Senior Leaders’ Pledge

Senior Leaders’ Pledge

James Gray – Partner | European and UK Patent Attorney

1. Providing visible and proactive leadership to improve D&I in my organisation, by:

• Being a leader in, and contributing to, D&I projects and events across the whole of Withers & Rogers LLP.
• Speaking out about difficult D&I issues, and where appropriate, share my own experiences.
• Putting my name to our organisations commitment to D&I and of its D&I objectives, strategy and policies.
• Championing colleagues from under-represented groups, and where appropriate, act as an ally.

2. Taking D&I seriously at the highest level, by:

• Embedding D&I into our organisations strategy and business plans.
• Acting as a D&I champion at partnership level.
• Encourage senior colleagues to provide visible and proactive leadership on D&I – seek out and value diversity in their teams.

3. Embedding and valuing D&I throughout the organisational culture, by:

• Creating a culture that allows all colleagues, at all levels to bring their whole self to work and be able to speak openly about themselves.
• Encourage training focused on D&I and the importance of a diverse workforce. [Pledge being led by Terri Pettifer-Eagles, Head of HR]
• Ensure the inclusion of D&I related topics on the agendas of internal events.

4. Building trust and safe spaces throughout the organisation, by:

• Establishing an internal D&I platform with representatives from all roles and levels within our organisation.
• Creating an environment where colleagues can challenge potential bias or discrimination without being fearful.
• Actively celebrate difference and support colleagues at every level.

5. Educating myself and my colleagues about D&I issues, by:

• Promoting key D&I related awareness dates to the whole organisation.
• Joining and participating in networking opportunities to increase my knowledge.
• Using all resources available to increase the organisations learning on D&I.

6. Sharing my privileges, by:

• Encouraging colleagues in all roles and at all levels to get involved, and lead by example with my own involvement.
• Encourage the use of different channels through which we advertise vacancies.

7. Insisting on equity, by:

• Ensuring our organisation has fair, diversity-enhancing recruitment and promotion procedures.
• Recognising that colleagues will have different needs and ensuring that our organisation is adaptable to promote the success of the company.
• Reviewing our procedures with HR to evaluate the impact on D&I within the organisation and make any improvements as necessary.

8. Working closely with HR and management colleagues to achieve this, by:

• Making sure that D&I is a key factor at partnership level on all decision making.
• Encourage involvement of partnership level colleagues in all aspects of D&I.
• Ensuring that D&I is an important consideration when communicating with all colleagues and clients.