Today we’d like to introduce you to Nichole Pitts.
Hi Nichole, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Receiving a Doctorate of Jurisprudence from Indiana University’s Maurer School of Law was only the beginning of my story and a bit of a boring start, to be honest. But everything changed when my love of travel kickstarted an adventure into the world of Ethics & Compliance. Helping clients all over the world allowed me to meet new people, take in diverse perspectives, and practice using guidance from the US Department of Justice to teach “best practice” ethics.
Seeing how I could help people take real action toward diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) gave me a sense of purpose that I had been missing. However, I soon learned my approach had its limits, and they only amplified when I started my own company. Because while my background and training prepared me to navigate difficult conversations and dangerous situations abroad, I was also exposed to my own biases and realized that one size doesn’t fit all. That one person’s definition of “good” doesn’t always capture the nuance needed in different cultural or business settings.
Now I fill a void in my industry by helping clients seek more nuanced, creative, and digestible ways to solve complex Ethics & Compliance, and DEI problems. Empowering them to forge a path into a future where a healthy, diverse culture drives business and creativity helps them thrive.
When the company I was working for moved me to Paris in 2015 to head up ethics & compliance for their international business, I took the same approach that had worked for me in the US. However, I soon realized that one size does not fit all. Each country and office had its own organizational culture, and I couldn’t train or socialize the policies the same way across the globe. I had to take a different approach, which led to me focusing on diversity and inclusion to understand and address biases in our systems and procedures to identify & mitigate risk effectively.
After successfully navigating that company through a three (3) three-year Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA), I decided to start a new adventure by founding Ethintegrity while living in London, UK. My company has allowed me to combine two of my passions: ethics & compliance and DEI, in an innovative & creative way. In November 2021, I moved back to Atlanta (while also keeping an office in London).
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has been a challenging road. But no successful business has traveled a smooth journey. The bumps along the way forced me to decide whether or not I would roll back to what is safe and give up or push forward and through the struggle to grow. Over the past 4.5 years, I have had to learn how to run a business (including understanding the legal and financial filings & obligations both in the US and the UK), understand branding and how to create a strategy to effectively engage with my ideal client, figuring just who my ideal client is (because everyone isn’t going to be a great fit), and just believing in myself even when I fail.
I have found that as long as you believe in yourself, you can manifest the help & tools you need. My entrepreneurial journey has blessed me with meeting many entrepreneurs who helped me with strategy, branding, networking, and a listening ear to share their journeys, so I didn’t feel so alone. Each year has allowed me to build upon the prior year’s successes and failures, which in turn has pushed me closer to my ultimate goal. Entrepreneurship truly is a marathon, not a sprint.
As you know, we’re big fans of Ethintegrity. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Founded in 2018, Ethintegrity is a consulting firm empowering forward-thinking organizations and professionals to leverage nuanced, creative, and digestible ways to solve complex Ethics & Compliance and diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI) problems to create a healthy, diverse culture that drives business and helps its people thrive.
From global film companies & major music labels to intergovernmental organizations and some of Inc. Magazine’s Fastest-Growing Companies in America, Ethintegrity has helped countless organizations gain accelerated success through the world of DEI and Ethics & Compliance.
What sets Ethintegrity apart from others is the innovative way I approach the congruence between ethics & DEI to ensure that it is effectively embedded into workplace culture to create an environment where all people feel valued and appreciated. I am most proud of helping companies move past performative activism to create a sustainably inclusive & ethical workplace culture.
Outside of its workshops, blog, and The Ethintegrity Podcast: A Safe Space for Brave Conversations, Ethintegrity offers the market a variety of offerings displayed on its virtual “Services” menu. These offerings include it’s signature 1:1 coaching called the Conscious ChangeMaker Coaching Program and a retainer service called Ethintegrity by Design.
In the Conscious ChangeMaker Coaching Program, you’ll go from feeling overwhelmed or hypersensitive of saying or doing the wrong thing to being more aware and knowledgeable, giving you increased confidence and tools to follow through and make good on vocal commitments in an effective & engaging manner. In comparison, Ethintegrity by Design is an exclusive retainer service that gets my brain on your business for a certain amount of hours per month. You “build your adventure” by discussing your Ethics or DEI challenges, key deliverables, and the time frame to execute with me.
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
I feel the key to my success is that I am an active & empathetic listener. People want to feel seen & heard. Especially when dealing with sensitive and uncomfortable topics. I create a safe space for those uncomfortable conversations and deconstruct overly detailed conversations to get to the root of the issue. Ethics & DEI are unique to each person, so by actively listening, I can figure out how to connect to each person and empower them to constructively share, listen and hold space for others.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://ethintegrity.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ethintegrity/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/ethintegrity
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC61BkSIr-lF7BeSnWwKhvQg
- Other: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-the-ethintegrity-podcast-101231753/
Image Credits
Paulina Sobczak – Paulina Branding Photography
