With a quarter of LGBTQIA+ young people unable to be “out” at work, and many people still experiencing discrimination, Jules McKittrick from Sumer outlines why Pride matters, providing practical tips on building supportive and welcoming working environments in accountancy.
Pride vividly reminds the world why diversity matters. Parades and rallies are taking place across the UK during June and July, celebrating the achievements and visibility of the LGBTQIA+ community in all walks of life.
Enormous progress has been made. However, under half of LGBTQIA+ workers in the UK feel comfortable being ‘out’ at work, and more than a quarter (28%) avoid discussing their sexuality or gender identity altogether, new research shows.
Clearly, there’s still work to be done. That’s why as part of a rapidly scaling group I and the rest of the senior team want to be the most inclusive accountancy firm. Our aim is for Sumer and our colleagues to exist under one big – rainbow-striped – umbrella, if you will.
I along with Sumer’s CEO Warren Mead, are both members of, and advocates for, the LGBTQIA+ community. Having experienced the Big Four firms, we witnessed first-hand the progress made in the last 30 years. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) practices were rather clumsy back in the 1990s when we were starting out in accountancy. Words and phrases like “brave”, “risky” and “are you sure you want to do that?” were used when I pushed forward with a new LGBT network back then.
Fast forward to 2024, and we see the industry facilitating mentor schemes, allyship networks, unconscious bias training, and inclusive HR policies.
The goal of all this excellent work is to reduce the chances of people being marginalised and discriminated against. When businesses create a better working environment for LGBTQIA+ people, beyond the ethical imperative to do so, they actually improve their retention rate, productivity, and employee commitment, and therefore the success of the business.
There’s no reason why UK accountancy can’t aspire to this level of DEI. At Sumer we are reviewing and standardising people policies and benefits packages as we acquire businesses, to better meet LGBTQIA+ needs.
Here are five further ways accountancy firms can make their LGBTQIA+ employees feel comfortable.
By conducting regular DEI training sessions, focusing on LGBTQIA+ issues, it’s possible to educate all employees on the best ways to support their colleagues. Working with colleagues to help them recognise and challenge bias, is invaluable. It also helps for people to consider others’ lived experience.
This helps people avoid making assumptions about other people’s gender identity or sexual orientation, and underlines the importance of using inclusive language.
At Sumer, we want our people who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community to feel incredibly welcome when they join us. From job ads, to social media to onboarding and beyond, this messaging should be woven into corporate language as an employer.
ERGs are a powerful resource, created so that employees can connect, share experiences, and provide mutual support. These groups provide a practical framework for allyship, and can also serve as a platform for sharing, learning, providing peer support and promoting the latest thinking.
Having seen these in action, our learning is that you must encourage participation from all levels of the organisation, including senior management, to demonstrate commitment to inclusion.
We feel Sumer’s fast-growing model of regional hubs is ideal for building support networks. We have recently launched our SumHer Women’s Network, and will be rolling out further employee-led ‘belonging’ networks.
Even with a comprehensive set of People policies and up-to-the-minute training, those within the LGTBQIA+ community and other marginalised groups can still experience hostility and prejudice today. Colleagues might offend simply by making assumptions about a person’s family set-up. And as this is a service industry, there’s a chance that clients can be insensitive, or even misogynistic, homophobic or racist.
Awareness is everything – sometimes people just need guidance on how to move with the times. But there’s a difference between having the right intention, and using words clumsily and being deliberately offensive. If someone makes a mistake, that’s ok. To wound, to exclude or humiliate, that’s not.
In Sumer’s case, Warren, our CEO, has been explicit, we’d rather lose business than accommodate, overlook, or ignore homophobia, transphobia, or any other form of prejudice. He’s promised Sumer colleagues that he will always support them in these situations.
Participation in key LGBTQIA+ dates such as Pride Month, National Coming Out Day, and Transgender Day of Visibility is a great way of creating a workplace where everyone feels welcome and included. This can be organising on-site events, workshops, or social media campaigns.
Sharable content showcasing community involvement and the people side of the business could boost your standing as an employer of choice.
Committing to an inclusive culture is worth celebrating in itself, and events are a fun way of bringing everyone together.
At Sumer, I’m really looking forward to getting fully involved in Pride next year – so watch this space!
We’re working towards being the most inclusive accountancy firm. That said we’re pragmatists too. In just over a year, we’ve welcomed more than 10 practices and 1,300 colleagues. We’re busy supporting and evolving. We’re on a journey, and we know that the industry is too. That’s why we’re keen to hear what other firms are doing to make things better for their LGTBQIA+ colleagues.
The industry has made great progress. Now let’s continue to make accountancy a truly inclusive profession, where everyone feels welcome.
