"We wanted to create a space where people can engage and learn about the LGBTQ+ community in a way that's easy," said Andrew Gorgeny, membership engagement director for Allstate's PRIDE Employee Impact Group.
That space, on the learning site Degreed, was created to elevate the representation and job skills of Allstate's LGBTQ+ employees. The PRIDE EIG Degreed Plan will be an evolving resource for all employees – whether they're part of the LGBTQ+ community, allies or anyone wanting to learn more.
For PRIDE, Degreed — an online learning ecosystem for employees —was a great one-stop-shop to house on-demand LGBTQ+ educational resources.
"I love and appreciate all of these resources curated in an easy to navigate place," an Allstate employee said about the new learning program, which launched in June, aligning with this year's Pride month.
"We were able to direct people to these resources while they were having timely and relevant conversations about Pride month and the community," Gorgeny said.
But the conversations didn't end after Pride month.
"With this type of robust resource, Allstate employees can have important conversations that bring us together any time of the year," Gorgeny said.
Even if that means having eye-opening conversations.
"Most commonly, when we have any programming that involves allies, the conversation almost always goes to 'I didn't know all this was happening' or 'I didn't know that was your experience' – so I think the pathways in this program really allow people to fill in some of those gaps to have a more informed dialogue that can lead to positive progress," said Carrie Moore, paralegal and PRIDE Advocacy board member.
Pathways to better understanding
The PRIDE board and the education director helped Gorgeny choose content and resources for the PRIDE learning plan – focusing on the following categories:
- Allstate PRIDE event recordings
- PRIDE Vodcast episodes
- PRIDE Days of recognition
- LGBTQ+ history
- Career development
- Ally and advocacy education
Some of current pathways include: There's More to Gender Identity Than Male and Female, Trans and Non-Binary Resource Center, Stonewall Anniversary, Aromantic and Asexual Awareness, PRIDE Ally, and Understanding Gender Diversity.
The program brings in perspectives from around the world, too, like the PRIDE: Around the World pathway that explores attitudes toward the LGBTQ+ community in other countries.
Designing inclusivity
Graphic designer and PRIDE board member Breana Green stepped in to ensure that a wide range of visual representation accompanied the learning materials.
"I made small changes to the appearance of illustrated characters to match the pathway topic. Sometimes it was changing the color of their shirt, sometimes it was making an effeminate figure look more androgynous," she said.
Career development: PRIDEfessional
The illustrations are just one way the program is encouraging authenticity and representation.
Another way is the PRIDEfessional pathway, which provides career development tools like resume building, interviewing skills, confidence boosting and more.
"Sometimes there can be stigma with how you present yourself when you're part of the LGBTQ+ community. For example, in job interviews, it would be great for those doing the hiring to have a level of awareness that not everyone presents themselves in a gender-conforming way. It's about having the confidence to show up both professionally and authentically while also feeling that a safe space has been created in which to do so," Gorgeny said.
The PRIDEfessional pathway addresses another big topic: leadership representation.
"Members of the community are pretty underrepresented in management and beyond, so having some access to resources to help that upward mobility both internally and externally is important," said Moore.
The PRIDEfessional pathway includes LinkedIn Learning courses on how to approach LGBTQ+ issues in the workplace, strategies for using inclusive language at work, driving inclusion with empathy and a resume makeover course.
"It's interesting to look back at how people struggled to just find work, let alone be recognized and included. So, seeing that progress through these courses is nice," Green said.
Allstate continues to expand its work in Inclusive Diversity & Equity, and PRIDE's new resource hub is another step toward that progress.
