LGBT Chamber of Commerce hosts annual DEI conference
David Taffet | Senior Staff Writer
taffet@dallasvoice.com
The North Texas LGBT Chamber of Commerce is holding its seventh annual Diversity, Equity and Inclusion conference July 19-21. The first day will take place at Southwest Airlines headquarters. The second two days will be online.
The conference brings together local businesses, LGBT-owned and other certified businesses, members of corporate employee resource groups and corporate diversity and supplier diversity
professionals. Attendees will learn about current issues facing diverse businesses and communities, gain new skills and share best practices.
Although U.S. companies spend more than $8 million on DEI programs annually, 90 percent of them fail. That’s the topic of one of the workshops on the agenda.
According to program information, “We all know how critical diversity, equity, and inclusion are to the success of companies from employee retention, innovation and profitability.”
The session will focus on the challenges and resistance to DEI in the workplace — what programs fail and why; what are successful companies doing that get positive results?
One strategy that does work is when management engages with its employee resource groups. Studies show that social isolation in the workplace can have a negative impact on engagement and retention, while ERGs build a sense of belonging to a company, reduce isolation and are a place to share ideas. Chris Schlarb, co-chair of the Dallas College LGBTQ+ ERG, leads the discussion.
Discrimination starts with the initial interview and continues through the promotion process. One session deals with unconscious bias that affects hiring and promoting. For example, in the 1970s, when orchestras began doing blind auditions, gender diversity went from 5 percent women to more than 40 percent.
Another session aims to demystify DEI, focusing on what barriers keep companies from sustaining diverse and equitable cultures.
“Through our exploration of the terms ‘DEI,’ ‘microaggressions’ and ‘purposeful reflection,’ you will leave with a deeper understanding of how your individual contribution to your environment impacts the organization as a whole,” organizers explain.
Also among the speakers is Marina Guerra, an outreach and education coordinator with the EEOC Houston District Office.
She will discuss the laws EEOC enforces so that employees know and understand their rights and employers stay in compliance with the law.
In a session entitled Inclusive Workplace Communication Practices, Tallulah Breslin, a gender- and identity-affirming behavioral voice modification specialist, discusses how she helps clients become confident, competent communicators that use their new voices to improve their job security.
Other workshops are still in the planning stage including one ripped from the headlines — The Future of Equality in a Post Roe World — along with Standing up for Racial, Cultural and Gender Expression; Passionate and Creative Business Leadership; POWER Up to Live, Lead and Inspire Authenticity; How ERGs Influence Public Policy; Access to Capital, and more.
The conference sponsors are Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, Toyota and VisitDallas. It is presented by the LGBT Chamber of Commerce Foundation, in association with the North Texas LGBT Chamber of Commerce, Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce, Greater Dallas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Texas LGBTQ Chambers of Commerce (including Austin, Houston and San Antonio). n
For information, visit the website at LGBTChamberFoundation.org/texas-dei-conference.
