The most fundamental part of creating an inclusive culture is to instil fairness into all aspects of an organisation’s strategy and major processes. And key to instilling fairness is to understand equity. This is the realisation that people’s different characteristics and backgrounds make it more or less likely they will be marginalised, overlooked or discriminated against. So it is vital, therefore, that organisations are equitable; that managers understand how and why these privileges or barriers exist for different people and provide the right support to ensure everyone has the same chance of success.

ICAEW’s one-day workshop that explored diversity and inclusion with members and students examined what fairness means at work. 

“There is a big issue to get through that recruitment process to be shortlisted to be in front of people,” says Deborah Harris-Ugbomah, Non-Executive Director and Strategic Advisor, TheConfidenceVault.com. “I think that’s probably where a lot of women and ethnic minorities get swept away.”

“To arrive at the best views you need a diversified input,” says Biyi Oloko, Director at international advisory firm Stephen Simeon. “If you're going to have a diversified input into your decision-making, you have to include as many people and as many views as possible, so you can arrive at your best decision.”