We also want to share what we learned about the importance of self-belief and the role of mentors from a Meat Business Women audience session with animal behaviourist and autism advocate, Dr Temple Grandin.
What is inclusion?
Inclusion is the practice of integrating all people and groups within organisations.
What does a diverse workplace look like?
It’s important to remember that diversity extends beyond visible differences such as race, gender, and ethnicity. It also incorporates religion, socio-economic status, sexual orientation and neurodivergence.
What is neurodivergence and why does it matter?
Neurodivergence is the umbrella term to describe different ways of thinking, which includes autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia and Tourette’s.
Around a fifth of the population are neurodivergent. That’s a big chunk of the workforce who should all have equal opportunities to make a valuable contribution. And the good news is that we can all play our part in helping to unlocking people’s potential.
Expanding the talent pool
Two of the recurring themes from Meat Business Women’s speaker session with the world renowned Dr Grandin, were the importance of self-belief and the role of mentors.
Sharing insights about her remarkable life and work, Dr Grandin really struck a chord when she said:
These words reminded me of our own ‘Bees’ Knees’ promise to be the very best we can be and the values – ambition, integrity and results – that underpin everything our team does. Having faith in yourself and faith in others are equally significant and one of the reasons we’re working on an agency mentoring programme to share the broad spectrum of experience and skills within our growing business and provide role models for all of our team. We want to continue attracting, retaining and developing the best possible talent and that means acknowledging that people’s brains are wired differently. Those different cognitive styles should be celebrated through collaborative ways of working. It’s why everyone at Pinstone is empowered to bring their unique perspectives to the table. Putting policy into action Fostering a diverse workforce can have numerous advantages:“There is opportunity everywhere, a lot of people just don’t always see it. Look for the door of opportunity like I did, and have the guts to go through that door.”
- It can lead to a more innovative, creative, and empathetic work environment
- It can help improve problem solving
- Businesses can break down stereotypes and contribute to a broader social movement toward acceptance and understanding.
