June is Pride Month, and this year the employee-led Citrix Pride Alliance employee resource group (ERG) is hosting panel discussions for LGBTQ+ families and the LGBTQ+ community in India; participating in local events like parades in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Wilton Gardens, Florida; and more. The Pride Alliance ERG champions our LGBTQ+ employees by providing support, enhancing career development, and evolving the work environment. Here, we talk to Melanie D’Souza, Director, Business Intelligence, at Citrix about the Pride Alliance, why she feels like she belongs at Citrix, and more. She leads the global ERG and started the Bangalore, India, chapter.
Why is it important for a company to have a group like the Citrix Pride Alliance?
There are still a lot of barriers for the LGBTQ+ community, and it varies from country to country. An ERG is important because it helps create a sense of belonging. It lets employees know they’re not alone. It helps to create an environment where they’re safe to share what’s happening in their lives, and it helps them understand the benefits that are available to them and their families. And it helps to enable visible allyship from colleagues who aren’t LGBTQ+ but who want to support their coworkers, whether it’s through attending an event or sharing their pronouns proactively. That type of support can have a big impact for LGBTQ+ employees. As an ERG, we are also broadening our activities toward gender orientation and are doing more to support employees who are parents and might have LGBTQ+ children.
How has Citrix supported you?
I actually came out after I joined Citrix. It was the first company I had been in that had a Pride ERG at a global level, though I thought of it as U.S.-based. My partner’s company had a Pride ERG in India, and she encouraged me to start a chapter at Citrix. Once, before the ERG, I was at lunch with some colleagues, and I didn’t feel comfortable sharing about my homelife. There was nothing discriminatory, but I couldn’t get it out of my head, and I couldn’t get focused on work. That was the crux for starting the India chapter. I worked with HR to get it started, with a lot of support from the U.S. chapter. It has just grown from there, networking with Pride ERGs at other companies, connecting with local nonprofits through our Corporate Social Responsibility team.
How do you share your identity with your co-workers?
Before, I would hem and haw when people would ask about my family. Now, it’s a lot easier to answer — I live with my partner. And it was a proud moment when she joined Citrix. She was able to share that her partner works at Citrix, too. It’s so important for leaders to be out — to show that this is just an aspect of their lives and not a limiting factor to their career. I had been at Citrix for about three years before I came out. I had built my reputation and was confident as a professional, but I was still hesitant and I think about new employees who might deal with that same hesitancy. The moment I started talking about my identity, people were supportive. I think there was a fear of saying something wrong, but the fact that they were being supportive and trying meant a lot.
What makes you feel like you belong at Citrix?
I’ve been at Citrix for almost seven years, and I have seen and experienced honesty, acceptance, and inclusivity in practice time and time again. And that the company supported creating the ERG and gave us executive sponsorship. Our executive sponsor, Tim Minahan, who’s our CMO, attends our meetings and is accessible. The company has put effort into being recognized as an LGBTQ+-friendly employer and has sponsored events like the first LGBTQ+ job fair in India. All that shows that this isn’t something that is being done superficially.
Employee Resource Groups at Citrix
Our ERGs cultivate a sense of belonging and inclusion at Citrix by creating safe spaces to support each other and educate allies; supporting Citrix through talent acquisition, retention, and employee experience; and supporting our customers and partners (both for-profit and non-profit) by providing engagement opportunities based on identity. Learn more about diversity and inclusion at Citrix and our ERGs.
