Hillary Clinton supports London LGBT corporate summit
Chief executives from some of the world’s largest companies will come together to discuss how the financial services industry can advance LGBT equality in a move which has the backing of Hillary Clinton.
The Out on the Street summit will be held in London on Tuesday 13 November 2012, at the global headquarters of the law firm Clifford Chance and has the support of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
In a letter to the organisers, Mrs Clinton writes: “The inaugural Out on the Street summit in Europe is an exciting opportunity to connect with one another and share strategies on how to advance the rights of LGBT individuals in the workplace and beyond, and to underscore why this issue matters for the industry”.
Todd Sears, the founder of Out on the Street, said: “When I created Out on the Street two years ago my primary objective was to leverage the collective power of the titans of financial services as an agent of change.
“To date, we have already made an unprecedented impact by bringing together more than 600 senior business leaders – 70% of whom are managing-director level or higher – and eleven member companies with more than $630 billion (£385 billion) in market capitalisation, in support of LGBT equality.”
Lord Browne, former group chief executive of BP, will moderate a panel comprised of Paul Reed, CEO Integrated Supply Trading, BP; James Leigh-Pemberton, CEO United Kingdom, Credit Suisse; Simon Collins, United Kingdom chairman, senior partner, KPMG; and John Haley, CEO, Towers Watson.
They will speak about their companies’ support for LGBT equality and their personal commitment to advancing LGBT rights.
Lord Browne, who also has been talking about his own experience of being gay and a corporate leader to the Sunday Telegraph, said: “It is essential that business leaders make sure that LGBT people feel included in the workplace and not inadvertently excluded by thoughtless acts big and small.
“We do need more role models. No one should underestimate the impact of having successful and openly gay people working at companies, particularly at a senior level.”
Antony Jenkins, chief executive of Barclays, said: “Equality is critically important to Barclays because it helps to ensure that we provide our customers and clients with the best possible service.
“That’s why we support events such as Out on the Street. By using the collective power of the financial services industry, we can accelerate the pace of change across the LGBT community.”
