Junior Aumavae is leaving the LaFrance Administration, starting his own consultancy business to advise companies and governments on how to make equity programs actually fair for everyone. LaFrance has named a new chief equity officer for Anchorage, Kimberly Waller, who has come over to the administration from the Foraker Group.
“It has been a tremendous honor to serve the people of Anchorage, Alaska as their Chief Equity Officer. That I became the highest ranking American Samoan government official in our state’s history made my service even more meaningful. I am proud of the work I have accomplished over the last 3 years. Some of these initiatives were recognized locally and internationally, and will remain some of my most cherished memories,” he said.
“Thank you to the people of Anchorage, Mayor Dave Bronson, Mayor Suzanne LaFrance and the Anchorage Assembly for allowing me to do good for all communities across our great city. My official day of resignation will begin Aug. 31, but I’am excited to launch Junior’s Elite Trends (JET) professional consulting to continue the good work of helping people and organizations achieve success in our city, state and globe. Visit my website at www.juniorselitetrends.com or contact [email protected] to get connected!” Aumavae wrote on LinkedIn.
His plan is to help increase the minority workforce without compromising the U.S. Constitution. This is the approach he took in Anchorage, and he was able to increase minority participation in government jobs from 21 to 26%. The process he uses is called JEDAI, rather than DEI, which current model being used to cram diversity, equity, and inclusion into workplaces, often making them dysfunctional for the taxpaying public.
The key, Aumavae said, is to ensure that there is access to jobs and to help people translate their unique
“We gave access and still had qualifications but sometimes nontraditional work experience is a good fit,” he said. “DEI has gotten such a bad rap because it lowers standards. We don’t want discrimination either way.”
Aumavae’s story started in the MatSu Valley and took him to the NFL and back again, where he was hired by Mayor Dave Bronson. He plans to take what he has developed and learned and translate it to a national business model.
The paid position of chief equity officer was established by the Anchorage Assembly and Mayor Ethan Berkowitz. It is in addition to the Equal Opportunity Office director at the municipality, and critics say that it is an unnecessary position.
Waller was born in Fairbanks and raised in Anchorage. She launched the Women’s Power League of Alaska.