Sarah Hunter

“I think having a clear performance appraisal and development processes in place, that is consistently applied, enables a transparent playing field for development and advancement conversations.” She says.

“In my experience, when you don’t know what ‘field’ you are on it makes it extremely challenging to understand how you move forward in an organisation.”

Hunter then goes on to speak of the importance of understanding and addressing ‘hygiene factors’. Developed by psychologist Frederick Herzberg in the 1950s, the hygiene theory says there are certain factors in the workplace that cause job satisfaction while a separate set of factors cause dissatisfaction, all of which act independently of each other. 

Herzberg’s research is often credited with providing the foundation for the development of job enrichment and the movement for improving the quality of work life – or as we know it today – flexibility or flexible working.

“Flexible working is such a difficult topic as it is very personal to the individual and their circumstances. One size does not fit all! In my experience, creating a culture where the team feel open to ask for flexibility when needed and line managers are open to listening and supporting is the key,” says Hunter.  

Back to the hygiene factors: “To help people grow and develop career opportunities within a business, you need to have addressed the ‘hygiene factors’ within your employment proposition to support women, and men, through their family journey (whether the journey to parenthood or caring for family members) to enable the team to trust that they can build a career with one organisation.”

While addressing these factors is certainly critical, for Hunter though the single most important ingredient needed to create a diverse business is?

“Listen!” She says. “Actively listening to our team members, our customers, our suppliers and our stakeholders – about what is working well and what more we can do to be a more inclusive business – helps us to make better decisions that genuinely improve Officeworks.”

“Listening to what our people really need and want, over time will further improve diversity and inclusion, which means more talented people will decide to build their careers with us, which is critical as the capability and engagement of our team is key to our future success.”

“And don’t forget to walk the talk,” she adds. “Whether it is the composition of your team, making sure you ‘leave loudly’ or sharing stories about your journey and when it doesn’t go to plan!