BUSINESS UNITS: People, safety & risk – Continued
Diversity and inclusion initiatives Workshops on inclusive leadership, which included awareness of unconscious biases, were undertaken by 128 of our people leaders, including our board and executive team. Dr Harold Hillman presented a speaker series throughout the regions, where he shared his personal experiences of living an inauthentic life as a closeted gay military officer. An extension of Dr Hillman’s sessions was authentic leadership workshops where he translated the key messages for a leadership context. Thirty-five of our leaders took part in these training sessions. Executive team member Nikhil Ravishankar along with two external speakers, Te Aroha Morehu, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, and Laulu Mac Leauanae, relayed personal stories to demonstrate the importance of cultural intelligence in promoting deeper understanding of diversity and inclusion within business. Complementing our diversity and inclusion initiatives to promote awareness, all our employees complete an e-learning module on diversity and inclusion. Vector is also an active supporter and participant in the Institute of Directors Future Directors and Mentoring for Diversity programmes.
RAINBOW TICK:// This year Vector received the Rainbow Tick, a certification given to New Zealand companies to show they understand, value and welcome sexual and gender diversity. To help us achieve Rainbow Tick certification, we asked focus groups drawn from across the business whether our employment and business processes aligned with the needs of the wider Rainbow community, including those who identify as lesbian, gay, transgender, intersex or questioning. Working closely with the Rainbow Tick organisation, we made some revisions to the language we use in some of our policies, including our Diversity and Inclusion Policy, our Shareholder Relations Policy and our Parental Leave Policy. Achieving Rainbow Tick certification was celebrated across all of our sites and followed by awareness roadshows continuing our diversity and inclusion dialogue. We also made an announcement to the NZX. In February 2017 Vector staff also participated for the first time in Auckland’s Pride Parade Festival, as a public demonstration of our support for the Rainbow community. These are further examples of our commitment to creating an inspiring workplace by encouraging and embracing diversity and inclusion. They follow on from Vector winning both the Supreme award and Tomorrow’s Workforce award at the 2015 Diversity Awards. It’s important to us that all our people feel confident sharing their insights, ideas and experiences freely at work each day. Providing a safe and inclusive environment will enable us to attract diverse talent and boost productivity and engagement.
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