Company name : Abrdn Investments Luxembourg SA
Activity sector : Financial and insurance activities
Company category : Large company
Description of the action
Forum made of minimum one representative of all EMEA offices.
Context
Across Aberdeen our EMEA offices are comparatively smaller to our UK or APAC hubs, and we recognised that diversity, equity, andinclusion initiatives; along with wider engagement; looks different when a workforce is more spread out in smaller groups. The EMEAinclusion forum means that from our smallest offices (3 people) to our largest (150) there is always at least 1 colleague who is a visible and driving theinclusion agenda and having these local conversations. The nature of the forum being collaborative with all-forum calls each month means not just that best practice and ideas can be shared, but the forum members themselves feel the connection and have people they can go to.
Objectives
Objective of Forum
• To lead progress ininclusion across EMEA supporting delivery of the PLC DEI direction and plans as they translate to EMEA
• To stimulate progress ininclusion within EMEA
• To agree the EMEA DEI Strategy which will be driven forward by Forum Members
Role of Forum Members
• To be an advocate for DEI within their country and across EMEA (communication, role modelling, challenging behaviours, etc.)
• To be the conduit between the Forum and EMEA Colleagues
• To drive identified DEI initiatives either individually or with other Forum members
Role of Forum Chair
• To act as a link between the Globalinclusion Committee and the EMEA DEI Forum.
• To represent EMEA at Global
•inclusion Committee
Approach
The EMEA DEI forum consists of a dedicated team from all our EMEA offices. They meet at least once a month to discuss DEI topics, share initiatives, and establish unified EMEA strategies to drive progress. They collaborate with our global locations to ensure inclusivity in our processes, communications, and initiatives.
Impact
For example, Last September we organised our globalinclusion week - Diversifest. And if it wasn’t for the forum we wouldn’t have had 200+ EMEA colleagues dialled into a townhall, hosted by our CEO of investments (at the time), with every office on screen to talk about diversity!
« To do »
• Engage Leadership: Ensure that senior leaders are actively involved in DEI initiatives.
• Encourage Participation: Create opportunities for employees to contribute to DEI efforts.
• Use Data: Collect and analyze data to inform DEI strategies and measure progress.
• Informing and promoting DEI networks – putting forward our DEI networks and infoming employees on there existance and their initiatives
« Not to do »
Avoid Tokenism: Ensure that DEI initiatives are genuine and not just for show
Ignore Intersectionality: Consider the multiple, overlapping identities of employees when developing DEI strategies
Avoid Making This an HR Problem: Ensure accountability at all levels and layers of the organization, not just within the HR department.
