December 11th, 2012 → 4:58 pm @ Admin
by Mason Donovan and Mark Kaplan
The announcement this year by President Obama favoring marriage equality is a big step in the civil law conversation, but like many areas of diversity and inclusion, civil law can often lag corporate practice. For over a decade, many corporations have been providing same sex partner benefits and investing in LGB (Lesbian Gay Bisexual) inclusion development.
With all of these companies creating an inclusive culture for LGB employees, it is time to step back and take a look at why LGB inclusion is good for business. What is the “inclusion dividend” to shareholders of an LGB inclusive culture? To best answer this question we need to first ask, “Why do people feel the need to be out at work?”
Let’s first look at the reason to be “out” from a heterosexual perspective. When we think of people being “out”, we generally assume we are referring to LGBs. However, heterosexual people are very “out of the closet” as heterosexual at work. Without even thinking about it they share all sorts of information related to their sexual orientation; for example whether they are married or in a relationship, the name of their partner, and what they did over the weekend. Their family pictures are on their desks.
Why is this important? Why do heterosexuals come out at work? We asked Brian Rogan, Chief Risk Officer at BNY Mellon, what would it be like if he had to hide the fact that he was heterosexual? He said, “I think it would be very stressful. When you work with people in our industry, you are with them 8 to 10 hours a day. It is all about the conversations and about building rapport. Shared life experiences are one way you can relate to colleagues.”
We posed the same question to Caroline Taylor, VP of Marketing, Communications and Citizenship for IBM UK Ireland. “It would have enormous impact because you wouldn’t be able to be you. You would need to spend too much of your time thinking what to say or not to say.”
So Taylor and Rogan, executives from global corporations with voices from both sides of the Atlantic share their sexual orientation openly at work because it improves their work environment, builds good working relationships and helps them be more productive.
Being out about your heterosexual orientation has never been a controversial issue because it is seen as the societal norm. Those that varied from the norm needed another game plan.
Both Nancy DiDia, Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at Boehringer Ingelheim and Bruce Miller, EVP at BNY Mellon, would actively pick and choose their words carefully when discussing their private life. Miller said, “You have to change or avoid pronouns… Instead of saying who you are going out with, you say “friends.” These are small examples of the challenge that is created when LGB inclusion is not the norm. However the challenge is daily; lots of small moments every day that begin to grind away at engagement and productivity.
The impact of LGB inclusion is felt in recruitment, retention, productivity and engagement.
In the area of productivity, Cameron Cartmell, Partner at Ernst & Young London, said, “Certainly, in a situation where you can be yourself and not have to invest energy into being something else, you will most definitely be more productive.”
Taylor pointed out the benefits in talent acquisition. “If we have a work environment where people are not comfortable about their sexual orientation, we will limit our ability to recruit the true best talent. We will not only fail to hire LGBT candidates, but also straight candidates who value an inclusive workplace.”
Andy Woodfield, Partner at PwC London, believes an inclusive culture expands beyond company walls. He said, “Clients where I have a more intimate working relationship, it is part of my conversation like it is with them as they speak about their families. It has created a stronger bond. …relationships are key to continued business.”
Taylor provided advice to CEOs without a LGB inclusion policy. “Do it. Do it now. If you leave it until it is too late, you will go out of business. …your talent will go to your competitors who do have an inclusive culture.”
Inclusion is about creating an environment where LGB people feel comfortable doing the same things that their heterosexual peers are already doing. The employees, company and customers all win.
Click here for the full interview transcripts.
Mark Kaplan and Mason Donovan are principals at The Dagoba Group, a global diversity and inclusion consultancy, and authors of the upcoming book, The Inclusion Dividend (Bibliomotion, 2013).