LGBT Pride
CELEBRATING
From nondiscriminatory policies to
outreach programs, here’s how companies
foster inclusive workplaces to realize a
sustainable competitive advantage.
hen Pfizer sought to explore ways to reach smokers with its smoking-
cessation product, the pharmaceutical giant tapped its talent pool last year
for ideas. Since studies indicate a higher percentage of the LGBT population
smokes cigarettes than the heterosexual population, Pfizer identified leaders from
within its LGBT-colleague population to partner with the multicultural-marketing department
to consider a targeted outreach to LGBT smokers.
Although the business-development details are still being determined, the
initiative has far-reaching benefits. “We’ll also improve health within the
LGBT community,” says Wil Yates, senior manager of information analysis
and co-chair of both Pfizer’s New York City–based colleague-resource group,
Out Pfizer Employee Network (OPEN), and the Global LGBT Council. Pfizer
is one of DiversityInc’s 25 Noteworthy Companies this year.
An LGBT-friendly workplace has far-reaching benefits as well.
DiversityInc uses inclusive criteria to determine The DiversityInc Top 50
Companies for Diversity® as well as the 12 other lists, including
The DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for LGBT Employees. Organizations
on The DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for LGBT Employees list must:
; Offer same-sex domestic-partner/spousal benefits
; Have an employee-resource group aimed at LGBT employees and allies
; Actively recruit LGBT people
; Include content on their web sites aimed at LGBT employees
and customers
; Have a 100 percent rating on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate
Equality Index (CEI), which has seen a 17 percent jump over the past year
in U.S. businesses earning the top rating (from 260 in 2009 to 305 in 2010)
despite the down economy
In addition, DiversityInc confers with respected LGBT organiza-
tions—GLSEN, Human Rights Campaign and Out & Equal Workplace
Advocates, for example—for recommendations.
What are the main
reasons companies
cite for creating
an LGBT-friendly
workplace?
ATTRACT A WIDE TALENT
POOL of not only LGBT
people but also their friends/
family members and a larger
share of young talent.
According to Pew Research
Center’s “Millennials: A Portrait
of the Next Generation,” people
ages 18 to 29 who are currently
entering the workforce are
quite “different from members
of other generations when it
comes to their experience with
and exposure to gay people.” Of
the more than 2,000 polled, 54
percent of millennials have a
close friend or family member
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