Deloitte revealed today that the results of its 2015 Global Human Capital Trends report show 'diversity', pertaining not just to gender, culture or religion but also to thinking, represents a key concept in current business.
This year's report, which received contributions from more than 3,300 organisations in 106 different countries, found that diversity is a competitive advantage to be considered as an opportunity for inclusion in strategies for leadership, talent, and human resources. According to the report, "Thinking of diversity in a global way helps organisations see value and be conscious of the risk associated with homogeneity".
Deloitte Luxembourg, the initiators of the report, claimed that they organise several internal and external events to this very end, to ensure that diversity becomes a celebrated, understood and fully integrated concept within the firm.
"Ensuring gender balance and chances equality is a long and demanding journey which requires the implication of the whole company and the strong commitment of the top management," explained WoMen Initiative Leader and Audit Partner Emmanuelle Miette. "We have developed projects looking into many different facets of the same topic, which enable us to constantly act, communicate and maintain diversity at the core of our Firm’s identity."
The report followed Deloitte Luxembourg's first Diversity Day event on 12 May 2015. The date celebrated the occasion of Luxembourg's National Diversity Day, where events such as Walk for Diversity and the Time for Equality workshop were held around the country and attended by the Luxembourg Diversity Charter Committee.
Deloitte's celebration of the day involved the exchange of traditions and typical dishes, attracting more than 700 participants from around 50 different nationalities. These dishes were sold to colleagues to help raise money for the victims of the earthquakes in Nepal earlier this year.
"People were thrilled at the opportunity of sharing with their colleagues about their home countries’ culture and traditions," commented Frédéric Sabban, CSR project manager. "With their enthusiasm and their talent as chefs, they made this event a success. We are very grateful to all of them."
The company also revealed the impact, during their April conference, of unconscious bias from a person's background, belief, values, family, culture, media and society, on their decision-making process. Angela Peacock, Founding Partner of The People Development Team, demonstrated how the acknowledgement of this bias is imperative in order to begin to change attitudes and behaviours and allow individuals and organisations to create a culture of more inclusivity.
Several other conferences were organised by the company earlier this year to highlight women's underrepresentation in the technological and financial industries. These included the annual International Women's Day Conference on Monday 9 March 2015, which was hosted by ambassador for the UK Trade & Industry Business Catalyst programme Inma Martinez; and Deloitte's Luxembourg Horizon conference on 11 June 2015 where a panel shared their personal experiences as leaders in the financial industry.
Photo by Deloitte
