Squeeze The Lemon

When you get lemons, what do you do? Of course, you make lemonade! We work with what we have, and sometimes that is very little. My experience with launching Employee Resource Groups (ERG’s) has been that money typically is pretty scarce in the beginning. You have to prove the value of the program before an increased investment is made. So how do you engage employees and the community when you have a shoestring budget?

DEFINING EVENTS

First, let’s define events. An event can be in-person, online, or even a launch of a new resource. It can be pre-recorded, as small as one-on-one interactions, or as large as a series of podcast interviews with individuals in your company or local community. Keeping your definition of what an event as broad as possible develops more diverse programming.

I define an ERG event as any interaction where an employee learns or contributes knowledge or expertise. By keeping it simple and broad, I was able to develop events that were full spectrum and accessible to nearly anyone in the company.

EXAMPLE EVENTS

I have facilitated a wide variety of events over the years, and many of those have been at NO COST. That’s right! You can develop and deliver content in the form of events with zero dollars. Consider the following:

• Interviewing Leadership — Host a series of casual conversations with company leadership to discuss their perspective on LGBTQ issues or policies. Utilize teleconference or webinar facilities (as available to you) and consider recording it for playback for any employee to access.
• Publish LGBTQ Resources — Create and post (online or in print) a list of LGBTQ resources anyone can access, such as a list of local LGBT Centers, LGBTQ news sites, Pride Events, LGBTQ support organizations (I.e., PFLAG), etc. This can be something you launch with engaging communications and provide regular updates to the list as you uncover further resources.
• Host an Expert — Often there are local LGBTQ leaders and volunteers that are very happy to be a guest speaker at your employee event. Explore what is available to you (organizations you may already work with or recommendations from employees) and solicit speakers based on LGBTQ topics that are relevant to your ERG membership. Be sure to check your company’s policy on external speakers.
• Facilitate a Volunteer Event — Consider the many local organizations that need people to donate their time. There are endless opportunities to coordinate employee participation with LGBTQ organizations.
• Facilitate a Donation Drive — Another excellent way to engage employee giving. This does not need to be about raising money, it could be collecting hygiene items for a local shelter or organization. Explore what LGBTQ organizations and programs may need beyond just funding.
• A Night Out at the Museum — The arts engage people at various levels. It is a great social activity that can spark conversations and even be a source of creativity. Explore local museums and exhibits that could be an opportunity your ERG to fund ticket costs for a group of employees (also look for group discounts). You may even find some LGBTQ related exhibits!
• Coordinate a Family Picnic — A fun way for employees to “get out of the office” and mingle socially is to merely coordinate a picnic in the park or at the beach day. Have them invite their spouses, significant others, partners, children, etc. This can be as simple or dynamic as your budget allows. It can be FREE if it is potluck style, or you could consider renting fun games and activities for the children and adults alike. The idea is to keep it social, so everyone can be their authentic selves and relate to people, not just as colleagues.

Other low-cost ways to host events for your LGBTQA ERG is to partner with other ERGs in your company (such as a Women’s Group or Veterans ERG) to co-host an event. Sharing the costs is an efficient way to make your budget go further while increasing your audience with multiple ERG members being involved and invited.

EXTENDING THE SHELF LIFE

Many of the events proposed in this article can be leveraged over an extended period of time. Whenever you can record the event (on the phone, webinar, or on a video camera) to post for employees to access provides enhanced flexibility to engage as it is on their schedule. Be sure to monitor this type of content, so it does not become outdated or irrelevant.

Consider reusing a template or an event plan to host future events with higher efficiencies. For instance, if you facilitated a donation drive for a local shelter that required staging collection site, volunteers, and delivery of the donated items to the shelter, now you have an action plan you can repeat in the future (which probably included communications), either for the same location or other locations.

Another example would be if you hosted a leadership interview call. You most likely had to plan the calendar event, send out invitations, coordinate RSVP tracking, and prepare for the questions to be used, as well as any recording preparations (if applicable). Once you have done this, you have a ready-made “how to” guide (if you document these steps and resources) to host future leadership interviews.

WHEN THE PURSE STRINGS LOOSEN UP

Once your budget grows over time, you will be able to increase the size or focus of your events to be more dynamic. Here are some ideas to get you thinking.

• Host a Film Screening Night — There are many LGBTQ films and documentaries that you can leverage for a screening night. The evening can be as simple as inviting employees to a pre-screening mix-and-mingle to a more dynamic evening by facilitating a Q&A session after the film with the film director or writer if you have access to them. Especially with documentaries, you will find the access to the film creators and contributors welcoming and diverse as they are impassioned by their work.
• Coordinate a Speakers Panel — Invite LGBTQ experts to speak on a targeted topic. Be sure you have an experienced moderator for the panel and consider opening up the audience to the public. This can be great for your company’s community engagement and facilitate employee learning on relevant LGBTQ topics.
• Sponsor an LGBTQ Pride Event or Conference — You are most likely already aware of many of the local Pride parades and festivals, that offer a variety of sponsorship levels. Be sure to explore the options with the Pride organization as many are willing to customize your sponsorship to meet your budget or focus, such as if you’d rather have better placement in the parade but don’t want a booth at the festival, or if you’d instead focus on your presence at the festival and not be involved in the parade. Conferences are another great opportunity for your LGTBQA ERG leadership to expand their knowledge, share their experiences, get motivated and bring back knowledge to your ERG for future growth.