A CULTURE OF BELONGING
As items on a menu come in all shapes, sizes and flavors, no two Team Members are the same, and that’s the way we like it. We’re united despite our differences, welcoming all to the table. Our Team Members and Guests are diverse in gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, religion, age, cultural background and life experiences. We celebrate these differences and cultivate an environment where individual strengths and stories are respected and valued.
OUR COMMITMENT TO RACIAL JUSTICE
At Brinker, we stand against racism in all forms and condemn racial violence. As part of our ongoing commitment to racial justice, we continue to listen to differing perspectives, educate our teams, identify areas where we need to be stronger, and act on them.
A CULTURE OF BELONGING
We support Team Members from all backgrounds and walks of life by providing opportunities and resources to help them reach their professional and personal goals. To support everyone, we have safe spaces and systems that break down barriers and push representation for all. As we look to the future, we are committed to continuing this work in support of the evolving needs of the workforce.
Women Taking the Lead (WTL) is an inclusive career development program designed to support and empower female leadership. We achieve this by providing customized training, mentorships and access to outside leadership resources, such as the Women’s Foodservice Forum. Established in 2015, WTL has trained more than 500 leaders across Brinker and its brands, opened the lines of communication between women and men about the impact of female leadership, and created opportunities for women to succeed professionally and personally at Brinker.
Launching in 2021, Shades of Operations is a restaurant-level development program designed to support the advancement of underrepresented groups and increase diversity representation in leadership positions. This program creates opportunity for diverse leaders to have mentoring, executive sponsorship and specialized training resources to help them reach their professional goals.
Education leads to opportunity. And every Team Member deserves the opportunity to access education. At no out-of-pocket cost to participants, our Best You EDU™ program provides education opportunities for Team Members at all levels of our organization. The program was designed to meet Team Members where they are on their educational journey through customized learning pathways for foundational education, English as a second language, GED and associate degrees. In addition, Best You EDU™ offers tutoring services to family of eligible Team Members.
BELONGING AT BRINKER
We’re committed to living our purpose and making every Team Member and Guest feel special as their whole, authentic self. We actively choose to create a sense of belonging at every level, in every decision, every single day.
Communities of Interest are Brinker resource groups designed to positively influence the workplace, promote a sense of belonging, and create a welcoming environment for those with similar interests. These groups develop connections, share ideas, and encourage variety of thought in the organization.
We’re focused on hiring and creating a sense of belonging for all. To do this, we have several development programs to provide leaders wth ongoing training for awareness on biases throughout the employment life cycle.
We’ve established and maintained practices to provide opportunities for people who hold the same jobs to have the same experiences regardless of gender, race, ethnicity or other qualities. Through ongoing Team Member and leader training in topics such as conscious and unconscious bias, we’re committed to providing inclusive experiences for Team Members and Guests alike.
COMMUNITY OF CONNECTION
Community is at the heart of our purpose and culture, and speaks to both the authentic connections in our restaurants and the meaningful relationships we have with the communities we serve. By nurturing a culture of belonging for all, we enhance the Team Member experience, leading to a better Guest experience as well.
We are establishing a new partnership with Bonton Farms, an urban farm in South Dallas, to support their mission of restoring lives, creating jobs and igniting hope in a once-forgotten neighborhood with some of the most marginalized people. More information coming soon.
Throughout the year and across the country, our restaurants host Give Back Nights contributing more than $450,000 a year to deserving organizations and local fundraising efforts. Many of these events support underrepresented groups and organizations on a mission to advance diversity, equity and inclusion in their community.
We believe that our restaurant teams should reflect the communities we serve. We have established recruitment and retention systems to ensure diverse representation from the hourly to management levels to make sure our teams represent the local community.
Funded by Team Members for Team Members, the Brinker Family Fund (BFF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that financially supports Team Members in their time of need. Since its establishment in 1997, the BFF has contributed more than $15 million to help over 10,000 Team Members going through unexpected challenges, including serious illness and injury, loss of a loved one and natural disasters. The Brinker Family Fund has had the biggest impact on communities near the poverty line, which disproportionately includes communities of color and single-parent families.