Bechtel UK now has an official ISO certificate proving its diversity and inclusivity while Kier Highways is now official a Master of Diversity.
Bechtel Limited, the UK company which is part of the US Bechtel group of companies, has become the first in its industry to be awarded with the international standard ISO 30415 in Human Resource Management: Diversity and Inclusion.
The certification requires an organisation to demonstrate its systems, processes, and behaviours are diverse and representational towards its employees and requires an ongoing commitment to further improve diversity and inclusion practices. The standard was published in May 2021; Bechtel Ltd is the fourth company worldwide to attain it and is the first in the construction sector.
“It is brilliant that Bechtel’s UK workplace has been recognized as an inclusive and diverse environment where colleagues can thrive,” said managing director John Williams. “That is our ambition. We’re on a journey but this new ISO standard will help us to do even better.”
John Mulholland, the ISO assessor who evaluated Bechtel, said. “Two areas that Bechtel is focused on are ‘Men Advocating Real Change’ workshops that provide an opportunity for people to reflect on their behaviour and the impact it may have on others; and fostering women in leadership that is evidence of Bechtel’s commitment to improvement.”
Meanwhile Kier Highways has been awarded the Masters in Diversity accreditation by a the National Centre for Diversity. Kier Highways is only the second company to achieve Masters in Diversity.
Its sounds very official but in fact the National Centre for Diversity is a privately-owned training company in Leeds, selling training courses with an unrecognised in-house ‘qualification’ at the end of it. Kier paid for 16 people to go on a year-long leadership development programme and they are now able to say that they are Fellows of the National Centre for Diversity (NCfD).
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