Culture Curated Blog

Pride month should go beyond rainbow colored logos. June offers an opportunity to activate principles of respect and inclusion that should be practiced year-round.

Don’t get me wrong, I do LOVE rainbow-colored logos, they are fun, inviting, welcoming, and send a vibe of “togetherness”, however if you are working on your organizational culture and want to do something to honor Pride Month, the logo colors should become secondary. Here are some meaningful ideas:

• Create a safe work environment for gender non-conforming individuals. How? Educate yourself, educate your team, embrace learning about gender identity and expression, and review your policies for LBGTQ+ inclusion.
• Be aware of the impact of your words in the workplace. Avoid stereotyping or making assumptions about other individual’s gender experience or sexual orientation.
• Build comfort and skill around connecting authentically with individuals in the workplace. Trust is the most important quality of an inclusive workplace. Check in on your assumptions and stereotypes to propel a sense of belonging for everyone.
• Practice humility, if you make a mistake while using someone’s preferred pronouns, respectfully acknowledge your mistake, apologize, and move on.
• Be aware of unconscious bias and more importantly create intentional bias mitigation practices to ensure your hiring, promoting, and developing of all employees is equitable and fair

Lastly, if you are doing the work and creating places where everyone feels safe and welcomed, celebrate your impact displaying the rainbow colors proudly.