Simon White, General Counsel EMEA LATAM at technology company Cognizant, embraces disruption to drive global business and believes in performing with purpose. He is a champion of diversity and inclusion, and a true role model within the legal industry. In a recent interview, he shared his personal D&I journey in the legal industry and the challenges he faced as someone who is part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Below, Simon shares with Corporate Counsel Advance four tactics that will incite change, disrupt the status-quo, and generate an open discussion around D&I. The strategies that Simon highlights are incredibly impactful, they can be made without leaving your desk and without the need for requesting a budget.

  1. Change your email signature.

Think about how many emails you send every day. This is a platform – use it!! A simple change can be to add pronouns to your email signature. For example, my email signature says "Simon White (pronouns: he/him)". Whether the pronouns by which someone refers to you are important to you or not, understand for some people, the use of a seemingly simple pronoun can be devastating. Think about someone with a first name with several syllables, such as Jonathan – friends or colleagues might abbreviate it when referring to you, "Hey, Jon" – some people will be fine with that, other won't. By adding this to your email signature, you are simply saying I support everyone to define themselves as they want. Its about basic respect. This simple, small act can start a chain reaction for a better community. If you don't want put pronouns, put a tag-line to say "I support BLM", "I am an ally to my LGBTQ+ colleagues", put a rainbow flag. The question is not "why should I put a rainbow flag on my email signature – I am not gay". The question should be "why am I not willing to put a symbol which says I support equality all?"

  1. Self-reflection.

Stop for five minutes and think about the conversations, email and things you have done today and what you are going to do tomorrow. What have you done to actively show you support diversity, inclusion and equality? It is all too easy to say "I support D&I, I don't' discriminate" but unless you are willing to actively demonstrate this, we will never move the needle. Change needs energy and drive. If you are strong and confident enough to feel happy in all you do, lend that energy to someone else and support them. So in those five minutes reflect, what could I have actively done – did you hear micro-aggression, those low level discriminatory things that many of us shrug off as a simple joke or "he didn't really mean that" and challenge them. In your last meeting did you actively try to get everyone in the room/call to contribute? Don't wait for top-down culture change, drive it within what you do.

  1. Start the conversation. 

You do not need to be a HR or D&I professional to start the conversation (but see 4. below). In fact, you can start the conversation out of ignorance. If you want to support equality, diversity and inclusion, talk to your team, either one on one or in a team meeting. At the end of a team meeting, ask everyone round the table – what did we discuss today that drove D&I forward? You don't need the answers but start the conversation.

  1. Educate yourself.

You do not need to read every book on the shelves of Harvard Business School to be an effective champion of diversity, inclusion and equality. BUT we do all need to learn more.  The internet is full of podcasts, short articles and clips which you can listen to for five to ten minutes. Read, listen and learn. And then don't keep those thoughts inside (see 3 above!).