We delve into our partnership with Coventry City Council, delivering "Amplify:Be The Change", an LGBTQ+ talent development programme designed to empower employees and influence change across the organisation.
Overview
A six-part series by We Create Space to empower LGBTQ+ leaders at Coventry City Council to strengthen their ability to influence and create sustainable change across the organisation.
The LGBTQ+ talent development programme was delivered through 90 min interactive workshops, where theoretical knowledge was accompanied with best practice tools and holistic strategies for building leadership skills and influencing in the area of career development and progression, as well as advocating for other LGBTQIA+ employees.
Brought to life by sharing lived experiences by a range of guest facilitators and speakers from our global LGBTQ+ Leadership collective. This was accompanied by additional 60min workshops for line managers and mentors with resources, surveys and check in throughout.
Programme Overview
1. Shifting Systems, People and Mindsets
2. Having Courageous Conversations
3. Developing Compassion and Emotional Intelligence
4. My Intersectionality, Power, and Privilege
5. Building Queer Resilience
6. Shaping My Purpose.
“My experiences of being LGBTQ (sensing allies, having difficult conversations, going through a process of shifting my own mindset over time regarding my own identity) can be used as a powerful way to create change in other ways / within multiple systems - experience is power!” - Participant feedback on Session 1: Shifting People, Systems and Mindsets.
Core Challenges
As part of Coventry City Council’s Workforce Diversity & Inclusion Strategy, WCS was selected and commissioned to design, deliver and evaluate a bespoke Talent Development programme for their LGBTQIA employees.
As a DEI provider with extensive experience in the delivery of Talent Development programmes for LGBTQIA employees within the Public, Voluntary or Private Sectors, we were tasked with curating a programme to engage a diverse audience and develop rapport and credibility with a clear understanding of intersectionality. Our first-hand experience and understanding meant we were able to address the challenges around barriers faced by LGBTQIA+ employees in the area of career development and progression.
"Whilst attending the managers sessions I was able to reflect on what an inclusive workplace should be like, how I can be a better ally to those who are LGBTQ+ and refresh my understanding of what good leadership and management looks like." - Line Manager Feedback.
Solutions:
Consultancy
Needs assessment conducted with Coventry City Council project leaders.
Collaborative and iterative content negotiation.
Identified learning styles with realistic timelines to achieve outcomes.
Design of a bespoke programme to ensure participants have ample opportunity to learn and reflect.
Inclusive Leadership Programme
Line Managers and Mentors of participants were provided with coaching to help participants through the programme and beyond.
Feedback surveys built into every session for participants, line managers, and mentors for continuous improvement.
Utilisation of We Create Space global collective to provide intersectional conversations and expertise throughout.
Post programme reflection and celebration in the office to foster additional engagement, continued learning, and allyship
"I found that this was the session that has made me really, really think and re-assess my own world view about myself… and I actually came away feeling emotional in a really positive way.” - Participant feedback on Session 6: Shaping My Purpose.
Outcomes:
LGBTQIA employee participants scored the entire programme with 100% satisfaction as a professional learning curriculum.
97% of the participants responded the content was very to extremely relevant to their role as a leader.
60% of participants said they feel extremely confident in their ability to use the skills they learned across all sessions vs 16% at the start of the programme.
91% of line managers and mentors rated the programme good to excellent.
Fairness and Justice was the most common reason amongst line managers and mentors to be allies.
While you're here...
Did you know we consult with Businesses, ERGs and Change-Leaders providing bespoke corporate solutions? Through consultancy we design shared learning experiences, produce DEI insights and craft bespoke content that support individuals with strengthening their roles as change-agents within their communities and organisations. Find out more here.
We also organise FREE community events throughout the year! We offer a variety of ways to get involved - both online and in person. This is a great way to network and learn more about others' experiences, through in-depth discussion on an array of topics. You can find out what events we have coming up here. New ones are added all the time, so make sure you sign up to our newsletter so you can stay up to date!
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