July 31, 2024 • 24 mins
Welcome to the LYB podcast series, where we discuss the 2023 Sustainability Report titled Everyday Sustainability. In this third episode of our three-part series, we focus on the crucial challenge of supporting a thriving society through Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
Our guest, LYB Chief DEI Officer Kyle Pierce, shares his remarkable career journey that spanned 77 countries in five years, leading him to his current role. Kyle delves into the challenges and triumphs he faced while convincing people of the company's commitment to DEI, the importance of coming out to his boss, and the pivotal moments that led him to embrace DEI as a career path.
Throughout the episode, Kyle discusses the company's DEI initiatives, including the formation of employee networks, the integration of DEI into corporate values and competencies, and the measurable achievements that underscore their commitment. He also addresses common misconceptions about DEI, emphasizing that it is about equity and inclusion for all employees, not just specific groups.
Join us as Kyle offers valuable insights and advice for those navigating similar journeys, highlighting the importance of being open to new opportunities and the courage to be oneself in the workplace. This episode is a testament to the transformative power of DEI in creating a supportive and inclusive work environment.
Read the full LYB sustainability report on LYB.com and stay updated with all related news and future podcast episodes. Connect with us on social media: LinkedIn: LyondellBasell Facebook: LyondellBasell Instagram: LyondellBasell X: @LyondellBasell
LEGAL DISCLAIMER FOR FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:
The statements in this podcast relating to matters that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions of management of LyondellBasell which are believed to be reasonable at the time made and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially based on factors including, but not limited to, market conditions, the business cyclicality of the chemical, polymers and refining industries; the availability, cost and price volatility of raw materials and utilities, particularly the cost of oil, natural gas, and associated natural gas liquids; our ability to successfully implement initiatives identified pursuant to our Value Enhancement Program and generate anticipated earnings; competitive product and pricing pressures; labor conditions; our ability to attract and retain key personnel; operating interruptions (including leaks, explosions, fires, weather-related incidents, mechanical failure, unscheduled downtime, supplier disruptions, labor shortages, strikes, work stoppages or other labor difficulties, transportation interruptions, spills and releases and other environmental risks); the supply/demand balances for our and our joint ventures’ products, and the related effects of industry production capacities and operating rates; our ability to manage costs; future financial and operating results; benefits and synergies of any proposed transactions; receipt of required regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of closing conditions for our proposed transactions; final investment decision and the construction and operation of any proposed facilities described; our ability to align our assets and expand our core; legal and environmental proceedings; tax rulings, consequences or proceedings; technological developments, and our ability to develop new products and process technologies; our ability to meet our sustainability goals, including the ability to operate safely, increase produc
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
My region of operation was Europe and Middle East, and so I spent a lot of my
time traveling the world for the consulting company.
So I've been to 77 countries in five years.
You take on this big, huge initiative, DEI. Yeah.
So that kind of says a lot right there, but yes.
(00:22):
Yeah, I think the first big challenge was that convincing people that we were
really committed and serious about the effort.
Around coming out to your boss, what made you do it then? What was the time
frame? What was going on in your life? What made you decide that now was the right time to do this?
It was driven because basically, I got engaged.
(00:43):
Actually, I told my boss right before I was getting ready to propose, to be honest with you.
For us as a company to succeed, we need everybody's talents leveraged against everybody else.
So it's us against everybody else. It's not us against us.
Welcome to the Lionel Bissell podcast series. We're discussing the 2023 Sustainability
(01:05):
Report titled Everyday Sustainability.
Today is the third in our three-part series where we focus on the third challenge
of the Sustainability Report, supporting a thriving society.
And diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives from his perspective in the
(01:26):
company. Welcome, Kyle.
Thank you. Thank you. Happy to be here. And now you're in Houston.
You're in charge of DEI. So tell us how then your career journey,
which spanned 77 countries in five years and all these different jobs, how it led you to DEI.
You know, it's an interesting kind of analysis or I guess decision because it
(01:47):
really wasn't on the kind of career radar, if you will.
Most of my experiences have been somewhat related, right?
I think if you can chart a path for engineering from manufacturing to business
commercial, it made sense.
When the DEI opportunity came along, I was initially very hesitant about the
(02:08):
opportunity because I felt it was a little bit too much of a deviation from
my- From your technical background.
From my technical and my commercial and business background,
I had a different aspirations in terms of, I want to stay in the business.
And I wasn't really sure why they were asking me either because I had really
put it in my mind that it was more of a kind of people and culture, HR type function.
(02:29):
Sure. I tell people I've had seven jobs in 12 years. I've never said no to a
job yet because I'm curious about and I like challenges.
Didn't appreciate the nature of this challenge, but I like challenges.
And so I think the company, well, they've told me since then is that they wanted
somebody internal to the company for this effort who had already established
(02:52):
relationships with people within the organization, in the business, in the functions.
And so I had done that because basically I traveled around these,
had a variety of different opportunities.
And so I think I was well-suited from that kind of angle from them,
but I wasn't completely sold, I would say.
So what was the thing that actually made you decide, this is something that
(03:14):
I want to explore for this company?
Yeah, it was a couple of things, right? I think the first thing was I was kind
of involved in our efforts around DEI before we were calling
it DEI, if you will, in terms of like recruiting from some HBCUs and also participating
in this stuff to kind of, for instance,
honor Black History Month or do this or, you know. So I was involved from that standpoint.
(03:38):
And I've also been involved some stuff, nonprofits. So I've been involved.
Kind of it's in me, you know, if you will. But I think what was kind of pushing
me over the edge, I would say, was a few things.
One was the companies at that time, well, insistence and the commitment around
doing it. We realize that's how important it is.
(04:00):
And we're going to be committed to the process. We're going to be committed to doing this.
And their insistence around that. And so that was important to me because I
had took the time to research it and I knew that these things didn't work if
we didn't have strong commitment.
And then I think for me, it was a bit of my own personal experience around inclusion
(04:21):
and acceptance. Acceptance.
Because part of my story and my journey, if you will, is that for me,
Lion Doble Cell has been the company that has accepted me fully as who I am.
Because when I transitioned to that refining job, the first refining job,
I actually came out to my boss. You did? Yeah. Yeah, I did.
(04:42):
And that was a big moment for me because I've spent, you know,
20 some odd years in my career and I never felt comfortable sharing that part
of myself at work. But I felt comfortable at that time.
And again, this was pre-DEI to share with my boss and I got that courage to do that.
And I was completely and utterly accepted by him and the rest of the team.
(05:03):
And it was for the first time I felt very valued in my job and very supported.
And so I thought we have the right ingredient here because we're already kind
of practicing this, even though we're not talking about it.
And if I have the opportunity to help somebody else have that same experience.
Whether they're a woman, whether they're a man, whatever they're going through,
(05:26):
being kind of accepted, then maybe that would be a good opportunity for me to
kind of lean in and, you know, pay it forward a little bit. it.
So that weighed on my mind too a little bit.
And all those things together made me say, well, you know, I'll take the deviation.
I'll see what it's like. And all my experience doesn't go away if it didn't
(05:46):
work out. You experienced it firsthand. Right. Absolutely.
Feeling like, you know, a DEI initiative before there was one there,
what that could do for other employees.
Around coming out to your boss, what made you do it then? What was the timeframe?
What was going on in your life, what made you decide that now was the right
time to do this? It was driven because basically I got engaged.
(06:09):
Actually, I told my boss right before I was getting ready to propose, to be honest with you.
You felt like it had to come out. It had to come out, right,
because, you know, we spent so much time at work.
We're here all the time, you know, and it's just human nature to say, how's your weekend?
How's it going on? How's your wife? You know, just for people to assume that
you're straight and just to carry on.
(06:31):
And so every time that happens, it takes a little bit of mental gymnastics.
Yes, to remember the right pronoun. pronoun or remember the right word or just
to realize that you're different.
And it's a natural conversation to have. You don't want to have to hide any
loved ones or you have to acknowledge that.
(06:53):
And I thought, hey, he's out.
He's been out. He's always lived his life out. And I thought it would be very disrespectful to him.
I love him, you know, and I didn't want to hide him from anybody.
And so I wanted to, I knew that I had to do that for him.
I was prepared for a bad outcome on because I didn't know. Yeah,
I was going to say, were you surprised? What did you think was going to happen?
(07:13):
Well, I wasn't sure because at that time, you know, we didn't have a True Colors network.
You know, we didn't have any kind of representation around gay people at our company.
And so I didn't even know anybody else at Lyondell Purcell who was gay.
Really? So I just was like, I have no idea what's going to happen in this space.
(07:33):
And I didn't know him that well. Your manager.
Yeah, I didn't know him that well. I just knew that for me, I had to say something
and take the chance because I was going into a new phase in my life,
which I thought was very a happy phase, but that I had to go forth.
And I thought, too, I'll be a new person in this group.
(07:54):
So it'll be a little bit easier if I come in as gay.
They don't know you otherwise. They don't know me otherwise,
right? That's exactly what I was thinking.
And so I was very afraid. And my husband and I, we had conversations and he
said, well, you know, what's the worst going to happen?
And I said, well, I can get fired or something, you know, because it's not like
(08:15):
it's a lot of protections, right? In that way, right?
And so he said, okay, well, then if that's what we'll just, you'll get a job somewhere else.
And so I was prepared for the possibility of getting fired or my career being
curtailed or being treated differently.
And I said, hey, if that's the case, I've been working here all this time and
I've had I had a good experience, but because at that point I had been here five years.
(08:37):
So I said. Which is a significant amount of time to be with a company.
Yeah, for sure. You know, you're
invested at that point. I was very much invested and I actually liked it.
I actually liked the company. And so I was concerned a bit, but I knew my mental kind of well-being.
Depended on it. Depended on it. And it wasn't just that five years I was here,
but also the previous years that I spent in other companies and being in kind
(08:59):
of conservative kind of engineering type thing. So I never felt,
able. Sure. So I was prepared and I had braced myself, but I was very happy about the outcome.
Clearly you didn't get fired because you're still here and now you're leading
up the DEI initiatives at this company.
What was that like for you? Because I know that could not have been easy in
(09:22):
the age of DEI, like you're forging a new territory in a really big global company.
Yeah. So that kind of says a lot right there, but yes.
Yeah, I think the first big challenge was that convincing people that we were
really committed and serious about the effort because people had worked here
(09:43):
so many years and they hadn't seen much evidence of that.
And so there was a big challenge.
I think that's where my reputation a little bit helped because I was able to
tell people, say, I wouldn't do it if it wasn't serious.
You know, I wouldn't risk my reputation on this.
I'm being serious. We really are serious about this. And so I think that first
year, it was very difficult.
(10:05):
I couldn't get anybody to work for me. I distinctly remember that nobody in
HR was willing to take the job because they weren't sure that the group would still be around.
And so I had to go external or and actually I had to go external to HR and try
to convince other people.
Like I took a couple people with finance who I had known.
(10:26):
I said, oh, yeah, let's transition. Would you like to make a career transition to DEI? Exactly.
You can do it. You can think about it. So that was a big, big, big challenge.
And then it was the other challenge initially, like, what is it?
You know, what do you mean? What does that look like for us?
And so we spent that first year really doing a lot of education around that,
(10:47):
what it is, what we're trying to do.
And in true Lionel Bissell fashion, you know, we had identified,
we had a comprehensive DEI kind of program we weren't going to do. And we had.
Seven initiatives that were part of the overarching kind of strategy.
And so in a true fashion, we decided we're going to start on all of them at
(11:08):
one time. Why not? Why not?
Yeah, because we have been doing this and we got to get quick to it. So it was exhausting.
We started to make really good traction after we launched the employee networks
and people started to see kind of pragmatically what it felt like and what we
were trying to accomplish. How did you get people to start joining then?
(11:29):
What do you think turned things around?
Was it the start of the employee networks or was it just seeing that you were
really making some progress?
Yeah, the employee networks was our first initiative.
We started there because we had done research and it showed kind of these populations
of people who were really disenfranchised at the company. OK. Right.
(11:49):
And so we really wanted to start with our most pressing issue,
because, of course, that affects retention, that affects, you know,
workplace happiness, everything.
And so the employee networks were something that we were able to launch in a
very visible way and to demonstrate that we're changing.
And then the other stuff kind of came behind it as more of like reinforcing
(12:12):
and kind of more of like this is how the whole strategy is evolving.
And then we went right into training.
By the end of the first year, I think people were like, OK, I'm starting to understand this.
And we started to get a lot more traction with people joining and people engaging.
And what were those employee networks? We started, the first four we started
(12:32):
with was we had a Black network, a women's network, a young professionals network,
and a gay network, LGBTQ plus network.
And interestingly enough, this is another thing that was funny.
Most people don't probably know this, so I'll tell a little secret,
is that we had a consultant that was helping us initially with this is what
(12:53):
you should do, your strategy and all that kind of stuff.
And they said to us at one time, hey, you can't do a gay network now because
your company is not ready for a gay network.
And I just was like, wow, that's funny. It was an interesting conversation,
but it's been, it's worked fine. It's been fine.
(13:13):
And we actually, it's a growing network and we're happy about the people who
have joined, how proud they actually were celebrating Pride Month again.
It's been a great experience. So you come from all these different job backgrounds,
your technical background, your business background.
How did you use that in your role as chief DEI officer? How did that help you?
Actually, it helped me a lot in that I never approached it from a,
(13:38):
you should do DEI because it's the right thing to do.
I never approached it that way because I don't think that's enough because everybody's
thoughts around what's the right thing to do or why you do something is all over the place. Right.
And so I always approached it like any business initiative, any business project,
(14:00):
any from a real problem solving kind of approach.
And I think that's been helpful because this is a business problem.
What are the inputs? What are going to be the outputs?
And how do we drive action? And I had an urgency around it.
All business imperatives to me need urgency around them, especially when you're
dealing with organizations as large as lined up a cell with competing priorities.
(14:22):
And you have to push stuff while you have the window of opportunity,
while you have the attention.
And so I was very insistent on making sure that we had goals and projects,
deliverables and milestones around each pillar, and that we're pushing things
from a very strategic and business-oriented way.
So I think I learned all of that outside of HR. Yeah, you talk about just it
(14:46):
being a company-wide initiative.
And to formalize DEI, what were some of the things that you needed?
Because it is very much embedded in the fabric of the company now,
but was it always that way?
How did that come about? It was not at all.
I mean, obviously, it's in the sustainability report now, so it's a big part
of it. It's a big part of our sustainability objectives.
We had to do a couple of things, right? The education was, like I said,
(15:09):
we mentioned a lot about the education and it was a lot of education that actually
went even to our senior leadership about what we were trying to accomplish,
what our people meant to us.
And so that was a lot of what we did. But right after that,
being the engineering data driven company that we are, we immediately pivoted
to getting kind of gender parity goals and URP, which underrepresented goals
(15:31):
approved by the board, which I think was the first kind of stake in the ground saying,
hey, we are serious about this and we're going to put a marker in the sand that
drives activity. Right.
And so that was a big, big, big milestone.
And then as we kind of revamped our strategy and our corporate brand,
(15:52):
we had an opportunity with the pillar.
We champion the people say what's most important to us. Right.
And we heard from so many employees about what's important to them.
And DEI was one of the top things that was really important to them as employees of the company.
So then we had another opportunity to put that in our values.
So now it's in our values under we champion people.
(16:12):
We talk about how DEI is important to the values of the company.
And then finally we thought, well, you know, when we talk about our values,
we talk about our strategies, we were doing, redoing our competencies.
And so we thought, what are key competencies that we want leaders and people to own and have?
And then again, DEI came through in the competencies, so we're able to put.
(16:34):
A competency focused on inclusion for everyone. And so those three things are
really key to having an excellent foundation to grow on, because we now we're
saying that this is part of our values,
this is part of our competencies, how we work, and we have goals.
And so we've expanded the goals a little bit more than just the representation piece.
(16:55):
And obviously, you see in the sustainability report, we have goals around fairness
and belonging and employee network participation.
DEI is treated just like any other kind of business initiatives where you have
metrics and goals, and we're tracking, and we're implementing programs around it.
Metrics, goals, and also achievements. What are some of the main achievements
over the past year that you're really proud of?
(17:16):
I'm proud that recently we were selected by the Houston Business Journal as
one of of the most outstanding organizations with DES.
So that's very important. And we also won two awards in China that are kind of equivalent for that.
So actually China was first, so I was really happy about that.
We continue to see very, very, very high levels of engagement in employee networks.
(17:37):
In fact, when you look at our MyVoice and our surveying for employees who are
engaged in employee networks, in every marker, every indicator,
They're higher than the regular population.
So that's something I'm very proud of. And I think the other thing I'm really
proud of is that when people join employee networks, we ask them,
(17:57):
are you joining because you're a member of the employee network?
You identify with the employee network or if you're being an ally.
We're approaching 30% of our population joins the network to ally.
Really important to me because that means that people are understanding what
it means to be an ally and how important that is to our strategies and to supporting one another.
(18:18):
What are some of the common misconceptions surrounding DEI and DEI initiatives?
So there's a lot of misconceptions. It's unfortunate in that it's been really explained wrong.
But what I tell people most of the time is that we're focused on equity.
And that's from a process standpoint, from a policy standpoint,
on making sure that everybody has an equitable experience right here at the company.
(18:40):
And then we're focused on inclusion because we want everybody to be valued and they belong.
And then if you do both of those really well, you'll end up with diversity.
So diversity is the outcome.
We don't spend too much time on working on diversity.
It It happens because it's an outcome of how you kind of push your culture forward.
So that's one of the things that I think people sometimes think that we're trying to force diversity.
(19:03):
And that's not exact. That's not what we're trying to do. We're just trying
to level the playing field and give everybody an opportunity.
We say all the time we're not mandating an outcome. We're mandating that everybody have opportunity.
I think along with that, I think a big one that we don't talk about as much.
I hear it, but sometimes people think that diversity means that we're only talking
about people of color or that we're only talking about gay people or only talking about women.
(19:28):
We're only talking about disabled people or a lot of go down the list and that
we're not talking about or that we don't value people who are not diverse or
who are overrepresented, if you will.
And that's not true. True. We need everybody at the table and we need everybody
working together and that everything that we're doing is centered around equity
(19:49):
for all and inclusion for all.
So if you think about, like, for instance, our hiring process,
some of the things that we've changed, we did not change them just for brown
people. We changed that for everybody.
So when we said we have to post jobs for everybody, everybody gets to apply.
So everybody gets an opportunity.
So what I want people to understand is that when we say equity, we mean equity for all.
(20:14):
When we say inclusion, we mean inclusion for all. And when we say diversity,
we mean everybody in the company.
And we're not making any distinction about who's included. We want everybody
involved, and everybody is important, and everybody brings different talents to the table.
For us as a company to succeed, we need everybody's talents leveraged against everybody else.
(20:38):
So it's us against everybody else. It's not us against us.
What is the company doing externally on DEI, and why would you invite people
to come work for Lionel Bissell? We're committed. We're committed.
OK. And then I think it's obvious that we're committed when I tell you we're
in the competencies and our values and whatever.
And not every company can say that. Right. So I think we're very committed to equity and fairness.
(21:00):
And we believe that. And we have a lot of structure in place to try to progress
that. So I think that anybody looking for an opportunity to join an organization
that is committed should consider us, right?
And I think that in the hiring space, there are always going to be opportunities,
especially when you think about our strategy in terms of upgrading the core
(21:22):
and growing to other businesses.
There are always going to be opportunities for us to attract talented people.
And I think part of the deal with us with DEI is that we want to be able to
attract talented people, but we also want to be able to retain our good people as well, right?
And so I think there's a lot of opportunity for people to come and join us and
be a part of this journey.
(21:42):
You've had such a rich journey yourself, so many different experiences working
here and all the personal experiences you've been through as well.
So I think before I let you go, I'd like to know what's the one piece of advice
that really stuck with you over the years and what advice would you give someone
that's maybe a younger version of yourself kind of going through or experiencing
the same thing right now?
(22:03):
For me, because of my experience, I look back at my career. And I say, wow, I'd say two things.
Never be afraid to accept a different opportunity or something that doesn't
necessarily fit into your master plan.
I just be intellectually open minded. I think that that would be always what
(22:23):
I would recommend to people.
And I think the other part, it's probably going to sound corny,
but it's true, is that I wish I had the courage to be myself earlier in my career
because I think that my full self,
if you will, or I had found an opportunity or organizations that would have
supported me to be in my full self.
(22:45):
Because I think it would have saved me so much mental anguish and would have
allowed me to be even greater,
have even greater impact on a company and organization because I wouldn't have
had that pressure to cover, which would, it's obviously it's going to take away
from me being the best employee I can be, right?
(23:05):
So I would hope that people now, at least people at Lyondell who may be going
through similar things, don't have that pressure and they can add to the fabric
of the company in a more effective, efficient way without having to go through that.
So I think that's one of the things that I would suggest.
Love it. It's great advice. And, you know, we appreciate you so much coming
(23:28):
on, telling your story and sharing your DEI perspective, Kyle.
Thanks so much for the time.
Thank you. And if you want to check out the sustainability report,
you can download LYB's full sustainability report at lyb.com.
That's actually going to wrap up our three-part series on the sustainability
report, But we have more podcasts coming up soon, including a one-on-one with
(23:48):
CEO Peter Vanegers. So be sure to like and subscribe and tune in.
But for now, thank you so much for listening to the Sustainability Podcast Series at Lion Delta Zone.
My region of operation was Europe and Middle East, and so I spent a lot of my
time traveling the world for the consulting company.
So I've been to 77 countries in five years.
You take on this big, huge initiative, DEI. Yeah.
So that kind of says a lot right there, but yes.
(00:22):
Yeah, I think the first big challenge was that convincing people that we were
really committed and serious about the effort.
Around coming out to your boss, what made you do it then? What was the time
frame? What was going on in your life? What made you decide that now was the right time to do this?
It was driven because basically, I got engaged.
(00:43):
Actually, I told my boss right before I was getting ready to propose, to be honest with you.
For us as a company to succeed, we need everybody's talents leveraged against everybody else.
So it's us against everybody else. It's not us against us.
Welcome to the Lionel Bissell podcast series. We're discussing the 2023 Sustainability
(01:05):
Report titled Everyday Sustainability.
Today is the third in our three-part series where we focus on the third challenge
of the Sustainability Report, supporting a thriving society.
And diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives from his perspective in the
(01:26):
company. Welcome, Kyle.
Thank you. Thank you. Happy to be here. And now you're in Houston.
You're in charge of DEI. So tell us how then your career journey,
which spanned 77 countries in five years and all these different jobs, how it led you to DEI.
You know, it's an interesting kind of analysis or I guess decision because it
(01:47):
really wasn't on the kind of career radar, if you will.
Most of my experiences have been somewhat related, right?
I think if you can chart a path for engineering from manufacturing to business
commercial, it made sense.
When the DEI opportunity came along, I was initially very hesitant about the
(02:08):
opportunity because I felt it was a little bit too much of a deviation from
my- From your technical background.
From my technical and my commercial and business background,
I had a different aspirations in terms of, I want to stay in the business.
And I wasn't really sure why they were asking me either because I had really
put it in my mind that it was more of a kind of people and culture, HR type function.
(02:29):
Sure. I tell people I've had seven jobs in 12 years. I've never said no to a
job yet because I'm curious about and I like challenges.
Didn't appreciate the nature of this challenge, but I like challenges.
And so I think the company, well, they've told me since then is that they wanted
somebody internal to the company for this effort who had already established
(02:52):
relationships with people within the organization, in the business, in the functions.
And so I had done that because basically I traveled around these,
had a variety of different opportunities.
And so I think I was well-suited from that kind of angle from them,
but I wasn't completely sold, I would say.
So what was the thing that actually made you decide, this is something that
(03:14):
I want to explore for this company?
Yeah, it was a couple of things, right? I think the first thing was I was kind
of involved in our efforts around DEI before we were calling
it DEI, if you will, in terms of like recruiting from some HBCUs and also participating
in this stuff to kind of, for instance,
honor Black History Month or do this or, you know. So I was involved from that standpoint.
(03:38):
And I've also been involved some stuff, nonprofits. So I've been involved.
Kind of it's in me, you know, if you will. But I think what was kind of pushing
me over the edge, I would say, was a few things.
One was the companies at that time, well, insistence and the commitment around
doing it. We realize that's how important it is.
(04:00):
And we're going to be committed to the process. We're going to be committed to doing this.
And their insistence around that. And so that was important to me because I
had took the time to research it and I knew that these things didn't work if
we didn't have strong commitment.
And then I think for me, it was a bit of my own personal experience around inclusion
(04:21):
and acceptance. Acceptance.
Because part of my story and my journey, if you will, is that for me,
Lion Doble Cell has been the company that has accepted me fully as who I am.
Because when I transitioned to that refining job, the first refining job,
I actually came out to my boss. You did? Yeah. Yeah, I did.
(04:42):
And that was a big moment for me because I've spent, you know,
20 some odd years in my career and I never felt comfortable sharing that part
of myself at work. But I felt comfortable at that time.
And again, this was pre-DEI to share with my boss and I got that courage to do that.
And I was completely and utterly accepted by him and the rest of the team.
(05:03):
And it was for the first time I felt very valued in my job and very supported.
And so I thought we have the right ingredient here because we're already kind
of practicing this, even though we're not talking about it.
And if I have the opportunity to help somebody else have that same experience.
Whether they're a woman, whether they're a man, whatever they're going through,
(05:26):
being kind of accepted, then maybe that would be a good opportunity for me to
kind of lean in and, you know, pay it forward a little bit. it.
So that weighed on my mind too a little bit.
And all those things together made me say, well, you know, I'll take the deviation.
I'll see what it's like. And all my experience doesn't go away if it didn't
(05:46):
work out. You experienced it firsthand. Right. Absolutely.
Feeling like, you know, a DEI initiative before there was one there,
what that could do for other employees.
Around coming out to your boss, what made you do it then? What was the timeframe?
What was going on in your life, what made you decide that now was the right
time to do this? It was driven because basically I got engaged.
(06:09):
Actually, I told my boss right before I was getting ready to propose, to be honest with you.
You felt like it had to come out. It had to come out, right,
because, you know, we spent so much time at work.
We're here all the time, you know, and it's just human nature to say, how's your weekend?
How's it going on? How's your wife? You know, just for people to assume that
you're straight and just to carry on.
(06:31):
And so every time that happens, it takes a little bit of mental gymnastics.
Yes, to remember the right pronoun. pronoun or remember the right word or just
to realize that you're different.
And it's a natural conversation to have. You don't want to have to hide any
loved ones or you have to acknowledge that.
(06:53):
And I thought, hey, he's out.
He's been out. He's always lived his life out. And I thought it would be very disrespectful to him.
I love him, you know, and I didn't want to hide him from anybody.
And so I wanted to, I knew that I had to do that for him.
I was prepared for a bad outcome on because I didn't know. Yeah,
I was going to say, were you surprised? What did you think was going to happen?
(07:13):
Well, I wasn't sure because at that time, you know, we didn't have a True Colors network.
You know, we didn't have any kind of representation around gay people at our company.
And so I didn't even know anybody else at Lyondell Purcell who was gay.
Really? So I just was like, I have no idea what's going to happen in this space.
(07:33):
And I didn't know him that well. Your manager.
Yeah, I didn't know him that well. I just knew that for me, I had to say something
and take the chance because I was going into a new phase in my life,
which I thought was very a happy phase, but that I had to go forth.
And I thought, too, I'll be a new person in this group.
(07:54):
So it'll be a little bit easier if I come in as gay.
They don't know you otherwise. They don't know me otherwise,
right? That's exactly what I was thinking.
And so I was very afraid. And my husband and I, we had conversations and he
said, well, you know, what's the worst going to happen?
And I said, well, I can get fired or something, you know, because it's not like
(08:15):
it's a lot of protections, right? In that way, right?
And so he said, okay, well, then if that's what we'll just, you'll get a job somewhere else.
And so I was prepared for the possibility of getting fired or my career being
curtailed or being treated differently.
And I said, hey, if that's the case, I've been working here all this time and
I've had I had a good experience, but because at that point I had been here five years.
(08:37):
So I said. Which is a significant amount of time to be with a company.
Yeah, for sure. You know, you're
invested at that point. I was very much invested and I actually liked it.
I actually liked the company. And so I was concerned a bit, but I knew my mental kind of well-being.
Depended on it. Depended on it. And it wasn't just that five years I was here,
but also the previous years that I spent in other companies and being in kind
(08:59):
of conservative kind of engineering type thing. So I never felt,
able. Sure. So I was prepared and I had braced myself, but I was very happy about the outcome.
Clearly you didn't get fired because you're still here and now you're leading
up the DEI initiatives at this company.
What was that like for you? Because I know that could not have been easy in
(09:22):
the age of DEI, like you're forging a new territory in a really big global company.
Yeah. So that kind of says a lot right there, but yes.
Yeah, I think the first big challenge was that convincing people that we were
really committed and serious about the effort because people had worked here
(09:43):
so many years and they hadn't seen much evidence of that.
And so there was a big challenge.
I think that's where my reputation a little bit helped because I was able to
tell people, say, I wouldn't do it if it wasn't serious.
You know, I wouldn't risk my reputation on this.
I'm being serious. We really are serious about this. And so I think that first
year, it was very difficult.
(10:05):
I couldn't get anybody to work for me. I distinctly remember that nobody in
HR was willing to take the job because they weren't sure that the group would still be around.
And so I had to go external or and actually I had to go external to HR and try
to convince other people.
Like I took a couple people with finance who I had known.
(10:26):
I said, oh, yeah, let's transition. Would you like to make a career transition to DEI? Exactly.
You can do it. You can think about it. So that was a big, big, big challenge.
And then it was the other challenge initially, like, what is it?
You know, what do you mean? What does that look like for us?
And so we spent that first year really doing a lot of education around that,
(10:47):
what it is, what we're trying to do.
And in true Lionel Bissell fashion, you know, we had identified,
we had a comprehensive DEI kind of program we weren't going to do. And we had.
Seven initiatives that were part of the overarching kind of strategy.
And so in a true fashion, we decided we're going to start on all of them at
(11:08):
one time. Why not? Why not?
Yeah, because we have been doing this and we got to get quick to it. So it was exhausting.
We started to make really good traction after we launched the employee networks
and people started to see kind of pragmatically what it felt like and what we
were trying to accomplish. How did you get people to start joining then?
(11:29):
What do you think turned things around?
Was it the start of the employee networks or was it just seeing that you were
really making some progress?
Yeah, the employee networks was our first initiative.
We started there because we had done research and it showed kind of these populations
of people who were really disenfranchised at the company. OK. Right.
(11:49):
And so we really wanted to start with our most pressing issue,
because, of course, that affects retention, that affects, you know,
workplace happiness, everything.
And so the employee networks were something that we were able to launch in a
very visible way and to demonstrate that we're changing.
And then the other stuff kind of came behind it as more of like reinforcing
(12:12):
and kind of more of like this is how the whole strategy is evolving.
And then we went right into training.
By the end of the first year, I think people were like, OK, I'm starting to understand this.
And we started to get a lot more traction with people joining and people engaging.
And what were those employee networks? We started, the first four we started
(12:32):
with was we had a Black network, a women's network, a young professionals network,
and a gay network, LGBTQ plus network.
And interestingly enough, this is another thing that was funny.
Most people don't probably know this, so I'll tell a little secret,
is that we had a consultant that was helping us initially with this is what
(12:53):
you should do, your strategy and all that kind of stuff.
And they said to us at one time, hey, you can't do a gay network now because
your company is not ready for a gay network.
And I just was like, wow, that's funny. It was an interesting conversation,
but it's been, it's worked fine. It's been fine.
(13:13):
And we actually, it's a growing network and we're happy about the people who
have joined, how proud they actually were celebrating Pride Month again.
It's been a great experience. So you come from all these different job backgrounds,
your technical background, your business background.
How did you use that in your role as chief DEI officer? How did that help you?
Actually, it helped me a lot in that I never approached it from a,
(13:38):
you should do DEI because it's the right thing to do.
I never approached it that way because I don't think that's enough because everybody's
thoughts around what's the right thing to do or why you do something is all over the place. Right.
And so I always approached it like any business initiative, any business project,
(14:00):
any from a real problem solving kind of approach.
And I think that's been helpful because this is a business problem.
What are the inputs? What are going to be the outputs?
And how do we drive action? And I had an urgency around it.
All business imperatives to me need urgency around them, especially when you're
dealing with organizations as large as lined up a cell with competing priorities.
(14:22):
And you have to push stuff while you have the window of opportunity,
while you have the attention.
And so I was very insistent on making sure that we had goals and projects,
deliverables and milestones around each pillar, and that we're pushing things
from a very strategic and business-oriented way.
So I think I learned all of that outside of HR. Yeah, you talk about just it
(14:46):
being a company-wide initiative.
And to formalize DEI, what were some of the things that you needed?
Because it is very much embedded in the fabric of the company now,
but was it always that way?
How did that come about? It was not at all.
I mean, obviously, it's in the sustainability report now, so it's a big part
of it. It's a big part of our sustainability objectives.
We had to do a couple of things, right? The education was, like I said,
(15:09):
we mentioned a lot about the education and it was a lot of education that actually
went even to our senior leadership about what we were trying to accomplish,
what our people meant to us.
And so that was a lot of what we did. But right after that,
being the engineering data driven company that we are, we immediately pivoted
to getting kind of gender parity goals and URP, which underrepresented goals
(15:31):
approved by the board, which I think was the first kind of stake in the ground saying,
hey, we are serious about this and we're going to put a marker in the sand that
drives activity. Right.
And so that was a big, big, big milestone.
And then as we kind of revamped our strategy and our corporate brand,
(15:52):
we had an opportunity with the pillar.
We champion the people say what's most important to us. Right.
And we heard from so many employees about what's important to them.
And DEI was one of the top things that was really important to them as employees of the company.
So then we had another opportunity to put that in our values.
So now it's in our values under we champion people.
(16:12):
We talk about how DEI is important to the values of the company.
And then finally we thought, well, you know, when we talk about our values,
we talk about our strategies, we were doing, redoing our competencies.
And so we thought, what are key competencies that we want leaders and people to own and have?
And then again, DEI came through in the competencies, so we're able to put.
(16:34):
A competency focused on inclusion for everyone. And so those three things are
really key to having an excellent foundation to grow on, because we now we're
saying that this is part of our values,
this is part of our competencies, how we work, and we have goals.
And so we've expanded the goals a little bit more than just the representation piece.
(16:55):
And obviously, you see in the sustainability report, we have goals around fairness
and belonging and employee network participation.
DEI is treated just like any other kind of business initiatives where you have
metrics and goals, and we're tracking, and we're implementing programs around it.
Metrics, goals, and also achievements. What are some of the main achievements
over the past year that you're really proud of?
(17:16):
I'm proud that recently we were selected by the Houston Business Journal as
one of of the most outstanding organizations with DES.
So that's very important. And we also won two awards in China that are kind of equivalent for that.
So actually China was first, so I was really happy about that.
We continue to see very, very, very high levels of engagement in employee networks.
(17:37):
In fact, when you look at our MyVoice and our surveying for employees who are
engaged in employee networks, in every marker, every indicator,
They're higher than the regular population.
So that's something I'm very proud of. And I think the other thing I'm really
proud of is that when people join employee networks, we ask them,
(17:57):
are you joining because you're a member of the employee network?
You identify with the employee network or if you're being an ally.
We're approaching 30% of our population joins the network to ally.
Really important to me because that means that people are understanding what
it means to be an ally and how important that is to our strategies and to supporting one another.
(18:18):
What are some of the common misconceptions surrounding DEI and DEI initiatives?
So there's a lot of misconceptions. It's unfortunate in that it's been really explained wrong.
But what I tell people most of the time is that we're focused on equity.
And that's from a process standpoint, from a policy standpoint,
on making sure that everybody has an equitable experience right here at the company.
(18:40):
And then we're focused on inclusion because we want everybody to be valued and they belong.
And then if you do both of those really well, you'll end up with diversity.
So diversity is the outcome.
We don't spend too much time on working on diversity.
It It happens because it's an outcome of how you kind of push your culture forward.
So that's one of the things that I think people sometimes think that we're trying to force diversity.
(19:03):
And that's not exact. That's not what we're trying to do. We're just trying
to level the playing field and give everybody an opportunity.
We say all the time we're not mandating an outcome. We're mandating that everybody have opportunity.
I think along with that, I think a big one that we don't talk about as much.
I hear it, but sometimes people think that diversity means that we're only talking
about people of color or that we're only talking about gay people or only talking about women.
(19:28):
We're only talking about disabled people or a lot of go down the list and that
we're not talking about or that we don't value people who are not diverse or
who are overrepresented, if you will.
And that's not true. True. We need everybody at the table and we need everybody
working together and that everything that we're doing is centered around equity
(19:49):
for all and inclusion for all.
So if you think about, like, for instance, our hiring process,
some of the things that we've changed, we did not change them just for brown
people. We changed that for everybody.
So when we said we have to post jobs for everybody, everybody gets to apply.
So everybody gets an opportunity.
So what I want people to understand is that when we say equity, we mean equity for all.
(20:14):
When we say inclusion, we mean inclusion for all. And when we say diversity,
we mean everybody in the company.
And we're not making any distinction about who's included. We want everybody
involved, and everybody is important, and everybody brings different talents to the table.
For us as a company to succeed, we need everybody's talents leveraged against everybody else.
(20:38):
So it's us against everybody else. It's not us against us.
What is the company doing externally on DEI, and why would you invite people
to come work for Lionel Bissell? We're committed. We're committed.
OK. And then I think it's obvious that we're committed when I tell you we're
in the competencies and our values and whatever.
And not every company can say that. Right. So I think we're very committed to equity and fairness.
(21:00):
And we believe that. And we have a lot of structure in place to try to progress
that. So I think that anybody looking for an opportunity to join an organization
that is committed should consider us, right?
And I think that in the hiring space, there are always going to be opportunities,
especially when you think about our strategy in terms of upgrading the core
(21:22):
and growing to other businesses.
There are always going to be opportunities for us to attract talented people.
And I think part of the deal with us with DEI is that we want to be able to
attract talented people, but we also want to be able to retain our good people as well, right?
And so I think there's a lot of opportunity for people to come and join us and
be a part of this journey.
(21:42):
You've had such a rich journey yourself, so many different experiences working
here and all the personal experiences you've been through as well.
So I think before I let you go, I'd like to know what's the one piece of advice
that really stuck with you over the years and what advice would you give someone
that's maybe a younger version of yourself kind of going through or experiencing
the same thing right now?
(22:03):
For me, because of my experience, I look back at my career. And I say, wow, I'd say two things.
Never be afraid to accept a different opportunity or something that doesn't
necessarily fit into your master plan.
I just be intellectually open minded. I think that that would be always what
(22:23):
I would recommend to people.
And I think the other part, it's probably going to sound corny,
but it's true, is that I wish I had the courage to be myself earlier in my career
because I think that my full self,
if you will, or I had found an opportunity or organizations that would have
supported me to be in my full self.
(22:45):
Because I think it would have saved me so much mental anguish and would have
allowed me to be even greater,
have even greater impact on a company and organization because I wouldn't have
had that pressure to cover, which would, it's obviously it's going to take away
from me being the best employee I can be, right?
(23:05):
So I would hope that people now, at least people at Lyondell who may be going
through similar things, don't have that pressure and they can add to the fabric
of the company in a more effective, efficient way without having to go through that.
So I think that's one of the things that I would suggest.
Love it. It's great advice. And, you know, we appreciate you so much coming
(23:28):
on, telling your story and sharing your DEI perspective, Kyle.
Thanks so much for the time.
Thank you. And if you want to check out the sustainability report,
you can download LYB's full sustainability report at lyb.com.
That's actually going to wrap up our three-part series on the sustainability
report, But we have more podcasts coming up soon, including a one-on-one with
(23:48):
CEO Peter Vanegers. So be sure to like and subscribe and tune in.
But for now, thank you so much for listening to the Sustainability Podcast Series at Lion Delta Zone.
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