EVENT: IS DEI DOOMED – OR COULD IT STILL SUCCEED?

* Private event – by invitation only *

Diversity, equity and inclusion sounded so good – so how did some aspects of ‘DEI’ turn out to be such bad business? Was it the ideas, or the execution? Are activists to blame, or did leadership fail? And what’s needed now: a reset or a reckoning?

Join us for the launch of This Is Working – the new business network for professionals who know that great work only happens when great people can speak freely. (Do you need us? Click here).

This will be an evening of frank discussion and robust analysis with fellow senior business professionals, plus special guest Alex Edmans, Professor of Finance at London Business School and author of May Contain Lies: How Stories, Statistics and Studies Exploit Our Biases – And What We Can Do About It.

You’ll leave with new insights and practical advice to help you navigate this topic in your workplace.

Hosted by Tanya de Grunwald – founder of the hit podcast This Isn’t Working – the evening will run as follows:

Part 1: Was there ever a business case for DEI? As the downstream impacts of poor DEI policy and practice become clear, Alex Edmans scrutinises the big ideas and bad data that convinced senior leaders to invest heavily in demographic diversity in the first place. Who told them it would boost productivity and profit? Why was the ‘McKinsey myth’ so persuasive? If demographic diversity doesn’t deliver results, what type of diversity does? And is there a stronger case for DEI when it incorporates equity and inclusion?

Part 2: Where to, next? Building on Alex’s recommendations, we’ll call on the expertise within our audience to contribute questions, reflections and insights of their own about where DEI went wrong – and how we can make it right. Together, we’ll assess solutions and find a better path forward from here.

Refreshments will be provided throughout the evening, and there will be time for networking before and after the main discussion.

Doors open: 6.30pm

Discussion starts: 7pm

Event ends: 9.30pm

Tickets: £55

IMPORTANT:

To maximise the quality of discussion, we are ring-fencing this event for senior business professionals – meaning business owners, leaders, decision makers and ‘doers’ with relevant expertise (eg. risk, lawyers, or search consultants). We will not be able to include other external consultants or suppliers on this occasion.

If you are a senior business professional who would like to attend, please contact Tanya via Linkedin or through this contact form and she’ll share the password for the Eventbrite page where you can buy your ticket.

Thank you for understanding our reasons for limiting attendance for this first event, which we expect to be very popular!