Konica Minolta’s Proud Voices

The month of June marks Pride month, a time to celebrate and advocate for the LGBTQ+ community. Konica Minolta is making strides in advancing LGBTQ+ equality by nurturing a work culture where everyone truly belongs. We take a multi-pronged, year-round approach to supporting our LGBTQ+ employees and allies, ensuring they are empowered day-in and day-out, not only during the month of June.

Below are 5 ways Konica Minolta is advocating for LGBTQ+ employees and allies:

#1 Nourishing Employee Networks

Vibrant is an employee resource group dedicated to fostering safe spaces for members of the LGBTQ+ community and allies within Konica Minolta. Led by a small group of employees determined to give voice to Konica Minolta’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender employees, the group has blossomed into a thriving support network. Looking ahead, Team Vibrant seeks to partner with Konica Minolta’s 39,000+ colleagues around the world to enhance the sense of community and drive meaningful change at work.

#2 Connecting with the Local Community

Konica Minolta is proud to have participated in the Asbury Park Pride Parade Walk this past Sunday. For employees based in our Ramsey, NJ headquarters and other local offices, the walk was a fantastic chance to demonstrate our support for the LGBTQ+ community and to celebrate diversity, equity and inclusion together.

#3 Emphasizing DEI Learning

Boosting the visibility of LGBTQ+ issues is a foundational aspect of our DEI strategy. Pursuant to that goal, the Vibrant team is hosting two learning sessions for employees during Pride month.

• Breaking the Grass Sideline: On Thursday, June 6, Sam Rapoport, Senior Director of Diversity & Inclusion at the National Football League (NFL) will discuss how to drive inclusive hiring and retention in a 104-year institution. Through her efforts, over 190 female coaching, scouting and operations candidates have been hired in a five-year period—a record number. As a member of the LGBTQ community, Sam is intimately aware of the challenges faced by underrepresented minorities, and will share powerful lessons learned for driving inclusion and belonging at work.
• Proud Voices: How Diverse Thinking Links to Business Success: On Thursday, June 20, employees will tune in for the Global Pride Webinar featuring the former CEO of Lloyd’s of London, Dame Inga Beale. Drawing on her own experience at Lloyd’s, Inga will discuss what it means to lead cultural change and steer a company through a technological transition without losing its core character. Inga will share her personal story, as well as how she advocates for inclusion in corporate organizations. Opening remarks will be delivered by the President & CEO of Konica Minolta Inc., Tom Taiko.

#4 Enhancing the Employee Experience

Employees stay with companies because of how they are treated each day while at work. We aim to evolve and improve our workplace culture with ongoing feedback from our employees. In an effort to drive internal support systems that embody our corporate values, we are pleased to promote the following activities this June:

• Pronouns: Out of respect to our co-workers (and customers) who are transgender, non-binary, genderqueer or any gender identity, it is important to learn how to properly use gender-inclusive and gender neutral language. We are encouraging employees to share pronouns in places like email signatures and Zoom profiles to minimize the stress that transgender people face by creating space for them to do the same. At the end of the day, it’s important to realize that no one’s pronouns should be assumed and sharing your pronouns is helpful for everyone!
• Pride Month Gmail Signature Logo: In honor of Pride Month, employees are able to show support for the LGBTQ+ community in their email signature by utilizing a branded signature that displays the Pride flag transforming into the Konica Minolta logo.
• Flying the Pride flag: The Pride flag will be prominently displayed at our North America corporate headquarters in Ramsey, New Jersey to signify the company’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion during the month of June.
• Gender Transition Policy: Transgender and non-binary people are increasingly visible in mainstream culture. Yet, according to the National Center for Transgender Equality, more than one in four transgender people have lost a job due to bias, and more than three-fourths have experienced some form of workplace discrimination. To help break down the barriers to workplace equality and belonging, Konica Minolta published a gender transition policy. The policy, along with toolkits, are designed to help trans employees, managers and colleagues to foster an inclusive environment where trans people can flourish.

#5 Leveraging Insights from Thought Leaders

We recognize that we don’t have all the answers to address inequality in our society. We frequently look to thought leaders such as Garden State Equality to support our efforts in dismantling discrimination and leveling the playing field. Garden State Equality has a robust toolkit of resources and templates on their website.

Addressing cultural norms through education and training as well as policy enhancements are fundamental facets of diversity, equity and inclusion work. We are taking a thoughtful approach to strengthening allyship across our business so that all employees are comfortable being their best selves. Promoting awareness, inclusion and allyship are critical inputs on our diversity, equity and inclusion journey that will enable the game-changing business results we work toward each day.