PRESS RELEASE: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
22 August 2018
Inaugural Equality in Engineering Summit: Inclusion is a Health & Safety Issue
On September 7th, network leaders, diversity & inclusion experts and HR professionals from across the engineering and technology sectors will come together with a common cause: making the sector more inclusive for all people - irrespective of gender, age, ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation.
The conference is the brainchild of Dr Mark McBride-Wright, who set up EqualEngineers, after years of working in the sector and seeing not only the challenges that the lack of diversity can bring, but also the risks posed to health, safety and wellbeing. Being a gay safety engineer himself, and setting up networking group InterEngineering for LGBT+ engineers gave him the drive to set up an organisation covering all aspects of diversity.
The first of its kind, the one day Equality in Engineering Summit in Manchester will
bring industry leaders together to equip, inform and inspire towards
greater diversity and increased inclusivity in the traditionally white
male industries of technology and engineering.
Mark says:
"For me, inclusivity in the workplace is a health and safety issue. Not being able to be open about who you are, because of attitudes and lack of diversity around you can lead to mental health issues and decreased wellbeing. In Construction, for example, an industry where suicide rates among men are more thanthree times the national average, more needs to be done to ensure that commitment to these issues goes much further than token inclusion policies."
"My hopes for this conference are to build up working groups and networks to really accelerate the rate of change in the sector. Already we have big businesses supporting what we do, and we now need to go out to the wider sector so that we can work together on this common objective. From addressing bias in recruitment, to widening participation for all, we need to challenge the perceptions of who engineers and technologists are, and rapidly overhaul the way in which we approach culture change programmes within our industry."
The conference, organised by EqualEngineers in partnership with Siemens and the Institution of Engineering and Technology, features workshops and panel discussions on topics ranging from the current ‘state of the nation' to addressing hidden minorities, setting up national networks and maintaining momentum.
Juergen Maier, CEO of Siemens will give the keynote speech, alongside other speakers such as:
- Simone Davina - Executive Sponsor Diversity & Inclusion, Head of Legal at Siemens plc
- Nike Folayan - Association for BME Engineers
- Elizabeth Rickard - Senior Member of the Women's Engineering Society
- Victor Olisa QPM - Former Head of Diversity & Inclusion at the Metropolitan Police
- David Pearson - Global Director of Diversity & Inclusion at KPMG
- Rob Cookson - Deputy CEO, LGBT Foundation
- Joscelyne Shaw, Executive Director, Mates in Mind & British Safety Council
- Fiona Jackson, Head of Diversity, Inclusion and Employer Branding, EDF Energy
Founder, Mark, also hopes to launch a survey on masculinity in the sector on the day - the results of which will be released on International Men's Day on 19th November this year.
The conference takes place 7th September at the Radisson Blu Edwardian Manchester Hotel in Manchester.
For more information and to book your ticket, go to www.equalengineers.com/conference-2018
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For more information or to interview Mark McBride-Wright, contact May on may.atkinson@bigvoicecommunications.co.uk
Notes to Editors
About EqualEngineers
EqualEngineers was set up to make the Engineering & Technology sectors more diverse and inclusive. Their belief is that the sector lacks in diversity and inclusion of under-represented groups, which is proven to increase performance, growth and innovation, as well as improve health, safety and wellbeing. EqualEngineers provides a solution to this through training, recruitment, media and events.
About Dr Mark McBride-Wright CEng MIChemE
Mark McBride-Wright, PhD, CEng, IChemE is a recognised diversity and inclusion leader. He is Founder and Managing Director of EqualEngineers, a company focused on connecting inclusive employers with diverse talent in the engineering and technology sectors and offering a wide array of D&I consultancy services alongside annual careers fairs and networking events. He is also Chair and Co-Founder of InterEngineering, a non-profit industry body that connects, informs and empowers LGBT+ engineers and supporters with a membership of over 1,000 engineers across 4 regional groups across the UK. Mark is Founding Member of the Diversity and Inclusion Working Group for the Institute of Chemical Engineers (IChemE), External Advisor to the Metropolitan Police, sitting on their Strategic Inclusion Diversity & Equality (STRIDE) Board, Diversity Board Member for the University of Kent, and Advisory Member to the Diversity & Inclusion Steering Committee of the Royal Academy of Engineering.
In recognition of his diversity work, Mark won the coveted 'Corporate Rising Star' award at the 2016 British LGBT Awards and was ranked #2 in the 2015 Financial Times Future LGBT Leaders list (#6 in 2016). In addition, he was 'Highly Commended' at the Inclusive Networks Awards (2015), shortlisted for the 'Corporate Equality Award' by PinkNews (2016), and is a regular speaker at the London Business School. He has worked with many Fortune 50 companies on D&I programs and talent engagement strategies and has also authored a white paper for the UK Government on tackling homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying in engineering. Mark is a Chartered Engineer (IChemE) by training with a focus on health and safety, having worked at KBR Inc (2013-2017) and ERM (2012-2013) before pursuing his work in diversity. He also holds a doctorate (PhD) in chemical engineering at Imperial College London (2009-2013).
Awards & Accolades
- Winner 2016 "Corporate Rising Star" British LGBT Awards
- #2 in 2015 Financial Times Future LGBT Leaders list (#6 2016)
- Shortlisted, "Young Chemical Engineer in Industry", 2016 IChemE Global Awards
- InterEngineering, "Highly Commended" at 2015 Inclusive Networks Awards
- InterEngineering, Shortlisted for "LGBT Community Group of the Year", 2016 National Diversity Awards
- InterEngineering, Shortlisted "Corporate Equality Award", 2016 PinkNews Awards