Ever since we introduced our UK sector-first appointment of our diversity and inclusion leader in February-2020, we have embarked on a journey of cultural and behavioural change - methodically tackling every aspect of what makes our culture truly inclusive and ensuring an inclusive working environment in which all employees can achieve their full potential.
Why we are prioritising inclusion and diversity?
The answer is simple, as part of the largely ‘traditional’ insurance sector, we need to work harder to reflect our diverse customer base and offer an environment in which all the contributions of all individuals are valued. As a global organisation and industry leader, we have a responsibility to push diversity to the front, influencing our own culture and readdressing imbalances within the wider sector.
What are we doing?
We don’t just talk about diversity and inclusion; we aim to infuse it into everything we do -underpinning our strategy with three core elements:
- CONSCIOUSNESS
- CAPABILITY
- CULTURE
With our mission, “To create, maintain and enhance an inclusive, diverse and equal environment that is at the forefront of our industry”, we are methodically tackling every aspect of what makes our culture truly inclusive, changing policies, building employee groups, introducing new recruitment procedures, reverse mentoring and creating opportunities for progression throughout the business.
To further demonstrate our commitment, we also signed the ‘All in for Inclusivity’ pledge in April 2020.
And we are winning
The biggest impact we want to have is on our employees, and we have been proud to have received wonderful feedback in our most recent Employee Pulse Survey, including:
- 86% of you feel that senior leadership supports diversity and inclusion.
- 89% of you feel that they do not face any bias due to their personal identity.
- 85% of you feel the organisation is committed to the fair treatment of all employees.
But we are not complacent, and we know there is still much to do.
Having focussed on issues that matter to us, like mental health and agile working, we are now looking at other areas where support needs bolstering. One key area is how we are supporting women through menopause. It’s shocking to find out that, according to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, that three in five menopausal women were negatively affected at work, and as many as 900,000 women have left their jobs because of menopausal symptoms.
Using World Menopause Day as a platform to break the taboo on this subject, we will introduce new support and guidance for anyone affected and start this much-needed conversation.
Last year’s first-ever wellbeing week drew our attention to International Men’s Day, and we will once again highlight positive male role models and raise awareness of men’s wellbeing issues, both in the workplace and outside.
All this work has not only improved our environment, but we are also exceptionally proud that it has attracted some positive attention outside of these walls, with a rack of highly credible awards recognitions, including:
- British Insurance Awards – Diversity and Inclusion Award
- Insider Honours – Diversity and Inclusion Award
- Women in Insurance Awards – Contribution to Inclusion Award
- British Claims Awards – Diversity and Inclusion Award
With strong leadership and sponsorship at the highest levels of the company, we have succeeded in establishing a strong, determined voice for diversity and inclusion within a traditional sector that we hope will reach far beyond our own organisation.
