Globe’s Top Firms: Why LGBTQ+ Inclusion is Good for Business

The background: The ‘noisy backlash’

The report makes one thing very clear – businesses should ignore the “noisy backlash” against ESG and press ahead with embedding LGBTQ+ inclusion into their strategies.

So what does it mean when it talks about the backlash?

The report says: “The rapid uptake of ESG has been followed by a backlash; partly a politicised attack on so-called ‘woke capitalism’, but also some genuine concern and confusion.”

It goes on to bust some myths, including:

1 – Companies are stepping back from ESG – it was a fad

Finding: “While companies are becoming more considered in their communications on ESG issues, evidence suggests initiatives and actions continuing apace. When it comes to LGBTQ+ inclusion, some say we’ve reached ‘peak pride’. On the contrary, as this report shows, corporate support is deep-rooted and anchored in drivers of business success.”

2 – ESG ratings are a mess – simplistic, confused and inconsistent

Finding: “ESG is a nascent field, and these are intrinsically complicated topics – it’s not surprising ratings have challenges. On LGBTQ+ inclusion, assessing corporate performance is especially complex.”

3 – ESG runs counter to fiduciary responsibility

Finding: “. Legal opinion holds that fiduciary duty not only permits business leaders to consider the interests of a broader range of stakeholders, it may actually require them to do so.

“In this report we show the commercial imperatives for including LGBTQ+ people in the range of corporate stakeholders.”

4 – ESG is politically motivated ideology

Finding: “Many ESG issues directly hit the bottom line – it is therefore commercial imperatives that drive company engagement with them, not political ideology.”