Viva Asmelash
SHE / HER / HERS
Viva Asmelash is a consultant who helps teams engage in more equitable and joyful work. She specializes in inclusive strategy and experiences, is a speaker on employee well-being, and Culturally-Aware Feedback Training™.
Learning to take power dynamics and identity into account can lead to both a higher collective consciousness and greater shared success.
Popular Talks
Why We Can’t Honor Ourselves Without Advocating for Others
How intersectional feminism and solidarity in the workplace are inextricably linked to living a life in line with our personal values.
Culturally-Aware Feedback
How to give and receive feedback at work in all directions—taking power dynamics and identity into account.
[Language Matters] 9 Specific Ways to Build Workplace Trust
It’s the role of a manager to lift people up to be their best professional selves, while serving as mentors, allies, and truth-tellers. Learn specific, inclusive tips to integrate into daily management practices.
Speaking & Consulting
Workshops
Culturally-Aware Feedback at Work
Participants walk away with the tools to increase the frequency and quality of feedback in all directions while raising the level of psychological safety in the organization. This workshop includes low-stakes practice in a supportive learning environment that takes power dynamics and identity into account.
Trust & Psychological Safety Across Identities
Participants recognize how their identities and/or past experiences might impact their relationship with psychological safety. They learn how to communicate more effectively and openly, fostering an environment where people feel safe sharing their thoughts, feelings, and concerns without fear of reprisal or judgment.
Practicing Consistent + Bold Allyship
Participants explore their own biases and assumptions and develop strategies to challenge and overcome them. They develop the ability to see issues from multiple perspectives and empathize with the experiences of individuals and groups facing marginalization.
Inclusive Decision-Making
Participants learn about the different methods of decision-making that are available to teams and how to use them to include the voices of those impacted. They practice integrative decision-making as a tool for increased efficiency, participation, and clarity.
The Leader’s Role in Understanding + Addressing Microaggressions
Participants gain increased awareness and understanding of what microaggressions are, why they are harmful, and the “macro” nature of their impact over time. They learn how to take action to support marginalized individuals and groups, including interrupting microaggressions in real-time and advocating for change.
Consulting
My Liberation Labs co-founder and I design and deliver equitable and joyful experiences for
visionary organizations. We weave equity into the fabric of organizational life through strategy, systems, policies, everyday practices, and retreats.
“I’ve had the pleasure of working with Viva for a year and a half. She coached our executive team in both 1:1 and small group sessions. The feedback from our execs has been that Viva has inspired them to be increasingly introspective and curious about learning more. She has facilitated real changes in attitudes and approaches, giving people tools to take on very uncomfortable conversations, and feel empowered in doing so.”
—Sara Axelbaum, Global Head of Inclusion and Diversity at MiQ
“Viva’s approach to our teambuilding was thoughtful, purposeful, results-oriented, and geared toward being sustainable. She had a tiered approach to getting to know our team and the current cadence of our team dynamic. She is open, constructive, a reflective listener, and is intentional in her communication and recommendations. We have continued moving forward as a team incorporating elements we took away from our team-building experience. I feel fortunate we experienced Viva’s knowledge, care, and guidance.”
—Sandy Witz, Director of HR at Port of Long Beach
“It has been a true honor to collaborate with Viva over the past few years. She quickly established herself as a valued partner across our team and has made meaningful contributions in a wide range of areas. Her guidance, grounded in her expertise in DEI as well as the employer brand space, has had a direct impact on our learner experiences, course content, and communications. She worked with us to develop inclusion and belonging workshops for our team and shape a guide to inclusive language that has helped us weave DEI into our day-to-day work. We know we’ll continue to see the ripple effect of her work in the months and years to come.”
– Dawn Taketa Riordan, Partner + Managing Director at IDEO U
Viva (she/her) is a passionate people operations and certified inclusion strategist who specializes in employee well-being, sustainable DEI strategy, inclusive instructional design and learner experiences, and critical team conversations. Viva’s professional purpose is to create environments where people feel truly seen and are inspired to be their best and most authentic selves.
She brings 15 years of experience in leadership training + development, values-driven branding, and employee engagement. Viva frequently designs and delivers group and individual inclusive leadership coaching programs for executives, delivers keynote speeches and panel discussions, and crafts custom education experiences for organizations of many kinds.
Viva’s work has been featured by outlets such as Harvard Business Review, The EveryGirl, and B The Change. Her clients have included Rebuilding Together, IDEO U, MiQ, The Port of Long Beach, Ritual, Reading Partners, Harvard Business Publishing, Capital Group, and Southern California Association of Governments.
As a first-generation Eritrean-American, Viva leverages a unique, life-long perspective on race, gender, culture, belonging, privilege, and access to education. With this lens and her breadth of industry experience, she takes deep care in working with select clients to share insights and tactics to deepen their people + inclusion ethos and efforts—all in hopes of planting seeds for collective liberation and joy.
Let’s collaborate to ensure a transformative experience.