Supporting Vocal and Authentic Allyship in the Workplace

Surekha Perks, Executive Assistant on Kroll’s UK Restructuring Advisory team, spoke to myGwork about her experience of being an ally to the LGBTQ+ community. She discusses why she became an active ally, the events she has been involved in at Kroll, and describes circumstances in which she displayed vocal allyship outside of the workplace.

Can you please introduce yourself and describe your role within your organization?

I am an Executive Assistant on Kroll’s UK Restructuring Advisory team and have been at the company since 2019. I have been part of the Global Inclusion & Diversity Council since 2021. More recently, I took up a role on the Pride Employee Network leadership team to support communications within the EMEA region.

What is your experience of being an ally to the LGBTQ+ community?

I take my lead from the community because I don’t want talk over them. I am open about being an ally and wanting to help, but I’m not perfect. I have made missteps in the past, but I’ve been grateful for friends who have explained where I went wrong. I’m grateful we can talk things through openly. Being an ally is being part of a very strong and loyal crew.

How, when, and why did you decide to be an LGBTQ+ ally?

My allyship began as a teenager as I had friends who identified as part of the LGBTQ+ community. I didn’t consider myself an “active” ally until a few years ago when I noticed the influx of negativity in the mainstream press. This was followed by an increase in online petitions to support LGBTQ+ rights. Eventually, I felt that adding my name to petitions wasn’t enough, so I started raising awareness, sharing resources, taking part in the discussions, and bringing my activism and allyship to Kroll.

Have you been involved in any activities with your organization’s LGBTQ+ network, which ones?

In my new role on Kroll’s Pride Employee Network leadership team, I recently assisted with the creation of Kroll’s new Allyship Program, which the network launched alongside a globally streamed panel to raise awareness about International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Lesbophobia and Transphobia. I also helped organise and attend a “Euphoria Happy Hour” event at our London office. I am also helping to plan more events to be held later in the year, which includes programming for Bi Visibility Day and National Coming Out Day. It’s