thebiginterview Here’s what Tim Griffin had to say.
What have been the most outstanding achievements for Exertis this past year? We’ve had a fantastic year of celebrating our people’s incredible achievements, creating new partnerships in charities, communities, customers and with vendors, made acquisitions, and made great progress with our D&I and sustainability positions.
What latest approaches to DE & I is the company currently undertaking? We’ve been moving forward with a range of initiatives that will drive diversity and inclusion across the whole business. DEI was the theme of our annual global kick-off for the senior leadership, and around 600 of our managers have now done a training programme on inclusivity. Earlier this year we appointed Kim Lonas as Global Diversity & Inclusion Programme Lead. Te creation of this new position within the company is a show of our commitment to making diversity and inclusion a core part of our corporate culture. Kim will play a key role in actively encouraging broader cultural and positive change with particular focus on how the business serves underrepresented groups and ensuring every voice is heard. We’re seeking to take the business on a truly meaningful journey,
a path of growth towards a more equitable and inclusive workplace, which all our people will travel together. We’re aware that diversity is more than gender. It’s ethnicity, disability, mental health, sexual orientation, neurodiversity and so many others. Te diversity and inclusion programmes we create today will lay the foundation for the more diverse and inclusive company that we will become tomorrow. However, diversity and inclusion must happen at all levels, our HR
community, managers in all functions and at the senior leadership level. To achieve a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace, D&I has to be embedded in our culture. We have set up Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) this year,
focusing on women, people from ethnic minorities, and LGBTQIA+ communities – and the Chair for each division will drive support for, and progression within, their respective focal point. Te purpose of an ERG is to create a safe, supportive space for
employees who share a common identity, where underrepresented employees support one another in building their community. Te objectives of the group include providing support and a safe space for communities within Exertis; as well as to educate the whole business about each communities’ lived experiences and how to work with their members more effectively; and to increase the amount of talent from each of the three focal communities at all levels of the business. Exertis’s ERGs have been formed
to actively promote inclusivity and to ensure everybody is given a fair chance to succeed and flourish in their chosen path within Exertis – regardless of their background. Te ERGs commit to champion, mentor and coach individuals
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from all genders, ethnic backgrounds, and sexualities, as well as celebrating major events and driving policy changes within the company. Exertis intends the ERGs to help drive forward its policies on inclusivity in line with the company’s belief that diverse and inclusive organisations are successful ones. We also have a dedicated Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Team
(EDIT). Te committee is focused on collating diversity information beyond age and gender, improving recruitment and induction practices through a D&I lens and driving education. EDIT was set up as a grassroots group of allies who champion inclusion across the business.
What are the latest tech trends on the gaming scene? Aſter we launched a new gaming zone at the flagship Hamleys store on Regent Street in Central London in May this year, we are staying ahead of the trend with our gaming business. One of the biggest new trends is the ‘Pico 4 headset’ which is a
new VR headset to compete with the Meta Quest. It is owned by the people behind TikToK so we are excited to see how that performs, and we have exclusivity on this vendor. Pico have also partnered with huge players in the gaming market to deliver not only popular IPs such as a Peaky Blinders VR game but also a fitness partnership with Lemans with known viral trainers guiding users throughout their workouts – all linked to their Pico or Apple fitness apps. Pair all that with the fact that there will be games that can be
used without controllers taking advantage of the hand tracking capabilities of Pico 4, you have an all-round strong consumer VR device for 2022-23 Te way TikTok empowers users to seamlessly stream their
gaming directly with either a virtual avatar representation of themselves or their true self in a virtual background is a real step forward for the gaming market. Exertis Ztorm, our digital gaming distribution business, is seeing
great growth and has just achieved its second-best ever month in revenue in all years of trading. Tanks to some good releases, Victoria 3, Gotham Knights and FM23 going to BETA access combined with the recent exclusive partnership with SEGA for 3P PC distribution, Ztorm has been able to deliver fantastic content and sales opportunities for its retail partners. We are also proud to be a partner of the Raise the Game initiative,
a collaborative and high-impact pledge to improve equality, diversity and inclusion in the games industry by creating cultures where everyone belongs, voices are heard, and ideas can thrive. Te pledge is a holistic driven initiative, managed and facilitated by UKIE.
What is the company’s view on the shiſt to remote working and the how has this impacted customer demands? We’re pleased to offer a range of products and solutions to support the new hybrid working world which many of our customers now find themselves in. Te biggest question being asked at the moment is “how do you ensure your
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