![peggy-vandana](https://corporateresponsibility.thorntontomasetti.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/peggy-vandana.jpg)
Challenges & Opportunities
The past year has seen the environment for ED&I (or DEI) become more challenging. Judicial rulings, legislation and a growing number of legal disputes are causing some companies and institutions to pull back on ED&I efforts. Yet it’s been proven that diverse and inclusive organizations are more creative, innovative and better to work for. That’s why we’re expanding on our long-established initiative to cement ED&I into our culture, policies and practices. We hired Vandana Juneja as the firm’s first ED&I officer in October 2023. Her mission? To strengthen our ED&I programs, track and accelerate progress, and advance our goal of becoming a place where all our people can bring their authentic selves to work.
Milestones
Happy 10th Birthday, Women@TT! Founded in 2013 by then-Managing Principal Aine Brazil, Women@TT was our first employee network group (ENG). It was guided by the pursuit of gender equity and dedicated to promoting awareness, providing support, and driving firm culture. In the intervening decade, the ENG has chalked up a panoply of accomplishments, including establishing mentoring programs and leadership activities to support the advancement of women. It has grown to include 25 chapters and is now accessible to over 94% of employees.
Our ED&I team has also been facilitating inclusion dialogues across the firm, bringing colleagues together for learning and sharing of lived experiences and perspectives.
![We are bringing colleagues across the firm together for Leading Inclusively/Building Inclusion dialogues (recent New York group shown above). We are bringing colleagues across the firm together for Leading Inclusively/Building Inclusion dialogues (recent New York group shown above).](https://corporateresponsibility.thorntontomasetti.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/edi-test-side.png)
The Path Forward
In 2023, we enlisted Catalyst, a global consultancy focused on gender equity and workplace inclusion, to help us measure the success of our ED&I engagement to date. An all-staff survey, coupled with in-depth focus groups and interviews, provided insight into what we’re doing right – and where we need to do better. This data helped us define our priorities for 2024:
- Perform an ED&I Audit. Understand how our policies, programs and practices affect ED&I.
- Enrich Our ENG Community. Expand programming and engagement to deepen our sense of community.
- Elevate Our Learning Journey. Refresh on-demand resources, provide Leading Inclusively dialogues for all levels and regions, and expand training on understanding and mitigating unconscious bias.
- Enhance Inclusive Career Growth. Hold listening sessions globally to learn about and cultivate effective pathways to advancement for all.
- Foster Community Through Courageous Conversations. Create more opportunities for coming together to share our stories and lived experiences, communicate authentically and actively listen to one another.
- Map the Future. Build a plan for ED&I efforts to align with the firm’s next five-year (2025–2029) strategic plan.