Back to groupebpce.com
For its first Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) campaign, organized to coincide with World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, Natixis took a collective and interactive approach to reiterate the company’s goal to constantly strive to be a more diverse, inclusive and global company.
Our goal is to make sure that each and every one of our people can be themselves in the workplace, be recruited based on their skills, and enjoy the same opportunities to develop.
Cécile Tricon-Bossard, Chief Human Resources Officer at Natixis
Let’s be the change – we can make it happen
Our clients, partners and job candidates all have high expectations from us in terms of diversity and inclusion. Meanwhile our staff expect both promises and action in this arena. Cécile Tricon-Bossard, Chief Human Resources Officer at Natixis states “society as a whole is diverse, as are our clients, so we have a responsibility to reflect this diversity too. Our goal is to make sure that each and every one of our people can be themselves in the workplace, be recruited based on their skills, and enjoy the same opportunities to develop.”
We have made a great deal of progress since the signature of the Diversity charter in 2009, with very concrete results to demonstrate it. For example, in terms of gender equality, women now account for 36% of the senior management committee. We have doubled our direct employment rate for staff with disabilities in the space of five years. Looking to LGBT+ inclusion, two business networks – All Equals and Natixis Pride Network have been set up and are supported by top management. Lastly, Natixis is also committed to younger generations and supports them as they enter the workplace, as we pledged three years ago that half of our recruits for permanent positions would be juniors.
We must continue to bring down barriers, be more open to cultural differences and ensure that each of our people can bring their best selves to work, in the best interest of our clients.
Nicolas Namias, CEO of Natixis
“It is crucial that we take a proactive approach to diversity and inclusion” stated Nicolas Namias, CEO of Natixis, at an internal meet-up devoted to World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development. “All types of discrimination go against our company’s and our group’s values. We all have the power to act whatever our role in the company. We are an international company with more than 100 different nationalities across 36 countries, so we must continue to bring down barriers, be more open to cultural differences and ensure that each of our people can bring their best selves to work, in the best interest of our clients.”
Ambitious pledges out to 2024
Christelle Room, Head of Diversity & Inclusion at Natixis, states “an inclusive company is one that looks for and welcomes differences as a positive”, which is why we have reiterated our key pledges out to 2024 in our D&I policy, including:
- 40% women at least in all our leadership groups
- 50% juniors among our new hires
- 25% international profiles in our leadership bodies
It was particularly striking that the Let’s be the change campaign brought together our people from all across the globe – Paris, Boston, Hong Kong, New York, Singapore, Porto, London and Dubai. The event also mobilized our inhouse groups that support gender diversity with the WINN network, and inclusion of staff with disabilities and the LGBT+ community, with All Equals and Natixis Pride Network.
Our goal is to build a company where each and every person – regardless of age, background, sexual orientation or gender, can be themselves. We believe that each person has a role to play to create a more equal and sustainable company, independently of their position in the company, so each of our staff was able to display their commitment in their own way via this first campaign: some got involved in our vast collective mural with the hashtag #letsbethechange, others shared their stories in our inhouse magazine or spoke about their experience during open and inspiring discussions.
Looking back on our campaign: getting involved by sharing our experience
To support our commitment and amplify our Let’s be the change campaign, the initiative included a number of live talks open to all our staff. Inspiring personalities shared their respective life experiences on themes related to diversity and inclusion and answered our staff’s questions. This sharing of personal experiences and insight offered a source of inspiration for professional fulfillment in accordance with each person’s personal aspirations, and drawing on individual profiles, background and experience.
“Difficult does not mean impossible”: actor, speaker and protagonist in award-winning television reports, Paulo Azevedo turned his weaknesses into strengths, with extraordinary support from his family, and believed from his youngest age that nothing is impossible. He told us about his story with strength and conviction, and discussed how the disability he was born with did not stop him becoming a journalism student, holding level 2 in football coaching or interning with Real Madrid. He was also the first actor with a disability to feature in a Portuguese soap opera.
Reem Kassis, author of The Arabesque Table, presented a theme that we can all share in her Live Talk – food! Reem explored the transcultural dimension of the cooking world to offer insight into the winding path that took her to success and personal fulfilment. “Food tells an amazing story” she says. It connects families, which pass it on from generation to generation, and brings together countries and their inhabitants, spans across regions beyond nationalities, ethnicities and religions. Reem Kassis believes that food is precious as it is about sharing – she encourages us to value our similarities rather than our differences.
Rabia Siddique’s autobiography, Equal Justice, My Journey as A Woman, A Soldier and A Muslim, is a true reflection of diversity. A retired British Army officer, then terrorism and war crimes prosecutor, and later criminal and human rights lawyer, her experience is all about being the change. Her hostage ordeal in Basra (Iraq) in 2005 was a turning point in her commitments, and despite the difficulties, she has since fought for a fairer workplace for women and cultural minorities. Rabia Siddique encourages us not only to persevere but also to act: “Be the change you wish to see”.
