As part of MiMs’ ‘Inclusivity Campaign’, which is a direct response to addressing the UK’s engineering skills gap, Righttrack has designed a health check for businesses to use as a 'litmus test' and identify where they are already following best practice and where they need to focus to make improvements.
Explains Righttrack’s senior specialist Gamiel Yafai (pictured): “An inclusive and diverse workforce allows organisations to benefit from a variety of views and perspectives, allowing them to find more creative solutions and harness different talents to be more successful.
“It is proven that organisations which are more diverse and inclusive perform better and are ultimately more profitable but there is still a way to go until the manufacturing industry has a reputation for being sufficiently diverse and inclusive.”
To create a culture that truly embraces diversity and inclusion, Yafai believes that it is critical that managers at all levels lead by example.
He adds: “To be an inclusive leader, managers needs to create an environment where everyone is confident to speak up, to challenge and make themselves visible. They must create a safe environment to propose novel ideas and empower team members to make decisions, and mistakes.
“Becoming an inclusive and diverse employer will help you gain a competitive advantage. Not only will you be addressing the skills gap, but you'll be future-proofing your workforce.”
As a result of joining MiM’s Inclusivity Campaign, businesses will be invited to a half-day workshop led by Yafai, and a comprehensive toolkit that has been designed to give those that attend the confidence and skills to embrace diversity and inclusion at all levels of the organisation, and reap the benefits as a consequence.
