Empowering our people through diversity and inclusion

We aim to give people the opportunity to access knowledge, regardless of their backgrounds or circumstances, and we can only achieve this if we encourage diversity and inclusion within OUP. This year we launched a range of initiatives designed to foster a diverse and inclusive culture at OUP.

The global OUP Women’s Network aims to facilitate the career progression of women by providing networking, mentoring, and professional and personal development, as well as creating a positive and safe space where colleagues can have their voices heard.

In the UK, our new black, Asian, and minority ethnic (BAME) network aims to increase inclusivity and support diversity by focusing on professional development and culture, and bringing together colleagues around the organization, while the Befriender Network—which plans to extend internationally in 2019—provides informal support to anyone returning to or continuing at work following challenges such as mental or physical health difficulties, well-being issues, bereavement, or supporting dependants.

In India, we partnered with a childcare service to increase support for parents working at our Noida office, while in Hong Kong we renovated a meeting space to create a nursing room and encourage a family-friendly environment.

Colleagues in Kenya undertook D&I awareness training around unconscious bias, mentoring, and understanding employees’ roles in promoting D&I, while our South Africa branch launched Transformation Goals covering humanity and diversity, respect and dignity, honesty and trust, communication and accountability, and responsibility and accountability.

In Australia, we established a regular D&I focus group to encourage two-way open and transparent communication where employees can speak to the branch Managing Director about what is and isn’t working in the business. Our Australia team also supported World Mental Health day through fundraising activities and a presentation from the Black Dog Institute, on mental health in the workplace, how to recognize early warning signs, and how to care for ourselves and others.

We look to inspire change not only within our company, but also within the publishing industry as a whole. Our hope is that by empowering our people around the world, they will be able to make their mark on OUP and help us to better reflect the markets we operate in and the customers we work with.

Read more about Diversity and inclusion at OUP