Yusuke Kitamura hid his sexuality from colleagues for most of his career. It was only after joining one of Japan¡¯s oldest brokerages last year that he could tell them he was gay.

¡°It was so stressful having to lie, and I was hoping to come out at some point,¡± Kitamura, 33, told a packed room of human resource professionals at an event on workplace diversity in Tokyo. ¡°Now that I¡¯m out, I¡¯ve gone one step further to really communicate with people. I make it a point to talk about my private life.¡±

Kitamura said he was closeted at his two previous jobs. What motivated his openness at Nomura Securities Co., where he¡¯s a training facilitator and an officer for diversity and inclusion, was its commitment not to discriminate against or harass others based on sexual orientation.