by Shaun Knittel - SGN Associate Editor

A new study by the Center for Talent Innovation (CTI) reveals important data on how employers can benefit from creating a workplace hospitable to their LGBT employees.

The report, titled The Power of Out 2.0, is based on a survey of 983 U.S. employees who self-identify as LGBT. Surveys were also conducted in India, Japan, and the U,K.

The Power of Out 2.0 builds on the influential study The Power of Out, which was released in the summer of 2011.

'After our 2011 work, we felt there was still much to explore with respect to how employers can make full use of their LGBT talent - specifically, the opportunity companies have to drive business and the bottom line by leveraging the leadership potential and connections of their LGBT employees and allies,' said study co-author Sylvia Ann Hewlett, founding president and CEO of CTI. 'Our new study finds that while progress has been made, discrimination remains pervasive. We outline a number of steps employers can take to improve the climate in the workplace and enable their LGBT employees to maximize their potential.'

LGBT employees and the broader LGBT community are often perceived as a homogenous group, notes co-author Todd Sears, principal of Coda Leadership Consulting LLC and founder of Out on the Street, an LGBT leadership organization based in the financial industry.

'This research provides critical detail,' said Sears. 'As companies continue to raise the bar in protecting and supporting their LGBT employees, we believe this data provides updated guidance on effective approaches and best practices. In addition, the research helps inform companies' efforts as they reach out to the LGBT market as a whole.'

MAJOR FINDINGS
Among the new study's findings are these:

? There has been a substantial increase in the number of LGBTs out at work: 59% in 2012, compared to 52% in 2011.

? Being open about their sexual orientation or gender identity gives LGBT professionals access to business opportunities through which they can exercise their leadership.

? A significant gender gap persists between LGB male and female employees with respect to how their LGB status benefits them in the workplace. Men are nearly twice as likely to consider their LGB identity an asset in the workplace.

? The creation of a workplace where LGBT talent can thrive is due in large part to allies. Twenty-four percent of LGBT workers credit their decision to come out professionally to allies in their workplace. While many straight employees define themselves as allies of their LGBT coworkers, only a small percentage - 12% of men and 23% of women - qualify as an 'active ally,' i.e., someone who has performed two or more LGBT-supporting actions, such as aiding a co-worker in his or her coming out or speaking up to co-workers in defense of LGBTs.

? LGBT women are more likely to face discrimination because of the 'double jeopardy' of gender and sexual orientation or gender identity - 74% of Lesbians say they encounter bias compared to 51% of Gay men.

? Discrimination continues to pressure LGBT individuals to resort to 'passing' as heterosexual. Twenty-three percent of men and 15% of women believe that changing their mannerisms, voice, or clothing, or hiding relationships or friendships, in order to 'pass' at work has helped their career.

? Bias and discrimination are an issue within the LGB community. Gay and Bisexual men are 114% more likely than women to report anti-LGB discrimination. Bisexual men and women are 59% less likely than Lesbians and Gay men to feel a part of the community.

MORE ABOUT CTI
The Center for Talent Innovation (formerly Center for Work-Life Policy), a nonprofit think tank based in New York City, has emerged as a thought leader in diversity and talent management, driving groundbreaking research and seeding programs and practices that attract, retain, and accelerate the new streams of talent around the world.

CTI's flagship project is the Task Force for Talent Innovation (formerly the Hidden Brain Drain Task Force) - a private-sector task force focused on helping corporations leverage their talent across the divides of gender, generation, and culture. The 75 global corporations and organizations that constitute the Task Force - representing 4 million employees and operating in 190 countries around the world - are united by the understanding that full utilization of the talent pool is at the heart of competitive advantage and economic success.

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