Why Diversity, Equity and Inclusion matters to us at 180 Degrees Consulting

3 minute read

Even though the topic of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) has crossed the doorsteps of most companies, there is still a long way to go: Only 10% of Fortune 500 companies are run by women², frontline employees are 20% less likely to believe that DEI policies are effective³, and the gender pay gap between women and men continues to be about 18% in the US⁴.

In a nutshell: We want to create a workspace, in which everyone can feel heard and represented, reach their fullest potential and grow towards the professional they want to be. What’s more: Numerous studies have shown that more diverse companies perform better financially¹. As an internationally operating NGO it is our priority to support our socially conscious clients to enhance their performance the best we can. 

But independent of business performances, we at 180 Degrees Consulting, see it as our volunteers’ fundamental right to be able to work and connect in a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment. It is thus our equally important priority to shape and create this environment. To us, this means that we strive to have a workforce in which all genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations and religions (…) feel represented, included and safe, and in which we support our members individually considering their unique circumstances.Through our 175+ university based branches, we seek to create a collaborative network spanning across the globe, where we can bring social change while working in diverse and international teams.

How does diversity look like at 180 Degrees Consulting internally?

To get a better understanding of our organization’s current stance on diversity, our People & Culture Team conducted the Diversity & Inclusion Survey in Spring 2023.

According to our recent results, 6 continents are represented within the Global Leadership Team members: Europe (32%), Asia (39%), North America (12%), South America (2%), Australasia (14%) and Africa (1%). As diverse as our nationalities are, so are our members’ religious backgrounds: While about 31% don’t belong to any religion, 28% are Hindu, 21% are Christian, 7% are Muslim and 3% are Buddhist among those who were willing to share their religion.

Within the GLT, about 55% of our members identify as male, while 45% identify as female. And whether they work or are a student, everyone is welcome within the GLT – 59% of our members work full-time, while 41% are students and optionally work part-time.

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How does diversity look like at 180 Degrees Consulting externally?

Our external side is represented by our network of 175+ branches located in 22+ countries. We want to give an insight into two organizations we have consulted in 2022.

Gender equality is at the heart of human rights and United Nations values. The Nigerian NGO Her Dear Diary Initiative seeks out to especially support girls and women in their literacy skills. Our Madrid branch helped them in building a sustainable and efficient online learning platform to reach their target group. 

Tackling the issue of disability inclusion and migration, the Indian social initiative Books for All aims at giving especially migrant and visually impaired children the access to reading. Our branch from Jesus and Mary College New Delhi collaborated with Books for All to enable them in setting up a strategy for the introduction of audiobooks within their offerings.

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What are our plans for 2023?

Looking at 2023, we want to deepen our understanding of our organization, tackle how to make everyone who is already there feel seen, heard and validated, but also dive deeper especially at our recruitment process to seek out to become more present among regions and within groups which are currently less represented within our organization. Beyond our very own organization, we want to support our socially conscious clients to further promote diversity, equity and inclusion among all humans, raise awareness for social challenges such as the access to education and health and support causes such as the ending of modern slavery. 

We believe that only by moving forward, building new connections and broadening our network can we provide the best service for both our members, partners and clients.

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^{1. Why diversity matters | McKinsey. https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/why-diversity-matters.}

^{2. Fortune 500: Women CEOs run more than 10% of companies for first time | Fortune. https://fortune.com/2023/01/12/fortune-500-companies-ceos-women-10-percent/.}

^{3. Race in the workplace: The frontline experience | McKinsey. https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/diversity-and-inclusion/race-in-the-workplace-the-frontline-experience.}

^{4. Aragão, C. Gender pay gap in U.S. hasn’t changed much in two decades. Pew Research Centerhttps://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2023/03/01/gender-pay-gap-facts/.}