Above: Female leaders from several industries gathered at the Chief Executive Women (CEW) lunch

The Secretary of Transport for NSW, Tim Reardon recently shared his support for gender diversity in the Transport sector at a luncheon hosted by Broadspectrum.

The event included senior female leaders in our organisation who are both current and past Chief Executive Women (CEW) program participants.

Broadspectrum has been sponsoring and participating in the CEW Leaders program for the last three years, and currently has six participants going through this year's program.

This resonates with Broadspectrum's own diversity and inclusion initiatives, which have seen the number of female employees grow to meet our 2017 target of 30 per cent female participation, which is between five to ten per cent higher than similar industries.

Broadspectrum's Diversity and Inclusion framework is centred around 3 main areas, which are Positive Awareness, Culture and Behaviours, and Systematic Improvement, with several focus initiatives within each. This three-pronged framework ensures that the organisation addresses both the number of diverse employees and the underlying culture and systems.

Some of the company's current initiatives include piloting the employment of people with known disabilities - with five people with disabilities employed in the company's National Call Centre, and two recently created scholarships for women studying in fields that complement the Broadspectrum business.

The CEW Leaders program is focused on helping organisations create an environment that encourages the development and retention of talented female leaders. Sessions are designed to stimulate thought and discussion, and to challenge participants so they step up to senior executive roles with diversity recognised as beneficial for the organisation and the community.

As an advocate for gender diversity, the Secretary of Transport for NSW, Tim Reardon said:

It is important to have a diverse workforce to encourage agility and innovation while reflecting the community in which it operates. From a gender diversity perspective, Transport is striving to increase the number of females in leadership positions."

The lunch was a great forum for both Broadspectrum and its clients to learn and share their experiences around improving gender diversity.