We Must Be The Change - Magazine - Page 24
COMMITMENT: Our culture
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
rooted in Our Values
All employees have a role to play in advancing inclusion
Throughout the Southern Company system, diversity, equity and inclusion
(DE&I) is rooted in Our Values. We are committed to creating an inclusive
workplace where all our people are welcomed, valued, respected and heard.
This allows us to anticipate change, see around corners and achieve success
in an ever-evolving energy landscape.
Building a Diverse Workforce
We believe having a workforce representative of our communities helps us to
better serve our customers. We have embedded DE&I in our operational goals,
which drives attention and encourages progress in achieving a more diverse
workforce. This includes metrics for culture, representation, work environment,
supplier diversity and other workplace elements. These measurements are
regularly reviewed by senior management and serve as a basis for conversations
about how we can improve.
Our campus recruiting program is one of the most diverse in our industry with
respect to where and how we recruit and overall results.
2020 Year-End
Hiring Results
1,297
new hires
24%
women
38%
people of color
34 yrs.
average age
24
WE MUST BE THE CHANGE
“The more we diversify our pipeline and hire people who can grow and develop
into senior leaders who will make hiring and workplace decisions, the better we
are at creating and maintaining diversity and inclusion,” says Sloane Drake, senior
vice president of Human Resources.
We partner with organizations such as the National Society of Black Engineers
and Society of Women Engineers at the national, regional, local and campus
levels. Direct recruitment from conferences that are diversity-focused have
produced strong results in engineering hires. In 2019, our student hires into co-op
and intern positions were 45% people of color and 44% women. With each of our
recruiting strategies there is an emphasis on diversity outreach.
Fostering an Inclusive Environment
It’s paramount that our leaders are equipped to foster inclusion and a sense of
belonging on their teams – it’s important for engagement, employee retention
and productivity. In order to build an inclusive culture, DE&I must be at the center
of everything we do.
“We need everyone to be familiar with our vision for DE&I and for everyone
from the Management Council on down to be consistently sharing that
message and vision,” said Drake. “All of our employees have a role to play in
advancing inclusion.”