Top tips for senior leaders to get started with LGBTQ+ inclusion

Visible inclusive senior leadership helps cultivate a more welcoming workplace for LGBTQ+ staff and non-LGBTQ+ allies.

Your ability to influence internal policies, communications and the culture of organisation can have a huge impact.

Want to further LGBTQ+ inclusion in your workplace but you’re not sure where to start? As a senior leader, we understand the importance of efficiency and cost-effectiveness in your work.

Here are some top tips to help you get started:

• Meet regularly with your LGBTQ+ employee network group to learn about their lived experiences. Engaging on a quarterly basis, for example, can help keep you in the loop about how best to support your LGBTQ+ staff. This can give network members an opportunity to raise areas of importance directly with a senior member of staff. If you don’t yet have an LGBTQ+ network group in place, see our free resource ‘Setting up an LGBTQ+ Employee Network Group’.

• Communicate your commitment in all-staff communications. Consider sharing your personal journey as an LGBTQ+ champion, for instance in intranet blogs or internal newsletters.

• Share messages of support in new staff induction and training materials. This will help reassure new LGBTQ+ employees that they can be themselves and provides clear expectations for all staff from their first day. These messages can be built into your existing induction processes, such as in induction packs, videos for digital training or at live induction events.

• Highlight your LGBTQ+ network group’s work and key LGBTQ+ dates. This could be through workplace communications such as an Intranet post, or when speaking at events. Some annual LGBTQ+ events to consider are: Pride, Trans Day of Visibility, and International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Lesbophobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBLIT).

• Speak about the importance of your LGBTQ+ inclusion strategies and action plans with other senior leaders. This can be done in formal meetings or less formal settings, to ensuring that this work is shared and embedded across all teams. Consider how you can talk about this work with peers across your sector or region, to encourage this work beyond your workplace.

• Review and share monitoring reports, whilst ensuring confidentiality and data protection for all employees. Many organisations monitor diversity in the workplace, including around employees’ sexual orientation, gender identity and trans status. This can help them to understand how many LGBTQ+ employees there are, what level of the organisation they’re at, and how satisfied they are with their jobs. You can ensure that this data is reviewed at the most senior levels of your organisation and that appropriate action is taken in response to trends. If your organisation does not currently have diversity and inclusion (D&I) monitoring in place, get in touch with your Stonewall Client Account Manager who will be happy to provide some guidance on how to do this.

• Help secure appropriate resources for your LGBTQ+ network group. This could include advocating for your LGBTQ+ employee network group to receive appropriate support from your HR or Diversity & Inclusion team, or for an allocated budget to allow the network to deliver on their plans. LGBTQ+ employees should be given opportunities to inform your organisation’s inclusion strategy, but it’s important that they’re not expected to deliver this work by themselves. It’s also important to ensure appropriate time allowances are given for any staff supporting LGBTQ+ network activities.

If you want to learn more and empower your team to create a more LGBTQ+ inclusive workplace, you can get support from our Empowerment team who deliver a range of training. You can find more information on Stonewall workplace training.