Values in action: Diversity@MNP

Hi. My name is K Alexander. My pronouns are they/them. I’m an actor, guitarist, singer, and social media strategist at MNP.

I am proud to work at an organization that doesn’t just accept me for who I am — but is fully invested in my mission to make the firm (and the world) more inclusive for people like me.

I haven’t always known that I’m non-binary. Honestly, I didn’t fully understand there were options other than male or female until 2015 when I was cast as S. Lafontaine, a non-binary character on a web series called Carmilla. The more I put into the character, the more I found answers to questions I’d been asking all my life.

Since coming out, I’ve been using my platform to build awareness of gender diversity and how pronouns help us shape and communicate our identity. I believe everyone, no matter where they fit on the gender spectrum, should feel safe to be their authentic selves at home, online, in public, and especially at work, where we spend so much time but often feel like we need to hide or tone down certain parts of who we are.

I’m an optimist. I like to think most people want their colleagues to feel more comfortable in their skin. Unfortunately, experience has taught me that not every employer is open to sharing pronouns or providing a space for me to share what non-binary means.

It’s trained me to approach every interview with skepticism. Some people only have to think about what a good fit looks like professionally and whether there are opportunities for advancement. I’ve had to turn away many supposedly good job opportunities because the organization didn’t feel like an emotionally (and sometimes even physically) safe environment.

Subtle cues can reveal a lot when you’re used to discrimination. They're usually red flags, but sometimes subtle cues can surprise you.

I can't even recall the content of the email; what I do remember is my recruiter contact at MNP included pronouns in their signature line. A cisgender person might not have even noticed it. But it told me in bold letters that this employer aligns its actions and values. It confirmed that I could feel safe at MNP. And that was one of the deciding factors in accepting their offer of employment.

Every interaction I’ve had since has confirmed my instincts. My hiring managers helped to create a transparent environment to share my pronouns with my team and ensured my colleagues felt comfortable asking questions. My teammates have earnestly tried to use my pronouns and correct themselves when they use the wrong ones.

The firm has also been open to sharing my story on social media and through its internal message board, giving me another platform to build awareness and help people understand the importance of pronouns. In the last few months, I’ve heard from several other colleagues who, like me, are non-binary. They saw my story and messaged me to say they feel safer being themselves at MNP.

Andrew Machalaski (he/him) saved two and a half months of vacation to ensure he could spend as much time as possible with his young family after the birth of his first child. Yet he still felt apprehensive when he approached his supervisor to request time off.

“My son was due in April. Most people are afraid to ask for two weeks off at the tail end of busy season, much less three months,” says Andrew. “Instead, my leader said, ‘Keep your vacation; let’s re-design your schedule so you can work when you’re able and be there for your family when you need to.’

“I still earned an income, I was able to keep 100 percent of my benefits, and I’ve continued to progress in my career. It was an incredible arrangement that I never imagined would be possible.”

Far from being a one-off, Marcelo Canseco (he/him) says Andrew’s positive experience with MNP’s paternity leave policy mirrors his own.

“I took a nine-month paternity leave in 2022, although I had only been with the firm for a year. That allowed me to spend priceless quality time with my new baby — and, rather than being set back by the time I missed, I was promoted to manager on leave.”

MNP has had a gender-agnostic parental leave policy for several years. However, female team members are far more likely to maximize it. Many men fear falling backwards in their careers or seeming unreliable or like their priorities are misplaced.

Andrew and Marcelo hope their experiences help to dispel those misconceptions and encourage more new fathers at MNP to take some time away to be there for their partners and bond with their families.

“Some of my friends have approached their companies for paternity leave, and their experiences were negative,” says Andrew. “My experience with MNP reinforced my belief in the firm.”

Marcelo agrees, adding that it makes an enormous difference knowing MNP cares about him and his family’s well-being.

While most team members return from parental leave within a year, Linda Adrian (she/her) has kept a flexible schedule for nearly all her 16 years with MNP.

She joined the firm when her first child was two with the agreement that she would work 16 hours per week and take a leave of absence to spend every summer at the lake with her kids. Linda has taken on more hours as the children have grown older. Since 2019, she’s worked 32 hours a week, 100 percent remotely from the lake.

“It’s not an arrangement that works for everyone,” says Linda. “But I think we [Linda and MNP] have benefitted from the open communication and trust we established up-front. My team knows when I’ll be available and the types of tasks that I’m best suited to deliver on.”

Despite being with the firm for over a decade, Linda says her leaders at MNP still find ways to surprise her.