culture Archives - Alana M. Hill, PMP, CSP

Black History Month: From the Birth of the Internet to the Age of AI
Black History Month: From the Birth of the Internet to the Age of AI

Black History Month: From the Birth of the Internet to the Age of AI

Unbeknownst to me at the time, I lived through a moment of Black history that would quietly—but profoundly—shape my future. Picture this. It’s my senior year at Texas A&M, and while making Black history myself as only the second Black female petroleum engineering graduate, I became fascinated with computers and the early internet. I wasn’t interested in changing my major, but I was deeply curious about possibility. I started asking questions—especially about how oil and data might mix. I watched [...]

By Alana Hill|2026-02-06T20:02:52-06:00February 6th, 2026|Culture & Inclusion|Comments Off

Reclaiming Merit: Why Culture Change Demands We Mend—Not End—Meritocracy
Reclaiming Merit: Why Culture Change Demands We Mend—Not End—Meritocracy

Reclaiming Merit: Why Culture Change Demands We Mend—Not End—Meritocracy

An effective weapon doesn’t have to be new—it just has to be familiar, emotionally charged, and poorly understood. Right now, that weapon is merit. In a recent Los Angeles Times essay, David Glasgow explains how the language of meritocracy is being deliberately used to undermine culture-change efforts. Calls to “restore merit-based opportunity” suggest that fairness has somehow been lost—when in reality, fairness has often been selectively applied. The implication is subtle but powerful: if inclusion exists, merit must be absent. [...]

By Alana Hill|2026-02-18T17:04:29-06:00January 21st, 2026|Culture & Inclusion|Comments Off

Back-to-School Style, Story, and Serving Others
Back-to-School Style, Story, and Serving Others

Back-to-School Style, Story, and Serving Others

It’s back-to-school Sunday at church, and this outfit tells a story (a testimony). First, please excuse my eclectic color choices The pants are baby blue and white for Aldine High School…Awldine..woo woo woo! My dad was a single father and worked to make ends meet. I worked after school, and I wasn’t exposed to much career readiness. The t-shirt speaks for itself, repping my Alma mater Texas A&M University …whoop! A school I entered because of an equity-based academic scholarship. [...]

By Alana Hill|2025-10-23T16:50:27-05:00August 14th, 2025|Leading, Lifting, Loving|0 Comments

Faith at Work: Respect, Grace, and the Gentle Invitation
Faith at Work: Respect, Grace, and the Gentle Invitation

Faith at Work: Respect, Grace, and the Gentle Invitation

The Most Spiritual Act at Work Might Be Respect One of the most spiritual things we can do in the workplace isn’t preaching or praying out loud—it’s respecting and appreciating someone else’s faith practice. At its core, honoring another’s beliefs reflects the grace that Jesus modeled throughout His ministry. Much of the New Testament is filled with stories of Christ engaging people where they were, not forcing them into belief, but inviting them through compassion, humility, and truth. An [...]

By Alana Hill|2025-06-27T11:16:29-05:00June 26th, 2025|Culture & Inclusion, Leading|0 Comments

The Door of No Return: Honoring Those Who Couldn’t Contribute
The Door of No Return: Honoring Those Who Couldn’t Contribute

The Door of No Return: Honoring Those Who Couldn’t Contribute

Last summer, during my trip to Ghana, I had the solemn privilege of visiting Cape Coast Castle—one of the many sites that served as a final holding place for enslaved Africans before their forced journey across the Atlantic. Within its walls lies the Door of No Return, a small, narrow passage through which countless men, women, and children were taken—forever severed from their homeland, their culture, and the futures they might have built. Walking through that space was an overwhelming [...]

By Alana Hill|2025-02-27T09:49:16-06:00February 26th, 2025|Culture & Inclusion|0 Comments

The Tale of Three Interns
The Tale of Three Interns

The Tale of Three Interns

When I was a project manager leading global change initiatives, I had the opportunity to mentor interns and add them to my team. My first intern, we’ll call him LM, performed well, exceeded my expectations, and presenting his work to executives at the end of the summer. This young student from an HBCU showed everyone what young Black engineers were capable of (I didn’t need convincing, but I knew my peers did). The next summer, I had another Black engineering [...]

By Alana Hill|2025-02-05T13:56:49-06:00January 30th, 2025|Culture & Inclusion|0 Comments

A new perspective on bias
A new perspective on bias

A new perspective on bias

We’re in control after all! We have long been told that the majority of actions, decisions and behaviors are driven by our unconscious mind – the ‘hidden’ part of us where our attitudes, beliefs and biases reside. A new book has turned this concept on its head – literally turning Freud’s iceberg upside-down to illustrate that the majority of our existence is conscious – and we have access and control. Doing otherwise is an abdication of responsibility says Professor Ben [...]

By Alana Hill|2024-04-30T21:24:05-05:00April 30th, 2024|Leading|0 Comments

Leading with Heart – Preparing for an Emotionally Intelligent Future
Leading with Heart – Preparing for an Emotionally Intelligent Future

Leading with Heart – Preparing for an Emotionally Intelligent Future

“In the past jobs were about muscles, now they’re about brains, but in the future they’ll be about the heart.” Dame Minouche Shafik, President of Columbia University This quote reflects a profound transition underway in our relationship with work. In previous eras, labor was largely driven by physical human effort and endurance. Then, the knowledge economy ushered focus towards intellectual capacity over manual skills. However, research shows that emotional intelligence (EQ) will soon eclipse both physicality and intellect as the [...]

By Alana Hill|2024-04-17T00:50:05-05:00April 17th, 2024|Leading|0 Comments

Marginalization and its impact on belonging – a Black History Month reflection
Marginalization and its impact on belonging – a Black History Month reflection

Marginalization and its impact on belonging – a Black History Month reflection

Black History Month celebrates the rich cultural heritage, triumphs and adversities that are an indelible part of our country's history. Another indelible part of our history, present and future, is marginalization. I am moved to explore it this month as part of my Black History Month reflection. I recently saw the film Origin, based on the book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson about how America, today and throughout its history, has been shaped by a hidden [...]

By Alana Hill|2024-02-20T17:53:13-06:00February 20th, 2024|Leading|0 Comments

Staying Connected in the Disconnected Workplace
Staying Connected in the Disconnected Workplace

Staying Connected in the Disconnected Workplace

With today's increasingly digital and dispersed teams, it can be challenging for leaders to maintain strong connections with their teams. Yet feeling disconnected at work has been linked to lower engagement, productivity, and retention rates. In my work with executives it is increasingly clear that building rapport and community amidst dispersed teams is a huge leadership challenge. Whether your organization is implementing a return to the office, hybrid or remote working, teams still need to connect, communicate and collaborate. Yes, [...]

By Alana Hill|2023-10-16T19:00:59-05:00October 16th, 2023|Leading|0 Comments