Leadership, data and decision-making: diversity and inclusion are rising up the trustee agenda
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Last year the Pension Regulator (TPR) published its long-awaited diversity and inclusion guidance. This has proved to be an important knowledge-building resource for trustees and helped many progress their equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) journey. Our second annual EDI report, produced in partnership with Cardano, uncovers the additional factors prompting schemes to take action.
Leadership sets direction on EDI in most UK schemes and trustee firms
Getting buy-in from members of the trustee board or senior management team is one of the most important factors driving trustees to take steps to improve diversity and inclusion.
Manpreet Sohal, of Independent Governance Group (IGG), highlights the way organisation’s can embed EDI as part of their culture:
Embracing EDI is one of our firm’s core values, and we have policies and objectives in place to ensure all members of the team consistently live by those values.
Many pension schemes and trustee firms also take direction from regulatory bodies like TPR. Sponsoring employers are another key driver and, as observed by Simon Lewis, of Vidett Governance Services, they play a vital role in many schemes EDI journey:
Many employers have strong statements of intent and visibility around EDI, which in turn is a massive driver for the trustee board and its chair to mirror those efforts.
Adopting EDI can help teams improve their skills sets and decision-making
Most trustees agree that embracing diversity and inclusion broadens their teams’ skills and leads to better governance and decision-making. Many are also enthusiastic because it widens their talent pool.
Pin-Nee Tang of ndapt expands on the distinct benefits diversity brings to teams, commenting:
Diversity is more than just demographics. It is also about cognitive diversity which can bring real value to how we solve problems and make better decisions together.
Albena Georgieva, Head of Insights at mallowstreet, underscores the value-add that comes when teams embrace diversity and inclusion:
Diverse teams are inevitably more inclusive because you cannot attract diverse talent if you cannot retain it. Inclusive teams bring together diversity of thought as well as lived experience. More specifically, they take time to understand each other’s needs and therefore have a wholly different work culture.
Data collection is coming into focus
Nearly half of those with an EDI strategy in place already collect diversity and inclusion statistics on their board, while another 27% plan to start doing this in the coming years. Unfortunately, the majority of those without a strategy have no plans to do this.
Reflecting on the importance of robust policy setting, Gillie Tomlinson, Head of Trustee Engagement at Cardano, says:
As the importance of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion continues to rise up the agenda, we are seeing a growing appreciation of its benefits among schemes and trustees alike. The increase in both target and strategy setting in this year’s research is indicative of the pension industry’s growing commitment to fostering robust policies and driving positive change.
