2018 WINNERS

BUSINESS

OUTSTANDING EMPLOYER

Lloyds Banking Group

Lloyds Banking Group is committed to ensuring that our workforce reflects the diversity of our customer base and we were proud to be the first FTSE 100 company in February 2018 to set a public goal to increase B.A.M.E representation at senior levels as part of our Helping Britain Prosper Plan. Our ethnicity strategy is led from the top and supported by comprehensive plans to ensure we make sustainable progress, including targeted career development interventions, a robust focus on increasing visibility of B.A.M.E role models and a range of activities to build cultural awareness understanding and advocacy across our workforce.

FUTURE LEADER

Justin Onuekwusi

Multi Asset Fund Manager, LGIM

Justin is a multi-asset fund manager working at Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM). He is a CFA charterholder sitting within a wider investment team that manages near to £50 billion for pension funds and savers across the world.

Throughout his career Justin has been active in joining and contributing to diversity and inclusion initiatives at the companies in which he has worked. He currently co-chairs the Investment Diversity Working Group for LGIM, which has set about making change in five key areas for the investment floor: recruitment and retention (including mentoring), culture/cognitive diversity, agile working, barriers to diversity and inclusion and understanding the business risks stemming from a lack of diversity. Due to the successes of the initiatives that have been put in place, he was asked to join the diversity and inclusion team at group level (L&G).

Outside of LGIM, Justin has recently featured in the 2018 EMpower Ethnic Minority Future Leaders List. He is adviser to the board of City Hive Ltd, which focuses on driving diversity initiatives throughout the asset management industry, including gender, ethnicity and LGBT. Justin has also taken the role as Diversity Lead on the Association of Professional Fund Investors (APFI) to help drive diversity across the industry.

Finally, Justin sits on the ethnicity workstream of the industry-wide Diversity project, established by Dame Helena Morrissey. His focus on the workstream is the representation of BAME and in particular, the severe underrepresentation of black people at senior levels within the asset management industry.

INSPIRATIONAL LEADER

KAREN BLACKETT OBE

West Midlands Police

Karen is a proven business leader with a track record in creating vibrant cultures, energising teams and consistently delivering business growth and success. She is currently UK country manager for WPP, the world’s largest marketing services group, and Chairwoman of MediaCom, the largest media agency in the UK.

Karen champions diversity and equality of opportunity throughout the advertising industry. In 2012 Karen launched the first ever Government backed Apprentice Scheme for the sector.

In June 2014, Karen received an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday honours and in 2015 Karen was the first business woman to be named Britain’s Most Influential Black person in the Power List.

Karen is an external advisor to the UK Government Civil Service and a Business Ambassador to the Department of International Trade. Karen sits on the board for Creative England, is a council member for the Creative Industries Federation, and Chancellor of the University of Portsmouth.

WORKPLACE HERO

ROB NEIL

Lead of Project Race at The Ministry of Justice

MoJ’s Head of Project Race – Arms Length Bodies & Governance Division. Rob was born in Paddington, London and grew up in the London Borough of Brent. He joined the Ministry of Justice [then Lord Chancellors Department] in October 1983 – starting at Willesden County Court in North London.

Rob progressed to Deputy Court Manager before joining the South Eastern Circuit I.T. Team. In 1998 Rob landed his dream job with Corporate HR as a Development Trainer. Rob studied at the Civil Service College for two years, gaining a Certificate in Training Practice [CTP] and is now a member of CIPD.

Rob was a founding member of the MoJ’s BAME Staff network in 2001, namely P.R.O.U.D. Later in that same year, Rob became the first elected Chair of the Civil Service Race Equality Network [CSREN] – known today as CSRF – the Civil Service Race Forum.
Over the past fifteen years Rob has continued his MoJ career in HR. As an original member of the MoJ’s Employee Engagement Team, Rob led the design, recruitment and launch of the Engagement Champions Network in 2008. As MoJ’s Head of Engagement Networks Rob was responsible for the development of Employee Engagement Champions [EECs] across the MoJ. This pioneering network now boasts over x1000 people across the entire MoJ Family – including; Courts, Tribunals, Prisons and the Legal Aid Agency.

In the summer of 2015 Rob was invited to lead the MoJ’s Diversity & Inclusion Team over the summer as temporary cover for four months. During this period Rob led the delivery of key priorities, including the Department’s response to the Civil Service Talent Action Plan and renegotiating contracts with all Diversity Staff Networks.
In April 2016 Rob was included in the ‘New View 50’ which recognises influential Black Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME) professionals in the public sector.
In May 2016 Rob was chosen to lead the MoJ’s Race Project – an inward facing programme of work aimed at supporting the MoJ’s published Diversity & Inclusion objectives and turning the dial on race equality.

In September 2016 Rob was elected Chair of the Civil Service Race Forum. The Civil Service Race Forum [CSRF] is an umbrella network of BAME Staff Networks across the civil service made up of over 30 Government departments, reaching in excess of 6,000 BAME civil servants working at all levels. Rob ended his one year tenure as Chair of CSRF in January 2018 and remains a member the CSRF Executive Committee as Non- Executive Director [NED]. Rob is also a member of the Civil Service Representational Leadership Group which supports delivery of the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy.
Rob successfully applied for the Civil Service Future Leaders Scheme and is now an active member of the 2017-19 cohort which incorporates the META Programme.

​Rob is a Trustee with RELATE and a volunteer Social Media Director with Reach Society.
Most recently, Rob was awarded an OBE in The Queen’s 2018 New Year’s Honours list for ‘Services to Race Equality in the workplace and the community’.

Rob lives with his wife and their two children in Harrow.

NETWORK GROUP

EMBRACE

HSBC UK

Embrace network is an inclusive employee resource group focused on the inclusion of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic employees. They, helps us attract, retain and engage a more diverse ethnic and multicultural workforce within HSBC.
The Embrace Network are fully aligned to the business and fully support the UK D&I agenda. Their business alignment has seen them refocus their governance, refresh their strategy leading to clear business integrated activities, professional informative newsletter, key partnerships established internally and externally and active support and engagement of their business sponsor.

Their increased activity and visibility has led to increasing visible role models, with some members of the network being recognised in external power lists e.g Empower FT List. Their activities and external partnerships has supported BAME colleagues and BAME individuals in the communities we serve.

NETWORK GROUP

REACH

LLOYDS BANKING GROUP

Lloyds Banking Group is committed to ensuring that our workforce reflects the diversity of our customer base and we were proud to be the first FTSE 100 company in February 2018 to set a public goal to increase B.A.M.E representation at senior levels as part of our Helping Britain Prosper Plan. Our ethnicity strategy is led from the top and supported by comprehensive plans to ensure we make sustainable progress, including targeted career development interventions, a robust focus on increasing visibility of B.A.M.E role models and a range of activities to build cultural awareness understanding and advocacy across our workforce.

CHAMPION (ALLY)

NANCY LENGTHORN

HEAD OF DIVERSITY, INCLUSION AND FUTURE TALENT, MEDIACOM

​Nancy Lengthorn has been in the Media Industry since 1999, spending much of this time at MediaCom. Having worked on clients such as Sky, Direct Line and Cancer Research UK, a passion for people and equity meant that she began to focus her attention on internal projects and set up the industry’s first Apprentice scheme in 2011. This is a role that evolved into her current position of Head of Diversity, Inclusion and Future Talent. Nancy is a mother of 4 young children and is Trustee of a charity that helps Mothers who are living below the poverty line.

PUBLIC

LEGACY AWARD

KANYA KING CBE

Kanya King CBE is the CEO and founder of the MOBO Awards, which now reach more than 400 million viewers in over 200 countries. Since the organisation’s inception in 1996, the MOBO organisation has established itself as a champion of diversity, inclusion and recognition for BME talent within music, culture, arts, fashion, media and larger society as a whole. King was presented with an MBE in 1999 for services to the music industry.

INSPIRATIONAL PUBLIC FIGURE

Ore Oduba

On-air, on-screen and on stage, Ore has established himself as a true all-rounder since winning the 14th series of Strictly Come Dancing.

He has fronted some of the biggest national events, from the Queen’s 90th Birthday celebrations to One Love Manchester for BBC1. Other notable high-profile credits include regular presenting slots on The One Show and ITV’s This Morning, while Claimed and Shamed continues to be a ratings winner in the daytime schedule. Ore also dedicates much of his time to charitable causes including Comic and Sport Relief, Children in Need and Stand Up to Cancer.

POLITICAL FIGURE

DIANE ABBOT MP

Abbott became the first black woman to hold a seat in the House of Commons when she was elected as the Member of Parliament for Hackney North and Stoke Newington at the 1987 general election. The prominent Labour politician is a leading campaigner on equality issues and as Shadow Home Secretary, has been working vociferously for justice for the Windrush generation.

OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION TO COMMUNITIES

HARUN KHAN

Harun Khan is Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), the first second-generation Muslim to be elected into the leadership. The MCB serves to empower the Muslim community to contribute towards achieving a cohesive, just and successful British society. Khan has volunteered with the MCB since he was a teenager, and founded the Eid celebrations in London’s Trafalgar Square in partnership with the Mayor of London and attended by up to 20,000 visitors.

MEDIA IMPACT

Stormzy’s Brit Awards performance

The grime artist pulled out all the stops to create an epic show for his Brit Awards performance in February. The impressive set started with a powerful rap in the rain and went on to include a 40-piece symphony orchestra, 100-foot flames, and giant video screens. The musician also scooped two major awards and used his platform on the night to call for justice for those affected by the Grenfell Tower disaster. ​

CHARITY OR COMMUNITY INITIATIVE

gal-dem

gal-dem is an online and print magazine and creative collective comprised by over 70 women and non-binary people of colour. Founded by Liv Little in response to the lack of diversity at her university and in the mainstream media, the aim of gal-dem is to open the experiences of women of colour to a wider audience.

BRAND

ADIDAS

According to Adidas, “diversity isn’t a box to check, it’s our secret formula for inventing the future of sport”.​

This ideology has been evident in Adidas’ recent global campaigns, ‘Calling all Creators’ and ‘See Creativity’. Both campaigns feature, celebrate and empower diverse voices by championing the message that one must look beyond gender, colour, and background to appreciate creativity. Celebrities and models of various ethnicities and races are depicted as role models providing valuable representation in the sports industry.​

During their New York Fashion Week outing this year, Adidas presented its Originals collection with more than half of the models being of non-Caucasian ethnicities in order to promote inclusive athleisure. The models represented everyday women, with one of them in a hijab.​

INFLUENCER

FARRAH STORR

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, COSMOPOLITAN MAGAZINE

Farrah Storr is Cosmopolitan magazine’s award-winning editor-in-chief. Since taking over the monthly mag in 2015, she has diversified the brand and increased circulation by a whopping 59%. In 2017 she was named as a ‘BAME leader’ in The Guardian & Operation Black Votes UK’s 100 Power List.​​