LGBTI staff, and diversity within the Australian accounting profession

Purpose - Large accounting firms lay claim today to a broad focus on staff diversity and inclusion. Related initiatives focus on gender, culture, age and sexuality. This paper aims to seek insight from publicly available discourse provided by the “Big 4” in Australia (Deloitte, Ernst and Young, KPMG and PwC), along with two second-tier firms, into the nature and drivers of diversity initiatives for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) staff. Design/methodology/approach - Web-based discourse provided as at May 2017 is examined and analysed. Findings - All six firms provided a range of related disclosures, suggesting that a cultural shift for LGBTI staff was underway. Detail provided on actual policies and procedures was limited, and a struggle was suggested, between balancing the needs of diverse staff, with concerns for some, perhaps, more conservative clients. Some repositioning of arguments was suggested, focussed on shifting responsibility to staff and on shifting the object of celebration from staff to the firm. Research limitations/implications - This study is limited to an interpretation of carefully constructed publicly disclosed statements. Further studies could explore the lived experience of these apparent changes with staff. Practical implications - Recruitment and staff retention continue to be on-going challenges within the accounting profession. This study provides insight into initiatives targeted to support LGBTI staff. Social implications - Availing space to bring ‘whole selves’ into the workplace is an important element of creating a pleasant, comfortable and engaging environment for staff. This study provides insight into the perspective of employers on the importance of such initiatives. Originality/value - Little attention has been directed to exploring sexual diversity in the workplace or to sexuality within accounting studies.