Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

We put diversity at the heart of our business to build a more inclusive leadership culture.

Empowering inclusive leadership for all communities

Organisations large and small represent and interact with multiple and diverse communities every day. The need to adequately represent those communities with the leaders they choose and the teams they grow is vitally important.

Our people are committed to seeking out, supporting and developing senior leadership talent from all backgrounds of life. Our diversity initiatives are proven to offer clear and results-based approaches to help our clients find, keep and enhance their leaders of tomorrow.

 

Pictured: a sample of our appointments over the last two years

Empowering inclusive leadership for all communities

Organisations large and small represent and interact with multiple and diverse communities every day. The need to adequately represent those communities with the leaders they choose and the teams they grow is vitally important.

Our people are committed to seeking out, supporting and developing senior leadership talent from all backgrounds of life. Our diversity initiatives are proven to offer clear and results-based approaches to help our clients find, keep and enhance their leaders of tomorrow.

 

Pictured: a sample of our appointments over the last two years

29 %
of our board appointments in 2024 were from ethnically underrepresented groups
54 %
of all our appointments in 2024 were women
47 %
of our board appointments in 2024 were women
4 %
of our appointments in 2024 declared a disability

Our figures shown are based on candidates that chose to answer during application

Our Partnerships and Programmes

We maximise our research-based activity with additional strategies:

We look beyond the obvious candidates to ensure a deeper and more diverse list of candidates. Part of our process is to continuously monitor the composition of our call lists and the direct correlation between those contacted from diverse professional and personal backgrounds and the number of eventual candidates is clear in our results.

We actively collaborate with diversity-focused professional networks and their executive teams to identify and engage with their members and alumni, enriching our candidate pools.

When there are fewer individuals with diverse backgrounds, we dedicate extra time to mentor and engage with them, discussing their challenges and aspirations. We carefully evaluate how their skills and motivations align with the opportunities available, aiming to enhance their interest and readiness to step into leadership roles.

We are committed to delivering thorough and constructive feedback to every candidate, offering guidance and insights for future opportunities. Our respectful and supportive approach earns the trust of individuals from diverse backgrounds, who value our confidentiality, discretion, and professionalism, and are eager to engage with us about future roles.

Our consultants frequently address diversity and inclusion, discussing its challenges and opportunities at industry events and initiatives. We organise events specifically for underrepresented leaders, and a Saxton Bampfylde Director actively contributes to the diversity committee of our membership body, the AESC.

Inclusivity embedded

Our commitment to quality research means we dedicate time and focused attention to each appointment, creating a broad, inclusive candidate list that drives real impact. This holistic approach consistently delivers results, enriching the diversity of boards and executive teams across the commercial, public, and not-for-profit sectors – a success we’re proud to support.

Championing Gender Diversity in Leadership: Our Ongoing Commitment

Since our founding, Saxton Bampfylde has championed gender diversity, building a strong record of placing women in senior roles, including the landmark appointment of the first female FTSE100 CEO. Since 2020, women have comprised over half of our executive placements and nearly half of board appointments. As signatories to the Voluntary Code of Conduct for Executive Search Firms, we uphold best practices to advance women in leadership.

Empowering Careers: The REACH Programme for Colleagues with Disabilities

The REACH Programme, developed in partnership with the Civil Service, is designed to support colleagues with disabilities in realizing their full career potential.

Our goal is to pair each participant with a dedicated mentor who specialises in either mental health or physical disabilities. Each mentor is an executive-level leader from outside the Civil Service, bringing either personal experience of disability or a track record of advancing development opportunities, career progression, and workplace inclusivity for individuals with disabilities.

Find out more

 

 

Guiding Diverse Talent on the Journey to Board Positions with OnBoard

The path to a Board position is not always an accessible and inclusive one. We are proud to be part of OnBoard, a non-profit mentoring programme aimed at guiding talented individuals from disadvantaged and non-traditional backgrounds toward Board membership.

 

 

We have a broad range of interests across our Diversity & Inclusion initiatives. We have showcased a few of these and would be happy to share more. Please get in touch.

Building an inclusive culture in our own community

We believe that having a diverse and inclusive workforce allows us to provide a stronger understanding of tomorrow’s leadership. We draw on a rich variety of skills, talents and backgrounds and work in an environment where people feel comfortable sharing their perspectives and having those listened to.

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Awards

We are proud of the work we do and the diversity of leaders we find who make a difference in all they do. When we are recognised for this work with award wins, it makes us even more proud.

In 2020 REACH won the ‘Making a Difference’ category at the Recruitment Industry Disability Initiative Awards (RIDI). In that same year REACH was also the first recipient of the ‘IDEA Award’ by the global Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consultants (AESC). The recognition came for Saxton Bampfylde’s outstanding contribution to Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access (IDEA).

The RIDI awards bring together leading change makers in the recruitment sector to celebrate the very best of disability confident recruitment. The Making a Difference Award highlights those who have excelled in levelling the playing field for disabled candidates in the recruitment process. It identifies those who are implementing appropriate reasonable adjustments at every stage and working hard to swiftly remove any barriers.

The AESC IDEA Award was established in 2020 to support the goals of the AESC Diversity Pledge, signed by more than 100 CEOs of leading executive search and leadership consulting firms. The award recognises initiatives within the executive search and leadership consulting profession that demonstrate an exemplary and excellent commitment to Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access.

Commitment to the AESC pledge

We are proud to commit ourselves to the AESC pledge alongside professional peer organisations and communities in executive search and leadership consulting. Together we are dedicated to strengthening leadership worldwide and believe in the power of diverse talent and inclusive cultures.