Companies can do more to improve DEI initiatives, says survey
A plurality of re/insurance employees responding to a Bermuda:Re+ILS survey felt their companies' could improve their diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
The survey, carried out last month in preparation for this month's focus on women in the workplace and DEI initiatives, also showed most respondents felt the industry was becoming more diverse, but there was still work to be done.
A total of 39% of respondents felt their employers could improve their DEI programmes, while 25% said they did not know and 36% said no.
The answers to the question varied with one respondent saying their employer was making a significant effort, but there was still room for improvement.
"Honestly, my company has an incredibly active DEI agenda," the person said. "A recent Lloyd's survey (most of my company sits in London) has them performing well on DEI targets, but when I look around, I still see a very large percentage of white males. I am the only person of colour on an UW team (including assistants) of 13 across Bermuda and London (but 6 of the 13 are women!), so there is definitely work to do.
Another person said their company was also making material efforts: "There are always ways a company can improve their DEI initiatives - it takes time to build out individuals mindsets and behaviours.
"We will continue to work on various initiatives: hosting more informative learning sessions, creating opportunities for team conversations regarding our diversity and identity, understanding colleagues cultural differences to improve internal engagement and make sure everyone can feel their authentic self. Building a stronger reach into the local community, measuring goals, objectives, policies and procedures."
Nonetheless, some respondents questioned the purpose of DEI. One said: "We don’t have any DEI initiatives; the concept is inane. DEI is a euphemism for mediocrity."
Another said more effort needed to be made from senior management.
"Culture is created from the top and funneled down through any organization. Senior leadership involvement and engagement in ensuring DEI initiatives are being supported, carried out and implemented would be an ideal area of improvement.
"Right now, it's more of a bottom-up approach, which isn't effective to drive meaningful culture change. As with most companies there are multiple generations with diverse backgrounds represented in the organisation, so gaining an understanding around what they need orrequire to feel that sense of belonging to the organization is vital, because what has been done isn't working.
"Lastly, communication is paramount and at present it is inconsistent throughout the organization and there are easy ways to improve this along with consistency and visibility of Senior Leadership."
Another said simply: "Actively try to recruit from a more diverse candidate pool."
Similarly, one respondent called for better training and onboarding to tackle inclusion issues.
Most respondents to the felt the industry was making progress in the area.
The online survey also showed that more than half of the respondents felt their company had a diverse workforce. Asked to rate the diversity of the workforce on a scale of 1-5 with 5 being the best, 38% have it a 5 while 19% gave it a 4. Thirty-one percent rated it at the midpoint with a 3 while just 6 percent gave it either a 1 or a 2.
It was a similar story when respondents were asked if their companies promoted an inclusive environment, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation or race. Four in 10 - 42% - gave their companies a 5 while a further 19% said 4. A quarter said 3, while 6% said 2 and 8% said 3.
Even more felt their companies treated job applicants equally regardless of race, with more than 80% assigning their companies a 4 or a 5, with 42% giving a 5 and 46% saying four. Just 7% gave their companies a three and only 5% gave a two.
There was a near unanimous response to the question of whether people felt their work was valued. Asked "Do you feel valued for the work you complete, regardless of your sexual identity, race, disability, or nationality?", a stunning 93% said yes, while just 7% said no.
The question of whether people of different backgrounds are offered equal opportunities also drew a mixed response. While 44% responded to the question with a 5 and 11% gave it a 4, 31% gave it a 3 and 13% have it a 2.
There was a more positive reaction from respondents when asked if they felt giving different opinions even when they differed. A majority, 55% gave it a 5, 31% gave it a 4, 8% gave it a 3, none have it a 2 and 5% gave it a 1.
