Danny helps the Bank fly the flag of diversity

Have you ever dreamed of working in an environment in which everyone is respected and recognised for their performance and capabilities, regardless of their nationality, sexual orientation, personality traits or the colour of their skin? Danny believes that this ‘utopia’ has become an everyday reality at Deutsche Bank – and he is doing his bit to enhance this culture.

At the age of 15, Danny completed a work experience placement at a Deutsche Bank branch in southern Germany, where he discovered that the Bank gave him the freedom he wanted to achieve his professional and personal goals. He appreciated the teams’ spirit, and how welcoming his branch colleagues were. Thirteen years later, Danny is working as Principal Auditor in DWS Group Audit and is a member of the steering committee of dbPride, the Bank's LGBTIQ+ network.

Part of the dbPride network’s role is public relations, both externally and internally. Deutsche Bank employees are empowered to be who they are, unapologetically– every individual is encouraged to bring their whole personality to work. In today's open, global environment, demonstrating what you stand for is not just a nice bonus but a necessity. This is also reflected in a recent study carried out by the Boston Consulting Group, which demonstrates that being ‘outed’ in the workplace is still a considerable barrier for the majority of lesbian, gay, bi, trans or intersex professionals. “We know from experience that students who have lived as openly gay at university withdraw again when they start their working lives,” said Danny. This demonstrates the importance of not only speaking on diversity, but also continually acting on it.

In early 2019, Danny's colleagues at dbPride New York formed part of the official Deutsche Bank delegation at the World Economic Forum in Davos. This enabled the Bank to put LGBTIQ+ at the forefront of major HR issues, as part of a consortium of other multinational corporations. In Danny's personal experience, diversity initiatives, whether at events or as part of everyday working life, are also well received internally across the bank: the dbPride steering committee is always on the lookout for internal sponsors for LGBTIQ+ activities, and approaches senior colleagues and management with these requests. In 2018, the Bank even gained enough widespread support to have its own float at CSD, Frankfurt's Pride event. It was a brilliant coming together of people, to see so many staff, and by no means only LGBTIQ+ colleagues, taking part in the parade and celebrations.

Innovations for reinforcing messages behind diversity are constantly emerging. In the USA, the Bank hosts special LGBTIQ+ networking events for new employees, which helps them settle in and feel supported, from day one. Employees can find out about networks within Deutsche Bank, have conversations with colleagues about their experiences at the bank and build connections. “I can imagine something similar happening here in Germany too,” said Danny.

Danny will soon have the chance to realise a long-held ambition of his, as he is moving to New York to continue his career at Deutsche Bank. “It was always my dream to live and work in New York at some point.”

This is proof of the possibilities we create for our people at Deutsche Bank—not only to make our employees feel accepted and appreciated at work, but in their lifelong ambitions too.