2023 LGBT+ Inclusion Index & Survey

Advance and promote your LGBT+ inclusion efforts with Community Business’ LGBT+ Inclusion Index for organisations in Hong Kong and Singapore and wider regional Survey.

Traditionally, the LGBT+ Inclusion Index has provided organisations in Hong Kong with a credible and robust tool to assess, progress and promote their efforts towards LGBT+ Inclusion. To meet the demand for LGBT+ Inclusion benchmarking exercises across the region, we will be expanding the 2023 Index to include Singapore too. Following the repeal of Section 377A in Singapore, the fifth iteration of the Index will allow organisations in this market that have already started their LGBT+ Inclusion journey to showcase their corporate policies and practices for creating inclusive workplaces for LGBT+ employees. Online submissions will be opening shortly for any organisation interested in participating in the Index if they are based in Hong Kong and/or Singapore.

In 2023, we will also be running the LGBT+ Inclusion Survey, for organisations in markets around Asia that wish to self-report on their LGBT+ Inclusion efforts over the same assessment period as the Index. 

The Index has been Hong Kong’s definitive benchmark for organisations to measure their progress on LGBT+ inclusion in the workplace and beyond. We encourage organisations of all sizes and from different industries to participate.

The Index has historically been released in conjunction with the Hong Kong LGBT+ Inclusion Awards, which Community Business has also been running since 2015. Although Community Business had previously facilitated regional Employee Wellbeing Awards and India Diversity & Inclusion Awards, the LGBT+ Inclusion Gala and Awards had only been open to applicants based in Hong Kong. This year, to satisfy the increasing demand to recognise and celebrate inclusion efforts across the region, Community Business’ Awards Programme expanded Asia-wide, with applications from over 20 markets, featuring four Regional Awards and one India specific Award that specifically recognised LGBT+ Inclusion.

The expanded Indices will provide companies in Hong Kong and Singapore with a detailed assessment and ranking of their LGBT+ Inclusion between January 2021 and December 2022. The assessment process will remain consistent with previous years and any noteworthy changes will be covered in the Index Information Sessions which we encourage potential applicants to attend.

Assessment Period: 1 Jan 2021 to 31 Dec 2022  

Online Submission Period: Nov 2022 - Feb 2023

Traditionally, the Index has covered 9 categories:

After the participating organisation completes their submission, it undergoes a detailed and robust assessment by the Community Business team, who score and rank all submissions.

To participate in the Index, organisations pay a fee which will depend on the type of organisation and the extent of reporting requested. Please indicate your interest by emailing Chris Ng.

The 2023 Regional LGBT+ Workplace Inclusion Survey will allow organisations to self-report on their LGBT+ Inclusion efforts over the same assessment period, which will aid in Community Business’ understanding of the LGBT+ Inclusion landscape across the region. Community Business recognises the different cultural and legal contexts across the region and the impact these have on LGBT+ Workplace Inclusion. With this is mind, the Survey will be designed to give organisations outside of Hong Kong and Singapore an opportunity to self-report on their LGBT+ Inclusion journey and provide important insights into these other markets. Participating organisations will not be ranked or graded as they would in the Index, but consolidated findings from the data will be made available in 2023. 

Find out more about our plans for the survey by attending an information session.

Assessment Period: 1 Jan 2021 to 31 Dec 2022  

We will be running virtual information sessions between October and December 2022, which will provide a more detailed look at the application and assessment process for the Index and Survey. Organisations that want to participate are strongly encouraged to attend at least one session before submitting their application.

There will also be an opportunity for those new to the process, as well as for companies that want to improve the quality of their submissions, to learn from the Index’s Gold Standard companies at a virtual event that Community Business will facilitate. Representatives of these organisations will share best practices, discuss the policies that earnt them this recognition and provide advice on the application process.

Information Session on the 2023 Index​

Wed 12 Oct, Wed 9 November and Tue 6 Dec | 11:00am (UTC+8)​

Customised Small Group Sharing Session with Gold Standard Companies​

Thu 20 Oct at 11:00am (UTC+8)​

Question Review Webinar- Session on Questions and Index Categories

Thu 27 Oct at 11:00am (UTC+8)​

Platform Submission Webinar- Information Session on the Platform to be used for the 2023 Index​

Thu 3 Nov at 11:00am (UTC+8)​

Register Now

​

What is the difference between the Index and the Survey?

The Index will be a robust assessment that will only be available to organisations based in Hong Kong and/or Singapore. The Survey will offer organisations outside of these two markets the opportunity to self report on their LGBT+ Inclusion journey.

Why is the Index only conducted every two years?

To give organisations sufficient time to make progress on their LGBT+ inclusion strategies.

My organisation is at an early stage and would like to learn about best practice and audit our internal work in LGBT+ inclusion, but we are not prepared to have our results announced publicly. How can we participate?

Organisations can choose to participate anonymously if they are not sure of how well they will do or to use the Index to assess their progress. Their participation, ranking and/or standard achieved will remain confidential unless the organisation is one of our top 10 companies. 

Will my organisation’s internal information appear in the Index/Survey Report?

The information that your organisation will submit for the Index will be kept confidential unless it is public information, or we receive explicit, written permission to include your information as a best practice example in our report. The Index Report mainly showcases the overall trends and performance and will not attribute results to any specific participants. While we also include best practices from participating organisations, we will seek their consent before publishing these findings.

What kind of supporting information do I have to provide for the Index or Survey?

Essentially anything that can support your submission or nomination. For example, this could be an extract from your employee handbook, pictures from your internal events or a description explaining the work that has been done. Each question will describe whether and what kind of supporting information is required. 

How do I find out more?

We will be hosting information sessions about the Index and the Survey in the coming months to answer questions from potential applicants.

Alternatively, please email Chris Ng, LGBT+ Programme Manager at

chris.ng@communitybusiness.org or at info@communitybusiness.org.