Book Club, Inclusion and Advocacy: Meet Agnes Bakondi, Global Lead of Pride Community at Checkout.com

Companies have a responsibility to create inclusive environments for their LGBTQIA+ employees, and at Checkout.com, this is supported by their Pride Community. The community is a company-sponsored, employee-led network that provides a platform for LGBTQIA+ employees and allies to connect and support each other. We recently caught up with Agnes Bakondi, their Pride Community’s Global Lead, to discuss the network's latest initiative: a Rainbow Book Club.

What inspired you to start the Rainbow Book Club at Checkout.com?

Having recently stepped up to become our Global Pride Community Lead, I was excited to launch our Rainbow Book Club to connect our colleagues (LGBTQIA+ and allies) over our shared love of reading. We have a general book club at Checkout.com, and I saw an opportunity to create a dedicated space to read, learn, and discuss queer stories and writers. There’s also great potential for us to collaborate with our Asia, Black, Disability, Latine, Parents and Women’s Communities.

How did the most recent meetup go?

To celebrate ‘Behind the Lens’, the theme of LGBT+ History Month this year, we invited Grace Perry, the author of ‘The 2000s Made Me Gay’, to join us for a meetup and Q&A. It was only our second meetup since launching the book club, so inviting Grace for a special meetup encouraged even more people to join us and participate in the conversation. We discussed Grace's inspiration for the book and her experiences with internalized homophobia and coming out. It was an exciting opportunity to connect with each other, discover shared experiences and learn how to be better allies to each other.

So, what’s next for the Pride Community at Checkout.com this year? We care about maintaining and increasing our LGBTQIA+ colleagues' sense of belonging. And we want to meet people where they are. Checkout.com has offices on five continents, and we know that there are regional differences on how best to approach LGBTQIA+ topics. So, we’ll keep providing different ways to unite our community members; contribute to enhancing inclusion for queer employees globally; and advocate for LGBTQIA+ rights both within and outside the company.