Diversity Awards 2015: Getting Better by Diversity

Media release – 26 August 2015

Getting Better by Diversity

For the 18th year in a row the Equal Employment Opportunities Trust is once again proud to celebrate the fantastic organisations across New Zealand who are leading the way in workplace diversity. EEO Trust Chief Executive Bev Cassidy-Mackenzie says that the continued and measurable increase in the number and quality of entries, is a positive reflection of how much the diversity landscape has changed in recent years.

“Each year we continue to see increasing representation in the types of industries and size of businesses, who are standing up to be counted and actively making diversity and inclusion a part of everyday practice in their workplaces. This makes me feel extremely encouraged about the future diversity landscape for business in New Zealand and reinforces what we are doing here at the EEO Trust; helping to support business on their journey towards truly inclusive workplaces”, says Cassidy-Mackenzie.

Cultivating a culture that is inclusive for all people regardless of ethnicity, age, gender, physical abilities or sexual orientation has proven really beneficial to the culture of an organisation as a whole and businesses that have policies and processes in place to support employees in these areas, have seen tangible improvements in productivity and engagement. Indeed, many of the entrants in this year’s awards are testament to this and are reaping the business benefits of a more inclusive approach.

An award category that appears to be reflecting a definite cultural shift is the Empowerment Award, recognising businesses doing great things to create a more equitable workplace. This year has seen a marked increase in the number of entries in this category – almost double from 2014 –perhaps a clear indicator of the growing numbers of organisations who are committed to empowering women in the workplace and tapping into a wider talent pool.

Having a gender balanced workforce has become a key priority for organisations across New Zealand and the world. This year’s Empowerment Award winner ANZ has shown a commitment to empower the women in their business and has worked hard to develop a deeper talent pool, removing bias from recruitment policies and securing the best possible person for a role because there is more talent to choose from; leading to diversity of thought and far greater variety of leadership styles.

Cassidy Mackenzie says that one thing a number of the award entrants have in common is the realisation that in order to move forward, you have to understand your starting point and where you want to go from there.

“Many of the businesses we talk to say that they are not sure where to next, where to start or focus their energies; this is where the EEO Trust are glad to be able to step in and offer the support and tools to help facilitate this journey”, she says.

In 2014 the EEO Trust was engaged to provide organisational wide training on the benefits of promoting diversity and inclusion to Vector Limited who were introducing a new diversity policy at the time and had designed a training module combining key messages with a Vector specific context, highlighting current state demographics and opening the door for their staff to identify opportunities to promote diversity and inclusion. One year later and Vector have not only taken out the Tomorrow’s Workforce category but are also the overall Supreme Award winner of the Diversity Awards NZ 2015.

We congratulate all our winners and entrants on their achievements and applaud the continued efforts of all those organisations who strive to develop an inclusive and empowering workplace where employees feel valued and appreciated.

Check out all the winners stories online www.diversityawards.org.nz

Editorial notes

About the EEO Trust

The Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO) Trust is a national body established by government to provide support to employers around the issue of equal opportunities and diversity in the workplace.

The EEO Trust assists employers in introducing and managing proven EEO thinking and practices, encourages diversity by promoting the recruitment and development of people on the basis of merit and generates awareness of the business benefits and rewards of an inclusive workplace.

The Award categories and winners 2015

• Tomorrow’s Workforce Award – Vector Limited

• Cultural Celebration Award – Bupa Care Services NZ Ltd.

• Empowerment Award – ANZ bank New Zealand

• Skills Highway Award – Goodman Fielder NZ Ltd.

• Positive Inclusion Award – Simpson Grierson

• Diversability Award – Coffee Educators

• Work Life Balance Award – Sovereign

• Walk the Talk Award – Russell Stanners, Vodafone NZ Ltd.

Highly commended awards:

ASB Bank Ltd. – Cultural Celebration Award

SSC Service Stations – Diversability Award

Etel Ltd. – Skills Highway Award

Connexis – Empowerment Award

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