Frustrated with the lack of progress in ethnic minority representation on public company Boards, we approached Change the Race Ratio and KPMG with the idea of a Board Fellowship Programme aimed at building a pipeline of ethnically diverse Board talent for FTSE 250 groups.
The initiative was launched in November 2021 and we are now working on a pro bono basis to place Board Fellows on these Boards from outside the FTSE 350, having identified high calibre business leadership talent that was previously being excluded from sectors including the public and third sector, private businesses and international groups, membership bodies, regulators and other agencies.
The Board Fellows attend Board and Committee meetings with full access to commercial matters for a year – they have a voice but not a vote.
They are mentored by the Chair and other Board members, securing invaluable experience to position them for future FTSE 250 Board roles and are helping Boards to see the benefit of a diverse perspective in their deliberations and decision making.
We’re proud to be playing our part in shifting the dial which is core to our purpose at Warren Partners of ‘building diverse Boards and leadership teams to deliver positive sustainable change’.
