Pushing for Progress

Despite recent legal and social advancements for the LGBTQ+ community, transgender individuals continue to face challenges, including discrimination and harassment, systemic inequality, and barriers to healthcare. A recent National Transgender Discrimination Survey found that nearly 20% of respondents had been refused medical care – outright – simply because of bias.¹

Diversity and inclusion is a key priority at Boehringer Ingelheim, and we’ve made it our mission to ensure all voices are heard. As a result of our efforts, this year, we received our eleventh consecutive perfect score on the Corporate Equality Index (CEI), administered by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) for corporate policies and practices related to workplace equality for LGBTQ+ employees.

While we’re extremely proud of this accomplishment, we realize there is still more work to be done. Recently, we’ve launched two new inclusion initiatives – our U.S. Workplace Gender Transition Guidelines and the inclusion of transgender individuals in our U.S. clinical trials. The development of these new initiatives marks a major milestone in our company history, and we encourage other companies – big and small – to join us in prioritizing the diverse needs of all individuals, regardless of gender or any personal characteristics. Here’s what we learned along the way:

Push the boundaries
When pioneering a diversity program, don’t just settle for the status quo – push for progress. Go all in and make your program one that thinks about the wider implications. The active recruitment, participation and inclusion of transgender individuals in our clinical trials is a groundbreaking advancement for our company. Disease does not discriminate – that’s why it’s so critical to consider the needs of all patients in clinical trials. The inclusion of transgender individuals in our trials has allowed us to think more broadly, taking into account new perspectives and the importance of belonging in our health care matrix – such as how medicines we’re developing may metabolize differently in individuals who are transitioning.

Develop collaboratively
Our U.S. Workplace Gender Transition Guidelines aren’t just policies or regulations – they’re a go-to resource providing helpful information to support all of our employees (as well as those with a transitioning colleague or loved one) through the steps of gender transition. When developing these guidelines, we reviewed with our insurance provider to ensure we provided appropriate coverage for all aspects of transition-related healthcare – including hormone replacement therapy, psychological therapy, and gender affirming surgical procedures. Ultimately, the guidelines were the result of a collaborative effort between our internal D&I team, Human Resources, Legal, Compliance, and Business Resource groups as well as the HRC and regional third-party organizations.

Keep an open mind
Put yourself in learning mode – stay curious and open-minded. When it comes to moving the needle on unfamiliar topics, sometimes the conversation isn’t always easy. However, it’s only through that education and understanding that companies can begin to create the inclusive environments where people of all backgrounds can feel completely welcome. Several months ago, I attended a panel focused on transgender inclusivity. When the topic of pronouns was brought up, I realized that this was a subject I personally needed to understand better. I learned that while it is a common mistake to assume that all people identify on a binary scale – as either male or female – there are many who identify as non-binary, preferring to use gender-expansive pronouns such as “they, them and theirs” instead of the gendered “he, him and his” or “she, her and hers.” Through such insights, the panel taught me that to be the best ally possible, one must be actively aware in order to actively support. In relation, it is important to learn from and incorporate the valuable feedback of those at the heart of your inclusion program. Our draft guidelines were reviewed by several transgender individuals, and a patient advocacy group, to ensure we were considering important external perspectives. The insights and feedback we received were critical in helping us ensure that our guidelines reinforced our company culture of belonging and inclusion.

At Boehringer Ingelheim, we believe in a trifecta of inclusion that involves our employees, our patients, and our marketplace. We also believe in creating value through innovation – and we know that innovation cannot happen without all facets of diversity being a centerpiece for our organization. The more time I have spent talking about diversity with our employees, the more convinced I become that focusing on a culture of belonging and inclusion is not just the right thing to do for our people – it’s a business imperative.

References

1. Human Rights Campaign. Understanding the Transgender Community. Available at: https://www.hrc.org/resources/understanding-the-transgender-community. Accessed November 2018.