Ask Us Anything: It's Unconscious!

Organised by WOMAG, in partnership with LEVEL3 and Include Consulting, explore mechanisms to tackle unconscious bias and promote inclusivity in the workplace.

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"Hey, guys!": a greeting that may seem harmless and common. But what about "Hey, everyone"? Why do many of us use "guys" to address mixed-gender groups? Is it time to drop it from our vocabulary at work?

We may try to be as objective as possible when making important decisions, especially when these relate to work. However, as human beings, we are all subject to unconscious bias, the silent killer of workplace diversity. More than 75 percent of CEOs include gender equality in their top ten business priorities, but progress has been slow. Research has found that women are less likely to receive the first critical promotion to manager and fewer end up on the path to leadership. As a result, the higher you look in companies, the fewer women you see. Although it may not be possible to eliminate unconscious bias completely, with awareness, we can create a more inclusive workplace culture and high performing teams.

In this virtual Ask Me Anything session, we’ll define unconscious bias, explore why it might be affecting organisational decisions and suggestions for how to mitigate such biases in workplaces. We will also share key findings that highlight gender inequality, how both men and women can work towards building a gender inclusive workplace and at the same time where everyone can thrive.

Key Takeaways:

• Raise awareness of the benefits of gender-diverse teams
• Build recognition that there is a real gender imbalance in our workplaces
• Enable participants to start having open conversations about gender diversity and challenge stereotypes
• Highlight some strategies for men and women who want to support equality, and organizational solutions & actions to start addressing gender diversity

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This is a critical topic that requires the participation of all genders. As such, we would sincerely appreciate it if you encourage one person of another gender to attend this session with you. Changing sexist systems necessitates the participation of all.

About Facilitator:

Edwin Seah | Diversity and Inclusion Consultant, Include Consulting

Edwin is currently a Diversity and Inclusion consultant with Include consulting, who has more than six years of experience in talent management and recruitment across APAC and Middle East. In his current role, Edwin works with clients to advance their skills and knowledge in the area of Gender Diversity and Inclusion by designing innovative training strategies and programmes. In addition, Edwin is on the leadership team of Lean In Singapore, a volunteer-led organisation with over 3,900 members that encourage women to build peer-to-peer support networks.

Prior to joining Include consulting, Edwin was a Senior Recruiter at Deliveroo (UK food delivery start up), where he hired for all roles across APAC and Middle East. In this role, Edwin successfully hired the launch teams for Kuwait and Taiwan market and developed content on unconscious bias and interview training in order to ensure that managers were able to recruit the best talent based on skills and values.

Edwin has a background in marketing. He started his career with Microsoft in the talent management and campus recruitment function which provided him in exposure to global best practices in hiring, development and retention.

About WOMAG:

WOMAG is a professional network of women and men promoting gender awareness in the food and agriculture ecosystem in Asia. By organizing regular industry and skill development events, we aspire to build a pool of future leaders who are equipped to address the ecosystem's challenges and foster diversity in the work place.

About Include Consulting:

Despite many organisations' best efforts, female representation in leadership remains low and the wage gap high. Most interventions have focused on ‘fixing the women’ but to make real change we need to include men. INCLUDE provides practical solutions to tackle gender bias in the work place with a specific focus on how to equip and enable men to be male allies.