Anushka Davies
Head of Talent, Engagement & Diversity
To kick off National Inclusion Week we caught up with Anushka Davies, our Head of Talent, Engagement & Diversity, who shared with us the purpose of this week and what inclusion means to her.
What is National Inclusion Week?
National Inclusion Week is designed to celebrate everyday inclusion. It’s an opportunity to help everyone appreciate people in our organisations and to connect and inspire each other. Softcat is supporting National Inclusion Week this year to do just this; to use it as an opportunity to respect our colleagues and take some time to connect and learn about each other and what makes us unique. In an organisation where culture is so important, the value that each individual person brings to our company helps us succeed.
What does inclusion mean to you?
Inclusion for me is all about valuing difference, appreciating different perspectives and opinions. Inclusion is ensuring that everyone is treated equally and given every opportunity to contribute and succeed. Diversity is about the value of difference and people’s characteristics, like their gender, ethnicity, age or education. Inclusion is more about belonging and everyone’s differences being welcomed and valued. Inclusion is also a conscious effort to remove discriminations, so all employees are included, accepted and supported.
How is Softcat an inclusive workplace?
Softcat is well known for having an amazing and unique culture. This is one of the reasons we have been so successful over the years. Customers enjoy working with Softcat due to our people and what they bring to relationships. I’d say we have been an inclusive company at the same time, but we probably haven’t spoken about the importance of inclusion as much as we do now. Having an inclusive workplace is about our employees feeling safe and welcome. We therefore have more engaged employees who are passionate about the work they do and the company they work for.
Although we have always been a ‘people first’ organisation, we are now making it a priority to highlight the value everyone brings by focusing on everyone’s unique traits. The plan for the future is to continue listening, learning and promoting our backgrounds to help boost our productivity.
This year’s theme for National Inclusion Week is Each1Reach1, why is this an important campaign to support?
The Each1Reach1 campaign this year is about reaching out to someone who you wouldn’t normally reach out to, so you can learn something new about each other. It’s about taking some time out and sharing experiences or even to just reach out to say ‘thank you’ for the good work someone does and the value they bring. We are all busy with our day jobs, but taking 15 minutes to learn about someone else gives us all a chance to pause and value what they bring to our wonderful company.