Afqad Arshad, Chair of the Pride Network at Siemens UK and Ireland, explains how the network has engaged with more Allies and helped to create a more inclusive culture
Afqad Arshad has been the Chair for the Pride Network at Siemens UK and Ireland, for the past two years. He says he is committed to fostering an environment that celebrates LGBTQI+ diversity and that the network’s objectives are threefold.
Firstly, he wants to create a place where people can connect and bring their whole selves to work, adding, “We want everyone to feel welcome and safe.” His second aim is to spread awareness about the network outside of the core membership and attract Allies. The third part of the network’s focus is to celebrate its membership and who they are. He says, “We are inclusive about everything that we do so that others across the business see our community.”
Afqad is originally from Pakistan and has had a challenging personal journey. At Siemens he was assigned a mentor in the company who helped him to become open about his sexuality. “It was life changing both personally and professionally” he says. He subsequently became involved in the Pride network, realising he could support and be a role model to other LGBTQ+ Siemens employees. He says, “Sharing personal stories is a very powerful way of spreading awareness and the more we talk about these topics, the more understanding we create. There are some people who still can’t be themselves so if I can do something to help them, that is all I want to achieve.”
The network is growing in numbers and Afqad says, “It is an evolving picture – both in terms of new members joining, senior leaders and allies becoming involved and more people coming to Pride parades.”
Afqad emphasises the importance of intersectionality and for other marginalised groups to understand each other. He cites a key achievement that he believes reflects the network’s impact and success. He says an Ally who doesn’t identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community has recently joined the network as a member of the committee. He says, “The fact that we have Allies on board who are not part of the LGBTQI+ community sends a very strong message that what we do is of value and others are seeing it.”
Pride has made Allies with other networks such as the Women’s Network and joined up where there are synergies. One powerful example is both networks committing to the company’s Menopause Declaration and having Menopause Champions. Afqad says, “Menopause not only affects women but Trans women and men. It is important for line managers to understand those signs because otherwise you might miss something critical about an individual’s health, mental wellbeing and performance.”
The network has focused on some of the issues affecting the Trans community over the past year and this has brought new Allies. Afqad says that for the first time last year, the network organised a two-minute vigil, for the Transgender Day of Remembrance, to recognise those murdered in the community. He says, “The whole company took part, and we also marked it on LinkedIn so others could join us. We shared statistics which were very powerful as it showed how the Trans community is still affected.”
Afqad says that Pride has had a significant impact on the company’s internal policy. For instance, the business displays the Pride flag outside all of its buildings, year-round. He says, “ The display of inclusive flags at our sites is a symbol to our community that we at Siemens welcome people with marginalised characteristics whilst embracing and celebrating who they are.”
The network has also supported the senior leadership team with training on how and when to use Pronouns. He explains, “User Pronouns are not just for people using them, we provided support and advice more widely to people who may feel reluctant to use them, or don’t know how to approach conversations about using them and we received very positive feedback.“
Afqad says employee networks are growing, and they bring huge benefits to organisations and employees: “They help people connect, help people be themselves and drive the change they want to see.” He is most proud of the fact that people don’t have to think twice about coming to talk to the network: “It really is like a family running the network, we support each other, listen to each other and learn from each other.”
