The LGBT Great team is delighted to announce a new joiner to the team – Clara O’Connor (she/her, ‘CoC’), LGBT Great’s new Project and Operations Analyst, sat down with Alex Gabbutt (he/him, ‘AG’), LGBT Great’s Executive Director and Head of Advisory to talk about all things LGBT Great, moving from Dublin and intersectionality.
AG: Clara, welcome! It’s great to have you here in the big smoke. It would be great to understand a little about your “journey” and what has brought you to LGBT Great.
CoC: Thanks Alex! So as a native of Dublin, Ireland, I started my career in Accenture’s strategy and consulting graduate programme, where I worked as a management consulting analyst for just over 2 years, focusing mainly on the Software & Platforms industry. I really enjoyed this role and was fortunate to have gained a wealth of experience during this time on projects, which exposed me to areas such as process redesign, systems optimisation, and business development, to name a few. On a side-desk basis, I was heavily involved in internal DE&I initiatives, both specifically in an LGBTQI+ and more widely intersectional context, which is why I was drawn to join LGBT Great as a Project and Operations Coordinator in December this year. The role is a perfect marriage between management consulting and professional DE&I, which utilises my skills in both areas, facilitating my personal and professional growth as a result- it’s a very exciting concept!
AG: Great stuff. How does it feel to be moving from a very large organisation to a small – if perfectly formed – startup?
CoC: Moving from an organisation of 733,000 people to just 9 is certainly an adjustment! When you boil it down, though, the business priorities, i.e. continuous improvement, growth and sustainability, are exactly the same, just on a smaller scale, which ties into my previous experience. My initial thoughts are that I really enjoy how close-knit the team are and as a result, how effortless cross-organisational communication is at LGBT Great. This makes setting priorities and subsequently achieving them a much faster process and allows more time for design thinking value adding activities, which is what I love to do. The closeness of the team also creates a wonderful working environment where we all support and motivate each other which is something unique to an organisation as small as this. All in all, the transition has been an extremely positive experience for me, helped immensely by the warmth and kindness of my new team.
AG: Financial services and professional services firms often face similar challenges. What did you see during your time at Accenture that you will bring to this role in respect of supporting our clients from an LGBTQ+ DE&I perspective?
CoC: As is the case with professional services, LGBTQ+ DE&I is crucial in financial services for fostering a workplace where diverse perspectives thrive, promoting innovation, attracting top LGBTQ+ talent, and ensuring a more comprehensive understanding of diverse customer needs and preferences in an increasingly intersectional marketplace. From my involvement in internal DE&I initiatives at Accenture, it became evident to me that weaving DE&I into the fabrics of an organisation enables their overarching strategy to align with ethical business practices and contribute to a reduction in homogeny within the industry to reflect society. I hope to bring this ideology to my new role to ensure our member firms understand the importance of an increased emphasis on DE&I at their organisations. This aims, in my opinion, to establish a deeper understanding of the unique needs of all stakeholders in the industry, which will facilitate its continued survival and growth in an increasingly competitive and diverse servicescape with a younger workforce.
AG: How we go about improving outcomes for this servicescape is an interesting and challenging question! One perspective here might, for example, centre the ideas of community and intersectionality. What are your thoughts?
CoC: I wholeheartedly agree Alex, as this underpins my perception of the LGBTQ+ community. For me, the LGBTQ+ community represents an intersectional network of individuals who have a common shared experience of existing outside of the ‘norm’ or ‘binary’ of societal standards which creates a unique sense of mutual understanding, community and kinship. It also represents allyship for those who support and embrace exiting outside of the norm and who will protect the interests of the community. For most LGBTQ+ individuals like me, coming to terms with existing in this community can be hard to fathom and difficult to accept at the beginning due to societal or familial pushback for example. The real beauty behind embracing one’s place within the community is the feeling of being accepted and understood for the first time and feeling a sense of belonging in a vibrant and culturally rich community which aligns with your values and is akin to your interests. The LGBTQ+ community for me also gives me a sense of ‘home away from home’ as the bond between members, known as ‘queer kinship’, creates a second family we choose, enabling us to find our people. I feel extremely fortunate to be a part of this vibrant community as it has given me the space to grow and flourish into the person I am today.
AG: You defined the LGBTQ+ community as an ‘intersectional network of individuals’ which is an interesting perspective. Could you elaborate on why, in your opinion, spotlighting intersectionality in the LGBTQ+ community is important?
CoC: Intersectionality is important as it recognises the multifaceted identities which exist in society and are paramount to understanding one’s unique needs and lived experiences. In the LGBTQ+ context for example, a queer man of colour has vastly different needs and experiences when compared to a trans disabled person; both of whom experience higher degrees of discrimination and oppression than a white cisgender queer man despite all belonging in the LGBTQ+ community. Although people may share common lived experiences within the LGBTQ+ community they are not one homogenous block and oftentimes the oppression that queer people face can be context dependent.
Queer women face misogyny, queer BIPOC face racial discrimination, etc. By failing to recognise these identities past queerness, we risk creating solutions and policy which are biased towards white cis-gay men thus underpinning the misogynistic and neocolonial systems put in place by the generations before which we are trying to move away from. Aside from highlighting these differences to work towards equality, intersectionality helps us celebrate those differences so marginalised groups can be uplifted and have their stories heard. By providing a more holistic worldview, placing an onus on intersectionality normalises that multiple things can exist at once, thus moving away from the ‘us vs them’ society of the past. For these reasons, it is, in my opinion, a critically important element when defining the LGBTQ+ community.
AG: It’s easy to see how an approach such as this is so beneficial to both community and workplace solidarity. Thank you for articulating your perspective so clearly, Clara! So returning, lastly, to this new role, have you set yourself any personal goals?
CoC: In short, I am hoping to achieve three objectives in my new role. Firstly, I hope to increase my current skillset through exposure to a new industry, organisation and objectives which will help me to grow both personally and professionally. As a small startup, agility and reactiveness are paramount for maintaining growth, which has been a fantastic experience for someone coming from such a large firm. Secondly, I hope to add 360-degree value and make meaningful and impactful change, bearing in mind LGBT Great’s company-wide objectives, such as empowering, 1,000,000 people by 2030 through programmes and initiatives. Finally, I hope to make a positive and lasting impact on the financial services industry and the people who operate in it through the work I do in my role. This goal might seem audacious; however, even if my work has a positive impact on one person, then I have achieved what I set out to in this role – making positive and impactful changes for the LGBTQ+ community using my skills and expertise.
AG: I don’t think it sounds audacious at all! I think we all share that common goal of improving outcomes and making impactful and positive change for our clients and the wider LGBTQ+ community! I look forward to working with you to making those goals a reality.
CoC: Likewise, Alex, I’m thrilled to be a part of such a wonderful team and can’t wait to achieve “Great” things here.
--- Clara O’Connor is Project and Operations Anlayst at LGBT Great. You can get in touch with her at clara@lgbtgreat.com
Alex Gabbutt is Executive Director and Head of Advisory at LGBT Great. You can get in touch with him at alex@lgbtgreat.com.
