Tali Shlomo reflects on the continuing success of the Dive In festival and the CII's part in it
There is no denying that more organisations are talking about the value of having a diverse and inclusive workforce than ever before, and the scale of this year's Dive In festival speaks volumes.
The benefits are increasingly clear -- diversity enables individuals and organisations to remain agile and relevant while retaining their identity, and allows businesses to benefit from the diversity of thought and experiences everyone has to offer.
The Dive In festival took place in September 2019, marking its fifth year. Happening in 30-plus countries with more than 140 events worldwide, it is a truly global movement in the insurance profession, designed to support inclusive workplace cultures. The festival -- an 'Inclusion at Lloyd's' initiative -- was a huge success and the CII is proud to have continued to be involved in the programme.
The festival is a wonderful example of how our united profession continues to collaborate and unite as we evolve our inclusion conversations to actions that make a positive impact.
CII EVENTS
The CII actively hosted seven events -- in Scotland, Cardiff and Ipswich in the UK, plus our international regions Dubai, Hong Kong, Bangladesh and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Our programme included unlocking talent by utilising inclusive coaching conversations; breaking down the notion of male and female roles, with inspirational speakers sharing their career journeys and providing practical tips to implement; the opportunities we have to unlock talent with age diversity; and creating an inclusive work place for our LBGT+ colleagues and stakeholders.
We learned from the events the power of inclusive coaching conversations supported by a mentoring and sponsorship programme. The events also highlighted aims to break down the notion of gender-specific roles, as we continue to evolve our strategies to narrow the gender pay gap, shift bias and empower our colleagues to achieve their best.
We heard from inspirational speakers sharing their resilience, passion and determination to break through their personal glass ceiling, and business leaders inspiring organisations to take the lead, deliver progressive processes and revisit their approach.
We witnessed the power of collaboration and the impact we are making as a united profession to evolve our culture to welcome everyone, support individuals and encourage employees to bring their authentic self to work.
It is remarkable the work our market inclusion networks are achieving -- Insurance Families Network, the LBGT network LINK, Gender Inclusion Network, and the Insurance Cultural Awareness Network.
Finally, I must again recoginse my colleagues at the CII for their drive and passion to make a difference -- a massive thank you to the CII LBGT+ advocates, CII open community and CII wellbeing champions.
I would invite members to continue the dialogue, continue to implement activities and review processes, challenge bias where it impacts judgements made, and continue to collaborate and unite as we make an impact.
Tali Shlomo is people engagement director of the CII