Leaders of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) do so as volunteers in addition to their main jobs.
At Dare to Overcome, Sumreen Ahmad (Accenture), Dale Konrad (Equinix), Naomi Kraus (Google), and Fr. Greg McBrayer (American Airlines) received the 2023 ERG Leader of the Year Award.
Each were recognized for their extraordinary service and pioneering impact — not only within their own companies — but also in helping other companies on their journeys toward more religiously inclusive, faith-friendly workplaces for people of all faith and beliefs. You can watch a video of their profound responses below.
2023 ERG Leaders of the Year:
Sumreen Ahmad has been at the forefront of Accenture including religion as part of diversity and inclusion since 2007. Sumreen, working with many others has helped create a workplace culture that includes all faiths and beliefs without marginalizing any. Sumreen sees this inclusivity to be more than just having faith-oriented ERGs, but helping people of faith and their viewpoints be heard in ways that contribute to the good of all, as she shared in last year’s Dare to Overcome keynote.
Dale Konrad has been at the forefront of standing up Equinix’s interfaith ERG, FaithConnect. Working with cofounder Marsie Sweetland, they’ve been able to increase allyship in the company through FaithConnect’s three pillars: invite, learn and respect. By inviting people to learn about each others faiths and beliefs, Dale has played a critical role in driving respect within the company in ways that impact other companies and society at large. This year, Dale and FaithConnect colleagues spoke on how to take ERG impact to the next level.
Naomi Kraus cofounded and is global lead for Google’s Inter Belief Network (IBN). Before IBN, people of faith didn’t have a formal way to be recognized and included. Today there are thousands of Googlers across the world who are part of IBN, building a culture where everyone’s faiths and beliefs are included and respected. Naomi has also spoken out on ways that companies can end antisemitism, including in this recent article.
Fr. Greg McBrayer, co-lead of American Airlines Christian Employee Business Resource Group (CEBRG). In addition to his role as a chief flight dispatcher for American Airlines serves as company chaplain. During the pandemic, Fr. Greg provided compassionate care to countless employees and their loved ones as the airline kept flying despite the major covid disruptions. His approach is informed by having been a flight controller during the terrorist attacks of 9/11, a story you can hear here.
Watch the awards: