‘Listen hard’ is key to first diversity dialogue
THERE was a strong response to the first in a series of the new The Herald & Genanalytics Diversity Dialogues, which took place in Edinburgh yesterday.
Representatives from across the spectrum of Scottish business and organisations took part at Dovecot Studios.
The event was held in association with Crown Estate Scotland and supported by Arnold Clark, Diageo and sportscotland. The theme was maintaining the momentum of change and using it as a springboard for making further improvements to the diversity, equality and inclusion landscape.
The host for the discussion was Jane Gotts, Director of Genanalytics, who introduced the panel, which included Louisa Macdonell, Scotland Director, Business in the Community. Louisa delivered the keynote address, setting out staff wellbeing as the starting point for all diversity and inclusion.
“If your workforce is seen and valued for who they are, we can prove that makes good business sense,” she said.
“Where do you start, what do you do and how do you do it?
The key is to listen hard, take action and provide leadership.” This is not just reflected in internal leadership, she added, saying: “The role for bigger businesses is to champion D&I through supporting SMES”.
Others on the panel were Douglas Morrison, Deputy CEO, Built Environment – Smarter Transformation (BE-ST); Steve Dunlop, Chairman, Crosswind Developments and Samuel Agbede, Software Engineer with Jpmorgan Chase & Co, as well as a Podcaster and Award-winning DE&I champion, who all agreed that embedding diversity and inclusion into a corporate strategy was crucial for fostering a positive work environment, enhancing innovation and driving sustainable business growth.
Samuel Agbede opened the panel by stating that “the answers you are looking for are in your workforce” while Douglas Morrison agreed that “the data can tell a story and it is the story behind it that is critical”.
We cannot forget the importance of open dialogue
What was clear was that organisations won’t achieve in this area unless the data is accurate and collected correctly.
Steve Dunlop said: “Organisations are run by systems and processes, and culture and behaviour, and if there is too much of the system it will fail. You need to achieve the balance between ‘system’ and ‘culture’.”
Delegates were encouraged to engage with the topics and pose round-table questions to work on together, with key points shared around the room. What emerged was a consensus that enabling DE&I to develop required top-down support, with leaders setting the tone by incorporating its principles into their own actions and decision-making processes.
The rewards would be improved employee morale, enhanced creativity and a clearer understanding of diverse customer needs.
There was agreement too that clear metrics need to be established in order to measure progress and that DE&I initiatives shouldn’t be restricted to individual organisations but should involve partnerships with suppliers and vendors.
A delegate from Taylor Wimpy concurred, saying: “As builders we need to work together to share data and experience, not be afraid to work together as competitors.”
Esther Black, Director of Corporate Operations with sponsor, Crown Estate Scotland, said the event delivered what she had hoped for, with a wealth of creative ideas and shared information that would help her organisation to shape their future actions.
“We wanted to ensure that our 2025-30 plan for how we manage the Scottish Crown Estate, which includes land, building, seabed and coastline as well as other property, reflects different perspectives and needs.
“We are also committed to embedding fair work and diversity, equality and inclusion in how we recruit, retain and develop our team, and we saw an opportunity to learn from others and to share ideas about how to build DEI into longer-term strategies as that’s when changes can really make a lasting difference. It is only by tackling inequalities that we can build a fairer economy and strengthen Scotland’s communities.”
Lynne Mcburney, Group
Head of People at Arnold Clark, supporting sponsor, said: “We cannot forget the importance of open dialogue and learning from the experience of others. We hope that, with our support, we can contribute to meaningful and lasting change both in our own industry and beyond.”
Forbes Dunlop, Chief Executive Officer of Sportscotland, support sponsor, said: “I’d like to thank all of the speakers and everyone involved in The Herald & Genanalytics Diversity Dialogues Series.
“It was a valuable day of honest discussions with plenty of learnings on how changes can be implemented and progress in this area can be continued.”
The day ended on an inspiring quote drawn from all our speakers: “Be kind, be brave, tell stories, be a leader”.
The Edinburgh Diversity Dialogue in association with Crown Estate Scotland was just the first in a series and further events will take place later this year in Aberdeen and Glasgow.