Building a corporate culture of inclusivity matters.
When employees feel like they’re free to come to work as themselves, welcomed and accepted no matter who they are or where they come from, they can do their best work.
June is LGBTQ+ Pride month, where members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer celebrate and are celebrated by their allies. While parades, programming, and brand color changes show support, Clari wanted to use this time of amplified awareness to build inclusivity that lasts.
At Clari, we’re passionate about taking actions that build a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace where our employees feel comfortable bringing their entire selves to work. To identify some actions we and other companies can take, we asked three Clarians—Krysti Walker, Ben Elrod, and Andrew Shubel, who are all members of our internal Pride group—to share thoughts around Pride Month and specific ideas for building an inclusive culture.
Krysti Walker, Customer Success Manager
The LGBTQ+ population is just over 5% in the United States, but holds only around 1.5% of corporate jobs past the most junior positions, notes Customer Success Manager Krysti Walker, citing a McKinsey study.
“It’s a stark reality,” she says. “I’m almost certainly going to be the only person like me in the room for the majority of my career.“
There’s an increased amount of stress and pressure to perform, she says, as she feels like she is often representative of all LGBTQ+ people in many spaces.
Walker also noted that creating a space for women to bring their whole selves to work is not just good for the LGBTQ+ community, it's good for business.
“Women who are out as LGBTQ+ are happier with their careers, likely to stay at their current company longer, and view both their companies and their managers more favorably compared with their closeted peers,” she says.
Ben Elrod, Customer Success Manager
“Coming out is not just a one-time event,” says Customer Success Manager Ben Elrod. “Many individuals come out over and over again in tiny moments in their day-to-day lives.”
“For example, I had work done on my house and had to explain that I needed to talk with my husband first. Or, when I took my daughter to the doctor and the forms all said, ‘mother’ and ‘father.’ Or, when someone casually asks, ‘Did you and your wife have a good weekend?’”
LGBTQ+ community members are constantly navigating these moments. Elrod adds: “While it has become easier for me over the years, it calls to attention tangible ways organizations and allies can create more inclusive environments.”
Andrew Shubel, Program Manager
“There’s often an elephant in the room when it comes to celebrating Pride month corporately: Sexuality isn’t a topic of professional workplace conversation,” says Andrew Shubel, program manager. “Pride has many different components, of course—celebrating diversity, legislature effecting LGBTQ+ rights, or understanding gender expression—but these other pieces are often more common to talk about than sexual identity.”
“Like any gay person, I had my own experiences feeling comfortable enough with myself to share my sexuality publicly. At work, it begs the question of how to be your whole self when those conversations don’t naturally come up.”
Shubel added that asking employees to celebrate Pride and be their authentic selves is a powerful tool for representation, but it’s also important to remember that it might not be easy for every person to do that.
“For example, if a LGBTQ+ employee isn’t in a long-term relationship where it’s easy to casually mention their significant other, or perhaps their children, they might not have a way to identify as queer in the conversation,” he says. “Pride is a good reminder to be mindful of people’s different situations.”
How to support LGBTQ+ employees year-round
Walker, Elrod, and Shubel shared practical ideas that organizations should consider when it comes to celebrating Pride in the workplace:
- Make Pride Month an opportunity to celebrate colleagues with diverse sexual identities who may not have an opportunity to bring that part of their life to work.
- Create company-wide social networks or employee resources groups (ERGs) for LGBTQ+ employees to connect.
- Provide areas to bring up difficult or awkward conversations in a way that is safe and constructive. Whether it's a conversation about sexuality, physical ability, beliefs, or other ways that employees are unique and diverse, everyone can use a platform to share what they are passionate about.
- Plan workshops that highlight community or social issues.
- Adopt hiring practices such as blind resume screenings, which can remove implicit biases in the workplace.
- Review discrimination and diversity policies when hiring, and ensure your forms are inclusive.
- Normalize gender pronouns and empower employees to use gender neutral language.
- Highlight initiatives and activism on social media platforms to normalize conversations and increase representation.
- Provide safe channels for LGBTQ+ employees to express their concerns or situations in which they have felt uncomfortable or unsafe.
Fostering inclusivity that lasts
At Clari, we’re building an environment of inclusivity, so that everyone can bring their authentic selves to work and create their own #Remarkable. We’re always looking for ways to improve so that the inclusivity we talk about during Pride month will last all year round.
Want to join us? We’re looking for our next team members.
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