The Visual Media Association’s (VMA) P.o.P (Power of Print) Summit is in its third week. Speaker Christina Bruce from Sellabilities discussed the proactive steps businesses can take towards championing diversity.
The eight-week webinar series for members and industry aims to build better business skills and insights for organisations.
Key insights from the webinar included how unconscious bias impacts diversity while identifying diversity as the outcome of inclusion and belonging. It discussed how everyone holds unconscious beliefs about social and identity groups and how these biases stem from a tendency to organise social worlds in our minds, thus leading to our paradigms influencing our unconscious biases.
“Having a leadership team of multifaceted individuals within your organisation is crucial. It fosters innovation, enhances decision-making, and ensures representation across the board. Embracing diverse perspectives empowers every voice, while also enriching company culture, and, of course, propels us towards collective excellence and success,” commented Christina Bruce, founder of Sellabilities.
“Paradigms are our thoughts, attitudes and beliefs. They shape our behaviour as an individual and as a leader. They have great impact on how effective we are as a leader and the results we and our teams ultimately achieve. We see everything through the perspective of our own paradigm. When you’re moved from individual contributor to a leader role, a paradigm shift is needed to be effective,” furthered Bruce.
Christina spoke about managing and implementing diversity in your business by getting curious about yourself and your biases, reverse mentoring, blind recruitment, and conversation building. “When you create a space for inclusion, you get diversity.”
Kellie Northwood, CEO, VMA, spoke on the significance of diversifying leadership roles in the industry. “Diverse leadership roles in the visual media industry aren’t merely a commitment to equality; they’re the driver for innovation, reduced absenteeism, and staff retention.
“This research shows that diversity in businesses improves profitability. It isn’t simply a ‘warm and fuzzy’ option in a landscape of skilled labour shortages and increasing costs to non-productivity; it is a must-have in every successful business’s toolbox.”
Over the next eight weeks, the Webinar Series will host expert professionals on various topics. Registration to the Series will ensure access to each week’s recorded webinar and a digital copy of the Class Notes highlighting the key insights of each presentation.
At the conclusion of the Series, all registrants will receive a printed copy of the Class Notes for future reference.
Next week’s speaker, Emmanuel Dumitru from SGS will share education about corporate sustainability and why SGS is the world’s leading testing, inspection, and certification company.
This webinar will break down the basics and provide educational tools to equip attendees with the knowledge to speak confidently to their clients and customers about sustainability.
It will also provide new avenues for those who are well on their sustainability journey to explore and help make their commitment to sustainability more tangible.
For further information and registration details, please visit the P.o.P (Power of Print) Summit Webinar Series 2024 registration page.
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