Sodexo champions diversity and inclusion at Global Summit for Women 2018

Sodexo’s strong culture of diversity and inclusion was on show last month when Sodexo Regional Chairman Asia Pacific, Johnpaul Dimech, addressed the Global Summit for Women in Sydney regarding how the company values gender balance and diversity.

The three-day summit, dubbed ‘Davos for women’, was held from 26 to 28 April covering the theme “Women: Creating Economies of Shared Value”. 

Held in Australia for the first time in 28 years, 1,250 women from 65 countries in attendance, the Summit was opened by addresses from Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, and Minister for Women Kelly O’Dwyer. The event featured a range of inspirational keynote speakers as well as networking events and breakout sessions. 

Mr Dimech was joined by Westpac CEO Brian Hartzer, the Singapore-based CEO of MetLife’s Innovation Centre Lumen Lab, Zia Zaman, and MYOB Chief Executive, Tim Reed, for a panel discussion ‘Engaging Middle Management on Gender Diversity’ on Friday 27 April.

“I have two sons and two daughters. I want my daughters to have the same opportunities as my sons,” Mr Dimech told the Summit’s 1,000 delegates.

“Corporate leaders have the opportunity to influence culture in the workplace and make this a reality,” he said.

Gender diversity is a reality that Sodexo is already advancing here and abroad. In Australia, women making up more than 50% of our workforce and 40% of our management team. Globally, women account for 50% of board positions and 32% of senior leadership roles with a target of 40% by 2025.

“We are committed to a 100% gender balanced management team by 2025 as part of our Better Tomorrow 2025 corporate responsibility commitment,” Mr Dimech said.

“We believe it’s good for business and that’s why we commissioned the Sodexo Gender Balance Study to prove it.

“It found that key performance indicators, such operating margins, client satisfaction and employee retention, were all higher among our gender-balanced teams.”

A long-time advocate for equality, Mr Dimech addressed Sodexo’s global efforts to address the systemic barriers and unconscious bias affecting women’s advancement within the organisation.

“As a company that promises to improve quality of life for people, corporate responsibility and especially gender diversity lies at the core of everything we do,” Mr Dimech said.

The Global Summit of Women is the foremost international business forum for exchanges of best practices advancing women’s economic progress worldwide. Over 1,000 female participants from business, government and civil society based from 60+ countries attend the Summit each year, including 30-35 women government Ministers of varied portfolios.  

Sodexo was proud to sponsor the 28th Global Summit of Women and our SVP Corporate Responsibility and Global Chief Diversity Officer, Rohini Anand, sits on the Advisory Board for the Global Summit of Women. 

The ten individuals who attended the Summit from Sodexo Australia are champions of diversity and inclusion and, are committed to upholding Sodexo’s Better Tomorrow 2025 commitment.

We invite you to view part of Mr Dimech’s panel discussion