PROUD Storytelling
Every person has a story, and if you listen, you might be able to learn a lot from them.
Our workplace and workforce at Cisco are becoming more and more diverse, inclusive, and engaged. And we know that sharing our own stories makes us more proximate to our colleagues and opens up new ways to be engaged, especially for topics and challenges we might not be aware of, be less aware of, or simply where we want to be a better ally.
With that in mind, I was lucky enough to be invited recently by the new Cisco Portugal PRIDE Leadership Team – Lisette Baer, Ivo Santos and Klara Muller, to share my own lived experience as an open and out member of the LGBT+community, as a leader, as an ex-pat, and as a husband exploring where our stories intersect. When standing up and sharing my experiences and learnings from the early parts of my career to the present moment, to the constant change we see in the workplace and the community, it was especially gratifying to see allies who’d been on this journey for years as well as new faces who leaned into the conversation, all across the spectrum from our Lisbon Hub – from Sales to Operations to CX and our vendor community. All this, obviously, via Webex, as we lead with hybrid engagement.
Afterward, I had the absolute privilege to interview Francisco Caetano, an Asset Manager at Cisco Portugal, on his lived experience as an open and out professional. We talked about his journey in the workplace, his career, and what allows him to bring his authentic self to work each day.
After the session, and after having the opportunity to chat with the new PRIDE Portugal Leadership (and thanks for the invite to talk at your event Lisette Baer, Ivo Santos, and Klara Muller), I took a moment to remind myself of the PRIDE Employee Resource Organization’s mission and was confident that we’d hit at the core of what the team builds on with each event by “….ensuring Cisco is recognized internally and externally as an inclusive LGBTQ+ friendly company where LGBTQ+ employees can bring their whole self to work and be part of an engaging, passionate and socially responsible community.”
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