussion: Further Down the Rabbit Hole of Invisible Culture
Session length: 90 minutes
In dialog with Leslie Hamilton, a masterful executive coach and change facilitator, Shariff will explore ways to address practical issues of how Invisible Culture plays out in our day-to-day interactions with others and how to harness the value of diversity while minimising the negative impact of it in a dynamic environment.
In this discussion, we will explore practical ways to transform unseen cultural behaviors into growth opportunities - for oneself and one’s client.
Key Learning Takeaways
- Participants will explore how to use aspects of invisible culture to enhance workplace culture, community, and bonding.
- Participants will explore the appropriate applications of invisible, implicit and assumed cultures in dynamic multicultural situations.
- Participants will examine practical examples of how to apply invisible culture in potential conflict situations.