What do Avanade, REA Group and TechDiversity all have in common?

TechDiversity along with our ecosystem of partners are aligned in continuing the quest on educating Australian organisations to the benefits that diversity, equity and inclusion brings to an organisation. The evidence is clear and backed up by real data. We know it enhances creativity, promotes innovation, highlights new perspectives, all of which lead to better decision making, allows you to resonate with your client base better and improves your bottom line. More than this it can promote a culture of belonging. Allowing your main asset, your staff, to feel valued and accepted and ultimately more productive.

[sqw_quote quote_text=”Australia consistently ranks among the world’s biggest hirers for diversity roles. It is second only to the United Kingdom when it comes to the number of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DIBs) employees per 10,000 employees. It is also the region’s outperformer when it comes to hiring more DIBs roles*. Therefore, you could be led to believe that we are winning the battle. Yet somehow for a lot of organisations it still feels like it is a tick box exercise, a way to promote that they are an inclusive place to work, but with no real strategies or metrics in place to back this up.” alignment=”left” /]

At TechDiversity, we take a very considered approach when deciding who to partner with, ensuring that together we can achieve great things. We have many great partners, but two of our alliance partners Avanade and REA Group are investing in roles, strategies, deploying surveys to measure staff satisfaction and most importantly have leaders who truly value the importance of DE&I within their workplace.

One great example of how Avanade foster a culture of inclusivity and well-being is when Laura Malcolm (now General Manager for Avanade Australia) was initially recruited into the company, she was 30+ weeks pregnant. She then received a promotion whilst she was on maternity leave. They also supported her moving overseas to be closer to family. The leadership team at Avanade recognised the value Laura brought and worked together toward a mutually benefiting arrangement.

Since partnering with Avanade since 2015, we adore hearing more and more of these stories. Like how they offer great parental leave packages, health and wellbeing benefits, work from home arrangements and work really hard to ensure their work culture is inclusive. They know they are not perfect but are constantly striving to improve this and work continually with external consultancies to enhance and better their culture. They are such a great role model and one of tech’s best kept secrets as a place to work, as evidenced by receiving a WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality (EOCGE) citation for three years running.

REA Group, offers a similar story, creating several internal roles to support their DE&I initiatives, and like Avanade they offer their staff a great range of benefits whilst tracking performance along the way. Both organisations value the importance and work hard to ensure their work culture fosters a strong sense of belonging. A place to be accepted for our uniqueness, our differences and belong regardless.

We understand that awareness of this topic is so important, which is why we will keep shouting from the rooftops, but action is what we ultimately need and this is why we are launching several initiatives, including:

  • The TechDiversity Academy: This is a certified program that will run for over a year. The cohort will have access to workshops, leadership sessions, mentorships and peer-to-peer networking, this is a unique transformational process built on a well-thought-out program by a team of D&I experts with various skills and backgrounds from data analytics to workplace transformational change consultants. This comprehensive program is designed for practitioners, managers, leaders, and HR teams alike.
  • Quarterly Community Catch-ups: The TechDiversity Awards is the ultimate way to showcase the initiatives that are having a great impact in the diversity space. As the awards are an annual event, these quarterly catch ups will allow our community to connect directly with these organisations throughout the year and expand our reach wider.
  • The TechDiversity Pledge: Every organisation and individual within an organisation has a responsibility to championing diversity and inclusion. One small action taken today contributes to one big change. Talking to someone new, using inclusive language or being more aware of our biases can really make a difference. Take the #TechDiversity Pledge today and help us reach half a million pledges by 2025.

If you want to find out more about our work, the Academy or our quarterly catch-ups, please contact me at stacey@bestcasescenario.com.au.

Thanks for reading.

Stacey Hutchinson | Senior Events and Operations Manager, TechDiversity Foundation

*Source: LinkedIn

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