Change the race ratio

“Signing up is the right thing to do, of course. But more than that, it will have an impact on our success if every single one of our people can be the best version of themselves when they come to work.”

Those are the words of Nimesh Patel, CFO of Spirax-Sarco Engineering, one of the signatories of Change the Race Ratio. By signing up to Change the Race Ratio, Spirax-Sarco has committed to increasing the racial and ethnic diversity of its organisation from the top down. And it has become one of many organisations that have pledged to make a public stance on the need for change and joined a peer community of firms committed to supporting progress.

Since it began in 2020 as a small band of businesses and organisations determined to make a difference, the number of Change the Race Ratio signatories has risen to more than 110 – a diverse group of companies bridging many sectors and industries.

Becoming a signatory to Change the Race Ratio requires just four commitments to change:

1. Set and publish targets for racial and ethnic minority representation on boards
2. Set and publish targets for racial and ethnic minority representation at an executive level and minus-one pipeline
3. Publish a race action plan and ethnicity pay gap report within two years of joining
4. Create an inclusive culture that allows talent to thrive.

Measuring for progress

Accountability is a big part of Change the Race Ratio’s commitment to change and strategy for success. This is why Change the Race Ratio is committed to publishing annual progress reports. Its s Year One Progress Report presents a snapshot of the progress signatories made in 2021 and set a baseline for measuring the course of change over time. The data showed that companies were in the early stages of delivering change but also demonstrated the scale of ambition by outlining the targets they had set themselves. Time will tell how targets are achieved, but through mutual support, collaboration and measured ambition, changing the race ratio is a journey more and more businesses are willing to take part in.  businesses are willing to take part in.

“It’s important to us because it highlights the challenges that all businesses face,” says Spirax-Sarco's Patel.

“But more importantly, it's bringing us together, as organisations right around the country and around the world, to collaborate on how we solve our shared common challenges.”

Resources to unlock change

Signatories to Change the Race Ratio are not expected to go it alone. There is a range of resources including practical advice, guidance, and peer support to achieve their goals.

Firms can sign up for the Leaders for Race Equity programme: a nine-month learning programme that matches CEOs with ethnic minority leaders in the ExCO talent pipeline. Then there’s the Board Fellowship programme which will enable talented individuals from a range of sectors to gain experience on FTSE 250 boards – a programme designed to connect leaders of FTSE 250 companies with ethnically diverse talent from outside the FTSE 350.

The D&I Index - designed and built by HR analytics firm HR Datahub – helps firms benchmark their performance on representation, tenure, department and pay. Not only does this help organisations understand the experiences of underrepresented groups in their business, it means they can track their progress alongside their peers – based on sector, location and size.

Change the Race Ratio also hosts events in which members can get together to meet and hear from industry leaders such as Sir Kenneth Olisa, the founder and Chair of boutique technology merchant, Restoration Partners, Steer-Co member of the Parker-Tyler Review and the first British-born black man to be appointed as a Director of a FTSE 100.

To find out more about Change the Race Ratio, including how your business can join the campaign, please visit changetheraceratio.com.