Gender in Focus

Is your hiring process actually ready for trans and non-binary applicants, or does it just look inclusive on paper? In this episode of Gender in Focus, El and Kai unpack what inclusive hiring for trans and non-binary talent actually requires, and where most HR teams have gaps they've never had reason to notice.

They break down why good intentions and inclusive policies alone aren't enough to remove real barriers, what trans and non-binary applicants are actually looking for when they assess whether an organization is safe to apply to, and the specific points in the hiring process where things tend to break down, from application forms and internal systems to reference checks and third-party background checks. They close with four rapid-fire questions any HR or recruitment team can ask themselves right now to get an honest read on where they actually stand.

Whether you work in HR, sit on a hiring committee, or lead a team that's hiring, this episode gives you a practical, real-world look at what it takes to make a hiring process genuinely ready for trans and non-binary candidates.

In this episode:

• Why inclusive values and policies alone aren't enough to remove hiring barriers
• What trans and non-binary applicants are actually assessing before they apply
• The five most common areas where hiring processes break down for trans and non-binary candidates
• Why background checks are one of the most overlooked risk points in the process
• The "weakest link" problem: how one bad handoff can undo an otherwise inclusive process
• Four questions every HR team can ask to check if they're ready to hire trans and non-binary talent

To find out more about our brand new course, Hiring Trans & Non-Binary Applicants with Confidence, click the link here: https://transfocusacademy.thinkific.com/courses/hiring-tnb-applicants-with-confidence

Need support for your organization? Book a free consult here: https://meetings.hubspot.com/nico-montagut?uuid=48b626f6-9983-4c3c-8ddb-cad8720b4589

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

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Does your workplace have a trans inclusion policy that hasn't changed much in practice? In this episode of Gender in Focus, El and Kai talk about implementing trans inclusion at work, and what it takes to move from knowing what needs to change for trans and non-binary employees to actually getting it done.

Kai explains why so many organizations choose to roll out trans-inclusive changes quietly, often to avoid controversy or seeming performative, and why that approach can end up creating the very backlash it was meant to avoid. They also get into how to adapt when a plan runs into obstacles nobody saw coming, why policies and toolkits can sit on a shelf without most staff knowing they exist, and why implementation plans tend to stall when nobody clearly owns them.

Whether you work in HR, lead DEI or 2SLGBTQ+ inclusion work, or have been handed a trans inclusion plan and aren't sure where to begin, this episode gives you a practical look at what implementation really involves and how the right support can help you follow through.

In this episode:

• What implementation support means, and the gap between knowing what to do and knowing how to do it
• Why quiet rollouts of trans-inclusive changes tend to backfire on trans and non-binary employees
• How to handle unexpected obstacles, from IT system limitations to walls that can't be moved
• Why a trans inclusion policy can sit unused for years, and how to bring it into everyday work life
• What trans inclusion policies in sport reveal about the difference education makes
• The first step any organization can take to turn a plan into action

00:00 Intro

01:37 What is implementation support?

03:40 Why some organizations roll out changes quietly

07:59 How communication prevents backlash

10:56 When plans don't go to plan

13:49 The gap between having a policy and using it

17:05 What trans inclusion in sport can teach workplaces

19:11 Where to start: who needs to be involved

21:31 Implementation checklist and listener survey

Need support for your organization? Book a free consult here: https://meetings.hubspot.com/nico-montagut?uuid=48b626f6-9983-4c3c-8ddb-cad8720b4589

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

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What are it/its pronouns, and why do some people use them? If you've ever felt unsure or uncomfortable using "it" for a person, you're not alone. In this episode of Gender in Focus, we share what happened when someone asked us to use it/its pronouns for the first time, and what we learned along the way.

A lot of people worry that calling someone "it" is dehumanizing, and it's easy to see why. "It" has a long history of being used to dehumanize trans and non-binary people, and it's still used that way today. But there's a real difference between a word imposed on someone to reject them and a pronoun someone chooses for themselves.

In this episode, we cover:

• What it/its pronouns are and how to use them in a sentence
• Why some non-binary and gender-diverse people choose it/its over they/them or neopronouns
• Why using "it" for a person can feel uncomfortable, and the history behind that
• Practical tips for practising it/its pronouns and recovering from mistakes
• What to do if you're still struggling
• What we learned using it/its pronouns during our pronoun initiative pilot

If someone in your life uses it/its pronouns, or you've just come across them and want to understand, this episode will help you move past the discomfort and get it right.

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

02:51 What are it/its pronouns?

05:26 Why do people use it/its pronouns?

07:51 Why does "it" feel uncomfortable?

11:49 How to get comfortable using it/its pronouns

16:38 Alternatives if you're still struggling

18:21 Our first time using it/its pronouns

25:11 how to get involved

Need support for your organization? Book a free consult here: https://meetings.hubspot.com/nico-montagut?uuid=48b626f6-9983-4c3c-8ddb-cad8720b4589

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

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Gender in Focus is hosted by El Orchard and Kai Scott with TransFocus

What are people actually thinking when they meet a trans person for the first time? In this episode of Gender in Focus, El puts Kai on the spot and asks the questions trans and non-binary people get asked all the time - questions people ask out loud far more often than you'd expect, including from complete strangers, and the ones many don't realize are invasive until they've already asked them.

From "have you had the surgery?" and "how do you have sex?" to "what's your real name?" and "how did you know you were trans?", Kai breaks down why each question lands the way it does, which ones he's happy to answer, and which ones he chooses to decline - and why that's okay too.

This episode isn't about shutting down curiosity, but more about understanding the difference between genuine, respectful interest and questions that cross a line, and knowing where to actually go to learn more about trans and non-binary experiences without putting any one person on the spot.

Whether you're trying to be a better ally, work more inclusively with trans and non-binary co-workers, or you've simply wondered what NOT to ask a trans person, this conversation offers an candid, unscripted look at what it's really like to be on the receiving end of these questions.

In this episode:

• Why "have you had the surgery?" is one of the most common questions trans people are asked
• Why "how do you have sex?" gets asked far more often than people think, even by strangers or at work
• The problem with asking someone's "real" name
• Why "when did you transition?" is more loaded than it sounds
• How to be genuinely curious about trans experiences without crossing a line
• Where to actually go to learn more, respectfully

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE RESOURCE: "Curious About Trans Experiences? An Ally's Guide to Asking Questions Respectfully" https://www.transfocus.ca/s/Curious-About-Trans-Experiences.pdf

Need support for your organization? Book a free consult here: https://meetings.hubspot.com/nico-montagut?uuid=48b626f6-9983-4c3c-8ddb-cad8720b4589

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

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Why does gender show up as the deciding factor in some workplace policies and programs -  often in ways that quietly exclude trans and non-binary people - even when it's not really what's at stake? In this episode of Gender in Focus, TransFocus's Kai Scott and El Orchard break down the "Who to What" reframe: the framework they use to help organizations stop treating gender as a blanket category and get specific about what a policy or program is actually trying to achieve.

Kai and El unpack how shifting from "who" (someone's gender) to "what" (the actual need, interest, or purpose behind a decision) makes policies and programs clearer, easier to measure, and more genuinely inclusive for everyone - including trans and non-binary people.

In this episode:

• Why gender-designated washroom and changeroom policies often fail to create real safety - including a disturbing real-world case of a teenage girl forced to prove her gender to use a public restroom
• How "women in leadership" programs and women's groups can unintentionally exclude trans women and non-binary people - and how to build genuinely gender-diverse leadership programs without losing the point of the group
• A real example from an international hostel chain that completely rethought how it assigned gender-designated dorms with the help of TransFocus
• Where this framework can backfire: how vague "what" criteria have been used to discriminate against trans women, with examples from sports eligibility policy
• How the "Who to What" method connects to SMART goal-setting for setting achievable, measurable diversity and inclusion outcomes

Whether you're in HR, DEI, policy design, or just want practical language for talking about gender inclusion at work, this episode gives you a framework you can start using right away to support transgender employees, non-binary staff, and build a genuinely inclusive workplace.

Gender in Focus is a podcast from TransFocus, exploring gender diversity, transgender and non-binary experiences, and how organizations and individuals can build genuinely inclusive workplaces and communities. New episodes weekly.

Follow the show so you don't miss an episode, and if this one was useful, a rating and review helps others find it.

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

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Why do trans and non-binary people often have to prove their identity to doctors, psychiatric panels, and even courts - even after they've already told you who they are? In this episode of Gender in Focus, TransFocus's Kai Scott and El Orchard unpack gender self-determination: the idea that people should be able to define their own gender identity without needing outside approval, and why so many systems still require something else instead.

Kai and El break down what "proof" actually looks like in practice across healthcare, legal recognition, and beyond - and why these systems tend to reward conformity to narrow gender stereotypes rather than genuinely reflecting whether someone's identity is real.

In this episode:

• Why the UK's "real lived experience" requirement (often one to two years) puts people in the position of performing gender rather than living it - including a story about a trans man who brought a photo of Jesus to a review panel to argue that long hair doesn't disqualify a man from being one
• What psychiatric panel interviews and behind-the-glass group observations actually involve, and why being watched and assessed by strangers shapes how people answer, rather than revealing anything true
• How Canada's more self-determination-based approach to hormone access compares to the process typically involved in surgical care, and where some process may still be reasonable
• The safety risks of tying legal gender markers on ID to court approval, particularly for people who may be targeted or doxed
• A striking real-world example from a Janet Mock interview, where Mock asks a cisgender woman the same invasive questions trans people are routinely asked - with revealing results. You can find the full video of this interview here: https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2nx5pu

Whether you're new to conversations about trans rights and healthcare or have followed this debate for years, this episode offers a clear, human look at what gatekeeping actually costs - and what genuine self-determination could look like instead.

Gender in Focus is a podcast from TransFocus, exploring gender diversity, transgender and non-binary experience, and how organizations and individuals can build genuinely inclusive workplaces and communities. New episodes weekly.

Follow the show so you don't miss an episode, and if this one was useful, a rating and review helps others find it.

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

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What does it actually mean when someone uses multiple pronouns, like she/they, he/they, or he/she (among others) - and why do so many people assume it's just for attention?

In this episode of Gender in Focus, El and Kai break down multiple pronoun use: what it means, why trans and non-binary people use two or more pronoun sets (like she/they, he/they, or he/she), and how to get it right without overthinking it. Drawing on research with thousands of trans and non-binary people, they unpack the real reasons behind multiple pronouns - from being bi-gender or gender fluid, to blending past and present identities, to simply feeling safer easing people in gradually - and take on one of the most common myths head-on: that using multiple pronouns is attention-seeking.

El also shares their own experience coming out with multiple pronouns, including a night at a party where being asked question after question about their pronouns left them feeling picked apart rather than accepted.

In this episode:

• What it means when someone uses multiple pronouns (she/they, he/they, and more)
• The real reasons people use two or more pronoun sets, from research with trans and non-binary communities
• Debunking the "attention-seeking" myth around multiple pronouns
• How to actually use someone's pronouns in conversation - alternating vs. picking one
• Why you don't need to understand someone's reasons to respect and use their pronouns
• What workplaces get wrong with pronoun on forms, in HR systems, and during onboarding
• Practical tips for managers and colleagues supporting non-binary and multiple-pronoun team members

Whether you're non-binary, questioning your own gender identity, or an ally trying to better support trans and non-binary people, this episode gives you a clear, judgment-free breakdown of multiple pronoun use - and why practice, not perfection, is what actually matters.

Topics: she/they pronouns, he/they pronouns, multiple pronouns, non-binary, genderfluid, bi-gender, pronoun etiquette, gender identity, trans inclusive workplace

Follow the show so you don't miss an episode, and if this one was useful, a rating and review helps others find it.

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

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Trans bathroom bans are marketed as protecting women. The data say otherwise.

In the US, at least 21 states now restrict trans people from using washrooms that match their gender identity, requiring access based on sex assigned at birth instead. Canada has taken the opposite approach - gender identity has been the legal standard for washroom access since the late 1990s. So which model actually works, and who does each one really protect?

In this episode of Gender in Focus, hosts Kai and El dig into Williams Institute research comparing both systems - and the findings are surprising for people on both sides of the debate. They cover:

• What the data actually shows about safety in states and provinces with gender-identity-based washroom access - including why no rise in safety incidents has been found
• What happens when sex-at-birth laws force trans men into women's washrooms and trans women into men's washrooms — and even then, 10% of trans men and 7% of trans women are still denied access to the washrooms they're legally required to use
• The overlooked group also harmed by appearance-based bathroom policing: gender-nonconforming cisgender women
• Real-world consequences of sex-at-birth policy, including a trans woman's ID mismatch that led to a fraud charge
• How organizations and workplaces can write a washroom policy based on behaviour, not appearance - with a practical code-of-conduct framework any employer can use

Whether you're following the US bathroom bill debate, trying to understand Canada's gender identity laws, or building an inclusive workplace policy, this conversation breaks down what the evidence actually says - not just what the political rhetoric claims.

Content note: this episode discusses discrimination, harassment, and misgendering.

Research mentioned: https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/safety-in-restrooms-and-facilites/

Gender in Focus is a podcast from TransFocus, exploring gender diversity, transgender and non-binary experience, and how organizations and individuals can build genuinely inclusive workplaces and communities. New episodes weekly.

Follow the show so you don't miss an episode, and if this one was useful, a rating and review helps others find it.

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

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A transgender employee just came out at work—what should HR do next? In this episode of Gender in Focus, El and Kai break down exactly what HR, managers, and DEI leaders need to know when an employee discloses their gender identity at work, and why "employee-led" doesn't mean hands-off.

TransFocus consults organizations on building trans and non-binary inclusive workplaces, and in this episode Kai and El go deep on what workplace disclosure really looks like: what transgender and non-binary employees are weighing before they ever say a word, why so many feel like a burden just for asking for the basics, and what a proper trans inclusion toolkit actually needs to cover.

In this episode, we cover:

1. What "disclosure" means (and why we don't say "coming out" or "transitioning" at work)
2. Why work is usually the last place transgender and non-binary people come out—and what that tells you about the risk they're taking
3. What "employee-led" actually means, and how HR and managers get it wrong in both directions
4. The practical stuff no one thinks about: pronouns, names, gender markers, time off, who tells the team, and how
5. Why having zero policy in place is a legal risk, not a neutral stance
6. What transgender and non-binary employees are legally entitled to ask for at work (workplace rights and accommodations)
7. How to build (or get) a disclosure toolkit for your organization

Get our free disclosure template: join the TransFocus newsletter and we'll send you our 10-12 page disclosure template—a ready-to-use HR guide covering exactly what to ask, what not to ask, and how to document a workplace disclosure process properly.

👉 https://www.transfocus.ca/freeresourcedownload

Want a tailored trans inclusion toolkit for your organization? TransFocus works directly with organizations to build custom trans and non-binary inclusion toolkits and disclosure guidelines.

👉 www.transfocus.ca/organization

Gender in Focus is a podcast from TransFocus, exploring gender diversity, transgender and non-binary experience, and how organizations and individuals can build genuinely inclusive workplaces and communities. New episodes weekly.

Follow the show so you don't miss an episode, and if this one was useful, a rating and review helps other HR leaders and DEI professionals find it.

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

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Why does almost every conversation about trans people eventually turn to surgery? In this episode of Gender in Focus, El and Kai Scott unpack the "have you had the surgery?" question — where it comes from, what it reveals about cis assumptions around gender and bodies, and why it's especially loaded at work.

Kai breaks down why "the surgery" is never just one surgery, why genitals so often become the unspoken centre of the question, and why most trans people never undergo every — or even any — gender-affirming surgery. El and Kai also dig into the difference between a question that comes from genuine support and one that's really just about satisfying your own curiosity, using a powerful story about disability, dignity, and asking better questions.

Then they bring it into the workplace specifically: how much (if anything) a trans employee should have to share about medical transition, what HR and managers actually need to know versus what they're just curious about, and how organizations can avoid treating trans and non-binary staff as a monolith.

If you've ever wondered whether a question you're curious about is actually okay to ask — or if you're trans or non-binary and tired of fielding it — this episode is for you.

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About Gender in Focus:

Gender in Focus is a podcast from TransFocus, exploring gender diversity, trans and non-binary experiences, and how organizations and individuals can build genuinely inclusive workplaces and communities. New episodes weekly.

Connect with us online:

🌐 Learn more about how we can support your workplace: www.transfocus.ca/organization 📸 Instagram: @transfocusconsulting

🎥 Watch our YouTube episodes here: www.youtube.com/@transfocusconsulting

📧 Email: [email protected]

➡️ Have feedback for us? Fill in this short survey: www.podcastsurvey.scoreapp.com