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Respect programme success
Thursday April 30th 2009. Posted: 09:45
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Val Jackson-Risk is pleased with the success of the Respect programme
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Retail’s Respect programme has made real inroads this year in its bid to improve diversity, cut out unacceptable behaviour and help meet the diverse needs of BT Retail customers.
That’s the message from Respect role model Val Jackson-Risk. As Retail’s equality and diversity champion, Val has been working hard with teams from across Retail to make sure the Respect programme is at the top of Retail’s business agenda. “It’s been a very busy and productive year and we’ve laid some strong foundations to take us forward into the next financial year,” said Val. “Retail Respect touches everyone in Retail. Everyone is different - be it in approach, circumstances, ethnicity, gender and so on. Creating a culture of respect means we take personal responsibility for positive constructive relationships, and encourage diversity - respecting differences and respecting others. “A diverse workforce of people who understand and value different perspectives, will help us connect with the communities we serve.” The Respect plan covers bullying and harassment, where action plans have been put in place to address any issues raised in the CARE 2008 survey. As Val explained: “Following the CARE 2008 survey, there were some teams whose harassment and bullying scores were considered too high to be reflective of BT Retail’s values.” As a result, human resources director Joe McDavid and his HR team have introduced action plans to address these poor scores. The teams have been monitored closely and the areas identified with poor scores are now improving. The Respect plan has also been examining the engagement levels of diverse groups in the organisation, and is reviewing diversity training across BT. The plan has also been looking at increasing diversity at executive management levels. Val said: “We are pleased to report that the diversity of the senior management population in BT Retail is becoming more reflective of the diversity of BT Retail as a whole.” As a result, the number of female senior managers has increased - and now 25 per cent of BT people at executive management level is female. The number of people from ethnic minorities at executive level has also increased to ten per cent. “A great result across all our business units,” added Val. Work is under way to make BT.com more inclusive to all BT customers, with training rolled out across Consumer and Strategy Convergence and Products. Moves on BT.com include adding Browse Aloud software for people using the website with sight loss. A Customer Inclusion Policy Forum has also been created - chaired by Retail managing director John Petter. “The forum has won several awards - including our freestyle cordless phone gaining ten out of ten in the Sunday Mirror and of course being nominated as best gift for grandads,” added Val. On diversity and inclusion Val and Joe McDavid have launched “Including you” to Retail. It’s a new programme across BT that brings together the inclusion and disability programmes under one umbrella. It aims to ensure everyone has a great experience of BT - both employees and customers. It also encourages everyone in BT to understand their personal responsibility for the company’s disability and inclusion agenda. Val says that if you want to know more, all information relating to disability has been brought together in one portal.
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Last updated:
17:55