BP TOP 10 EXCEPTIONAL INCLUSION
ADE RAWCLIFFE
Rawcliffe is the Group Director of Diversity and Inclusion at ITV. She is the first Diversity Director to be on the Management Board of a FTSE 100 company. She has responsibility for all diversity and inclusion-related matters across the group, including leading, developing and delivering ITV’s D&I strategy. Prior to joining ITV, she led the Creative Diversity team at Channel 4, spearheading the delivery of its award winning 360° Diversity Charter. Rawcliffe sits on the board of Bafta, chairing its Learning, Inclusion and Talent committee, is a Trustee of The National Trust and a Board member of TimesUp UK.
AMA OCANSEY
Ocansey is the UK Head of Diversity and Inclusion at BNP Paribas, and is responsible for the development and execution of strategy. She is also a qualified Solicitor of England and Wales who began her career at the international law firm Linklaters LLP and went on to be a senior capital markets lawyer focusing on cross-border capital markets transactions in emerging markets. Ocansey has an interest in access to finance for individuals and entrepreneurs in developing economies and is a non-executive director for the Financial Inclusion Forum, BNP Prime Brokerage International Limited and BNP Paribas Trust Corporation. She also mentors junior City lawyers and students.
DARA JAFARI
Jafari is a Regional Director for Faithful+Gould, an experienced project and framework manager with a reputation for delivering and managing large programmes of work on behalf of clients. He has always had a passion for equality, diversity and inclusion – being brought up as bilingual and having two nationalities. Jafari has brought that passion into Faithful+Gould as the ED&I Lead. He has delivered various external talks, webinars and keynote speeches, inspiring the people of F+G to learn and be engaging with all topics ED&I, as well as ensuring the delivery of a supply chain diversity programme initiative.
FARHANA KUDDUS
Kuddus is Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion. She is also a speaker and Business Transformation Leader having led teams, global transformation and product innovation at Sky Group and Nationwide Building Society. Last year, Kuddus was listed in Women in FinTech Powerlist as a Standout 35, named in Top 10 Global Diversity Leaders List and led her company to success at both European and British Diversity awards. This year she is named as a finalist as Head of Diversity. Kuddus advises across several boards and openly advocates for inclusion, in particular race equality – she is a judge at the European Diversity Awards and at Trailblazers Race Equality Matters and also sits on Advisory Boards for Amplo Global and Tell Mama.
MARLON WILSON
Wilson brings diverse people together by establishing safe and inclusive communities, where everyone feels empowered to be their true authentic self, have a voice and collectively celebrate and elevate uniqueness. As BT’s Ethnic Diversity Network Deputy Chair, he supports the commercialised relationship with the Aleto Foundation, a charity that supports next-generation diverse leaders. And as Programme Director for the Foundation for Reach Society and a management member for Reach Society, Wilson coordinates inspirational events in urban areas across UK, inspiring young audiences and helping them understand and explore potential career pathways.
NWACHUKWU AGHANYA
Aghanya is a Director in PwC’s Financial Services practice, working with some of its largest global clients. Though this is his working background, his passion and enthusiasm for change and making business more inclusive is just as important to him. His D&I initiatives are based on ‘moving the dial’ and ‘changing the narrative’. To Aghanya, the first instance means increasing the diverse background of people in business, while the latter relates to showing the difference one person with an honest goal can make. He hopes his work will inspire others to be part of the story.
PRISCILLA BAFFOUR
Championing TikTok’s company value of diversity and inclusion, Baffour is responsible for driving the company’s global D&I strategy. Prior to joining TikTok she oversaw the Financial Times’s first global diversity and inclusion strategy and was responsible for leading ITN’s strategy, accelerating their work around the Gender and Ethnicity Pay Gap. Before that she spent five years at Channel 4, where she spearheaded 4Talent and won the Deputy Prime Minister’s Excellence Award for playing a pioneering role in tackling social mobility. Baffour was also part of the team responsible for implementing Channel 4’s 360 Diversity Charter.
SAFIA KUKASWADIA
Safia Ann Kukaswadia is spirited diversity, equity and inclusion expert.
Her corporate experience is complemented by a creative background in luxury fashion and the arts, alongside a personal passion for developing and uplifting those around her. Safia is committed to supporting underrepresented communities, and collaborates with brands and leaders across the fashion, retail and creative industries to influence and advise on DE&I initiatives and relevant implementation. She is also a founding member and lead for the British Fashion Council‘s D&I Steering Committee and member of the Decolonising Design Coalition.
SOPHIA LEE
Lee is a senior manager within the Office of Global Inclusion team at Paramount International. Passionate about building inclusive cultures from the ground up as well as the top down and championing historically marginalised voices, Lee works closely with Paramount’s employee resource groups to offer strategic guidance and support as they strive towards their goals. Prior to Paramount, Lee found her niche in DE&I whilst working in the HR team at Channel 4. She subsequently secured DE&I roles at Hogan Lovells and Dentsu.
YASIR MIRZA
Mirza joined the Financial Times in June 2021 as Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion. Prior to the FT, he was head of D&I at BBC Studios, where he developed their strategy and launched their Inclusion Advocates Network. Before that, as head of D&I at Channel 4, Mirza was responsible for moving the Channel from 147th to 35th in Stonewall’s Top 100 Index. At Guardian News & Media Group he conceived and launched the Citizen Reporting Programme, working with marginalised people around the world to amplify their voices, helping to find more diverse and unheard stories.