In the words of the highly respected Jesse Jackson: “Inclusion is not a matter of political correctness. It is the key to growth.” This month 40 of our key suppliers exchanged pledges at our latest event to raise the diversity and inclusion agenda across our supply chain and make suppliers more accountable.

We recognise that innovative problem solving is best approached through diversity of thought and that diversity and inclusion are important for a cohesive supply chain. To grow and be resilient for the future, business must drive and, more importantly, lead action in this area. That’s why we’re actively working with our supply chain to accelerate change.

Building on the success of earlier events with suppliers, we recently launched a series of roundtables each shining a spotlight on a different area of diversity and inclusion. Our first session in September brought together LGBT leads from British Land and our key suppliers to share what’s working well and explore some of the obstacles to overcome.

Before attending, suppliers assessed their own organisations against a diversity maturity curve, so we could create a mentoring approach at the event. There was a wealth of experience to draw on in the room amongst our suppliers, colleagues and partners, including members of the Albert Kennedy Trust. Guest speaker Yohanna Weber of Fieldfisher, who co-chairs LGBT network Planning Out, shared her insights into creating an LGBT Placemaking Toolkit.

Importantly, each attending supplier gave and received a pledge to take action. One supplier committed to helping their pledge partner develop and implement a transgender policy; another promised a year’s mentoring support. Other pledges included establishing an employee LGBTQ+ network and arranging an industry-wide LGBTQ+ awareness event.

Suppliers signed and exchanged pledge contracts, confirming they’d complete them within nine months. I also made a commitment to keep a keen eye on their pledges over the next nine months and emphasised that contracts are binding agreements that shouldn’t be put away and forgotten.

We then enjoyed a networking celebration, where we continued to share stories and celebrate great work already started. It’s positive to hear about the progress since our first diversity and inclusion event for suppliers in 2017 (which I blogged about here) and our 2018 supplier conference, where we explored the power of employee networks to nurture cultures where diversity and inclusion can thrive. Most people and businesses can embrace new ways of being but it takes time and effort.

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“By bringing us together and encouraging us to share our experiences and best practice through a pledge system, British Land is supporting its suppliers in creating more inclusive, sustainable working environments for our LGBT+ employees.” Sian Owles, Partner at Hogan Lovells