Message from the Secretary

There is a place for everyone at DPC. We are committed to diversity, inclusion and equity ensuring that all people:

• are treated with dignity and respect
• have equitable access to employment opportunities and outcomes
• have the ability to participate in all aspects of work life
• can achieve their full potential

These principles underpin DPC’s Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2019-2021. The success of any organisation depends upon its ability to recognise and draw strength from the diversity of its workforce. The benefits of a diverse, inclusive and equitable workforce are increasingly being recognised across public, private and not-for-profit sectors as a critical contributing factor to an organisation’s success and sustainability[1].

An organisation that values everyone’s contribution and talents improves its employee engagement, job satisfaction, innovation, service delivery and return on investment. Diversity, inclusion and equity support our organisation’s commitment to promote full participation in our communities and foster and promote a high performing public service[2].

This commitment is demonstrated through workplace diversity and inclusion actions, plans and initiatives that help us to:

• ensure equitable access to employment opportunities and outcomes for all people
• raise individual consciousness and build competency to work with and manage diversity, inclusion and equity principles
• engage and reflect the communities we serve
• provide an exemplary employee experience

DPC has an important leadership role in ensuring that our culture and day-to-day practices are as inclusive as possible for all staff members. We will monitor our progress against this strategy and continue to identify ways of ensuring our commitment to create a supportive and inclusive environment for all DPC employees.

I ask all employees to actively look for opportunities to support our goals by:

• engaging diverse talent and enabling high performing teams
• ensuring multiple perspectives in the design and delivery of policy, programs and services
• practicing inclusive leadership
• encouraging others to attend education opportunities and build inclusive practices

I am delighted to present the Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2019-2021.

Chris Eccles AO, Secretary, Department of Premier and Cabinet

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[1] Delivering through Diversity - McKinsey & Company 2018

[2] Department of Premier and Cabinet’s (DPC) Corporate Plan 2016-2020

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About the department

DPC's vision is to be a recognised and respected leader in whole of government policy and performance.

DPC supports the ministerial portfolios of the Premier, Deputy Premier, Special Minister of State, Aboriginal Affairs, Industrial Relations, Equality, Veterans, Multicultural Affairs, Youth and Women.

Our vision is to lead the VPS by working for the people of Victoria to help the government achieve its strategic objectives

DPC contributes to the Victorian Government commitment to a stronger, fairer, better Victoria by pursuing excellence in whole of government outcomes in delivery and reform.

Further information

Additional information regarding the Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2018-2021 is available by contacting DPC's Senior Adviser, Diversity & Inclusion or Manager, Organisational Development in People and Culture Branch. DPC's Diversity & Inclusion action plans are available on the DPC Intranet.

• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer and/or Questioning (LGBTIQ) Inclusion Plan 2019-2021
• Disability Action Plan 2017-2020
• Gender Equity Action Plan 2018-2020
• Cultural Diversity Inclusion Strategy 2015-2018
• Aboriginal Inclusion Plan 2014

References

Delivering through Diversity - McKinsey & Company 2018

Department of Premier and Cabinet's (DPC) Corporate Plan 2016-2020

Only skin deep? Re-examining the business case for diversity, Deloitte 2011

Chubb Insurance Group company case study - approach to diversity 2018

Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission

Intersectionality definition

Diversity is about what makes each of us unique and includes our backgrounds, personality, life experiences and beliefs, all of the things that make us who we are. It is a combination of our differences that shape our view of the world, our perspective and our approach[1]. Diversity is also about recognising, respecting and valuing differences based on ethnicity, gender, age, race, religion, disability and sexual orientation. It also includes an infinite range of individual unique characteristics and experiences, such as communication style, career path, life experience, educational background, geographic location, income level, marital status, parental status and other variables that influence personal perspectives[2].

Inclusion occurs when people feel, and are, valued and respected. Regardless of their personal characteristic or circumstance, and where they:

• have the opportunity to fulfil their individual and combined potential
• have access to opportunities and resources
• can contribute their personal best in every encounter
• can contribute their perspectives and talents to improve their organisation
• can bring far more of themselves to their jobs
• have a sense of belonging.

Equal opportunity means that every person can participate freely and equally in areas of public life such as in the workplace, in education, or in accessing goods and services without disadvantage or less favourable treatment due to their unique attributes. Everyone in the workplace has rights and responsibilities under equal opportunity and anti-discrimination legislation to prevent discrimination, harassment, vilification or victimisation[3].

Equal opportunity is an integral part of the employment life cycle applicable to recruitment, retention, performance management, promotion, talent identification, succession planning, remuneration, professional development and end of employment.

Intersectionality refers to a way of seeing people's experiences as shaped by (but not limited to) their race, socio-economic background, sex, gender, and sexuality all at the same time. This overlap or combination of differences makes up a person’s unique identity. Identities within an individual may come, go or converge, depending on time or place (for example life stages). The point of understanding intersectionality is to also understand the variety of privileges and/or forms of discrimination or exclusion that one may experience simultaneously at any given time (for example gender and race together).

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[1] Only skin deep? Re-examining the business case for diversity, Deloitte 2011

[2] Chubb Insurance Group company case study - approach to diversity 2018

[3] Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission

The Victorian Government commitment to diversity and inclusion (D&I)

The Victorian Government has committed to achieving its long-term vision for inclusion by significantly investing in approaches that aim to make a more inclusive and equitable society.

It has recently developed the following strategies:

• Safe and Strong, Victoria’s Gender Equality Strategy 2016
• Absolutely Everyone: State Disability Plan 2017-2020
• Every opportunity: Victorian economic participation plan for people with disability 2018-2020
• Victorian Aboriginal Affairs Framework 2018-2023
• Victoria’s Multicultural Policy Statement 2017
• Victoria’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) Health and Wellbeing Action Plan 2014-2018
• Ending Family Violence: Victoria’s Plan for Change 2016

The community views the success of the organisation as representing their own success. They seek to protect and strengthen the organisation because they believe values it represents, represents the values they hold dear.

What do we want to achieve?

The Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC) is working towards a workforce that is genuinely inclusive and better reflects the diversity of the communities it serves. DPC aims to ensure that government policy and programs are inclusive for all Victorians and continually strives to match this effort internally.

DPC’s Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2019-2021 (the Strategy) provides an opportunity to acknowledge and reflect on the real challenges and opportunities for people in a working environment that is not yet reflective of the communities it represents. In the implementation of this strategy, DPC will work towards:

• improving the representation of women and people from diverse backgrounds in senior leadership positions
• understanding and addressing any structural barriers (real or perceived) to employment and potential employment, due to personal circumstance or characteristic
• mainstreaming diversity practices in our business and operational plans
• establishing an accurate workforce profile and longitudinal data (evidence base) to measure and track performance
• ensuring culture surveys consistently show safety, visibility and inclusion for all employees across all levels of the organisation
• setting measurable targets and ensuring accountability for meeting our goals
• continuing to elevate its reputation and public image as a diverse and inclusive workplace.

Leadership is required across all levels of the organisation. DPC will do this by:

• establishing a governance model that will drive the Strategy
• establishing a Diversity Committee that brings together a coalition of representatives from the Executive (DPC Board of Management) or their nominees, relevant policy areas and employee reference groups representing our diverse communities
• providing an authorising environment for all staff to initiate local inclusive practices and actions
• holding leaders accountable for the delivery of outcomes
• ensuring the deliberate implementation of the Strategy including the provision of resources to drive change
• embedding the actions above to ensure sustainability, so that the Strategy is accessible and visible across the organisation.

Executive sponsors and champions will be appointed by DPC Board of Management for all key priority areas including gender, disability, LGBTIQ, Aboriginal, culturally and linguistically diverse (including faith), inclusion and age. Sponsors and champions will promote and support our diversity and inclusion initiatives and efforts, provide strategic direction and have oversight on DPC’s overall performance.

People and Culture (P&C) will provide succinct annual performance reports and dashboard data for each executive sponsor with an assessment against existing strategies (to measure their effectiveness) and key recommendations to inform, prioritise, further resource, improve or sustain the organisation’s performance. Performance reports will be tabled annually to the Diversity Committee with high level recommendations to improve outcomes.

DPC reference groups and committees will be encouraged to work with executive sponsors and P&C to identify and implement initiatives within the Strategy, informed by annual dashboard data. P&C will advise and assist branches to implement initiatives from the Strategy, relevant to their respective work function, taking into consideration their context and challenges. Individuals will be actively encouraged to engage with diversity and inclusion initiatives using the guiding principles in this document.

The Strategy contemplates a holistic approach to achieving an inclusive workplace environment. Whilst individual action plans contain focused strategies to address any equity imbalances, the following guiding principles, enablers and self-directive actions will help us achieve equitable employment opportunities and outcomes for all employees, in the areas of:

1. Attraction and recruitment
2. Safety and respect
3. Employee experience
4. Management capability
5. Community and visibility
6. Measurement and accountability.

Attraction and recruitment

Embracing and fully utilising the community we serve as we continue to grow as a state.

Guiding principles

• We promote and market DPC as an Employer of Choice and a great place to work.
• We develop and implement best practice contemporary recruitment practices that allow us to attract the widest pool of people from diverse backgrounds.
• We have fair and transparent recruitment processes that help to improve the representation of people from diverse backgrounds who are historically under-represented or under-utilised.
• We have a business practice where all roles can be worked flexibly, helping us to attract and retain diverse talent.

Organisational enablers

• Enhance our public image through recruitment and social media platforms, highlighting the benefits of working at DPC to a more diverse cohort of candidates (for example Job Sharing and All Roles Flex).
• Target recruitment of under-represented communities and promotion of pathways from education to employment.
• Support the active engagement and recruitment of people with disability through building strong partnerships with local disability employment providers.
• Integrate a ‘fast track’ recruitment process for people with disability.

Individual – self-directed actions

DPC recruitment and communications teams to enhance our employee brand via various communication channels.

Hiring managers to work with recruitment teams to look at targeted approaches to recruiting more diverse candidates where there is a gap or imbalance.

Hiring managers to consider how a job can be conducted flexibly (e.g. part-time, job share, flexible start and finish times and remote work).

Directors to be provided dashboard diversity data (on request) from P&C to inform targeted recruitment.

Ensure shortlisting (for executive positions) and interview panels have diverse representation (including gender, age and CALD) where possible.

Lead responsibility

P&C and hiring managers.

Outcomes

Full implementation of Diversity and Inclusion Action Plans (Year 1).

Safety and respect

Creating a safe, friendly, respectful and inclusive environment for all employees.

Guiding principles

• We care about and treat each other with dignity and respect.
• We aim to remove any barriers to inclusion through the creation of a trusting and supportive environment.
• We understand our role and responsibility to create an inclusive and equitable environment free from discrimination and sexual harassment through education and raising awareness.

Organisational enablers

• Provide a safe, fair and inclusive work environment by clear messaging, visibility and action from executives and directors.
• Eliminate all forms of discrimination, sexual harassment, racism, homophobia, and sexism (including covert or systemic) in the workplace through education programs.
• Support managers and employees to call out inappropriate behaviour when they see it.
• Implement peer support programs to support the mental health and wellbeing of employees.
• Establish forums and safe spaces for people to share information about their lived experience of diversity, inclusion and equity.
• Continue to promote and build trust in complaints handling procedures.
• Sign up to the Australian Human Rights Commission’s ‘Racism. It Stops with Me’ campaign.

Individual – self-directed actions

Employees to promote and model inclusive behaviours.

Employees to seek learning opportunities to broaden their understanding of the unique and various challenges experienced by diverse communities.

Seek to harness the benefits of a diverse and inclusive workforce through valuing diverse ideas and opinions.

Managers to support diversity and inclusion learning and development opportunities with the aim of enhancing employees’ broader knowledge, skills and experience.

Managers to encourage their employees to actively participate in activities, networking or events outside their area of expertise or comfort, to enhance their broader learning opportunities and increase competency in managing and working with diversity.

Lead responsibility

All employees.

Outcomes

Identifying any key employment and cultural issues for all key priority areas, for example, disability (Year 2).

Employee experience

We provide an exemplar employee experience including equitable access to employment opportunities and outcomes.

Guiding principles

• Our culture and environment is one where people feel respected and valued.
• We have a shared sense of purpose and belonging.
• We aim to make people feel comfortable and confident to share information and ideas that will help to improve our corporate knowledge and add value to our service and delivery.
• We actively pursue ways to bring out the best in our people.
• Our policies and practices are accessible, flexible, equitable and inclusive of all people.

Organisational enablers

• Continue to revise and strengthen DPC policies to ensure diversity, inclusion and equity outcomes are embedded and make these accessible and visible to staff.
• Look for new ways to embed flexibility within the organisation (working anytime, anywhere).
• Develop a campaign to increase confidence in sharing personal ‘diversity’ information to help better understand our employees.
• Identify key issues in employment for our diverse communities through focus groups, branch and team conversation and the annual People Matter Survey.
• Celebrate, promote and reinforce our achievements in fostering equity outcomes.
• Support and sustain employee reference groups, committees and networks.
• Explore the interaction between different diversity groups (intersectionality), for example, gender, ethnicity and age together.
• Embed ‘achievement relative to opportunity’ in the performance management process, so that people who work part-time due to parental or carer responsibilities are rewarded for their quality of output in the time allocated.

Individual – self-directed actions

• Look for opportunities to promote, embed and reward inclusive practices
• Attend at least one diversity and inclusion event throughout the year.
• Engage the Senior Adviser, Diversity & Inclusion for advice on strategies and inclusive events.
• Managers to support their staff in actively contributing to more inclusive practices across DPC (including flexibility).
• Managers to implement at least one strategy or action a year that addresses any equity issues or imbalances in their work area, identified in their annual People Matter Survey results.

Lead responsibility

P&C, all employees.

Outcomes

• Building employee comfort and confidence to share information about themselves (for example, people with a disability) that will help to benefit the employee experience and improve corporate knowledge (Year 1).
• A heightened and raised consciousness in diversity, inclusion and equity principles and issues (Year 2).
• Culture surveys showing that employees believe DPC is a genuinely inclusive and equitable environment and that this contributes to our success (Year 3).
• A reinvigorated and re-energised focus and shared sense of purpose (Year 3).

Management capability

Inclusive leadership and competency in working with and managing diversity is seen as a key management skill.

Guiding principles

• We recognise the importance of diversity, inclusion and equity principles that allow us to be better managers and make better decisions.
• We develop our leaders’ competency to work with and manage diversity.
• We examine, reflect and change any structural barriers in our employment practices that are not equitable.
• We recognise that inclusive leadership is a key management skill.
• We use this strategy and individual inclusion plans as a resource for learning and adaptive change, building our confidence and competency.

Organisational enablers

• Provide a suite of targeted diversity and inclusion programs that allow managers to understand their role in creating a diverse and inclusive environment.
• Build confidence and competency of managers to manage and work with diversity, including developing inclusive leadership skills.
• Identify and address unconscious bias practices.
• Provide intranet resources that provide practical information on diversity and inclusion practices.
• Implement succession planning that anticipate changes in employee circumstances.
• Provide targeted training to support employee mental health and wellbeing, including mental health awareness, family violence and cultural safety training.
• Develop a sector wide cultural competency online training package.
• Conduct annual Victorian Public Service (VPS) gender summit.

Individual – self-directed actions

• Managers to engage with DPC learning and development opportunities and ensure equitable distribution of learning opportunities and career advancement for their team members.
• Managers to build their team’s competency in increasing diversity conscious practices and minimising practices that may lead to unconscious bias or exclusion.
• Managers to improve knowledge, skills and behaviours when using diversity, inclusion and equity as enablers for high performance, to solve big challenges and achieve success.
• Managers to incorporate diversity and inclusion guiding principles in their branch planning and ensure multiple perspectives in decision making.
• Managers to be aware of the availability of flexible working arrangements, consider all requests fairly and equitably, and ensure employees are supported in their request and uptake of these arrangements where appropriate.

Lead responsibility

P&C and managers.

Outcomes

• Review and/or strengthening of existing strategies to improve performance or the development of more sophisticated strategies for areas where there is stagnation (Year 1).
• Improved narrative and rationale for the work and anticipated outcomes (Year 2).
• Increased competency in managing diversity and inclusion practices (increasing diversity conscious practices) (Year 2).
• Inclusive leadership is seen as a key management skill (Year 3)
• Demonstrate proficiency and competency in working with and managing diversity (Year 3).

Community and visibility

DPC is an undisputed leader in Diversity and Inclusion practice.

Guiding principles

• We aim to set the benchmark for inclusive practices across the Victorian Public Sector. VPS.
• We all play a part in contributing to work that helps the government achieve its strategic policy objectives and its vision of inclusion, for the benefit of the Victorian community.
• We promote and encourage the participation of our diverse communities to ensure that our service and delivery reaches all Victorians, including providing a voice at our events and forums.
• We engage suppliers and corporate partners who are genuinely committed to inclusive practices.

Organisational enablers

• Actively promote DPC as a welcoming and inclusive environment in our recruitment and marketing campaigns.
• Raise public image as an organisation that is genuinely inclusive and engages with its diverse communities.
• Take lead role in diversity and inclusion initiatives across the sector, including the VPS Pride Network, Enablers Network, Disability Steering Committee, Male Champions of Change, Gender Auditing Pilot Project and the Workplace Equality and Respect Program.
• Support the Secretary as a Male Champion of Change.
• Support executive sponsors to drive diversity and inclusion plans and deliver on the work.
• Use key research publications and subject matter experts from peak agencies to inform diversity and inclusion work at DPC.

Individual – self-directed actions

• Executive officer or nominee to lead on (at least) one action a year from this strategy.
• Executive officer to communicate about inclusive practices or engage in one diversity and inclusion event or learning opportunity at DPC, at least once a year.
• Branch Directors to engage P&C to present on latest diversity and inclusion initiatives and practices to their work area (including the roll-out of this strategy), or to look at targeted diversity and inclusion training for their work area that addresses any equity issues from their People Matter Survey results.
• Branches to communicate and share good news stories on the staff Intranet.
• Ensure when engaging corporate partners, that they are committed and active in their efforts to create an inclusive and equitable workplace.

Lead responsibility

Executive officers, P&C.

Outcomes

• Our Diversity and Inclusion plans and practices are exemplar (Year 3).
• DPC is continually cited as an undisputed leader in accessibility and inclusion by reputation and is an undisputed employer of choice (Year 3)

Measurement and accountability

An evidence based approach to inform best practice.

Guiding principles

• DPC will continue to improve our diversity and inclusion performance by consistent and frequent analysis of its workforce data and employment policies and practices
• DPC will continue to assess diversity and inclusion strategies (to measure their effectiveness) and key recommendations to inform, prioritise, further resource, improve or sustain our organisation’s performance.
• There is clear leadership accountability and responsibility to drive change.

Organisational enablers

• Establish an accurate workplace profile across all diversity priority areas.
• Establish a campaign to encourage employees to share and update personal ’diversity’ information in the Employee Self Service payroll system to improve the capture of workforce metrics.
• Establish longitudinal data to measure our performance over time
• Compile succinct annual performance reports and dashboard data for each priority area.
• Provide high level recommendations to executive sponsors in each priority area to inform, prioritise further resource, improve or sustain our diversity and inclusion performance.
• Include diversity and inclusion indicators in the performance plans of all executive officers.
• Consider the establishment of KPIs for executive officers to address any equity gaps and imbalances.

Individual – self-directed actions

• Executive officers to identify equity gaps in their portfolio and develop strategy and action plans to redress any imbalances.
• Managers to work with the Senior Adviser, Diversity & Inclusion (P&C) to assist in understanding which diversity and inclusion strategies are effective and result in successful outcomes that also considers the branches’ or work areas context and challenges.
• Leaders to focus on at least one action a year in the Strategy that will have a significant impact on their local work area, for example, active recruitment strategies to attract more diverse talent or workplace culture initiatives.

Lead responsibility

P&C, executive officers.

Outcomes

Understanding and confirming the effect of strategies that contribute to a successful outcome (Year 2)

In understanding and addressing the unique and varied challenges experienced by diverse communities, as well as seeking to harness the benefits of a diverse and inclusive workforce, DPC has developed a number of individual action plans which are housed under this strategy. They focus on four priority areas:

• LGBTIQ
• people with disability
• gender equity
• cultural and linguistic diversity.
• Good progress has been made in key priority areas informed by:
• the revision of DPC’s Disability, LGBTIQ and Gender Equity action plans
• ‘All Roles Flex’ being rolled out across DPC (embedding flexibility at DPC)
• the Secretary’s personal commitment as a Male Champion of Change to drive gender equity at DPC and beyond
• women making up 53% of all executive officer roles
• the establishment of aspirational targets to address any imbalances

DPC acknowledges that organisational change takes time.

The implementation of diversity, inclusion and equity strategies in workplaces should work to eliminate all forms of discrimination (compliance case), add value to the organisation and provide a return on investment (business case) and ensure that we examine power and privilege and address areas of disadvantage (ethical case).

Diversity, inclusion and equity (giving everyone what they need to be successful) needs to be a lived and breathed experience.

Achieving authentic inclusion is realised when there is a shared sense of purpose and belonging and where everyone’s contributions are included and valued. It is a transformational journey for both the individual and the organisation, with people being at different stages of maturity, from being:

• compliant and risk minimising
• aware
• committed and reflective
• aspirational and strategic
• authentic

DPC acknowledges that fundamental organisational change takes time and as such programs need to be built on year on year.

The following Organisational Diversity and Inclusion Maturity Model shows the five stages of maturity including some measures, indicators and enablers. Every year we are looking to build our maturity and move to an authentic stage of diversity and inclusion practice.

Individuals and teams can move across these stages, depending on their:

• level of awareness
• understanding
• need and commitment to diversity
• inclusion and equity principles and initiatives