Diversity Straight Up Podcast

The conversation around equity, diversity, inclusion, and engagement has grown louder—but also more fragile and more politicized, with real progress under fire in workplaces and communities alike.

Diversity Straight Up, a podcast from the Corridor Business Journal, cuts through the noise with the kind of dialogue this moment demands: direct, unfiltered, and grounded in lived leadership.

Co-hosted by Sarika Bhakta and Anthony Arrington, the series features decision-makers from regional, national, and global arenas who have chosen to lead with purpose. These aren’t abstract reflections. Each episode opens the door to the pressures, contradictions, and pivotal moments that have shaped how these leaders show up—especially when it’s difficult to do so.

From the boardroom to the frontlines, these conversations reveal what happens when values are tested and culture is on the line. They surface the pivotal moments when leaders are forced to respond—not with certainty, but with conviction—even when the outcome isn’t guaranteed.

If you’re responsible for shaping culture, guiding teams, or making decisions that carry weight, this podcast gives you more than reflection. It offers strategic clarity grounded in lived experiences—insights into how leaders navigate risk, repair trust, and align values with action. The cost of getting it wrong is high. And in this landscape, leadership demands more than good intentions.

It’s a call to own your impact and lead like it matters.

Long before DEI became a headline or a formal initiative, people could feel when a culture wasn’t right. You didn’t need strategy to know when trust was missing, voices were dismissed, or it wasn’t safe to show up fully. I’ve been in rooms where “equity” wasn’t named, but the harm of “unfairness” was unmistakable.

I know what it’s like to be in organizations where results were celebrated while culture quietly fractured beneath the surface. The cost of that disconnect is real, especially when stated values don’t reflect the lived experience inside the workplace. When equity, diversity, inclusion, and engagement are treated as afterthoughts, the damage eventually shows up—in morale, in trust, in turnover, and in an organization’s ability to grow in a sustainable way.

Diversity Straight Up was my response to that gap, to make space for conversations that are often challenging, even for leaders, but deeply necessary.

I didn’t create this podcast to add to the noise. I created it so we can be better and do better. We’re human. We make mistakes. But we can give each other grace to learn from them, if we’re willing to face them. No matter where you lead in the world, the disconnect between performance and culture will always carry a human cost. This is where we name it, so leadership becomes a force that empowers and elevates the collective good.

—Sarika Bhakta
Founder & President, Nikeya Consulting
Creator & Co-Host, Diversity Straight Up