âAt LexisNexis South Africa, inclusion and diversity exceeds just compliance with legislation. It is about creating a fair and equitable work environment where everyone can be their authentic self and where they feel they are able to contribute their views,â she added.
The adjudicating criteria to determine if shortlisted organisations are top gender empowered companies included having 20% of female ownership, shareholding or partnership; 20% female executive directors; 30% female employees; 10% female senior management; female-empowerment company policies; and women focused skills development.
LexisNexis South Africa has 67% female representation on its board, 56% female representation in senior management, 43% in top management and employee surveys have shown that 83% of the workforce believes that the organisation is serious about diversity and inclusion.
Globally, women make up only 36% of senior private sectors managers and public sector officials, while only 18.2% of firms globally are led by a woman and, on average, 22.3% of board members in OECD countries are women1.
Since taking over the helm at LexisNexis in January 2020 as the first female CEO of the company, Proothveerajh has been on a mission to reduce the hierarchical nature of the company and embed a common culture, with a focus on strengthening inclusion and diversity to ensure a more effective and empathetic organisation.
âThis largely entails becoming one LexisNexis South Africa â one team, one vision â where our differences and backgrounds are leveraged to bring new perspectives and offer alternative solutions for complex problems,â she says.
âIt is not just about helping women advance but also about assisting individuals from all marginalised groups who donât always have a voice or who are not always recognised for the leadership attributes they possess, to claim their rightful place in the work environment. We are making a very deliberate effort to hire women where opportunities exist and where we find the right skill sets, which supports a more collaborative leadership style, open communication and allowing everyoneâs voice to be heard. This, ultimately, enables more innovative decision-making.
âWe are also creating opportunities and communities that will support our women colleagues to thrive and overcome barriers, including involving women at work in mentorship programmes and building a community that is a safe space for them to share and learn and overcome some of the ingrained prejudices against them,â she added.
LexisNexis has also designed and launched a graduate programme targeting young women from previously disadvantaged backgrounds and ensuring the company benchmarks roles and minimises or rectifies pay disparities.â
According to the World Economic Global Gender Gap Report 2020, there is a growing urgency for action. At the present rate of change, we are looking at nearly a century to achieve gender parity.
In partnership with global parent company, RELX Group, LexisNexis South Africa recently launched its Employee Resource Group (ERG) Chapter in South Africa to drive its commitment to inclusion and diversity (I&D). Formed by employee volunteers, the purpose of the chapter is to engage and support employees with different backgrounds, experiences and ideas and to foster an inclusive environment in which employees are empowered to develop their full potential.
The RELX I&D policy recognises the importance of inclusion to the companyâs future by championing diversity, gender equality, equal pay and a company-wide women in technology mentoring programme, among numerous other initiatives.
During the last 12 months, LexisNexis South Africa has initiated the following events and activities:
- LNSA Womenâs Network â a peer support platform to empower women in the workplace and personally.
- LGBTQI+ â A step closer to fostering a gender-neutral workplace
- Advance-U â a learning and development initiative
- Policy review of the maternity and parental leave and work from home policies
- Unconscious bias workshops
- Grad. recruitment
- Women in Tech Conversations â a virtual forum of regular events featuring insights from leading women in the tech space
Plans for 2021 include the establishment of two additional ERGs: disability and sexual orientation groups.
âCompanies with gender-balanced leadership perform better, both financially and otherwise. Gender diverse organisations outperform on profitability, value creation, productivity, innovation, decision-making and employee retention and satisfaction compared to their less diverse peers.
âAt LexisNexis, our gender diversity ensures weâre better equipped to deal more effectively with risk and are adept at considering and juggling the varied interests of our customers, employees, shareholders, and the local community, while remaining laser focused on our long-term priorities,â concludes Proothveerajh.
