Denise Pallavajjala talks about her passion for diversity and inclusion in the workplace and beyond
BY DYLAN MANN-HAZELL, IMAGE PROVIDED
From her early career pursuing international business opportunities to her current role as a strategist at WTW, Denise Pallavajjala has consistently sought opportunities for personal growth and positive impact on others. In this interview with myGwork, she delves into the development of her passion for diversity and inclusion, as well as the intersectionality between her experiences as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community and her commitment to advocating for inclusivity within the workplace and beyond.
Denise’s story begins in Chicago, where she grew up in a predominantly homogeneous environment. “I had a peaceful childhood, but I was not exposed to a lot of diversity in my local community,” she recalls. While grateful for her upbringing, she acknowledges there were not many visible LGBTQIA+ individuals in her childhood, and notes that when she returned later in life, she was pleased to see increased visibility, including local pride groups and affirming community spaces. Her academic pursuits led her to international business and languages. Early on, before her work as a seasoned consultant, her career focused on the technical aspects of pension administration, which eventually evolved into client management and specialty consulting.
A pivotal moment in Denise’s life came after her divorce, with new beginnings and the discovery of her attraction to women. This realisation, she explains, was not something she had anticipated. “I always considered myself a strong ally to the LGBTQIA+ community. However if you had told me when I got married that I later would identify as LGBTQIA+, I think I would have been sceptical.”
Denise is very candid about the complexities of her self-discovery and the evolving fluidity of identity in general. She emphasises the importance of respecting individual timelines for finding oneself, coming out and resisting the urge to categorise people without their say. She particularly notes the tendency of others to try to “box her in” with labels they think best suit her, rather than listening to how she feels in that moment. “When somebody tells you who they are, believe them,” she asserts.
Denise’s early attempts toward embracing her identity were not without their challenges, particularly in the workplace. She notes that coming out later in life, after having established herself professionally and as a parent, presented a unique set of considerations. People had already known her as “married to a man with three kids,” which meant handling existing perceptions and expectations. While her management and team were supportive, she notes the particular difficulty inhaving to come out to people who already have a fixed idea of her identity, trying to focus on her career and also beauthentic without calling attention to changes or masking personal details she would have otherwise shared freely in the past. While her job change to WTW three years ago was prompted by a professional opportunity, an unexpected benefit was being immediately known as queer and not needing to navigate identity management. Being out from day one allowed her to fully and authentically show up at work, leading to a new level of engagement. This also raised her awareness of the importance of supporting colleagues who come out at all stages in life and career.
Joining WTW three years ago marked a significant turning point in Denise’s career. She describes it as a leap of faith, leaving behind a 20-year tenure at another organisation to embrace new opportunities. The decision was driven by a desire to expand her consulting experience in a global organisation, and beyond the specific career opportunity considered, WTW’s proud commitment to workplace belonging drew her in. In particular, seeing pronouns in email signatures and strong evidence of workplace belonging on external career pages provided optimism.
Upon joining, the company’s global and regional inclusion networks, including the Out@WTW Pride network, solidified this sense of belonging. Denise noted the visibility of intersectional programming, as well as a prominent global executive sponsor, who demonstrated a visible commitment to DEI. Since joining, hearing the CEO and other leaders’ loud and unabashed support for a progressive culture of belonging has reinforced a welcoming environment for all. Denise emphasises the importance of creating safe spaces for allies and LGBTQIA+ people to learn, ask questions of one another, and be there as a support network. She notes that inclusion encompasses not only marginalised groups, but also those who want to affirm and support them.
When asked about standout moments in her career, her decision to join WTW, and her willingness to immediately embrace her identity and leadership role within the company’s LGBTQIA+ community come to mind, among others. In fact, one of her first initiatives at WTW was organising a series of sessions on LGBTQIA+ mental health during Pride Month in 2023. This initiative sparked deeper involvement within the Out@WTW network and led to her involvement in Out and Equal’s Workplace Summit.
Inspired by her experiences at the Workplace Summit, Denise co-founded the “Coffee Connections” program at WTW. This program brings together employees from different career levels, business areas, geographies and community affiliations (LGBTQ+ and allies) to encourage visibility, learning and safe spaces for conversation and meaningful connection. The program has since expanded to include Latin America (with Spanish-speaking groups), as well as a toolkit for global inclusion network use beyond Out@WTW North America.
Since taking on the role as co-chair of the North America Out@WTW network in late 2024, Denise has embraced the opportunity as an advocate and change agent. When considering what immediate improvements she would like to see for LGBTQIA+ equality, Denise discusses the importance of micro actions that can make a tangible difference. She believes that small, consistent efforts, such as direct personal invites to engage others, using inclusive language and always standing up against any level of discrimination, can collectively move mountains. She also stresses the importance of ally education and activation, multi-channel outreach, and urges networks to engage allies and provide them with the tools and resources they need to support the LGBTQIA+ community.
Building genuinely welcoming environments isn’t a one-off accomplishment, but a continuous cycle of education, evolution and questioning norms. Both organisations and individual people have a part to play in actively fostering environments where all can be themselves. Denise’s input at WTW and the positive impact that has led to an increasingly inclusive workspace at a time when not all organisations are doing the same. Denise regularly advocates for partnership with and beyond other inclusion networks and is a champion of an inclusive culture in her local Chicago office, also serving as a member of the Chicago Leadership Team and executive sponsor to the Multicultural Inclusion Network. As Denise states, building an environment of true belonging simply requires visible, authentic leaders, constant work, strong support and a dedication to consistently dismantling obstacles.
WTW is a proud partner of myGwork, the LGBTQ+ business community. Find out more about LGBTQIA+-friendly job opportunities at WTW.
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