Bobbi Pickard

Bobbi Pickard speaking at the Trans in the City Awards 2022

Bobbi Pickard is a British human rights and LGBTQIA+ rights campaigner, and founder of Trans in the City.[1] She was the one of the first openly transgender employees at BP, and runs a diversity, equity, and inclusion consultancy firm.[2][3]

Life

Bobbi Pickard was born in January 1969,[4] and grew up struggling with gender dysphoria from the age three.[5] She was open with her gender identity until aged six, when her father told her that boys didn't wear dresses or play with dolls. Growing up, she struggled to hide her identity, becoming isolated at school. The emotional toll of hiding her true self culminated in a suicide attempt at age 14, when puberty intensified her gender dysphoria.[2] She first shared her gender identity with a select group of people in 1991. Over two decades later, she was able to medically transition in 2015, before publicly coming out in her workplace at BP in 2017.[5][6][7]

Pickard has previously worked for British Aerospace, Kodak, Computer Weekly, before becoming self-employed and starting her own business in the early 2000s.[6] Later, she began working at BP.[8] She became the Co-Chair of BP Pride’s Transgender Group.[9]

Trans in the City was founded by Pickard in 2017, as a UK based not-for-profit organisation championing equality for trans and non-binary people in business. Pickard is the organisation's CEO.[10][3]

In 2021 Pickard became the first openly trans person to close the London Stock Exchange,[11] is a patron of the LGBTQIA+ parents charity FFLAG,[12][13] and a Golden champion of the LGBTQIA+ homelessness charity Stonewall Housing.[12][14] In the past she has been a trustee for Mermaids[15] and an ambassador for MindOut.[16] She has raised several hundred thousand pounds for trans charities since 2016.[10]

Through her consultancy work, Bobbi has spoken at a variety of events, teaching businesses and workplaces how they can be supportive of their transgender and non-binary employees.[15][17][18]

Accolades and awards

In 2019 Pickard was included in PwC's Stonewall 50 Inspirational Role Models List,[19] was #1 in the Yahoo Finance OUTstanding 50 LGBT+ Future Leaders’ List and received the Rainbow Honours LGBTQ Champion Award.[6][20]

In 2020 Pickard became British LGBT Awards Nestle Diversity Champion,[21] placed #4 in the Yahoo Finance OUTstanding 50 LGBT+ Future Leaders’ List[22] and #14 in the Pride Power List.[23]

In 2021, Pickard was named Diversity Hero at the European Diversity Awards,[24] and placed #12 in the Pride Power List.[25]

Pickard was named Stonewall Changemaker of the Year in 2022.[26]

References

  1. ^ Baldwin, Philip (2024-09-30). "'Trans and non-binary rights need everyone working together'". GAY TIMES. Retrieved 2025-03-13.
  2. ^ a b Gaubert, Adrien; Gaubert, Pierre. "Bobbi Pickard: A trailblazer for trans inclusion transforming resistance into progress". mygwork.com. Retrieved 2025-03-13.
  3. ^ a b "ABOUT". Bobbi. Retrieved 2025-07-13.
  4. ^ "Bobbi Charlotte PICKARD personal appointments - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 2025-07-13.
  5. ^ a b "'My life had no future': How it felt to come out as trans in the 70s". Metro. 2024-11-17. Retrieved 2025-03-13.
  6. ^ a b c Kelleher, Patrick (2022-11-13). "Trans in the City's Bobbi Pickard on surviving against the odds". PinkNews. Retrieved 2025-03-13.
  7. ^ "Trans people can wait seven years for NHS initial assessment". BBC News. 2023-08-02. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
  8. ^ "8 minutes with Bobbi Pickard, CEO of Trans in the City". march8.com. 20 February 2023. Retrieved 2025-03-13.
  9. ^ "That conversation probably saved my life | Careers | Home". bp global. Retrieved 2025-07-13.
  10. ^ a b "Trans in the City". Trans in the City. Retrieved 2025-07-13.
  11. ^ Parsons, Vic (2021-11-16). "History made as first out trans person closes London Stock Exchange". PinkNews. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  12. ^ a b "Belfast Workplace Conference". Stonewall. 2024-01-19. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
  13. ^ fflag (2022-08-03). "FFLAG's new Patron - Bobbi Pickard". FFLAG. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  14. ^ "House of Stonewall – Stonewall Housing". Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  15. ^ a b Somerville, Ewan; Lough, Catherine (2023-05-04). "Former Mermaids trustee gives trans advice to private school headteachers". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
  16. ^ Hadjimichael, Georgios (2023-03-14). "Find us at the Stonewall Workplace Conference". MindOut. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  17. ^ Wyatt, Honey (2024-05-29). "How HR can create a trans inclusion policy". HR Magazine. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
  18. ^ "EUROUT 2024: Learning from Legends, Leading with Pride". London Business School. Retrieved 2025-03-13.
  19. ^ "Inspirational 50 - PwC" (PDF).
  20. ^ Team, Editorial (2020-06-26). "DIVA COMMUNITY: In conversation with Bobbi Pickard". diva-magazine.com. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  21. ^ "Nestlé – Top 10 Diversity Heroes 2020 - British LGBT Awards". 2020-02-11. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  22. ^ "The OUTstanding Top 100 LGBT+ Future Leaders 2020". Yahoo Finance. 2021-01-19. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  23. ^ List, Pride Power (2020-07-03). "PRIDE POWER LIST 2020". PRIDE POWER LIST. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  24. ^ "European Diversity Awards: business leaders, firms and charities nominated for top honours". 14 October 2021.
  25. ^ List, Pride Power (2021-06-26). "PRIDE POWER LIST 2021". PRIDE POWER LIST. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  26. ^ EDITOR (2022-08-03). "Bobbi Pickard appointed as FFLAG patron". diva-magazine.com. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
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