GLEN has revealed the 2016 Workplace Equality Index Awards, highlighting the top 10 best places to work for LGBT people.
Accenture has been crowned Employer of the Year in GLEN’s annual ranking of Irish companies, placing highest on the organisation’s 2016 LGBT Workplace Equality Index.
Overtaking last year’s winner EY at the top of the list (the latter dropping to second), Accenture also jumped above IBM, which fell from second to joint-seventh this year.
Saying she was “proud” of the award, Michelle Cullen, a managing director at Accenture, added that the people and role models in her company were the true people to celebrate.
“At Accenture, we are committed to creating an environment where our people can simply be themselves at work, where all of our people can feel welcome, supported, rewarded, and inspired,” she said.
“Building an inclusive culture starts with a vision, and is achieved through many small acts, and through celebrating all of our people irrespective of differences.”
Accenture and EY were followed by Microsoft in third (up from fifth), Deutsche Bank in fourth (no change) and Trinity College Dublin in fifth. Eir, IBM, Sodexo, Metlife and Enterprise Rent-A-Car rounded out the top ten.
“We are delighted to recognise the companies and executives who are leading the way in making Irish workplaces fully inclusive of LGBT people,” said Kieran Rose, GLEN co-chair.
“These organisations and leaders are playing an integral role in creating a business culture in Ireland that values the skills, ideas and creativity that LGBT people bring to the workplace.”
There were also a list of leadership awards announced, with EY’s Catherine Vaughan adding to last year’s LGBT Inclusion Champion of the Year award with the 2016 Senior Leader of the Year award.
Rose added his congratulations to Accenture and all the employers named in the Best Places to Work for LGBT Equality, as well as the winners of the Workplace Equality Index Leadership Awards.
According to GLEN, the 2016 best places to work for the LGBT community are:
- Accenture
- EY
- Microsoft
- Deutsche Bank
- Trinity College Dublin
- eir
- IBM
- Sodexo
- Metlife
- Enterprise Rent-A-Car
The leadership award winners:
- Senior Leader of the Year: Catherine Vaughan, global compliance leader at EY
- LGBT Role Model of the Year: Dena Y Lawrence, business evangelist at Microsoft
- Ally of the Year: Alice Tolan, senior strategic account manager at Eir
- LGBT Employee Network of the Year: Out@In, LinkedIn
- Public Sector Employer of the Year Award: Trinity College Dublin
- SME of the Year: Enterprise Rent-a-Car
