Welcome to the Opportunity Now Excellence in Practice Awards showcase 2012 sponsored by Santander.

UK organisations doing the most to progress women in the workplace were celebrated  at the annual Opportunity Now Awards Dinner. Opportunity Now is the gender campaign from Business in the Community. The European Commission estimates that gender equality in the labour market has the potential to increase gross domestic product by 35%, firmly making gender diversity and equality in the workplace a business imperative, not a women’s issue.

Opportunity Now’s nine Excellence in Practice Awards recognise private and public sector organisations that have put gender issues at the core of their business agendas and are committed to creating inclusive workplaces for women at all levels. More than 500 business leaders gathered at The Brewery in the City of London for the awards ceremony, which is generously sponsored by Santander.

“This agenda is about utilising the best talent to gain competitive advantage, it is not about tokenism. For more than two decades Opportunity Now has been working with leading businesses that recognise the tangible benefits of a diverse and fully engaged workforce. These employers understand that creating workplaces that work for women is a commercial imperative, not a women’s issue. All the Opportunity Now Awards winners should be commended for the innovative and impactful way they are embedding diversity and equality into their long-term business strategy.”

View the Finalists Showreel

View Photographs of the Evening

Champion Award
This award for a senior level gender/diversity ambassador who has made a significant contribution to advancing, promoting and embedding a diversity culture within the workplace goes to Helena Morrissey CBE, Chief Executive at Newton Investment Management, a BNY Mellon company. For the past decade Helena has championed the leadership of women in financial services, leading many initiatives to further the careers of women and prepare them for senior positions.  Read more - Helena Morrissey, BNY Mellon

Shortlisted entries:
Graham Wright, IBM
Colin Grassie, Deutsche Bank

Inclusive Culture Award
This award recognises work which is creating equality at an organisational or cultural level. It was given to PwC for its ‘Open Mind’ programme which has delivered unconscious bias training to 15,872 people within the organisation so far. Read more - PwC

Shortlisted entries:
Genesis Housing Group
M&S

Shortlisted entries:
Genesis Housing
GlaxoSmithKline

Female FTSE 100 Award* - in partnership with Cranfield School of Management
This award is given to the FTSE 100 organisation with the most women on its board overall. The award was given to Diageo which has a board that is 44.4% female.
Read more

Advancing Women in the Workplace Award
This award recognises initiatives that aid the recruitment, retention and/or development of women in the workplace. It was given to Credit Suisse for its Mentoring Advisory Group initiative which seeks to further increase the representation of women in senior leadership positions and includes mentoring with members of the Executive Board.  Read more -Credit Suisse

Shortlisted entries:
Addleshaw Goddard
Google 

Agile Organisation Award
This award recognises an employer who has demonstrated an agile or flexible approach to job design and work environment. It was awarded to Dell for its ‘Connected Workplace’ programme which promotes a culture of flexibility and has resulted in 65% of its UK employees working remotely.
Read more - Dell - “Connected Workplace”

Shortlisted entries:
Barclays
Eversheds

 
Directing Diverse Talent Award - in association with the CIPD
This award was given to Roshni Haywood, Senior HR Manager for GE Capital EMEA, the financial arm of GE, for the work she has done in devising a diversity strategy that has delivered a fast-track talent pipeline internally and externally for senior women leaders. Read more - GE Capital EMEA

Shortlisted entries:
Enterprise Rent-A-Car
McDonald’s Restaurant

Global Award
This award is for a gender initiative which extends across at least three countries. It was given to Deutsche Bank for its ATLAS sponsorship programme which aims to increase the number of women eligible for senior positions across the Americas, Asia Pacific, Germany and the UK.
Read more - Deutche Bank

Shortisted entries:
Ernst & Young
M&S

Santander Award: Inspiring the Workforce of the Future
This award is for an organisation that has helped young women to broaden their career aspirations. It was given to Goldman Sachs for its commitment to broadening the diversity of its undergraduate candidate applications. Read more - Goldman Sachs

Shortlisted entries:
BT
Google