Education 'Key' To Powerful Workplace Allyships, Confirm DE&I Experts

Education is key to successful allyship at work, according to diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) experts and LGBTQ+ allies who took part in this week’s myGwork campaign and panel on The Power of Allyship.

The panel event, moderated by RS Components’ Group Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Jessica Chu, explored the power of allyship at work with other DE&I experts and Employee Resource Group (ERG) leaders from Taylor Wessing, VMLY&R, FIS, Enterprise, Inmarsat, and Finastra. They shared how their organizations were leveraging their ERG groups to create powerful allyships, what it means to be ally, and how to be a better one to ensure that every voice is heard and included.

For Inmarsat’s Senior Business Analyst Niv Ben-Yehuda, leveraging ERG networks is key to creating allyship: “Surround yourself with the community that you want to be an ally for and learn from them and their stories.”

However, organizations need safe spaces to encourage staff to share their stories. Omo Ogbomo-Williams, Senior HR Manager, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at VMLY&R, highlighted how her company’s “Brave Questions, Safe Spaces” – an open forum to discuss DE&I topics – encourages ERGs and allies to participate in these conversations. “So, for example, on National Coming Out Day, people told their coming out stories, and allies talked about how they encouraged someone to come out at work.”

Finastra’s LGBTQ+ ERG also organizes educational events throughout the year for staff and allies. “Examples include an event featuring a parent of a trans child and their journey. We tend to focus on education, either with internal employees or by partnering with agencies, such as Global Butterflies, a charity for trans people. We also host mindfulness sessions around uncomfortable conversations, and the tools available for those conversations,” explained said Finastra’s Principal People Business Partner, Ann Centi. To encourage people to share any concerns, the company also publish a monthly newsletter that includes an “Ask Frankie”section. “It's like a ‘Dear Abby’ question where any employee can ask questions on any topic, and they can get a response from one of us from the ERG.”

Creating a safe space for employees to share stories is key to inclusion, pointed out Enterprise’s Talent Acquisition Specialist, Georgina Crockford. “And for it to really create an impact it really has to be driven by senior leadership.” She shared how the company’s VP of Finance regularly hosts a book and podcast club, to discuss important topics around inclusion – an event which attracts over 100 diverse colleagues from all levels and backgrounds to talk about a pre-chosen book or podcast for about an hour and a half. “It has provided an open and very safe space for employees to share some really difficult stories,” added Georgina. “Another impactful initiative since the pandemic, is an email sent by a senior leader every other month, where they talk openly about challenges, like their mental health. A particularly memorable one was one from our vice presidents, who talked about the pressures of being openly LGBTQ+ which can lead to a higher risk of poor mental health.”

“That kind of role modelling and authenticity from the top really does help, people further down that hierarchical scale to feel it is a really safe space, where they can be their true selves,” confirmed RS Components' Jessica. “If leaders too are facing challenges, it’s a great sign that the organization will understand you too.”

Brae DeRocher, Senior Client Representative and Chief of Operations for FIS’s LGBTQ+ ERG FIS Pride, also shared how the organization creates the space for allyship to help colleagues get to know one another more: “Ultimately, knowing someone’s background, who they are, and what they have to offer you is the foundation of allyship.” In fact, the company is building “an army of people who can make a difference, one person at a time,” he added.

Being an ally is about using inclusive language and calling out bad behavior when you see it. “That sometimes means being brave and courageous, and even stepping out of your comfort zone,” shared Finastra’s Ann. VMLY&R’s Omo recalled having to do just that when a member of staff ‘deadnamed’ a colleague (used a name they were formerly known as) in a meeting. “I very gently pointed out, this is their name now and these are the pronouns they prefer that we use going forwards. They were actually very appreciative of me pointing it out.”

The experts all agreed that calling out is more helpful when done with compassion, to understand why the mistake was made. “Often it’s due to a lack of awareness, rather than someone having any bad intentions,” added Omo. Ann shared her sentiment, highlighting that: “Mistakes will be made, and I think we need to be mindful of that and understand that we're all learning and on this journey together.”

All the panelists believe that education is absolutely crucial for effective allyship. “No one can automatically assume the honor of being an ally. It's something that has to be earned,” pointed out Omo. “You can't just stand up and say ‘I'm an ally to a community’ without putting in the work and educating yourself on how to do it. There are a lot of reputable sources out there to get answers to questions that may be a bit awkward in professional settings; and lots of ways to learn without invading someone's privacy.”

A simple thing for anyone that's interested in becoming an ally or getting more involved in allyship is to expand their reading, listening, or watch list, recommends Pearson’s Senior HR Manager Kevin Lyons: “Just reading a book or watching a particular program, or any content focusing on LGBTQ+ inclusion can really change your life. It can set your allyship in the right direction and it's a relatively simple thing to do.” Educational podcasts recommended by the panelists include:

We Were Always Here
Anthems Pride
Allyship is a Verb

As an LGBTQ+ ally and mother of two, Jessica recommends that education should start early at home: “It’s important to educate children right from an early age about allyship, inclusion and diversity. I often tell my children that we're all different and special. And when you see bad behavior, call it out by simply saying ‘hey, that's not cool.’”

For those that want to stand up for marginalized communities and be effective allies, “you have to put your ego to the side, collaborate, and be there for them,” noted Taylor Wessing LLP’s Internal Communications Manager Annique Simpson. “There are going to be times when they'll want you to stand ahead of them, sometimes shoulder to shoulder, and other times they’ll want you to stand behind them.”

Allyship for Euan Lynch, Trainee Solicitor at Clifford Chance LLP, means “looking out, reaching out, and speaking out for underrepresented people.” He believes allyship can improve inclusion in the workplace especially when there are strong allies at a senior level. “For example, at Clifford Chance we have a reverse mentoring scheme where junior LGBTQ+ members of staff are paired up with senior allies to discuss LGBTQ+ topics and issues,” explained Euan. “This has shown me that senior members of staff who do not identify as LGBTQ+ actually care about inclusion and genuinely want to make a difference. Leaders can be powerful LGBTQ+ allies, if they continuously self-educate, preferably by learning from LGBTQ+ voices.”

In fact, allyship is arguably more important than ever “given the reported rise of LGBTQ+ hate crime in the past year,” he added. “Allies should therefore be ready to support and amplify LGBTQ+ voices whenever and wherever they can.” It really is an opportunity to “lift others up,” concluded Jessica. “Being an effective and powerful ally boils down to education, education, education.”

myGwork has a bank of resources with articles and videos that can help to better educate leaders and managers to become better active allies. Check out the great tips and advice on allyship thanks to Synechron’s Lori Pizzani, Criteo’s Rachel Scheel, VMware’s Marie Sullivan, Reed Smith’s Holly Allen, and Pearson’s Kevin Lyons.

Other highlights from our allyship campaign that you that may have missed include:

• 10 Ways to Show Up as an Ally
• Allyship Crowned 2021’s ‘Word of the Year’
• Allyship - From Words to Action
• How Can Allies Help Create an Inclusive Workplace?
• Be The Change: My Allyship Tips
• Lori Pizzani: How To Be A Supportive Ally
• Allyship in Action: “There’s No Time to Rest”
• “Know You’ll Mess up Sometimes”: Paul Kilpatrick on Allyship
• Meet & Greet Jessica Chu: The 'huge' importance of LGBTQ+ inclusion at work and why being an LGBTQ+ ally is really important.

You can also check out the full video of the Power of Allyship event here.