Canada's Best Diversity Employers (2026) Magazine - Magazine - Page 24
24
CANADA’S BEST DIVERSITY EMPLOYERS (2026)
The LCBO embraces inclusion and diversity by design
S
everal years ago, the
Liquor Control Board
of Ontario (LCBO)
gave customer-facing
employees the option
of adding their pronouns to the
nametags that they wore at work.
Shane Hollon, a store operations
manager in Toronto, was quick
to add his “he/they” pronouns to
his badge. Not long after, a junior
employee pulled him aside in
private.
DEI is not only a
program. It’s really
an organizational
mindset. It’s something
broader that shapes
people’s experience at
work every day.
— Nupur Khandelwal
Senior Director,
Talent Management and DEI
“I’m so happy you’re putting
your pronouns out there for the
world to see. It makes me feel
safer,” Hollon remembers the
person saying. From that point
on, the employee saw Hollon as
someone they could confide in. In
time, they came out fully at work.
“It was just a small act of me
putting my pronouns onto my
name badge that helped another
person experience their life fully
while at work,” Hollon says. “That
sense of belonging — that means
everything to me.”
Hollon has observed the
LCBO make significant strides
LCBO completes frequent DEI maturity assessments as part of its ongoing commitment to fostering a
supportive environment for all employees.
in diversity, equity and inclusion
(DEI) since joining the provincial
Crown corporation as a seasonal
retail worker 15 years ago.
“Not just at the LCBO but in the
world at large, I did not see queer,
brown, mixed-race people in
leadership roles,” Hollon recalls.
But over time, the organization
has become intentional about
hiring and promoting to better
represent the diverse population
it serves. It now has four
employee resource groups (ERGs)
representing and offering support
to employees who identify as
women, 2SLGBTQ+, disabled or
racialized. It also has a team of 800
“Good Culture Ambassadors” that
help put co-workers in touch with
the many resources offered by the
organization.
“I’ve really seen the LCBO
embrace diversity, equity and
inclusion into its culture,” Hollon
says.
“DEI is not only a program. It’s
really an organizational mindset.
It’s something broader that shapes
people’s experience at work every
day,” says Nupur Khandelwal,
senior director of talent
management and DEI. Becoming
a truly inclusive workplace is an
ongoing journey, she allows, but
the LCBO has reached a point
where it strives to be inclusive
by design, instead of trying to
“retrofit” a sense of belonging.
“We encourage all applicants
and employees to self-identify and
share with us more about their
background because that helps us
better understand our workforce,
identify representation gaps and
take actions that are meaningful
because they are going to be
grounded in data,” Khandelwal
says.
The LCBO has a Respectful
Workplace Policy, for example,
that it reviews every year in
consultation with the ERGs.
All training — including
leadership development — is
examined through a diversity lens.
The recently launched Bloom
