Company

Without diversity, business and society is unable to deliver on its true potential. Research has confirmed that diversity drives business and social performance, but only when underpinned by inclusion and engagement. However these pre-requisites for diversity depend on careful leadership. While some leaders are proficient in harnessing diversity, research confirms that most leaders require development and nurturing to be effective in this role.

In KAY Diversity & Performance BV we are dedicated to fostering diversity in profit and non-profit organisations, so as to liberate the benefits of diversity by creating an inclusive environment for organizational performance with wellness and engagement of employees and its stakeholders and thereby contributing to a sustainable and healthy world.

Diversity and inclusion is a way of being

Diversity is not a program or project, it is the fundamental way in which a business expresses itself internally and externally. Diversity is inherent in the values of a company and in the beliefs of leaders. Diversity is entrenched in the very structure of the organisation. Diversity is reflected in daily actions and in every day communication, internally and externally. Diversity is rewarded and celebrated.

 

Diversity and inclusion has key anchors

Values

Leadership

Structure

Communication

Celebration

Kay Diversity & Performance is specialized in addressing your key diversity questions and providing fact-based direction

  • Diversity Narrative: Why is diversity of talent fundamental to the performance and sustainability of our organisation?
  • Diversity Gaps: What are the diversity gaps within our organisation and why?
  • Diversity Barriers: What are the biases and talent spots within our organisation and how do we overcome them?
  • Diversity Business Case: What is the business case for inclusive diversity within our organization? Which levers?
  • Inclusive Leadership: Are we an inclusive organisation and how do we build this capability within our leaders and our processes? 
  • De-bias Processes: How do we de-bias our talent-touching process and structures?
  • Diversity Measurement: How do we measure the state of inclusive diversity in our organisation and incentivise for achievement?
  • Diversity Journey Design: How to structure and lead an inclusive diversity journey for our organization to deliver real performance?

 

Leadership is fundamental to diversity performance

Diversity performance is directly impacted by leadership commitment to diversity , expressed by the manner in which the company CEO, leadership team and direct reports are directly engaged around diversity performance. Does the CEO have responsibility for diversity performance? Is the quest for diversity enshrined in the company values? Have diversity performance goals been set and is performance monitored and celebrated? 

Leadership requires development and nurturing

We work with you to equip your leaders to be effective diversity leaders. We develop and deliver various Diversity Leadership Development Programs which unveil the link of diversity to performance and the key enablers and distractors to diversity performance. Unconscious Bias workshops and training is delivered to executive and mid-level leadership to reduce biases which undermine diversity performance.

Inclusive Diversity and De-Biasing Certification

The certification is built on 35 years of primary and secondary research on the effectiveness of Diversity and Inclusion Programs and translates these learnings to personal, team and organisational actions and inclusive behaviour skills. 

This certification is targeted at organisations that wish to create an experiential event wherein leaders internalise inclusive behaviour and build deep awareness on how bias is both expressed and retarded within an organisation. During the certification leaders will learn about: 

  • The diversity themes of the last 50 years, the dimensions of diversity and how to identify diversity gaps relative to the organisation's transformational journey. 
  • The business case for diversity and inclusion and the critical levers of performance.
  • The neuroscience of implicit bias, identifying talent spots in the talent life cycle.
  • The attributes and practices of successful inclusive diversity leaders, including values and behaviours. 
  • The inclusive diversity capability and de-biasing processes and organisational structures.
  • The inclusive diversity scorecard with metrics for diversity and inclusion and leadership. 
  • The architecture of inclusive diversity journey's that deliver performance for all stakeholders. 

 

 

Executive Coaching

Most leaders understand the need for diversity and wish to contribute to diversity performance. Yet leaders face individual and team obstacles which hamper diversity performance.

Through 1-1 and team coaching interventions, leaders and their teams have the opportunity to reflect and evaluate on how their view of the world and how their own biases impede diversity performance. We work with certified coaches, with focus on diversity performance.

Research & Publications

In the last 20 years there has been a wealth of research to examine the link of diversity to performance, and to quantify the impact to performance across diversity levers. KAY Diversity and Performance is focused on driving further insights in this domain and collaborates with leading business schools, organisations and governments to facilitate this research.

Our clients are privvy to a monthly review of the latest research results and important new publications around diversity and best pratices. We also work directly with our clients who wish to evaluate current state of diversity and the impact to their diversity performance goals.

Selection of Publications on Diversity Performance

 

Is there a payoff from top-team diversity?

http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/organization/is_there_a_payoff_from_top-team_diversity

What is the impact of work group diversity on performance in the Mutual Fund Industry?

http://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/57751/1/714986003.pdf

What are the women in work experiences from 2015 to 2019 in 600 companies? 

https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/gender-equality/women-in-the-workplace-2019

Research & Publications on Implicit Bias

Beyond D&I - Leading Diversity With Purpose And Inclusiveness

https://beyonddiversityandinclusion.com

IAT: Fad or fabulous?

https://www.apa.org/monitor/2008/07-08/psychometric

Science faculty's subtle gender biases favour male students

https://www.pnas.org/content/109/41/16474 

7 Practical Ways to Reduce Bias in Your Hiring Process

https://hbr.org/2017/06/7-practical-ways-to-reduce-bias-in-your-hiring-process

Diversity in the Economics Profession

https://pubs.aeaweb.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1257/jep.30.4.221

Services

  • DIVERSITY & INCLUSION ADVISORY SERVICES

    Organisations are at different stages in their inclusive diversity journey and require advice that is contextualised to their journey and their required focus. 

    KAY Diversity and Performance supports our clients in assessing their current diversity approach and co-crafting a diversity journey that delivers on the inclusive diversity goals that are aspired for the organisation. The advisory services are built on the Integrated Diversity Model that forms the framework for scientifically researched methods for delivering on diversity objectives.

    1. ARTICULATE: the development of a clear inclusive diversity intent and charter that creates a firm anchor for inclusive diversity within the organisation's transformational journey (why?);
    2. ASSESS:  the current state of inclusive diversity within the organisation: e.g. what is diversity gap and why? is the culture inclusive?; are leaders inclusive leaders?; what are the inhibiting implicit biases and talent blindspots?; are the right metrics in place?; are supporting structures in place?;
    3. ARCHITECT: the design and enhancement of a holistic diversity and performance journey, built on scientific evidence of performance, and contextualised for the organisation;
    4. ADOPT: adopt inclusive diversity practices by way of pilots and interventions that raise awareness, translate to personal, team and organisational actions and result in performance; and 
    5. AUGMENT: achieved diversity result by celebrating results and flexing the inclusive diversity capability to reduce the diversity gap to transformational intent.
  • EXECUTIVE BOARD AND BOARD MEMBER COACHING

    1-1 Board Member and Executive Board Group Coaching around how to be effective and inspirational leaders of diversity, leading from the front, setting the values and example to others.

    The coaching sessions are led by a certified coach and the following themes are explored in 1-1 or group coaching sessions for leaders:

    1. Acknowledgement of own diversity (dimensions of diversity model);
    2. Self-evaluation against characteristics of inclusive leaders;
    3. Exploring and raising awareness on own blind spots, biases, mindsets and beliefs that lead to unwittingly excluding groups and/or individuals;
    4. Identifying triggers of in-group and out-group behaviour and means to overcome the triggers; and
    5. Practicing, so that the inclusive behaviour is a way of being and doing.

     

    The coaching aims to move leaders from being unconsciously unskilled as inclusive leaders, to becoming consciously aware of biases, and then through practice moving to becoming consciously skilled diversity leaders.

  • DIVERSITY LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

    Leadership development and training is developed and delivered to senior leadership and/or middle management around diversity. Key Themes are explored, including “How to untap Diversity in your Company”, “How to reflect your customer base through your workforce”, “How Performance Drives Better Performance Outcomes”, “How to Lead and Celebrate Diversity from the Front”.

  • RESEARCH AND PUBLICATIONS

    Independent research around diversity and performance and also in collaboration with specific clients and cross-industry clients, around the topic of Diversity and Performance.

  • GUEST SPEAKER EVENTS

    Guest speaker events by Kay Formanek at Company Diversity Functions, Women’s Day Events, Congresses etc. Kay Formanek is a regular and inspiring presentor and makes use of the latest research findings and case studies to underpin the topic at hand.

  • EXECUTIVE INTERIM FUNCTIONS

    Interim Executive Functions in the area of Change Management, Diversity Management and Program Leadership/Sponsorship are fulfilled on an interim or semi-permanent (retainer) basis.

     

 

                     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kay Formanek

Founder and Managing Director

Diversity and Performance

Kay Intro

Kay Formanek is advisor, author, coach and speaker on the transformational power of diversity to organisations and society.  Kay collaborates with leading business schools and coaches leaders around the world to tap into diversity of talent and to create a context of inclusion and positive performance.  The Neuroscience of Unconscious Bias and Diversity Leadership are the pillars of her work and presentations. Kay is Founder and CEO of Diversity and Performance, a company committed to create new insights and more conscious diversity leaders. She was Managing Director for 25 years at Accenture where she contributed to the agenda of Diversity and Inclusion and Talent Development.

Kay Formanek focuses on the relationship between diversity of talent, inclusive leadership and organizational performance. Her focus has its roots in her upbringing in South Africa and the post-Apartheid transformation under Mandela. Within Accenture Kay Formanek assumed Diversity and Inclusion lead in the Netherlands and was actively involved in creating an inclusive environment for diverse talent within Accenture and its large client base. Kay’s key focus and specialization is on the Neuroscience of Unconscious Bias and how to mitigate Unconscious Bias within an organization and within its leadership ranks. Kay collaborates with INSEAD and other institutions on various diversity initiatives and is a sough speaker and leadership coach on Inclusive Diversity. She has published research, articles and books on this subject.

 Detailed Resume

Associates

KAY Diversity & Performance is comprised of a global network of associates and research institutions, all with significant experience in the domains of diversity and inclusion, executive coaching, leadership development and research. All associates are united by a passion for diversity, follow a research based approach and bring international experience.

Associates of Diversity & Performance are all certified in the Inclusive Diversity and De-biasing Certification that has been designed, developed and delivered through KAY Diversity and Performance. This results in a seamless collaboration and shared vocabulary for the clients that we serve and results in inclusive diversity journey's that are robust in design, collaborative in approach and yielding the benefits of inclusive diversity in a sustainable manner.

Contact Us

Kay Diversity & Performance
E: kay@diversityandperformance.com