Paloma JacomeKey Takeaways:
- DEI isn’t new; but the backlash is: Kathy breaks down why DEI remains polarizing, why companies are retreating from their 2020 commitments, and what true inclusion actually demands from leaders today.
- Purpose has to be earned, not performed: From her time leading Global Purpose at Nike, Kathy shares why brands can’t “PR” their way into credibility. Values must show up consistently in culture, hiring, leadership, and daily decisions.
- Career pivots reshape leadership: Kathy’s transition from agency life to Nike and then The Washington Post gave her a new perspective on work culture, growth, and the importance of aligning your career with your values.
- Local journalism is under threat and we all pay the price: The rise of news deserts weakens communities, creates space for misinformation, and erodes public trust, impacting not just media but businesses and civic life.
- Consumers are more informed and more intentional than ever:** Today’s buyers “vote at checkout,” scrutinizing ingredients, supply chains, and company values, even with tighter budgets and less time.**
Welcome to the VERY FIRST episode of It Shouldn’t Be This Hard!
We’re excited to kick things off with a real conversation about career pivots, personal growth, the importance of ethical journalism, and why DEI is even a debate.
Meet Kathy Baird Westfall, former Chief Communications Officer at The Washington Post and our amazing guest for this inaugural episode, who has built a remarkable career at the intersection of purpose and storytelling and is now taking a step back to focus on what’s next.
Kathy shares her journey from the world of agency life to Head of Global Purpose at Nike and then on to the Post - explaining how a big career shift changed the way she views leadership and work culture.
She also gives us her thoughts on why DEI is still such a hot, polarizing topic today. (Spoiler alert: She doesn’t hold back– and her perspective is one we all need to hear.)
Along the way, Kathy talks about her love for lifelong learning and staying grounded in your values.
Finally, Kathy also discusses the importance of local journalism, why it’s under more threat than ever right now, and why news deserts are one the greatest threats to our democracy right now.
Keep on reading to discover what we discussed. Or watch the full video episode now HERE**.
DEI Has Always Been Polarizing, ‘Why?’ Is the Question
In this episode, Kathy speaks candidly about why DEI still sparks so much tension: in companies, in culture, everywhere.
As an indigenous woman, she’s spent her career in rooms where she was often the only one, Kathy knows what true inclusion looks and feels like… and what doesn’t.
Kathy critiques the current backlash against DEI but also challenges it outright – asking the important questions: Why are companies backtracking on the promises they made in 2020? What are we so afraid of when we talk about inclusion? Why is DEI still so radical?
Rather than dwelling on the backlash, Kathy celebrates the organizations that are doing the right things. The ones doubling down instead of backing down – they’ve earned her respect.
Brand Purpose Should Be More Than Just PR
As the former Head of Global Purpose Communications at Nike, Kathy knows what it looks like when a brand actually stands for something… and when it’s just performative.
She walks us through what it meant to be inside Nike during some of the company’s boldest campaigns (including the iconic Colin Kaepernick spot) and what happens when a brand’s external message doesn’t always match its internal culture.
Our conversation with Kathy made one thing clear: you can’t fake purpose anymore. Everyone is watching – your customers, employees, and especially your competitors – and if your values don’t show up in how you lead, hire, and operate daily, then your purpose campaign loses its impact.
How Local Journalism Impacts Business
The decline of local journalism is not only a media problem but a business, civic, and societal one.
Local news outlets, once the backbone of communities, are disappearing at an alarming rate, leading to the rise of “news deserts,” areas where local reporting has all but vanished.
When local news disappears, so does access to credible, community-specific information. For businesses that matters more than we realize.
Local journalism is on the frontlines defending against misinformation, upholding accountability, and rebuilding the foundation of public trust that has been greatly lost. When consumers – people – are informed they engage.
Today’s customers are paying attention. They’re reading the ingredients. They’re researching the supply chain. They’re asking who’s being the brand and where their money goes. And they’re doing all of this with less time, even tighter budgets, and increasingly higher expectations of quality. Essentially, voting at checkout.
We unpack all of this in more detail in this episode, so make sure to tune in to hear it all HERE. And don’t forget to subscribe – more grounded conversations on the way!
Author:
Paloma Jacome
linkedin Paloma Jacome is content lead and Junior Strategist at Grounded. With over 8 years of experience at the intersection of business and sustainability, she has launched and led multiple ventures —including ECOAVSOLUTIONS, local sustainable audiovisual production company in Southern California— before bringing her entrepreneurial perspective to client work at Grounded. She holds a Bachelor’s in Entrepreneurship and a Master of Science in Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Innovation from Loyola Marymount University.
Paloma is also an active ambassador and city coordinator for the Los Angeles chapter of Top Tier Impact, organizing events that connect impact founders, investors, and sustainability professionals to collaborate on solving the most pressing challenges of our time.
As part of Grounded’s partnership with rePurpose Global, Paloma represented the agency in the Plastic Reality Project in India, an immersive program designed to experience the scale of plastic pollution firsthand and explore circular solutions addressing the crisis at its source. She is also recently certified in sustainability legislation and regulations for the fashion industry by the Sustainable Fashion School, strengthening her expertise in policy-driven transformation.
Paloma was a core co-author of Grounded’s debut white paper Policy to Profit: How New Rules Can Create Commercial Wins for Fashion—featured in Forbes—and continues to explore how circularity and regulation unlock commercial and societal value.
LinkedIn | paloma@grounded.world
