On 29 June, 2016, IEOut Club hosted the 10^th anniversary of our annual conference, called LGBT@Work. Our amazing sponsors IBM, Amadeus, Idealista, and Viajes El Corte Inglés ensured that the event was well-catered and looked great! For this special occasion, we also hosted an amazing party after the conference on a rooftop in the center of Madrid. We had over 196 people in attendance to both the conference and party, the largest number ever in our history, by far.

Speakers at the conference were Dennis Layton from McKinsey & Company; Jean-Louis Richard from Amadeus; Gary Kildare from IBM; Beatriz Pérez Íñiguez from Nielsen; and Gemma Juncá from Iberia. The diverse group brought differing perspectives to the audience: from the role of ally to fellow LGBT, from how their company attracts and promotes LGBT diversity initiatives to personal tales of coming out in the workplace. There was a lively atmosphere and a buzz of positive feeling!

True to our goal of promoting the understanding of issues encountered by LGBTs in the workplace, the event provided a forum for the community of IE to interact with the speakers during panel discussions as well as a during a networking break during the conference. And of course the party after!

We took the 10^th anniversary opportunity to recognize Jesus Encinar, CEO of Idealista, who was among the first to talk about LGBT diversity at corporations in Spain, with a special award of recognition. He was the first speaker at IEOut club when it was founded 10 years ago, and continues to use his leadership to increase the visibility of LGBTs and to end homophobia.

We could not be more thrilled with how the 10^th edition of LGBT@Work turned out, and are optimistic that IEOut will continue to march on and spread LGBT understanding and awareness in the Madrid community and beyond.

Olivia and Robert

Outgoing IEOut Co-presidents