Hotels hold a special space in the Sydney Mardi Gras canon. In the early days they were a safe place to gather, soon they became the site of all the best parties, then the hot commodity they remain to this day.
This year ahead of the main event we asked one of our favourite certified companies, Marriott International how one of the world’s largest hospitality companies operationalises LGBTQIA+ inclusion, not as a seasonal campaign that lands in February and is gone by April, but as something that runs through the organisation every day of the year.
Here Joaan Lee, Human Resources Manager at W Sydney, and Jai Leighton, General Manager of Le Méridien Melbourne and Chairperson of Marriott’s ONE Associate Resource Group for the Australia, New Zealand and Pacific region, reveal how Marriott turns “People First” into tangible, everyday LGBTQIA+ inclusion at work.
#1. Treat Inclusion As An Associate‑Led Movement
At Marriott, inclusion is most credible when it’s led by employees, not just mandated from the top. In ANZP, LGBTQIA+ inclusion is anchored by the ONE Associate Resource Group (ARG), which Marriott rolled out as the first Asia Pacific region (excluding China) to launch ONE.
ONE gives LGBTQIA+ associates and allies a platform to lead on visibility, equality and inclusion, with representation from multiple hotels, roles and identities. This shifts inclusion from a corporate initiative into a living, associate‑led movement.
HR How To:
Establish or amplify an LGBTQIA+/allies‑led resource group that sits outside HR’s direct control.
- Give it dedicated budget for events, materials, and external speakers; visibility through company-wide channels like newsletters and intranets; and a formal seat at inclusion planning tables to shape year-round programming, not just Pride or Mardi Gras season.
- Recruit diverse representatives from multiple sites, roles, and identities to reflect the workforce and drive broad buy-in.
- Track impact via simple metrics like event attendance, member growth, or associate feedback surveys, adjusting based on lived experiences rather than top-down mandates.
#2. Education, Not Just Awareness
Visibility is important, but Marriott pairs it with structured education. Across ANZP, hotels recognise key LGBTQIA+ days, like IDAHOBIT, Wear It Purple Day, International Pronouns Day, and accompany each with curated educational materials that explain the history and meaning behind the day.
ACON’s Pride in Diversity has highlighted some of Marriott’s materials as best‑practice, signalling that the company invests in evidence‑informed content, not just token activities.
HR leaders can adapt this by creating a simple LGBTQIA+ calendar that maps each key date to a short, one‑page resource and then working with external experts, such as ACON or similar local organisations to review and refine that content.
#3. Make Inclusion a Daily Leadership Behaviour
Policies are a foundation, but Marriott’s leaders emphasise that inclusion is defined by how people behave every day. In ANZP, inclusion shows up in whether leaders respond appropriately if someone is misgendered, whether they model sharing their own pronouns in meetings and email signatures, and whether associates feel comfortable bringing their partners to staff events without hesitation.
Managers weave these behaviours into team briefings, coaching and on‑the‑job feedback, so LGBTQIA+ inclusion is treated as an everyday leadership expectation, not a one‑off talk.
HR How To:
- Make sure leaders feel comfortable to model pronoun sharing in email signatures, name tags and introductions.
- Provide managers with simple scripts for responding when someone is misgendered (e.g., “Thanks for flagging that, let’s correct it and move forward”).
- Make it explicit that partners of all orientations are welcome at staff events, and state this in invitations and communications.
- Embed inclusion into performance and capability frameworks: how leaders talk about identity, pronouns and respect should be part of leadership expectations.
#4 Use Low‑Friction Tools And Authentic Storytelling
Marriott uses simple, hyper-visible tools to make allyship tangible. For example, “I Support” allyship note cards and Pride Month programming signal that standing up for LGBTQIA+ colleagues is part of the workplace culture, not a side project.
Internally, Marriott hosts Pride Panels where ANZP leaders, including Joann Lee and Jai Leighton, speak openly about their personal journeys. These moments build psychological safety by showing that authenticity and leadership can coexist.
HR How To:
- Introducing low‑friction allyship tools, digital badges, profile stickers or internal “I Support” signals, that employees can adopt without fanfare.
- Planning internal panels or recorded sessions where leaders share their experiences, then repurposing them for onboarding or ongoing learning.
#5 Embed inclusion into onboarding, and keep it year‑round
At W Hotels in ANZP, inclusivity is baked into the Welcome to W Hotels onboarding experience. New talent are introduced to the ONE ARG and Marriott’s global DEI commitments from day one, signalling that inclusion is a core part of the culture, not an add‑on.
During Pride Month and Mardi Gras, Marriott hotels host internal events, discounted event access, community engagement activities and social gatherings that celebrate associates and their identities.
The emphasis, however, is continuity. The TakeCare Committee, HR teams and hotel leaders work together to maintain year‑round visibility through storytelling, programming, allyship campaigns and cross‑community partnerships.
HR How To:
- Onboarding: Add a short inclusion module that covers pronouns, partner inclusion, and how to respond to discrimination.
- Pride/Mardi Gras: Use the month as a launchpad for a 12‑month inclusion cadence.
- Ongoing: Plan smaller, recurring touch-points, internal stories, short learning sessions, or partner‑driven events, to keep LGBTQIA+ inclusion visible beyond the pride season.
#6 Partner With People Who Know What They’re Talking About
Marriott partners with credible community organisations like ACON’s Pride in Diversity, Hotel Etico, and Minus18 to ground their inclusion efforts in real-world expertise and accountability. These collaborations expose associates to diverse perspectives, from LGBTQIA+ workplace training (via ACON) to disability inclusion initiatives (Hotel Etico) and youth support programs (Minus18), fostering empathy and amplifying Marriott’s impact beyond its walls.
For instance, the 2025 alignment with Minus18 directly ties internal culture to external good by supporting LGBTQIA+ youth events, while ACON has recognized Marriott ANZP’s educational materials as best practice, validating their approach with external credibility.
HR How To:
- Identify and partner with at least one local LGBTQIA+ organization (e.g., ACON in Australia or equivalent in your region) for co-delivered training, workshops, and audits to ensure programs stay relevant and evidence-based.
- Curating real-life case studies from these partners for leadership sessions, highlighting community challenges and solutions to build practical understanding.
- Launching structured volunteer or mentorship opportunities, such as event support or youth programs, with paid time off or matching grants to encourage broad participation and measure engagement via participation rates.
#7. Bringing It All Together, Everyday
Bringing all of these practices together, Marriott’s ANZP leaders emphasise that LGBTQIA+ inclusion has to be treated as core leadership work, not a side project. Inclusion must be owned by all leaders, not outsourced to a single function, and reinforced through visible behaviours every day.
- Inclusion must be owned by all leaders, not outsourced to HR.
- Visibility from leadership is essential: when leaders share their pronouns, attend Pride Panels and speak openly about their journeys, it signals that authenticity is valued.
- Create structure and governance: groups like ONE provide community, continuity and accountability.
- Invest in education: many people want to do the right thing, they just need context and tools.
- Partner with experts and communities to avoid echo chambers and keep inclusion grounded in real‑world experience.
- Measure lived experience, not just representation: leaders should ask, “Do our associates feel safe being themselves here?” If the answer isn’t an unequivocal yes, Marriott’s leaders say, the work isn’t done.
Treat LGBTQIA+ inclusion as an ongoing leadership practice, underpinned by structure, everyday behaviours and honest reflection and you will turn Mardi Gras into a springboard for a culture where everyone feels safe to bring their whole self to work, every day of the year.
