Leading with Trust: Path to Impact

#ceoactions #leadfromthetop #inclusion

EY Logo

Read the Summary

Initial Situation

  1. DE&I efforts being viewed as unnecessary or as a form of preferential treatment rather than recognizing them as essential components of creating a fair and inclusive workplace.
  2. Resistance to change.
  3. Lack a clear understanding of the rationale behind DE&I initiatives and their potential benefits for the organization.

Action

Our Leadership Team is value-driven and has a clear commitment to our strategic focus areas, including Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. A key strength of their leadership is the trust they place in their teams, empowering them to pursue what they believe is right. This approach ensures that our organization can authentically champion DE&I initiatives with the full backing of the leadership.

Outcome

When leaders are trusted and supported to implement their beliefs and values, they are empowered to lead with authenticity, integrity, and purpose, resulting in positive impacts on organizational culture, performance, and success.


 

This Best Practice was first published in the Gender Intelligence Report 2024.

Read the full Best Practice

Initial Challenge

The trust of the Executive Leadership team as the foundation for achieving DE&I goals

In the fast-evolving landscape of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, achieving gender balance has seen significant development. A decade ago, at EY, as in most organizations, there was a lack of widespread understanding and recognition of the importance of DE&I. Many leaders and employees viewed DE&I initiatives as optional or peripheral to core business objectives. Resistance to change was prevalent, with entrenched mindsets and traditional practices hindering progress. Further, there was a lack of clear metrics and accountability frameworks to measure the impact of DE&I efforts while recruitment and retention practices struggled to attract diverse talent.

Goals

Engaged leadership and tangible actions

Today, our DE&I journey reflects a bold commitment of turning our aspirations for gender parity into tangible reality. Concerted efforts have been made to shift mindsets and embed DE&I principles into everyday practices and policies. This includes consistent monitoring of identified metrics to transparently track our progress and ensure accountability in achieving our objectives. Leadership across our Service Lines is engaged, driving change and embedding accountability across the organization. Our recruitment and employee development practices include robust bias mitigation strategies, ensuring equitable opportunities for all employees to thrive and advance. Additionally, our comprehensive training initiatives on inclusive leadership and flexible working practices foster a more inclusive and respectful workplace culture.

Approach

Change of culture through top-down trust

This transformation would not have been possible without the decisive actions and commitment of our Executive Leadership team. Executive Leadership team members’ visible support lends credibility to our DE&I initiatives. It signals to the entire organization that these efforts are not just optional but are a strategic priority. The Executive Leadership’s trust and belief in DE&I leaders’ capabilities along with its willingness to support their decisions, have created a powerful catalyst for our DE&I journey.

As a result, EY’s DE&I leaders are enabled to take bold and innovative actions, making them more effective in implementing our DE&I strategies and achieving noticeable change. This top-down trust cascades throughout our organization, accelerating buy-in from our leaders and functional areas.

 

“For DE&I to truly take root, our leaders must understand its importance and be willing to champion it with conviction.”
Robin Errico, Chief Risk Officer

“Investing in our people is crucial. Through our mentorship program, I support individual growth and gain insights into our people’s perspectives, aspirations, and challenges we face as an organization. This commitment to people development and open dialogue is key to our collective success.”
Stefan Rösch, Country Managing Partner

Result

One example of leadership support was the DE&I workshop for the Extended Leadership Team. This workshop aimed to raise awareness of the business case for DE&I, driving buy-in for actions like developing our flexible working framework to accommodate diverse needs, particularly for working parents.

Another example of commitment is the strong support for our company-wide mentorship program. Most of our Executive Leadership team serve as mentors, positively impacting employee development. This also gives leaders a broader perspective on the firm’s challenges and opportunities.

While there are numerous other initiatives embedded in our DE&I efforts and examples of our leadership’s visible support, the foundation for achieving our DE&I goals lies in the trust of the Executive Leadership. DE&I progress is embedded in our leadership team meetings and highlighted in our All People webcasts. Many of the Executive Leadership team also actively participate in DE&I events and have completed comprehensive, inclusive leadership training.


 

What else is the company offering?

Our toolbox for building trust and gaining support from the Executive Leadership team align with strategic goals:

  • Ensure DE&I initiatives directly support the organization’s strategic objectives and align with business priorities.
  • Data-driven impact: Use data to demonstrate DE&I’s positive effect on key outcomes like employee engagement, innovation, and financial performance.
  • Transparent dialogue: Foster open communication with Executive Leadership about DE&I challenges, progress, and successes. Seek feedback and respond to concerns.
  • Highlight successes: Share success stories and case studies that show the tangible benefits and cultural impacts of DE&I initiatives.
  • Executive involvement and education: Engage Executive Leadership in DE&I efforts through mentorship, leadership roles, and educational opportunities.

These strategies will help integrate DE&I efforts into the organization’s culture and operations, securing stronger support from Executive Leadership.


 

Information & Contact

For more information about this Best Practice, reach out to the author:

Margit Vunder
Culture, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Lead at EY Switzerland
margit.vunder@ch.ey.com

Margit Vunder EY

More about this topic

Enabling Leaders to Drive an Inclusive Culture
Best Practice by Swiss Re
2023

Enabling Leaders to Drive an Inclusive Culture

Learn how Swiss Re is enabling leaders to incorporate inclusion into daily practice and to foster an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued.

Targeted Female Sponsorship Grows Tech Leadership
Best Practice by Syngenta
2023

Targeted Female Sponsorship Grows Tech Leadership

Syngenta's Female Sponsorship Program is aimed at building a solid pipeline of female tech leaders within the company and the industry. Through tailored connections, support for global relocations, and tangible career advancements, the program has already made a noticeable impact on the careers of 18 talented women.

Why Sponsorship Is Our Key for the Next Generation of Female Leaders
Best Practice by Bain & Company
2022

Why Sponsorship Is Our Key for the Next Generation of Female Leaders

How can you push gender equality in the right direction at a faster pace? At Bain, a sponsorship program is key for ensuring the top management pipeline and retaining female leaders.

Business Growth Through Diversity
Best Practice by SIX
2021

Business Growth Through Diversity

SIX launches SPI Gender Equality Index for Switzerland, aligning their core business activities with their D&I Strategy.

How to Smash Gender Diversity Targets
Best Practice by Philip Morris Switzerland
2021

How to Smash Gender Diversity Targets

48% of all PM Switzerland’s management level employees were women in 2020, smashing the target of 40% by end 2022.

Female Sponsorship Program: Who Says Women Aren’t Ambitious?
Best Practice by DOW
2021

Female Sponsorship Program: Who Says Women Aren’t Ambitious?

Dow's Sponsorship Program is de-biased by self-nomination and busts the myth that 'there are no eligible women'

Integrating Top & Grassroots Actions to Drive Inclusive Culture
Best Practice by Citi
2021

Integrating Top & Grassroots Actions to Drive Inclusive Culture

Change doesn’t happen overnight but by integrating top & grassroots initiatives @Citi successfully builds an inclusive culture.

Inspiring Leaders to be Accountable for Creating an Inclusive Culture
Best Practice by EY
2020

Inspiring Leaders to be Accountable for Creating an Inclusive Culture

"NextWave” holds leaders accountable for creating and embedding an inclusive culture.

Data Tells the Story as The PwC Switzerland D&I Dashboard Demonstrates
Best Practice by PwC
2020

Data Tells the Story as The PwC Switzerland D&I Dashboard Demonstrates

A highly effective way to increase transparency: a Dashboard provides real time D&I analytics helping to get leaders’ buy-in for action.

Unparalleled Commitment from the Top
Best Practice by MSD Switzerland
2020

Unparalleled Commitment from the Top

The CEO and senior leaders publicly advocate diversity and inclusion as business imperative.

Turning Male Leaders into Allies
Best Practice by DOW
2020

Turning Male Leaders into Allies

Eye-opening sessions for male leaders to understand the challenges that women face in their careers.