Written by: Casimiro da Silva Santos, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
When Bruce Jenner, the US Olympic Champion of 1976, came out as a trans woman in April 2015, the world was shocked — the all-American hero a transgender? Yes, indeed. In July of the same year, she announced her name as Caitlyn Marie Jenner. She became a transgender activist since then. She starred in the reality TV series "I am Cait", focusing on her gender transition, helping us better understand the emotional roller coaster a transgender person suffers as they dare to fight for the right to have the right gender in the right body.
Transgender is a broad umbrella term for people whose gender identity and/or gender expression differs from the gender they were assigned at birth. Being transgender is not the same as having a sexual preference. You should not confuse sex with gender with sexual preference. They are all different.
Business transgender executives do not have the same exposure as their cis-gender executives. Still, the corporate world is seeing a shift in how transgender people assume and come out independent of their position. However, in 2018, Carl Farberger told her 120-person staff that this was her last year as Carl. The next day after the announcement, she would be Caroline. At 49, she became the first transgender CEO of the Swedish insurance company ICA. And in 2017, Wynne Nowland came out as transgender and let her staff know she'd be living and working as a woman. At the time, she was the CEO of Bradlett & Parker.
When I tell people that the CEO of the organisation I work for is transgender, people generally ask me, "so what?". It's a fair question. Some people might say there's no difference between having a cisgender or transgender CEO, or they might even say that having a transgender CEO would make it harder for the company to succeed.
As a transgender, my CEO's words and phrases differ from what you might expect from a cisgender person. A cisgender person is a term used to describe a person whose gender identity aligns with the identity typically associated with the sex assigned to them at birth.
When she talks to us in the company's town hall meetings and in her public speaking engagements or when she is chatting with us at the coffee machine, she may use words like "transgender," "cisgender," or "non-binary". She may talk to you about gender dysphoria, which is the feeling that your body doesn't match your gender identity. She experienced this all her life, from childhood to adulthood.
You can hear her talking about the pronouns: "they" and "them" instead of he/his and she/her. She always addresses you and the staff as they/them unless she knows your pronouns. A pronoun is a word we use in place of someone's name to refer to them. For example, if I'm talking about a co-worker and want to talk about them instead of using their name, I might say something like, "I saw them in the coffee machine. You might see them in the corridor," even if they are singular. This way, I do not offend a co-worker by misgendering.
She has had different experiences than other CEOs because she's transgender. She was once a male CEO and had to switch to female pronouns and a female name for her employees to feel comfortable calling her by name. And now she knows what it feels like to be the only transgender in the room. She knows what it's like to be transgender in business. She often recalls her first company meeting as a woman, when half of the board members didn't know how to address her and were still referring to her as "him". She was often misgendered and deadnamed ("deadnaming" is calling a transgender person by their birth name after changing it as part of their gender transition) in those days. She encouraged transgender employees to use bathrooms that align with their gender identity. This signalled to those employees that they were valued. This was when I realised how important it is for people to receive training on supporting their peers during the transition period, whether they are transitioning into new roles or positions within an organisation, whether because they're changing gender identities or taking on higher-level responsibilities at work.
Moving forward, here are some suggestions for making your organisation, division, and team a friendlier place for co-workers who have come out as transgender or may do so in the future:
Gender expression is not the same as sexual orientation.
Respect each other: limit your responses to a minimum unless you are already close friends.
Take advice from your co-workers.
Pay attention to the pronouns.
Avoid deadnaming. If by mistake you do, assume it, apologise, and rephrase.
Relax about the bathroom situation – allow transgender people to use the bathroom they feel comfortable in.
Be curious and research yourself about gender and sexual orientation.
In honour of and as an advocate for transgender people, celebrate International Transgender Visibility Day on March 31st.
Both the CEO and the business I'm referencing here are fictional. Still, I hope you gained some knowledge about future transgender support and advocacy. Corporate culture is rapidly evolving, adopting LGBTQ+ policies that support and encourage workplace inclusion and diversity. As a leader, you should understand the value of team diversity, and you may or may not work with a team member who comes out as transgender. Your role as a leader is not to agree or disagree. It is to accept, understand and advocate gender expression within your team, division, business unit and company. To guarantee that everyone feels free to be who they are, you should challenge yourself to maximise the potential of your leadership and the workforce you now have.
Casimiro da Silva Santos, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Casimiro da Silva Santos, better known as Cas, uses pronouns he/his. He is a dad, a business and climate action leader, a coach, and a speaker. His mission is to create a perspective of abundance, alleviating scarcity so that we can live a brighter future. After a transformational coaching experience with Simon Sinek Inc., Cas decided to create Bring the Best®, a coaching and consulting firm for personal development and business growth. Through individual, career, and executive coaching, Bring the Best transforms lives so that each person can live the life they want and dream about. His coaching style is authentic and empathetic, with a special focus on the LGBTQIA+ community.
