The diversity council is a committee of 35 members representing all departments of the company. The diversity council has three main objectives. It evaluates existing diversity measures and identifies areas for improvement, it conceived a comprehensive diversity andinclusion strategy with concrete, quantitative goals, and it raises awareness and gathers employees’ feedback on the implementeddiversity management.

Union Investment has implemented various diversity initiatives and measures over the last years, including targeted HR development programs for women, improved work life balance, and equal pay analyses. However, a long-term diversity &inclusion strategy was missing. The diversity council was appointed by the executive board to develop a comprehensive diversity andinclusion strategy.

The main objectives of the diversity council are evaluating the currentdiversity management and identifying areas for improvement, developing a comprehensive, long-term diversity &inclusion strategy, and raising awareness for diversity andinclusion.
Overall, the diversity andinclusion strategy defines diversity andinclusion as a strategic success factor.
We determined five operative goals. These are diversity &inclusion transparency, the development of an inclusive culture,equal opportunities for all employees, the creation of an employer brand that is attractive for diverse target groups and the enhancement of customer perceptions throughdiversity management.

After the executive board had approved the foundation of the diversity council, two representatives were chosen for each department. The diversity council tandems all comprise one leader and one employee without managerial responsibility. We, moreover, made sure that the diversity council represents different genders, age groups, durations of tenure and nationalities.
In order to define the content of the diversity andinclusion strategy, the diversity council members were assigned to five focus groups working on the following topics: goals and KPIs, awareness and communication, HR framework and processes, inclusive culture, as well as customers.
The five focus groups conducted external benchmarking to gain a realistic understanding of the diversity andinclusion practices of other companies in the financial sector. Moreover, the focus group members talked to experts within the company, which allowed them to understand the required actions and define diversity measures.

The six-person steering committee of the diversity council summarized the findings of the focus groups and integrated them into the diversity andinclusion strategy.

The implementation of a diversity council with members from all departments allows to spread diversity andinclusion awareness across the whole company.
By including different voices and opinions we created a diversity andinclusion strategy that responds to employees' concrete needs, suits our culture, and is well accepted by the workforce.