How do you encourage diversity in the workplace?

We like to round up each issue by giving featured business leaders the final word. In issue 101 we asked, “How do you encourage diversity in the workplace?”

Justin Lipshitz, CEO and Founder, Axon Wireless

“We are privileged to have members of our team coming from multiple backgrounds, races and religions. Diversity is something that comes from the company culture. Our culture is open and accepting, and we realise that people bring their own unique experiences that help us to build a company with a broader view. We have people working in China, Europe, West Africa, East Africa and Southern Africa all working together to build amazing products.”

Agnelo Laice, Managing Director, MultiChoice Mozambique

“Our business is better, more innovative, and more successful because of the diverse talents and experiences of our team. As a business, we are committed to creating a workplace that is truly equitable and inclusive. We have implemented initiatives that promote diversity and inclusion at all levels of our organisation and supporting programmes that help women advance in their careers. 47 percent of MultiChoice Mozambique’s are female, and we are proud to be part of a team that consistently and deliberately embraces diversity.”

Kudzai Nyangoni, Managing Director, Howden

“Diversity is an integral part of our business and is embedded in our culture. We embrace employees from different backgrounds and cultures and are able to access the best talent available in the market to drive innovation and service delivery to our customers. Promoting diversity is key to employee engagement and development. We have an increasing number of female engineers from all backgrounds, a feat that not too many organisations have been able to achieve. Engineering is male-dominated, and we are working very hard to change that.”

Marisa Trisolino, CEO, CMC Networks

“We believe in providing equal opportunities for everyone. Our skills development initiatives help us to recruit and develop top talent across South Africa, including career pathways for unemployed graduates and people with disabilities. We put emphasis on leadership development, mentoring, employee bursaries, learnerships, internships, and working student bursaries. We are making significant investments in all these areas and playing our part in promoting transformation across South Africa.”

Berto Smit, Managing Director, WBHO Civils

“We have been dedicated to various efforts in diversity – whether in terms of gender or race representation – for the past 30 years. In South Africa, there are now dedicated programmes to ensure that you are complying with these standards, but for WBHO, we have been doing it since day one. We are particularly dedicated to making our working environments in the construction industry increasingly comfortable and welcoming to women.”