Overview:

• Unemployment rates for the white ethnic group are 3.9% compared to 7.8% for people from a BAME background.

• Only 54% of senior FTSE 100 leaders champion BAME diversity.

• Only 6% of managers in the UK are BAME.

Diversity report:

Diversity is no longer an option, but a necessity in the workplace. The world is rapidly changing, and the leaders who don’t respond to this will almost certainly struggle to attract and retain the best talent moving forwards. Around 12.5% of the UK’s population are BAME, yet studies find that these demographics hold only 6% of top management positions. Further imbalances are seen throughout most levels of management and leadership pipelines, with many unnecessary historic barriers still inhibiting representative recruitment. Although companies are increasingly aware of the benefits that come from the inclusion of BAME individuals within the workforce, many organisations have still not updated their recruitment and talent strategies to reflect this. They are not practicing what they preach.

A recent research programme from a leading think-tank found that the full representation of BAME individuals across the labour market would be worth £24 billion a year to the UK economy. When combined with the positive impact that improved gender equality is also having within workplace, this quoted figure will undoubtedly rise. For individual organisations therefore, the holistic benefits of diversity throughout the workforce and in management positions are clear.

Challenge Advisory company:

At Challenge Advisory, we have been championing BAME candidates and gender equality within recruitment and talent strategies for the better part of the last decade. Specific corporate policies have been put in place to ensure that our company is consistently sourcing the best talent from around the world, irregardless of their background. This has allowed us to achieve a much higher level of BAME representation and more equal gender split compared to current national averages, a trend that we will continue to keep building on and improving.

Equality:

A key part of our organisation’s ability to create a talented and diverse workforce, has come from our competence in sourcing and engaging with individuals from non-traditional talent pools and hard to reach communities.

We are able to find people who have highly sought after and industry-leading skill sets, but are struggling to make an impression in the current talent-pool.