Understanding our Role in Creating Inclusive Workplaces
Inclusion in the workplace is an ongoing process and the success is contingent on leaders taking an active role
I have worked in the LGBTQ2+ inclusive space for 35 years and recognize there has been some progress made but that there is still more work to be done. I came out in 1987 (or the late 1900s as the children like to call it). It was a horribly dangerous time for LGBTQ2+ people, and while we’ve come a long way, I wouldn’t describe things as “safe” for all LGBTQ2+ people…not by a long shot. I’m still getting asked the same questions I’ve been asked for over three decades, so I wrote Alphabet Soup: The Essential Guide to LGBTQ2+ Inclusion at Work to answer those questions. It’s meant to be a resource guide to help anyone who is struggling to understand what LGBTQ2+ inclusion looks like, and their role in creating LGBTQ2+ inclusive spaces.
Through my work, organizations often ask me about how to create and sustain inclusion in the workplace. There are some actionable approaches and they start at the top with leadership, having a collective impact and ongoing beyond notable holidays and days of recognition.
I recommend having leaders in organizations going through the same education as their employees, but through the lens of their position in leadership. Leaders aren’t magical creatures, blessed with all the universe’s knowledge: they’re human, which means they are subject to the same foibles and flaws as everyone else. Just because you’re a “leader,” doesn’t mean you’re free from bias, nor that you have all the answers. If a leader doesn’t have exposure to, or personal experience with the LGBTQ2+ communities, why would you expect them to have the knowledge required to create LGBTQ2+ inclusive spaces? They can only learn about it through education. This is the same education that everyone else should be going through. Only then can they be the leaders we need to create LGBTQ2+ inclusive spaces for all.
Leaders need to understand three things:
What is exclusion, and how does it show up in our workplaces and other spaces? If they’ve never experienced discrimination themselves, how will they be able to recognize it when it does occur. If you’ve never experienced sexual harrassment, how can you recognize it when someone says they’ve been harassed? If you’ve never experienced racism, how do you know how to address it when it occurs? If you’ve never experienced homophobia, transphobia or biphobia, when you’re told it happened to someone, do you question it? Leaders need to understand what exclusion looks like.
What is the financial implication of exclusion? There is always a financial implication of exclusion. Law suits, human rights complaints, lower engagement, higher voluntary turnover, higher safety incidents, and lower productivity. Not to mention: brand and reputation damage. Leaders need to understand that exclusion isn’t a PR issue; it’s a business issue.
Leaders need to understand their role in creating an inclusive space. When sexual harrassment, racism, or homophobia occur in your workplace, how do you react? What steps do you take? How do you address it? Simply saying, “call HR” isn’t going to cut it. Leaders need to do what they’re there to do: lead.
Being a leader means taking a stand and setting the tone. If a leader doesn’t understand these three things, they’re not a very good leader.
Providing the framework for collective impact is something I talk about in my first book, Birds of All Feathers: Doing Diversity and Inclusion Right. In order to set the stage for collective impact, we have to do away with self-interest, and I mean all self-interest which includes individual self-interest, community self-interest and organizational self-interest. We see self-interest in a lot of situations. And setting it aside is very difficult to do. If we’re really concerned about making a collective impact, such as making our workplaces inclusive for all, we have to set aside our self-interest to focus on the bigger picture. Our concern may be the most important for us, but where does it fit into the bigger picture?
Recognizing diversity during a certain month or on a notable holiday is not enough and should be ongoing in daily practice. Notoriously, organizations see each diversity group in isolation, and as a monolith. February is Black History month, so we talk about Black experiences in February. March is women’s month, so we celebrate women in March. And of course, Pride month is June so we talk about LGBTQ2+ inclusion in June. But what about Black queer women?
This is what we refer to as intersectionality. A person is not solely Black, a woman, or queer. They are all three things, and more, at the same time. It’s impossible to leave one of those things at the door. Further, not all members of a community or communities have the same lived experience. Not all Black people have the same experiences. Nor all women. Nor all LGBTQ2+ people.
Organizations struggle to understand this. How many Pride receptions have I gone to and it’s a room full of cisgender white men? Too many to count. Is that to say that the organization doesn’t have any other LGBTQ2+ people who are women, Trans*, Black, etc. working there? No. It’s to say that other members of the LGBTQ2+ communities don’t feel comfortable at the event, or they haven’t come out yet.
Further, organizations may think they’re doing their part for LGBTQ2+ inclusion when they put on a Pride event or education program on LGBTQ2+ inclusion in June. But, I’m still gay in July. And August. And pretty much every day of the year. Homophobia, transphobia and biphobia are not exclusive to June. Organizations should be thinking of #Pride365 and how they can focus on LGBTQ2+ inclusion and education year round.
Inclusion in the workplace is an ongoing process, and the success is contingent on leaders taking an active role. This is accomplished by having company wide training programs, considering your impact, and continuing the initiatives by putting them into action. My book, Alphabet Soup: The Essential Guide to LGBTQ2+ Inclusion at Work, is a guide for organizations to create inclusive spaces and is available now.