Latest on Be Inspired
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Retail VoiceWe all have a duty to step up and protect our colleagues
With violence towards shopworkers continuing to rise, Retail Trust’s Chris Brook-Carter examines what can be done to stop the tirade of abuse.
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Be InspiredPets at Home, AllSaints and Jaeger to speak at retail’s largest talent development conference
Retail Week’s annual Be Inspired conference, to celebrate, educate and inspire retail staff, is back in person at Twickenham Stadium on June 14 – uniting more than 400 colleagues from across the sector.
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Be InspiredRetail Week launches programme to drive greater diversity in legal roles
Retail Week’s General Counsel Summit 2022 sees the launch of the Future Leaders programme – in partnership with Be Inspired – to help support junior lawyers from underrepresented backgrounds to fulfil their career aspirations.
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Be InspiredCelebrating neurodiversity: Why retailers should reassess the ‘normal’ workforce
To mark National Autism Awareness Month, Retail Week Be Inspired examines the benefits of a neurodiverse workforce and what can be done by leaders and their teams to become more inclusive of neurodiverse colleagues
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OpinionCurrys people chief: ‘Closing our HQ makes us fit for the era of omnichannel colleagues’
After unveiling plans to swap its West London HQ for flexible office space, Currys chief people, communications and sustainability officer Paula Coughlan explains the thinking behind the move and how it sets the electricals giant up for a post-pandemic future.
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AnalysisHow 10 leading retailers and brands are breaking biases this IWD
This International Women’s Day (IWD) is a celebration of how to collectively #BreakTheBias. Retail and industry executives including Tesco, New Look, Sainsbury’s, The Body Shop, Fujitsu and Retail Trust reflect on the steps they are taking to challenge stereotypes and stamp out inequality.
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Be InspiredHow to avoid ‘pinkwashing’ to support LGBT+ colleagues and customers year-round
On the final day of LGBT+ History Month, Retail Week Be Inspired reflects on what retailers can do to not just limit their support to 28 days.
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Be InspiredM&S, Kingfisher and Lidl back major retail I&D programme
Fifteen major retailers and brands have joined forces with Be Inspired, Retail Week’s six-year-old diversity initiative to promote inclusivity across the industry in 2022 and beyond.
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InterviewBe Inspired: Beaverbrooks’ Anna Blackburn on becoming the first outsider to lead the family-run retailer
The first female boss of jewellery retailer Beaverbrooks, Anna Blackburn talks to Retail Week about her journey up the ranks.
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OpinionM&S’ Cleo Thompson: ‘Disability matters – let’s stop ignoring it’
It has been cited that there are more clothing lines available for dogs than there are clothes designed for disabled humans. As the world marks International Day of Persons with Disabilities, M&S group head of inclusion and diversity Cleo Thompson asks: “Haven’t we got our priorities wrong somewhere?”
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VideoWatch: Workday, eBay and Wickes on how to achieve long-lasting D&I success
Organisations that promote employee ownership of diversity and inclusion (D&I) goals will have the greatest success in tackling inequality in the long term, according to Be Inspired’s expert panel.
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Opinion‘We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create an industry with people at its core’
Amidst ongoing pressures facing the retail industry, Chris Brook-Carter from the Retail Trust explains why the charity has launched a new fundraising appeal.
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Be Inspired‘Can I say that?’ How retailers can lean in to D&I conversations
The language retailers use can help to champion diversity and inclusion, but it can be daunting to know what to say and it requires terms and practices to be unlearned.
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Be InspiredBianca Miller Cole: ‘How to reframe challenge as opportunity’
Across industries, leaders are facing fresh challenges and are having to tackle new problems on a daily basis. Bianca Miller Cole, an award-winning entrepreneur, founder of personal branding company The Be Group and former Apprentice finalist, is no different. Ahead of her appearance at Diversity Futures - where she will discuss the future of female leadership - Cole has shared an extract from her new book The Business Survival Kit on building resilience.
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Opinion‘What menopausal women need from employers – and it is not time off’
To mark World Menopause Day, Saska Graville, founder of MPowered Women and upcoming speaker at Retail Week’s Diversity Futures summit, explains why retailers must invest in menopause policies and awareness because to “brush it aside is bad business”.
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Be InspiredNine Black retail leaders whose stories you need to know this Black History Month
Kenyatte Nelson, Bozoma Saint John, Jessica Anuna - Retail Week Be Inspired champions the Black voices influencing change across the sector globally ahead of Diversity Futures on November 9
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Be InspiredM&S and Dr Martens: This is what progressive leadership looks like
Empowering progressive leadership is core to Retail Week’s Diversity Futures conference where retail experts and D&I influencers will come together in person on November 9 to drive change and equality. Be Inspired talked to some of the key speakers to get their advice for retail bosses.
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Be InspiredHow to tackle the ageism problem plaguing retail workforces
In part two of our exploration of the ageism problem blighting UK business, Retail Week Be Inspired shares the practical steps and expert advice retail leaders and their teams can adopt to engage and empower older staff. Read part one here.
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Be InspiredUnderstanding the ageism problem plaguing retail workforces
As a new report finds those aged 55 and over increasingly feel ‘shut out, forced out and overlooked’ in employment, Retail Week Be Inspired looks at why the industry cannot afford to ignore the potential of the older workforce
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AnalysisThe global giants adopting a people-powered, inclusive approach to leadership
Global diversity and inclusion leaders can teach retailers a lot about how to drive forward real change in their organisations. Be motivated by their award-winning strategies in Retail Week’s new report Diversity DNA.