A NEW ONLINE
tool has been
developed to help organisations measure
themselves against international best
practice in cultural diversity.
Diversity Council Australia and
VicHealth teamed up to develop the
tool, which is available on the Australian
Human Rights Commission website and
focuses on recruitment and retention for
a diverse workplace.
Race Discrimination Commissioner
Dr Tim Soutphommasane, says while
Australians embrace cultural diversity,
there is still a long way to go in getting
things right in the workplace.
“Managing diversity is about Australian
employers being leaders in a global
economy,” Soutphommasane says.
ONLINE TOOL MEASURES
workplace cultural diversity
“The Workplace Cultural Diversity
Tool will help businesses improve their
performance. It will help businesses in
recruiting and retaining the best talent,
and in creating a more welcoming
workplace.”
Diversity Council Australia CEO Lisa
Annese says the tool identifies areas for
improvement in an organisation based on
international best practice.
“The tool rates organisations on their
current cultural diversity and guides them
through the process of moving to best
practice, tracking their progress over
time,” Annese says.
“As Australia becomes more culturally
diverse, it is important that organisations
have the right resources to effectively
manage the opportunities this presents.”
Top tier professional services firm
PricewaterhouseCoopers is an early
adopter of the new online resource, with
CEO Luke Sayers looking forward to
its contribution to PwC’s diversity and
inclusion agenda.
“We recognise the value a culturally
diverse workforce brings – not just for
our people, but for our clients as well. In
a society as diverse as Australia, having
a workforce that reflects that diversity is
fundamental,” Sayers says.
“We’ve set a target to increase the
number of our partners from an Asian
cultural background to 5 per cent by 2016,
and this tool will be a valuable resource as
we work towards that goal.”
RP
RESOURCE
PEOPLE
SUMMER 2014-15
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DIVERSITY
35
