Equality Institute
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Equality Institute firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Equality Institute
- Legal name
- It's About Time Events LLC
- Website
- https://theequalityinstitute.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Equality Institute industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Training and Consulting
- NAICS
- Educational Services (611), Educational Support Services (611710), Custom Computer Programming Services (541511)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)
- akta.pro primary industry
- DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) & Belonging Consulting (BPAHAGAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Accessibility, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) & Inclusive Content Services (EDAGAKAJ), LMS Integrations, Interoperability & Identity (LTI/SCORM/xAPI, SSO, APIs) (EDAFAAAI), Online/Hybrid Lifelong Learning Platforms & Open Enrollment Programs (EDAAAEAL), Standards, Packaging & Interoperability Tools (SCORM/xAPI/cmi5/LTI) (EDAFAHAH)
Keywords
Where Equality Institute is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Equality Institute business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel
Revenue model
- Keynote Speaking: High-energy keynote presentations delivered at corporate events, conferences, and internal company gatherings. Revenue generated per-event based on booking.
- Workshop Sessions: Multi-session workshop programs using the ARC Method® and CRAP Method® for team-level skill building and behavior change.
- Custom Learning Development: End-to-end custom learning and online course development for enterprise clients. The company manages the full development process as a one-stop partner.
- LGBTQ+ Certificate Courses: Self-guided micro-learning certificate courses (LGBTQ+ Inclusion Champion suite) offered to individuals and organizations, including LMS learning packages for enterprise-level clients.
- Consulting Engagements: Strategic consulting engagements to help organizations implement the Inclusive 360 framework and embed equity into everyday operations.
- Inclusive 360 Book: Sale of the bestselling book 'Inclusive 360' written by CEO Bernadette Smith, providing a practical roadmap for organizational inclusion.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | LGBTQ+ Inclusion Champion Micro-Learning (Self-Guided) |
| Hybrid | Annual | LGBTQ+ Inclusion eLearning Suite (Enterprise LMS) |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Custom Learning Development |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Keynotes & Workshops |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Equality Institute product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Equality Institute is a Chicago-based DEI consulting firm that sells keynote speaking, multi-session workshops, custom learning development, organizational consulting, and self-guided LGBTQ+ Inclusion micro-learning certificate courses to enterprise clients. Its offerings are anchored by three proprietary, trademarked methodologies — the ARC Method® (Ask, Respect, Connect), the CRAP Method®, and the Inclusive 360 Framework — and an SCORM-compliant eLearning Suite for enterprise LMS deployment. The firm also operates the Inclusive 360 Assessment web app and sells a companion book and newsletter content.
Product overview
Equality Institute operates as a service-based business offering a portfolio of training, consulting, and educational products centered on inclusive communication and LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion. The core offerings include: Workshops & Keynote sessions using the proprietary ARC Method and CRAP Method; Custom Learning Development for organizational needs; Self-guided LGBTQ+ Inclusion Champion micro-learning tracks (under 4 minutes); and Consulting services implementing the Inclusive 360 framework. Supporting products include: the ARC Method web tool and Companion GPT (beta) for on-demand guidance; the Inclusive 360 Assessment web app for organizational DEI evaluation; the Inclusive 360 book by CEO Bernadette Smith; LGBTQ+ Certificate Courses for smaller organizations; Enterprise-level SCORM-compliant eLearning for LMS deployment; the 5 Things weekly newsletter; and a Speaker Friends referral network. The company is headquartered in Chicago.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- The ARC Method: A proprietary framework for navigating inclusive conversations (Ask, Respect, Connect)
- The CRAP Method
- Inclusive 360
- LGBTQ+ Inclusion Champion
- 5 Things Newsletter
Products and services
- Workshops & Keynote High-energy keynote presentations and multi-session workshops delivered by Bernadette Smith for enterprise teams, using the proprietary ARC Method® and CRAP Method® to help participants navigate complex conversations and recover from awkward workplace moments.
- Custom Learning Development Full-service, end-to-end custom learning and online course development for enterprise clients. Equality Institute manages the entire development process, producing story-driven micro-learning experiences tailored to client needs.
- LGBTQ+ Inclusion Champion Micro-Learning Self-guided micro-learning certificate tracks (under 4 minutes per video) designed to build real-world LGBTQ+ inclusion skills for individual professionals and small-to-mid-size organizations.
- Consulting Strategic organizational consulting to implement the Inclusive 360 framework and embed equity into everyday operations across departments.
- LGBTQ+ Certificate Courses Online certificate courses that provide LGBTQ+ inclusion training with a credentialed certificate, targeted at small-to-mid-size organizations.
- LGBTQ+ Inclusion eLearning for Enterprise SCORM-compliant enterprise eLearning suite with micro-learning modules (average under 4 minutes), featuring closed captions in English and Spanish and screen-reader compatibility. Deployed into enterprise Learning Management Systems with optional white-label or co-branding.
- Inclusive 360 Assessment and Roadmap Proprietary DEI web application providing organizations with a specific, actionable assessment and roadmap to accelerate DEI and accessibility goals, cutting through typical DEI overwhelm.
- ARC Method Companion GPT Custom GPT (currently in beta) trained on interpersonal scenarios to provide instant advice and role-play capabilities for tricky workplace inclusion situations.
- Inclusive 360 Book Bestselling organizational roadmap book written by CEO Bernadette Smith, offering practical ways to embed equity into everyday operations across every department.
- Pride Month Services Virtual Pride programming and LGBTQ+ Pride Month speaking and workshop services for organizations seeking inclusion-themed events.
- Speaker Friends Program Vetted referral network of professional speakers (Heroic Public Speaking alumni) covering leadership, courage, wellness, kindness, and inclusion topics for clients seeking diverse speaking talent.
Quantifiable outcome
- Thousands of professionals use the ARC Method® as a repeatable tool for navigating workplace conversations
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Equality Institute
Customer profileNamed customers23 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Equality Institute technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
AI capability2 records
Feature5 records
Equality Institute partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.
- Heroic Public SpeakingminorBernadette Smith received her professional speaker training from Heroic Public Speaking. The company maintains a speaker referral network on its website listing other alumni from the Heroic program as recommended speakers for clients and contacts seeking diverse speaking talent.
- Carolinas LGBT+ Chamber of Commerce (CLGBTQC)minorNASCAR partnered with the Carolinas LGBT+ Chamber of Commerce in a sponsorship that pays to educate non-LGBTQ-owned businesses on LGBTQ+ inclusion. Equality Institute was referenced in blog content as an example of companies doing good work in the LGBTQ+ inclusion space in connection with this story.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Equality Institute competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Skillsoft: Skillsoft is a large enterprise learning platform offering DEI, leadership, and compliance content with global LMS integrations. It competes as a broad incumbent in the same enterprise eLearning market as Equality Institute's SCORM suite.
- Everfi (Vector Solutions): Everfi (now part of Vector Solutions) provides large-scale compliance and DEI eLearning courses to enterprises and educational institutions, including LGBTQ+ inclusion content. It is a broad incumbent in the same DEI training space with a much larger catalog and distribution scale than Equality Institute.
- Grovo (Cornerstone): Grovo, now part of Cornerstone OnDemand, provides micro-learning content for enterprise L&D including DEI topics. It is a broad incumbent competing with Equality Institute's micro-learning and SCORM eLearning offerings.
- Coursera for Business: Coursera for Business distributes DEI, leadership, and inclusive management courses from top universities to enterprise learners globally. It is a broad incumbent competing with Equality Institute's certificate courses and eLearning suite for enterprise learning budgets.
Direct peers
- Blue Ocean Brain: Blue Ocean Brain sells subscription-based micro-learning content on DEI, inclusion, leadership, and well-being topics to enterprise buyers, with LMS/SCORM integration. It is a direct competitor to Equality Institute's LGBTQ+ Inclusion eLearning Suite and certificate courses in the DEI micro-learning category.
- The Winters Group: The Winters Group is an inclusion and DEI consulting firm offering training, coaching, and strategic advisory services to enterprise clients. It is a direct competitor to Equality Institute's consulting practice in the same buyer market.
- LifeLabs Learning: LifeLabs Learning delivers manager and inclusive leadership training workshops and keynotes to mid-market and enterprise clients across industries. It directly competes with Equality Institute's workshops and keynotes offerings and shares the same buyer persona (HR/L&D leaders).
- SweetRush: SweetRush is a custom learning development agency that builds story-driven eLearning, micro-learning, and DEI training for enterprise clients. It competes directly with Equality Institute's Custom Learning Development service line.
- Paradigm Strategy: Paradigm is a DEI consulting and training firm that works with enterprise clients on inclusive culture, bias training, and inclusive leadership. It directly competes with Equality Institute's consulting and Inclusive 360 framework engagements.
- Pollen (pollen.co): Pollen offers live, expert-led DEI and inclusive leadership training sessions as a subscription to companies. It competes with Equality Institute's workshop and custom learning development offerings in the same enterprise DEI training category with a similar live-expert model.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Equality Institute social profiles
Digital presenceEquality Institute compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Equality Institute financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Equality Institute leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Equality Institute funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Equality Institute M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Equality Institute
What does Equality Institute do?
Equality Institute is a Chicago-based DEI consulting firm that sells keynote speaking, multi-session workshops, custom learning development, organizational consulting, and self-guided LGBTQ+ Inclusion micro-learning certificate courses to enterprise clients. Its offerings are anchored by three proprietary, trademarked methodologies — the ARC Method® (Ask, Respect, Connect), the CRAP Method®, and the Inclusive 360 Framework — and an SCORM-compliant eLearning Suite for enterprise LMS deployment. The firm also operates the Inclusive 360 Assessment web app and sells a companion book and newsletter content.
Is Equality Institute a public or private company?
Equality Institute is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Equality Institute founded?
Equality Institute was founded in 2004. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Equality Institute based?
Equality Institute is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Equality Institute make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Keynote Speaking is the primary driver. The others are workshop Sessions, custom Learning Development, LGBTQ+ Certificate Courses, consulting Engagements and inclusive 360 Book.
Who are Equality Institute's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Skillsoft, Everfi (Vector Solutions), Grovo (Cornerstone) and Coursera for Business. Direct peers are Blue Ocean Brain, The Winters Group, LifeLabs Learning, SweetRush, Paradigm Strategy and Pollen (pollen.co).
Does Equality Institute have an API?
No public API is recorded for Equality Institute.
What industry is Equality Institute in?
Equality Institute's product category is Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Training and Consulting. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAGAJ, DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) & Belonging Consulting, with a secondary code of EDAGAKAJ, Accessibility, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) & Inclusive Content Services. Its NAICS code is 611 and its SIC code is 8200.