13 The NACE task force wrestled with updating this definition while simultaneously considering the critique that professionalism is rooted in whiteness and can be used as an avenue to discriminate against employees of color (Gray, 2019). The critique rests on the idea that standards of professionalism serve as a coded language that favors the culture and values of white and Western employees. For example, braided hair, a natural hairstyle for Black or African-Americans, may not be considered professional, while other whiter, more Western, natural hair styles are considered professional. The task force determined the concept of professionalism is deeply embedded in the workplace; it’s a commonly used term and idea. Therefore, it is more useful to provide helpful guidance around this construct rather than adopt a new term that could later become problematic. Moreover, the task force decided to specify the term, removing some of the ambiguity that enables bias to creep into people’s evaluations of what is professional and what is not. The empirically-supported behaviors provided in Appendix A are the most specific the task force could reach in providing sample behaviors that are inclusive of cultures and values while reflecting the underlying concepts of professionalism to the extent they can be unbiased. To that end, the task force adopted the following definition: Knowing work environments differ greatly, understand and demonstrate effective work habits, and act in the interest of the larger community and workplace. Teamwork Given how much of today’s work is reliant on sharing information and contributing to workflows, teamwork is essential to nearly all jobs today, whether working remotely or in person. Indeed, it is listed near the top of every survey of important workplace competencies (e.g., NACE Recruiting Benchmarks, 2022; AAC&U, 2015). Casner-Lotto and colleagues (2006) defined teamwork as “Build[ing] collaborative relationships with colleagues and customers; be[ing] able to work with diverse teams, negotiate and manage conflicts” (p. 16). While similar overall, the revised NACE definition focuses less on customers and conflicts, and more on accomplishing goals through strong relationships because of the more specific nature of early career college graduates’ careers. As such, the task force adopted the following definition: Build and maintain collaborative relationships to work effectively toward common goals, while appreciating diverse viewpoints and shared responsibilities. Technology Use of technology is ubiquitous in the workplace, and inescapable in today’s remote work landscape. Casner-Lotto and colleagues (2006) defined technology application as “Select[ing] and us[ing] appropriate technology to accomplish a given task, apply[ing] computing skills to problem-solving” (p. 16). In comparison, ACT’s
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