Pride 2022: Capita Rainbow Alliance – not just a rainbow logo

At Capita, with over 55,000 colleagues in different countries around the globe, we have a wide range of thoughts, beliefs and ideas that help us deliver on our purpose – to create better outcomes for our clients, our people, our communities and environment.

The magic happens when we combine the individual experiences and unique perspectives of those 55,000 people. It’s because we’re all different that together we can create something better.

Pride is a time when we celebrate this uniqueness, along with the power of the human spirit and love. What I personally love about Pride is that it welcomes all; those who are gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual, asexual, pansexual, non-binary, straight, queer, aromantic, polyamorous, omnisexual (and more) all celebrate together, without judgment. As a straight woman and ally, I have never felt out of place at a Pride event, because it is a place of welcome, acceptance and love. I only hope one day all of our LGBTQ+ friends, family and colleagues can experience this same welcome and acceptance in every street they walk down and every room they enter.

But hope is not enough. And neither is changing a logo to be rainbow-coloured for one month a year. This is why at Capita, we are committed to working hand in hand with the Rainbow Alliance (one of Capita’s eight employee network groups) to make Capita a more inclusive employer for everyone. Over the past year we have listened to our Rainbow alliance and taken action on their recommendations. This has included:

• Introducing a broad list of pronouns, and integrating them into our systems, including Workday (our global human resources system) and Microsoft teams. Colleagues can now choose their pronouns and we encourage employees to share them openly. We also ran training sessions for colleagues on why pronouns matter.
• Analysing our employee survey results by protected characteristic, so we can see if individuals of different sexual orientations are having the same experience at work. We’re continuing to work with our Rainbow Alliance on the insights this provides, so that can we change the experience of work for the better.
• Encouraging employees to share their diversity data. The more data we have, the more we’re able to track any potential bias, and set targets for appropriate representation levels.
• Launching a podcast, run by the Rainbow Alliance, to better educate and inform all employees about key topics related to the LGBTQ+ community. Along with our ongoing series of lunch and learn events, this has provided invaluable insight and support to help make us a more inclusive business.

There is always more to do, and we will continue to do the work. Over the next year we’ll be reviewing all our people-related policies, working with our Employee Network Groups to identify how they need to be made more inclusive. We’re also working on additional policies, to better support our colleagues through experiences such as transitioning at work. 

I have two small daughters, and one of the reasons I choose to work in diversity and inclusion is because I want them to grow up into a world where they, and those around them, don’t experience bias, hate or prejudice, simply because of who they are. This is no easy ask, and it will require every one of us to examine ourselves for unconscious bias, to examine the structures around us for inherent bias, and to stand beside our fellow human beings when they need our support, our acceptance or our welcome.

So in this year’s Pride month, I say to everyone who is an ally, take a moment to reflect on the world around you. Can you see bias? Is the system unfair? Is there someone who needs you to open a door for them, or to stand beside them in the face of inequality? If we want to see true change in society, then we must each walk that change ourselves.

Let’s not just celebrate this year, let’s act.