Why Care?

“[Working in the DEI field] I learnt lots of things and things we should always remember –  One: we don’t know everything. One: We can’t resolve everything on our own...But most importantly, I learnt about myself.” In Episode 19 of the ‘Why Care?’ podcast, I am joined by Pauline Miller, Chief Equity Officer, EMEA for dentsu, where Pauline is responsible for shaping and leading its DEI strateg...

“You would assume that because someone is in a virtual workplace that [non-inclusive behaviours] wouldn’t happen. Well forget it. Over 50% of the women that we spoke to said yes: in the past year they had experienced non-inclusive behaviours, and that was worse for women of colour and worse for LGBTQ+ women.” In Episode 18 of the ‘Why Care?’ podcast, I am joined by Emma Codd, Global Inclusion Lead...

“When [Muslim] women want to enter the workplace in places like the UK for instance, they may end up facing a triple penalty. The penalty of being a Muslim, the penalty of being potentially from a different racial background and also being a woman. It’s almost instead of facing the glass ceiling, you’re facing a triple glazed or a concrete ceiling which is almost impossible to penetrate.” In Episo...

“Active allyship should end up meaning that whatever an active ally was trying to achieve becomes normal. That it’s normal to see people from various ethnic backgrounds, from various sexual orientations, genders, disabilities, family situations, etc. in positions of authority or seniority in organisations.” In Episode 16 of the ‘Why Care?’ podcast, I am joined by Marc McKenna-Coles, Diversity, Inc...

“I was looking for something to aspire to, but I also knew – I don’t know why – it can’t be the situation where I can’t ascend to those things. What I see around me is not the true picture of the world. That’s what I just started to tell myself. Maybe there’s people here who think that’s the case, but I don’t believe it and I’m gonna set out to prove that’s not the case; that there are people like...

“I am thoroughly delighted – and feel sad almost when I have a big cheer inside – when on the screen pops up a senior female executive from another organisation. I get a bit giddy. That just shows we’ve come a long way, but how far we’ve got to come.” - Charlotte In a first for Why Care?, I am joined by two guests Charlotte Cox, President EMEA Pentland Brands and Pentland’s D&I Manager, Caroli...

“If you’re going through a recruitment process, instead of that idea of ‘how will this person fit into the company?’, it’s the question of ‘what will this person bring?’ How could they add into the culture of Innocent and into the way we do things?” In this episode I am joined by Marta Pajón-Fustes, Head of Technical and Inclusion & Diversity at innocent drinks, to discuss Marta’s personal exp...

“Discussions are not just about the [employee] population who we have, it’s about their network, their families members, their friends. … It’s not just about the demographics we replicate, it’s about everybody else, because we are all diverse ultimately.” In this episode I talk with Christian Hug, the Vice President of LifeWorks & Inclusion at Discovery, the company behind the popular televisi...

“There is broadening acceptance in society, which means some of these identities that have been more at the margins have had the opportunity to appear and flourish. It doesn’t mean they haven’t been there - they’ve always been there. It’s just becoming more visible to those outside of the community”. In this episode I talk with Bendita Cynthia Malakia, Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Hog...

“To ignore reality for as long as people have is a cultural illness, quite frankly – a delusion” In this episode Nadia talks to Andrew Fairbairn, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (SEO) London, a Charity set up engage young people from low socio-economic backgrounds and create opportunities for them that would otherwise have been unlikely for them to attai...

“The world is set up for neurotypical people and when someone who is neurodiverse tries to fit into that neurotypical world, that can create a lot of stresses and strains on them mentally, that then manifest themselves in kind of broader mental health issues. That is not to say that everyone who is neurodiverse has a mental health challenge as well, but there is a very strong correlation between t...

“And then there is the opportunity to flip it on it’s head. Rather than seeing it as a burden or another thing to manage, inclusive leadership and driving a successful D&I agenda actually has the potential to be a huge source of energy.” In this episode I talk to Eric Pliner , CEO of YSC Consulting , a global leadership consulting firm, which has partnered with nearly 20% of the Global Fortune...

“You are far more likely to work with somebody that is experiencing suicidal thoughts than with somebody that is about to have a heart attack” In this episode I have a powerful and inspiring conversation with Emma Mainoo, Partner and Head of Mental Health at Utopia, the culture-change consultancy I collaborate with, which works with businesses to create more purposeful, more inclusive, and more en...

“Most work-family policies and the whole way work is set up is still based on a really outdated model of what a family is.” In this episode I talk to Dr Laura Radcliffe, Senior Lecturer in Organisational Behaviour at the University of Liverpool and author of many research papers on the topic of parenting and work-life balance. Together we published the Business in the Community Equal Lives: Parent...

“The puzzle is solved when all sides are equal, and it takes time and patience.” In this episode I talk to Christina Brooks, an exceptional talent acquisition expert with 15 years industry experience and Co-founder of executive search firm Ruebik, a name that represents an analogy of D&I and the famous cube game. Remarkably, her firm is the only executive search company to offer a one-year onb...

“People would say ‘oh I heard you’re going on a long holiday?’ and I’m like, ‘No, no, no I’m not going on a long holiday!’ And that’s what people think it is - 3 months of fun! It’s not fun – it’s amazing, but it’s challenging” Yash Puri has been working in the financial sector for 20 years and was one of the under 2% of entitled fathers, who decided to take 3 months of shared parental leave with...

“As a manager, this type of work arrangement is phenomenal, because I can give the flexibility and then I can get the coverage and help meet my quota.” In this episode, Sophie Smallwood, Co-founder of Roleshare talks to me about her first maternity leave experience where she took a full year but was actually feeling ready to come back before that if there would have been the option of 3 days. She...

“Men often say to me: “So what can I do?” and the first thing I say to them is: listen.” In this episode, I have the privilege of talking all things inclusion to Rob Baker. He is a thought leader on diversity & inclusion and on engaging men to support gender equality: at work, at home and in all aspects of life. In recognition of his achievements in supporting women in the workplace, he was na...

“If all men and women could let men be more gentle, vulnerable and caring, that would be useful” . What better way to kick-off my podcast series than talk to the articulate and inspirational Inclusion & Diversity thought leader, Brian Ballantyne. Brian is a Senior Program Manager for Inclusion & Diversity at Amazon, father of two and author of the book, Confessions of a Working Father . In...