D
Catalyst | Diversity
“We try to create a very honest
and open environment, where
people feel trusted”
What will it take to ‘normalise’
mental health problems at work?
Open, honest and constant conversations. Just
because someone has a mental health issue
doesn’t mean they can’t operate well at work; as an
employer you just need to have the right provision
to reassure people they have the correct support.
How do you ensure you have a
truly inclusive environment?
It starts in the recruitment of your staff. We have a
rigorous process which doesn’t allow for deselection
based on bias. For example, our recruitment
partners don’t see names on applicants’ CVs.
They are looking at experience and skill set.
Removing names means you don’t get people
deselected based on assumptions or biases –
conscious or otherwise.
We’ve tested a number of methods around our
hiring. What works for us is ensuring that several
people, at different levels of the organisation, are
involved – it’s not just about one person making
a call on someone. Candidates take part in
‘speed interviews’ with up to five people; they role-
play on the phones; they undertake an interview
with our leadership team. Here, we focus on the
individual rather than their skill set. Having a
conversation with someone about their interests
and personality helps you assess what they will
bring to your business.
We try to create a very honest and open
environment where people feel trusted. As
a leadership team, we want to be viewed
as approachable and that no questions are off the
table. If you create an environment where people
aren’t fearful of being judged, you get the best from
them. I try to share stories about myself and my
career, in order to role model this. Being brave and
sharing your own personal experiences can help
promote a sense of inclusivity and trust.
What are your priorities in 2020?
As well as streamlining our customer journey
and investing in leadership, this year we want to
continue the positive work we have done around
employee-led change. In 2019, we introduced some
initiatives which encouraged teams to identify
areas of improvement within the business.
Giving empowerment back to teams, asking them
to speak up about what’s not working and come
up with ideas is hugely motivational for staff. We
don’t assume that our leaders have the monopoly
on ideas. And I recognise that the collective sum of
individual parts is much more powerful.
And your future plans?
I’m really proud of the efforts we’ve made around
diversity and inclusion (D&I) this year and have
confidence in the way the business operates and
how the team is working with me. We were proud
to be recognised at the Insurance Post Diversity &
Inclusion Awards – receiving the D&I and mental
health champion accolades. We need to continue our
good work, and ensure we are relevant from both
a customer and employee perspective. Customer
expectations are increasing – so we need to keep
pace, look up and out, and learn from others.
“Just because someone has a mental
health issue doesn’t mean they can’t
operate well at work”
Issue 4 - 2020
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