DEI at UNLEASH World: ‘Create systems to liberate and unshackle your people for better trust and collaboration’

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) has made headlines over the past 12 months as many businesses have rolled back policies and abandoned earlier commitments.

The shift sparked controversy, causing many to question whether DEI programs were ever truly embedded into business strategy, or whether they were simply a response to external pressure.

Some businesses, however, have remained unwavering on their approach and have only continued to show their commitment.

UNLEASH World 2025 provided a platform for many of these businesses to share their thoughts, successes and words of encouragement for other companies that want to continue their DEI efforts.

Achieving diversity and understanding the long-term impacts

On Day Two, a trio of speakers took to the stage to offer their perspectives on how businesses can reimagine DEI and sustainability in the global workplace: Dailah Nihot, Chief People, Communications, and Sustainability Officer at NN Group; Vincent Lecerf, Group CHRO at Orange; and Uzair Qadeer, Chief People Officer at BBC.

Moderator, Dr. Charles-Henri Besseyre des Horts, Professor Emeritus at HEC Paris, took the audience into a deep dive as to how these three global organizations are approaching sustainability, as well as understanding their thoughts on the future of work.

Nihot began by recognizing that many people in the audience won’t think insurance is a ‘sexy’ industry for DEI, but she shared her belief that it’s great for those who want to make an impact in society. 

She said: “Our products are in the lives of people for a very long time. For example, when you get a mortgage, or if you save money for retirement. 

“We take care of that money for 30, 40, or maybe even 50 years, so we invest that money with very strict environmental, social and ethical considerations.” 

To support this, she explained more about NN Group’s policies and long-term goals, which involve ensuring investing in social projects, infrastructure, and renewable energy, for example, to ensure people’s money is working responsibly over the decades.

When taking the microphone shortly after, BBC’s Qadeer supported Nihot’s idea that businesses must be forward-thinking when considering DEI and sustainability plans, by explaining that “short-term goals create long-term success.”

He continued to highlight that the BBC operates in over 200 countries, and has targets to achieve 50% gender representation, 20% racial and ethnic minorities, 14% employees with disabilities, and 25% from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.

He shared: “Instead of thinking about diversity, we think a lot about belonging and representation. How can we create conditions for everyone on the BBC system?

“We like to take the idea of belonging and representation all the way across the human value chain.” 

Building upon this, he informs the audience that the BBC has made “tons of progress” over the last two years, so much so, the business achieved gender parity for the first year in history last year.

Likewise, Lecerf discussed some of the key values at the center of Orange’s business model, stating that caring “translates values into action.”

This must be engrained into everyday life within a business, while being at the center of training programs to ensure it’s embedded in everyday culture.

HR: Leverage DEI to close the skills gap

On a separate stage on Day Three, Bruce Roch, Head of Inclusion at Adecco, and Alexandra Eichberger, Head of Group People Development & Culture at Erste Group, were joined by moderator Charlotte Otter, Author, Speaker, Advisor at Otter Advisory. 

Roch began by suggesting that upskilling refugees is a solution to closing the skills gap – they just need to be taught how to overcome certain obstacles.

“Let minorities know that they’re not alone, and that they have people stand by them everyday. But this needs to be everyday. If it’s not consistent it ruins trust,” he proclaimed.

Agreeing with this sentiment, Eichberger highlighted that Erste Group created Women in IT – a group focused on encouraging more women to pursue IT options.

She explained that although this was first a group exclusively for women, over time it was opened up for men, too. The group kept its original focus, inviting men to actively participate showed the need for allies, while also welcoming a diverse set of voices to the table.

However, Eichberger expanded on this point, by drawing attention to the fact that even though businesses can tick certain diversity boxes – such as having a range of ages, genders and abilities – some are still not seeing the impact they desire. This is predominantly due to difficulties around measuring diversity’s impact.

He added: “We also know innovation happens when we have very diverse teams, as they’re coming up with really great ideas. But still, some companies are struggling to measure the impact of having actual diverse teams.”

One aspect that can have a huge impact on this, is the quality of a businesses leadership team.

“Leaders play a crucial role,” Eichberger continued. “For example, how they behave themselves and how to influence others to act the right way. They also need to be ensuring they are offering a variety of training platforms, such as courses around unconscious bias.”

‘Unshackle your employees’

Although there were many voices championing DEI at UNLEASH World 2025, it’s clear that there is still a long journey ahead. 

However, Nihot concluded her time on stage by linking the idea that sustainability and DEI should be positioned as both ethical and profitable.

“Make your DEI strategy tangible, make it measurable,” she advised. “But don’t only show the extra work, also demonstrate what it brings to business and the shorter-term benefits as well.”

Addressing the attendees, she said: “HR, you have so much power – set the tone for your company. 

You train leaders on how to demonstrate good behavior, and help them to build the culture. You are the voice of the people.

“Create systems that liberate people and make them completely unshackled, because when people are liberated they trust one another, and trust leads to better collaboration.”

Stay tuned for more UNLEASH World 2025 content.