In the ongoing Vision 2030 series, AXIS Network had the pleasure of interviewing David Whitehouse, CEO of Offshore Energies UK. David emphasised the importance of gender equality in shaping the industry's future and urged companies to prioritise diversity and inclusion as integral parts of their organizational culture. He highlighted the necessity for a united approach within the sector to establish it as one of the best places to work, a crucial aspect for a successful future.
Q. What does gender equity look like for you, your working life and the Energy industry?
For our sector to be successful it is always fundamentally about people. What we have learnt over the years is just how important having an inclusive team is and gender balance is an important part of that. The more inclusive and diverse our teams are, then the more successful we are as a sector.
The energy transition is the biggest opportunity and challenge of our time. We will need to transform the way we power the UK and the wider world in the coming years. We need a sector that is forward looking and has gender equality at its heart.
The energy transition in the UK has the potential to increase the energy workforce by over 50% by the end of the decade. A focus on gender equality is fundamental to attracting and retaining the skilled people that we will need.
Q. What does gender equity mean for the energy sector?
There has been a focus on improving the gender equality evident in our leaders and our teams. There is a recognition that diverse and inclusive teams deliver the best results. We should celebrate the progress but also recognise that this is more to do.
The energy sector plays a critical role in our economy. It is fundamental to the success of our organisation that we make continue to make meaningful and visible progress in the diversity and inclusivity of our sector.
Q. What do you see as the future of the industry in terms of workforce insights and D&I commitments?
Successful organisations, successful companies, successful sectors are those that absolutely embrace an inclusive culture so that everybody coming to work can work in a way that allows them to deliver. I believe this is fundamental to any business and fundamental to our sector. We have work to do and what’s great about what AXIS Network are doing with Vision 2030 it’s that it’s a clear statement of intent that this is what the sector and leaders within the organisation are looking to deliver.
Our industry is changing at pace, and whilst the UK will always continue to need energy for sure, how successful it is will absolutely depend on leaders taking diversity and inclusion as being a really important part of what organisations do and embrace doing things differently. When you look at what our future jobs will be, we’re already seeing a transformation in terms of skills required but also the types of thinkers we need to do things differently in future.
Q. What role do you feel the Gender Pay Gap reporting plays in supporting a diverse and successful workforce?
Whilst gender pay gap reporting is key, it's a lagging indicator and for me the leading indicators are actually that people have a vision for inclusion where it should become part of the DNA of their organisations. Many companies in the sector now have clear plans supported by their senior leaders to deliver workplaces that are great places to come to – that is so important.
It’s being deliberate about having plans and AXIS Network can really support organisations with that through their Pledge; there's some really sensible guidance there to support organisations.
It can be difficult to change your gender pay gap as an organisation in a short period of time especially where SMEs are concerned, but being mindful about how you're developing your workforce, particularly your future leaders, your succession planning, can change that. Having a proactive plan for development of the workforce is key.
That actually means that companies have embedded sensible thinking around inclusion and diversity into their plans so that it’s part of leadership discussions. Targets that are forward-looking and that that conversation is part of the debate within your organisation.
More and more we are seeing organisations recognise that diversity and inclusion initiatives are not a bolt-on to the day job but a fundamental part of a successful organisation’s DNA.
Q. Post George Floyd and the implementation of gender pay gap reporting some companies believe that D&I initiatives are no longer relevant. Do you think that is the case? Why? Why not?
I am surprised if businesses don’t see the case for diversity and inclusion. That is not my experience.
Diversity and inclusion should be interwoven into the fabric of people’s working lives rather than being this special thing that only a few people in an organisation work on. Like safety, its everyone’s responsibility.
There’s an opportunity now to continue to mature our understanding to the broader systemic issue of how to create the right culture. It would be great though that by 2030 and you don’t have to talk about diversity and inclusion initiatives because it’s who you are as an organisation.
All of us need to be putting the focus on making it part of our culture and business as usual. It needs to move away from being an initiative to being part of our DNA.
Q. What we must do to get there by 2030?
I think ultimately, it's having that vision that becomes part of just your normal day-to-day business and it's something that is you deal with on a daily basis with some measures along the way.
As a sector we have a diversity and inclusion survey co-ordinated through OEUK that helps provide a pathway to areas to focus and progress that is being made I think it is useful that we continue to track the proportion of our diversity, particularly in senior leadership roles. I think that’s really important.
However, again, the measure of success for me is not only those targets, which I believe are helpful guides, it’s actually how it feels when you come and work in the sector, that's the real measure of success. Diversity and inclusion is like safety – simply part of what we do.
Safety targets are important, but my experience has been the way you know if an organisation is managing risks well is through talking to people and understanding the culture. I believe that a focus on diversity and inclusion is the same, it needs to be part of the culture.
The other leading indicator is whether organisations have a genuine plan to take you from one place to another. The AXIS Network, OEUK, and other organisations can support the industry through our surveys, sharing best practice, and helping us all deliver on a common goal.
It’s also about recognising that nothing anyone does is perfect, so don’t hold people to deliver on perfection, but recognise progress and importantly, celebrate it.
There will be times where it’s important to recognise where we have failed to do things, but sometimes we do need to recognise where progress has been made. Business leaders recognising the importance of diversity and wider society too will mean that the majority of people will too.
You won't deliver a diverse and inclusive workplace without a plan because in reality, if you're not mindful about how you're developing and recruiting people within your organisation and encouraging that, things will not develop. You can make a massive difference by ensuring your organisation is very mindful about how you create and execute your plan.
For me, the AXIS Pledge is an important tool - a visible commitment from leaders in our organisations to have a plan that helps deliver gender equality. Plans are never perfect but the accountability to drive continuous improvement and reflect on progress annually is important.
One area where we can help make meaningful progress is ensuring that the important work to deliver an inclusive and diverse sector is joined up. There are many important initiatives driving to improve diversity and equality in our sector, there is some excellent work happening in other industries. The more these initiatives are joined together, sharing best practice, delivering complimentary action the more impactful the work will be. An organisation such as OEUK can play an important role to deliver this.
I have been lucky to have worked in a brilliant and innovative sector for the last 30 years. The opportunities looking ahead for those who work in the sector as huge. Delivering on continuous progress to make the sector the best place to work is fundamental to that successful future.
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