FEATURE
highest quality care, it helps to more closely reflect the diversity of the UK population.
THE BUSINESS CASE
A report by consultants McKinsey and Company found that ethnic and cultural diversity at executive level correlates with profitability. McKinsey’s 2017 research revealed that companies with the most ethnically diverse executive teams (not only with respect to absolute representation but also of variety or mix of ethnicities) were 33% more likely to outperform their peers on profitability. It also found that gender diversity was correlated with both profitability and value creation.
Of course, these figures are based on the make-up of executive teams – but without diversity at lower levels, where are the diverse executive team members going to come from?
What’s more, franchisees and employees from a range of backgrounds see things through different lenses. Consulted, they can help you see how to address the needs of their community. More diversity brings more fresh ideas.
RECRUITMENT
A job advertisement that includes a logo stating that the employer is diversity friendly may comfort applicants who worry that they may not fit the image of the typical employee or franchisee. Faced with shortages of care staff, we need to appeal to a wider range of candidates. If awards, accreditations and their associated logos help, that’s great.
What’s more, employing people of diverse backgrounds demonstrates your open-minded approach. If you encourage all staff to talk about their jobs to friends and family and have a reward scheme for recommendations that lead to recruitment, your staff likely will become more diverse by word of mouth.
LIVING DIVERSITY IN PRACTICE
Diversity is a result of what we do in practice. It’s about being open minded. Don’t just look for franchisees or employees that resemble yourself.
At Walfinch we have a recruitment policy that helps us set aside our preconceptions. It’s called The Mum Test. When we are recruiting staff or franchisees, we ask ourselves, “Would I like this person looking aſter my mum?” Good interview technique will allow you to make your mind up about this, and if there is any doubt, err on the side of rejection.
The Mum Test is applicable to anyone, from any background – as you can see from our website.
We have franchisees from all kinds of backgrounds, including men, a young mum, a Muslim woman born in Nigeria, a man born in Brazil, several South Africans, and people of south-east Asian and African descent. Our carers come from a huge range of backgrounds.
We help franchisees set up in business with us regardless of background. We know that people who have faced the struggles involved in moving countries, or being brought up in what are oſten seen as the ‘wrong’ areas, or who do not fit the stereotypical mould of the UK business founder, have oſten developed greater levels of resilience. We value their strength and determination as a business asset.
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Their diversity gives them, and Walfinch as a whole, the capacity to provide better personalised care.
Our Edinburgh South franchisee, Bunmi Ganiyu, a Muslim who came to the UK from Nigeria, took on a Pakistani Muslim lady as a client. Bunmi sent Maestus, a Muslim woman, to help. As well as helping the client with exercises Maestus reads The Quran to her. The lady’s family told Bunmi it was the last thing they expected as they were unaware that such culturally appropriate care would be available in Edinburgh.
Take on carers who show genuine interest in meeting all kinds of people. Samara Fraga, a carer with Marcelo Navarro’s Walfinch team in East Barnet, recently told me: “I love meeting people from around the world. As well as hearing about my client Kehinde’s life in Africa, I get to speak to people from India, Iraq and South America. I learn a lot.”
Diversity is not something which allows care sector providers to polish our corporate halos – it’s essential to business success.
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DIVERSITY IS INCREASING • The total population of England and Wales was 59.6 million, and 81.7% of the population was white.
• People from Asian ethnic groups made up the second largest percentage (9.3%), followed by black (4.0%), mixed (2.9%) and other (2.1%) ethnic groups.
• From 2011 to 2021, the percentage of people in the white British ethnic group fell from 80.5% to 74.4%.
• The percentage of people in the white 'other' ethnic group went up from 4.4% to 6.2% – the largest percentage point increase of all ethnic groups.
• The number of people who identified as ‘any other ethnic background’ went up from 333,100 to 923,800.
Figures: ONS 2021 Census - 29 -
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