The lack of diversity across the UK's private sector is no new surprise. Disconcerting statistics surrounding the lack of diversity found within the UK's workforce have highlighted that only 2% of directors are from an ethnic minority background, despite 59% of the ethnic minority workforce aspiring to reach management positions. In order to ensure businesses cannot state that diversity is too big of a challenge, Equality Group, a consultancy that helps companies retain and develop diverse talent, unveils their top ten diversity commandments for businesses who wish to improve a fair representation of British culture within their business.
10 diversity commandments
1. Education, Education, Education
- Create a safe space for bold and confident discussions around race issues
- Be clear on intent; open and honest in conversation
- Examine and assess the language you are currently using and whether it works
- Get the right people around the table (i.e. senior leaders, junior team members, as wide a range of ethnic diversity as possible)
- Start with the key decision makers at the firm
- Get the senior leadership to spearhead the education process across the firm
- Educate everyone in the company about the value of diversity and the particular importance of BAME talent
2. Radical Recruitment
- Have clear targets for the percentage of BAME candidates, i.e. 10% of a shortlist
- Expand into a broader search pool – partner with networks and firms who can help
- Identify different ways to evaluate diverse talent and train the interviewers and managers (do not expect them to know how to do this)
- Contextualised recruiting: understanding the local demographic and how to assess their performance
3. Know Your Data
- Ensure you know where you stand currently
- Put in place an appropriate system for collecting and measuring the data
- Set clear and achievable targets
- Share the targets and the anonymised data with the firm to create greater levels of transparency
- Ensure that you are accountable with your data
4. Unconscious Bias
- Ensure training on an unconscious bias with ongoing refreshers
- Apply the methodologies of dealing with unconscious bias
- Remind individuals at any key-decision making junctures about the importance of unconscious bias and the impact it has on all of us
5. Relationships & Role Models
- Raise the profile of key BAME professionals in your firm
- Encourage role models to tell their stories within the organisation via different mediums (e.g. videos, lunch and learns, podcasts etc)
- Join networks, panels, events and power lists that will promote your key BAME talent
- Build structured and coordinated mentorship programmes
- Consider reverse mentoring across the organisation
- BAME on BAME mentoring + BAME on Non-BAME mentoring
6. Appreciate Intersectionality
- Breaking down BAME into which minorities it covers, e.g. Black, South East Asian
- Ensure intersectionality within the ethnic groups
- Ensure that understanding of the minority backgrounds and differences are included in the reporting
- Understand and appreciate cultural differences
- Consider social mobility factors that overlap with BAME
7. Collaborative Events & Celebrations
- Organise and attend networking events with diverse candidates and board level management
- Organising events for the full range of diverse talent
- Celebrate as a firm at key points in the year, i.e. Black History Month, International Women’s Day, Pride etc.
8. Early Outreach
- Programmes in schools
- Encouraging and supporting young talent
- Soft skills programmes
- Look at targeting communities and areas with strong BAME representation to help build an early talent pipeline and affinity with an organisation
9. Sponsorship & Coaching
- Build upon successful mentoring programmes with sponsorship training
- Ensure emerging talent have trained sponsors
- Make coaching available at key points in the career and look at who your coaches are (do they reflect the talent you want to develop)
10. BAME & Your Brand
- Examine the representation of BAME in your brand
- Create marketing/social media campaigns associated with BAME agenda
As a society of business leaders, decision-makers, professionals and commentators, we have an obligation to ensure that intention is met with action to ensure the UK’s workforce - in its entirety - has access to a democratised career ladder that promotes inclusion for all at every level.