Senior Leadership

Our senior leadership team role models Inclusion and Diversity. Representation and authentic sponsors of culture change.

A Culture of Inclusion

Our culture supports everyone to thrive and succeed. Deep understanding of diverse groups to enhance the ‘lived experience’.

Customer Proposition

We commit to accessible and inclusive products, and multichannel experiences. Inclusive, accessible design as a brand differentiator.

Inclusive Youth Employment

Our impact on society is amplified through investing in skills and work experience. Targeted initiatives focused on addressing disadvantaged youth unemployment.

Commitment to gender diversity: closing the gap

• A continued focus on 50/50 diverse balanced shortlists for all senior hiring. We have proven this makes a significant difference to the chances of us hiring diverse talent. Last year we made 48
• senior leadership hires. Of these, 32 (67%) were diverse hires, and of these, 31 (97%) had a balanced diverse shortlist.
• Monthly meetings with the HR Directors from all banners and Group functions to share senior vacancies and discuss talent moves, including surfacing diverse candidates.
• Inclusive recruitment training for all senior leaders, in partnership with the leadership advisory firm Russell Reynolds.
• Targeted support to women identified as having potential for leadership positions. Through our partners YSC Consulting, part of Accenture, we provide talent and potential assessments to explore individuals’ strengths and development areas. Based on the outputs of these assessments we’re able to craft targeted development plans and support with coaching.
• Continued colleague listening – this year we conducted a piece of independent research into senior colleague sentiment after observing differences between the sentiment of senior men and women. We completed interviews and focus groups and our Group Executive reviewed the results and discussed them in depth. All banner and Group functions are now taking local action as a result of the insights gained from this work.

Investing in the future of retail

As we reported in last year’s Responsible Business Report, by 2022/23 we had provided 6.6 million hours of skills for life learning since 2019/20, reaching our target of five million hours three years ahead of schedule. This year, our colleagues completed 1.7 million training hours,

supporting ongoing professional growth and skill development.

While that is something to be proud of, we aren’t stopping here. To make sure our colleagues are equipped with the skills they need for today and tomorrow, we set a new target in 2023/24 – by 2030/31, more than 20,000 colleagues will have completed an apprenticeship, traineeship or formal qualification.

This emphasis on completion demonstrates our commitment to retention, progression and equipping colleagues with skills for life.