As a leader in an organization, yourdedication to excellence will determine your equitable standing among bothinternal and external stakeholders. It will show how seriously you takelearning, growing, and prospering as someone in power. Having a diverseworkforce leads to happier and healthier employees, more respected customers,and better access to the required talent and skillsets for an organization tosucceed. A study conducted by the Harvard Business Review found that companieswith diverse teams had a 19% higher innovation revenue.

Bernadette Smith is an expert in helpingorganizations integrate principles of equity and inclusion across all theirfunctions. She is the CEO and founder of the Equality Institute and has won theIBPA Benjamin Franklin Booksellers Gold Medal Award for three books on LGBTQinclusion. Bernadette is frequently requested as a keynote speaker to encouragean inclusive work environment and celebrate diversity.

Bernadette has consulted with Fortune500 companies and presented to various audiences, including CEOs, leadershipteams, human resource and diversity leaders, and sales and marketingprofessionals, among others. Due to her insight and impact as a change agent,she has been featured in reputable publications such as the New York Times, USAToday, the Washington Post, and Fast Company. She has also appeared on CNN, theToday Show, the BBC, and National Public Radio. Bernadette has been named oneof Chicago's Notable LGBTQ Executives by Crain's Chicago Business.

This week, Bernadette joined me to sharemore information on the topic. For more information, please visithttps://www.theequalityinstitute.com/speaking.