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How we marked Inclusion Week 2021
05 October 2021
As part of our commitment to diversity and inclusion and our vision to create a community where everyone can belong and thrive, we celebrated Inclusion Week through a range of events open to everyone across OUP. The theme for this year was unity so all of our activities were centred around the action we can take to come together to be #UnitedForInclusion.
At OUP, inclusion is all about valuing, inviting, and listening to different perspectives in order to learn from each other and so, we organized a full programme of online events, giving our people the opportunity to connect with colleagues from different backgrounds and share their experiences. From workshops on disability inclusion, to conversations and action on anti-racism, our thought-provoking sessions were organized in response to the suggestions we received from our people across the world.
As a global organization, one session explored the challenges and opportunities faced when approaching inclusion, emphasizing how different approaches work for different countries, and how there needs to be a practical approach taken when thinking about global inclusion. Another online event explained the psychology behind the ‘bystander effect’, and how we can all take active steps to tackling non-inclusive behaviour in the workplace.
Throughout the week, colleagues took to LinkedIn to share their own stories and experiences of inclusion in a series of reflective blogs:
- Bisexuality is something to celebrate, not just on Bi-Visibility Day, but all year long – Deanna Zarrillo, Assistant Publisher
- How the COVID-19 pandemic made the OUP Women’s Network more resilient – Elizabeth Tattum and Sarah James, co-chairs of the OUP Women’s Network
- My cultural journey from India to England and identifying as a minority - Tasneem Bhopalwala, Global Diversity and Inclusion Consultant
- Talking to my colleagues gave me new perspectives on diversity and inclusion in the workplace – Parul R Pandey, Director of HR for APAC & ANZ and Director of Global Diversity & Inclusion
In addition to this, we asked our senior leaders to explain what inclusion meant to them and pledge how they would personally help to further diversity and inclusion at OUP, which we shared across Twitter:
Nigel Portwood, CEO, said: “A diverse and inclusive organization will be a happy and successful one, with people feeling empowered, supported, and able to achieve their potential.”
Susan Armour, Group Ethics & Compliance Officer, said: “D&I creates a sense of belonging: I believe a culture of trust, candour, and respect develops when we welcome colleagues regardless of what they look like, where they come from, or who they love. D&I brings success: I believe the best decisions are made when we draw upon the skills, talents, thoughts, and ideas of diverse individuals. D&I elevates everything: I believe when we embrace and celebrate differences in ourselves we change people’s lives for the better, both within and outside our workplace.”
David Clark, Managing Director of our Academic division, pledged to “build teams where everyone has the opportunity to thrive, to do their best work and to reach their full potential, with management reflective of the organization and, increasingly, an organization reflective of the communities that we serve.”
At OUP, we are committed to creating and maintaining an inclusive culture where we support and champion our colleagues. Understand more about our values and how we aim to empower our people here.