WHAT ACTIONS CAN YOUR COMPANY TAKE TO DRIVE REAL CHANGE?

Join the movement#IAM TALKING ABOUT BLACK

#TALKABOUTBLACK

WHAT ACTIONS CAN YOUR COMPANY TAKE TO DRIVE REAL CHANGE?

#TALKABOUTBLACK

Racism continues to exist because people don’t speak up when they see it or when they hear it. We have reached a tipping point and there can be no return.

Below are practical ways and resources for all to make a positive and sustainable difference.

To be a part of the solution to the everyday racism faced by black people, you need to take three steps: Learn about it; Know yourself; and Take Action.

RESOURCES There are loads of great resources out there; we have highlighted some key ones below with hyperlinks to view, listen or purchase. If you have others that you think will be useful, please do share with us.

LEARN BOOKS & VIDEOS • Black and British: A Forgotten History, David Olusoga• Blog: So, can we talk? #Talkaboutblack, Dawid Konotey-Ahulu• Black voices: Building black representation in asset management, The Investment Association• The “business case” for inclusion is bankrupt. Let’s disinvest. Hanna McCloskey, Fearless Futures• Fatal Invention: How Science, Politics, and Big Business Re-Create Race in the Twenty-firstCentury,DorothyRoberts• Harvard Business Review: Towards a racially just workplace• Video: America is a tale of two cities, Chris Cuomo• Video: Trevor Noah shares how George Floyd, Minneapolis Protests, Ahmaud Arbery and Amy Cooper are connected

KNOW YOURSELF • Race in the workplace: The McGregor- Smith review, Baroness McGregor-Smith• Ethnic diversity enriching business leadership: An update report from The Parker Review, Sir John Parker• Your Black Colleagues May Look Like They’re Okay - Chances Are They’re Not• Maintaining Professionalism In The Age of Black Death Is... A Lot, Shenequa Golding• Podcast: A Minnesota Head Coach Listens on Race, ESPN daily

TAKE ACTION• The economic impact of closing the racial wealth gap, McKinsey, 2019• Ethnic diversity enriching business leadership: An update report from The Parker Review, Sir John Parker• Taking the right approach to ethnicity pay gap reporting, PwC

#TALKABOUTBLACK

LEARN

• Engage with your workforce and start listening. Learn how privilege plays out in the workplace.

• Tick box diversity training can only go so far to make change. Spend more time learning about issues such as inequality, power and privilege to really make transformational changes.

• Challenge the ‘colourblind’ ideology - it is impossible to eliminate structural hurdles without acknowledging they exist.

Bringing in experts if needed. #TalkAboutBlack can help.

KNOW YOURSELF

Understand the “kinks” identified by us to remove the structural biases in your organisation:1. Pipeline. Many UK-born black people find themselves in a socio- economic situation which can limit their life chances. UK Black-Caribbean and black-African people experience higher rates of unemployment, are more likely to be victims of crime and underperform in education when compared to white counterparts and other ethnic minority groups.

2. Entry. Should these individuals achieve a good education, they are less likely to be successful in securing their preferred roles.

3. Career progression. When these black individuals do break into the industry they typically end up in support functions, have higher rates of attrition and rarely progress to leadership or revenue generating positions. At the time of writing we canidentify thirteen black portfolio managers, three heads of distribution and only two black professionals in C-suite positions in the UK.

4. Breaking the taboo. People remain uncomfortable discussing race. Start the conversation.

TAKE ACTION

Align the need for greater ethnic diversity with your business goals. Incentivise all levels of management to meet these objectives. Implement our suggested solutions to the “kinks” that address the pipeline, entry and progression of talent in your organisation and how to start breaking the taboo.1. Pipeline. Provide resource and help fund the Catalyst After School Program (CASP) aimed at secondary school children which will equip them with the knowledge, tools, connections and more importantly aspiration to enter the Investment and Savings Industry.

2. Entry. Provide resource and help fund our annual student event to identify and attract promising minority talent to the industry.

3. Progression. Provide resource for mentoring circles• Aimed at ethnic minority professionals with 1-10 years’ experience. • Support and help fund the annual conference designed to give the tools to navigate the workplace• Gather data to monitor progress and drive accountability: establish the number, engagement and pay of your ethnic minority employees against the rest of your staff population

Implement the 5-point CEO plan which will equip business leaders with a blueprint to increasing ethnic minority talent in their organisations.

• Support and help design the C-suite program designed to increase ethnic minority presence in the boardroom.

4. Breaking the taboo. • We utilise thought leadership, roundtable debates, panel discussions, online videos, mainstream/trade media and social media to break the taboo subject that is race in our industry and society. Join in the conversation.

• Create an ethnicity taskforce to make recommendations to your Exec. Your need an Exec that takes ownership and action. Reverse mentoring could also be a useful way for senior leaders to really understand what the experience of their black colleagues are.

• Join the #IAM campaign - tell us “What you are” i.e. a mother, an advocate for change, hopeful that this time will be different. Include three things, and tag in five people plus #TalkAboutBlack #IAM

• Create a culture where race is discussed and identity is valued. Accountability is key to creating cultures of belonging.

• Strategically decide how you can support the fight against racial injustice. Lobby and/or support local charities/NGOs that contribute directly to improving racial equality in wider society.

Join the movement Let us know how your company will help and how you get on, or if you have questions, we’d love to hear from you: enquiries.tab@gmail.com

Feel free to spread the word far and wide, just tag us in: #IAM #TALKABOUTBLACK@DIVERSITYPROJECT.

www.diversityproject.com/ethnicity

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