From Awareness to Action: Driving LGBTQ+ Inclusion in Tech Businesses

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It's Pride Month and the rainbows are out! But Pride is more than just buying rainbow products on your local high street. It’s about those in the LGBTQ+ community feeling, well, PRIDE, in being themselves – and for us businesses to think AND act on what we can be doing better in terms of diversity and inclusivity. 

Did you see our last blog, ‘Building a More Inclusive Future: Empowering the LGBTQ+ Community’? The stats for how people who identify as LGBTQ+ feel about the tech industry are pretty shocking. So, as a tech business, we wanted to act by sharing some thoughts and actions on how the tech industry can do better beyond Pride Month.

Here is our quick-fire round of things we, as employers, employees and colleagues, can do to advocate for change.

Respecting pronouns

It may seem like a small ask to some but normalising writing and stating pronouns could mean the world to your LGBTQ+ employees or potential candidates. Even if you identify as your birth sex, leading by example and saying your pronouns means your LGBTQ+ aren’t the only ones doing it. So, sign off your emails with your pronouns and state your pronouns when you meet someone. Normalising this can work as a stepping stone for a more friendly and inclusive workplace.

Learn, share and set expected standards

Keep up to date on current trends and news that may affect the LGTBQ+ community. Creating training and places to gather and share that important information can set standard practices of what your business expects and fights for and against when it comes to diversity, discrimination and harassment.

Review, revise and repeat policies

Like tech, the world’s attitudes and expectations are constantly changing. But one thing that should be the same across the board is fair and equal treatment of your employees within your policies. So review your businesses policies and make sure certain points are covered, such as:

  • maternity/paternity includes LGBTQ+ families 

  • safe ways to report inappropriate behaviour 

  • how to change documents if they are under gender reassignment

  • gender-neutral dress codes

  • right to privacy (e.g. not outing your LGBTQ+ employees or colleagues)

Raise your LGBTQ+ ally status

There are many ways you can showcase that you’re an LGBTQ+ friendly place to work. Whether that is showcasing your commitment to LGBTQ+ on your website, sharing the stories of your LGBTQ+ employees (with their consent, of course), highlighting it in your job ads, putting it on LGBTQ+ friendly job sites, or even creating a space for your LGBTQ+ employees to come together and openly discuss their experiences with their peers.

These are just some of our ‘headline’ points to showcase how we can all focus on creating a more welcoming, diverse and inclusive workspace. There are many more ways we can all do better beyond Pride Month for the LGBTQ+ community. 

So let’s start the conversation. Do you have any other tips and advice? Feel free to share!