The Importance of Pronouncing a Name: An Act of Inclusive Leadership
Leadership
Names are not just labels; they are powerful reflections of identity, culture, and history. In this article, Melissa Sumnauth explores the significance of correct name pronunciation in leadership and organizational culture. Drawing on her experience in executive coaching, executive search, facilitation, and people & culture she illustrates how mispronunciation can function as a microaggression and a barrier to inclusion, while intentional effort to say names correctly fosters dignity, belonging, and trust. With practical tools and a call to action for leaders, this article reframes name pronunciation as a vital practice in advancing equity and respectful engagement.
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Bata Shoe Museum, Canadian Council for the Arts, CEE Centre for Young Black Professionals, City of Toronto, David Suzuki Foundation, Fasken, Genome Canada, George Brown College, GTAA, Humber, IMCO, Kids Help Phone, Luminato, McMaster University, MLSE, OICR, Ontario Presents, ROM, Sankofa Square, Sick Kids, TD Bank, TTC, UHN Foundation, United Way Greater Toronto, University of Toronto, University of Waterloo, University Pension Plan Ontario, York University
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In my work as a leadership consultant and partner in executive search, I enter rooms where decisions are made about who leads, who belongs, and who is given the opportunity to shape the future. In these rooms—filled with ambition, strategy, and power—one of the most overlooked signals of respect and inclusion is also the most basic: how we say someone’s name.
Far too often, names are mispronounced, abbreviated without permission, or completely avoided. This happens in meetings, interviews, classrooms, and healthcare settings—and it has real consequences. I’ve met candidates who expect their names to be fumbled, stumbled, or flubbed before they even speak. I’ve worked with leaders who’ve never once been asked how they want their name to be pronounced. The silence around this small but essential detail echoes loudly across a person’s experience of inclusion.
Names as Identity: More Than Just Labels
A name is not just a sound—it’s a form of self-expression. It carries stories of origin, lineage, faith, migration, hope, and survival. Growing up here as an Indo-Guyanese-Canadian settler, my name marks so much of my past—Melissa for helping me to assimilate, Tara for helping me stay connecting to my Indo roots, and Sumnauth that helps me stay grounded in my Guyanese culture. In other cultures, a name may be chosen to honour a grandmother, a deity, or a moment of revolution, it can even mark the exact time of day someone was born. Mispronouncing someone’s name, then, is not a minor but can be a macro diminishment of identity.
Research confirms what many of us know instinctively: the chronic mispronunciation of a name can function as a microaggression. Like misgendering, it undermines a person’s sense of self and reinforces the idea that they must adapt—or shrink—to fit into dominant norms. We see this across institutions:
In education, where students of colour have had their names Anglicized or mocked by teachers.
In healthcare, where providers misread patient names and create unnecessary barriers to trust.
And in hiring, where names can be quietly screened out of opportunity.
Correct name pronunciation, then, isn’t about etiquette—it’s about equity.
Leadership and the Risk of Assumptions
As leaders, we must dismantle the assumption that names are optional to get right. When we don’t ask how to pronounce someone’s name—or worse, when we rename them to suit our own convenience—we send a clear message: Your full identity doesn’t belong here.
I have heard accounts of highly qualified candidates being overlooked for roles because hiring committees felt awkward about pronouncing their names. Some worried about saying the name wrong during an interview. Prior to my time at BES, I’ve had folks admit to me that they skipped the candidate entirely to avoid discomfort. That’s not just a missed opportunity—it’s a form of structural bias.
These moments are not isolated, but are part of a broader pattern of how power protects comfort at the expense of inclusion.
Pronunciation as a Practice of Care and Dignity
It’s not about getting it perfect. It’s about making the effort. Each time I walk into a meeting, I ask, “How do I pronounce your name?” That pause—that invitation—matters. It demonstrates humility, respect, and attention to the whole person. It signals that this interaction is not just transactional but relational.
And when we make the mistake, we correct ourselves. We model how to be accountable without defensiveness. We let the other person know: You don’t have to carry the weight of our discomfort. This is about soul-to-soul recognition, not just performance. It’s about treating people as fully human—not as roles to be filled or names to be managed.
Practical Tools for Inclusive Leadership
To shift our environments, we need to normalize some basic practices:
Ask: Always ask someone how to pronounce their name—and how they’d like to be addressed.
Listen and Repeat: Practice saying it. Repeat it back. Write it phonetically if needed.
Model and Educate: Use your platform to pronounce names correctly in meetings. Gently correct others. Normalize the question.
Centre Self-Determination: Let people define how they are known—including preferred names or changes that reflect gender, culture, or spiritual journeys.
When these actions are modelled by leadership, they set a tone of respect and care. They ripple outward into culture.
It Starts with Intention
The shift we’re talking about doesn’t require new policies or budgets—it requires attention to our intention. It requires us to slow down and ask: What message do I send when I do (or don’t) learn someone’s name? This is especially important in executive search, where we are helping to guide a search process. If we want to find leaders who reflect the diversity of our communities, we must first reflect that same respect in how we speak their names.
Names are sacred. They are declarations of identity, resilience, and belonging. We honour people not just by including them—but by acknowledging them fully, starting with the words we use to call them in.
Further Reading and Resources
Dali, S. et al. (2021). Say My Name: Understanding the Power of Names, Correct Pronunciation, and Personal Narratives. MedEdPORTAL. Link
Fattoracci, E.S.M. & Garcia, L.R. (2024). The Power of Proper Pronunciation. MIT Sloan Management Review. Link
Wazwaz, N. (2021). Why Pronouncing Names Correctly is More than Common Courtesy. NPR Life Kit. Link
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Names are not just labels; they are powerful reflections of identity, culture, and history. In this article, Melissa Sumnauth explores the significance of correct name pronunciation in leadership and organizational culture. Drawing on her experience in executive coaching, executive search, facilitation, and people & culture she illustrates how mispronunciation can function as a microaggression and a barrier to inclusion, while intentional effort to say names correctly fosters dignity, belonging, and trust. With practical tools and a call to action for leaders, this article reframes name pronunciation as a vital practice in advancing equity and respectful engagement.