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Feature Ethnic diversit


the industry involving the strata of inclusion should not be conflated. Identit is complex. Penguin Random House is conducting groundbreaking and pioneering work on diversifying its recruitment pool and its publishing output. It is, for instance, the only publisher to have a corporate responsibilit manager (the brilliant Siena Parker), who as well as working on other initiatives is work- ing on projects to address the issue of inclu- sion and diversit. The most recent is the launch of the WriteNow campaign, which is aimed at finding new publishing talent from underrepresented writers. For publishing to become even more successful than it already is, it should intro- duce schemes both bold and small—such as the courses of action that many industries are already taking, successfully—in order to atract talent, publish authors and grow readership from communities and back- grounds that might otherwise have missed out on what publishers have to offer. ×


Simon Dowson-Collins HarperCollins General counsel


A


S I SIT at my desk at HarperCol- lins, surrounded by the work of Hilary Mantel, J R R Tolkien and Agatha Christie, and with the 15th-floor skyline spreading through the window behind me, I feel incredibly fortunate to be a part of it all—and incredibly


fortunate to be working with such talented, generous and supportive colleagues. (I know, it’s a cliché.)


I haven’t always felt so supported by those around me. As a person of mixed race grow- ing up in the 1970s—my birth mother is American, my father Tanzanian—I saw the ugly face of racism at that time, once having the misfortune of being around aſter the break-up of a National Front meeting in my


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hometown, and being abused and beaten up for my trouble. However, in my career my heritage has also been an advan- tage. Some years ago, when I was doing legal work for a private practice, my superi- ors wanted the person who “looked least like a lawyer” to work on “Spiting Image”, and that person ended up being me... My large afro at the time probably helped. In more recent times, proudly representing Harper- Collins, I had the privilege of being named on the inaugural UPstanding Executive Power List of BAME leaders, meeting some truly incredible business people in the process. Being of mixed race certainly has its obsta-


cles. I’m seen as both “other” and part of a homogenous whole and some people looked at me slightly askance when I told them I was on a list of BAME success stories, such is the way I look. But more than anything, I find my heritage empowering. I find it gives me a different angle and outlook in industries that are dominated by white faces and cultures. The idea that being of a diverse back- ground gives me a different perspective is directly relevant to the publishing indus- try. The vast majorit of publishers work in London, a cit with a 40% non-white popu- lation (it’s around 15% in England and Wales). If we’re not representing that kind of diversit, we’re not representing the wider consumer market, and readers. Of course this is about the kind of books we are publish- ing, but it’s also about the people we employ.


Above: HarperCollins’ Simon Dowson-Collins and Kings Road Publishing’s Perminder Mann


and life-affirming, it was also incredibly exciting from a busi- ness perspective. These young people have so much to offer to


our business and our industry, and I can’t wait to see how they move us forward. As our UK c.e.o. Charlie Redmayne says, reflecting diversit is not only the right thing to do, it’s also good for business. Furthermore, it’s not just about employ- ing people. It’s about nurturing that talent, whoever they are and whatever background they have come from. On a personal basis, my team at HarperCollins has benefited massively from the championing and nurtur- ing of new talent, such as the brilliant Neha Vyas, who started off as my assistant and is now handling anti-piracy for the global business, all while qualifying to be a lawyer. Her blossoming career demonstrates how nurturing talent (“diverse” or otherwise) should be central to our success as publish- ing businesses. I’m certain we’ll see many, many more stories like Neha’s in the future. For a long time, publishing has been


torn between its twin identities of tradi- tion and looking to the future. I believe that the dialogue that’s started in recent years is finally taking us into a new age of diversit and inclusion, one in which we honour our traditions while also truly representing our rich and vibrant modern societ. ×


Perminder Mann Kings Road Publishing c.e.o.


At HarperCollins, we’ve been honest with ourselves. Objectively we can see that BAME individuals are underrepresented and we have taken action to address that imbal- ance, most notably in the introduction of an industry-first traineeship targeted at BAME graduates. I had the pleasure of interviewing candidates in the first stage of the recruit- ment process, and not only was it inspiring


W


HAT DO YOU want to be when you grow up? When I was a child, as far as I was aware, if I was going to be success- ful and make it in the world, I had three choices: doctor, lawyer or accountant. Aſter graduating from


De Montfort Universit I found myself in a 11


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