The annual Dive In festival will kick off tomorrow as the insurance industry looks to make further progress in pushing for more workplace diversity and inclusion.

This year’s festival theme, “Local Voice, Global Impact”, aims to highlight the pivotal role local voices play in fostering changes across the world.

In Australia and New Zealand, a variety of events have been lined up for the three-day festival.

On the program tomorrow are four sessions, each touching on separate themes such as measures to improve workplace inclusion and balancing leadership through diversity.

Industry support for the September 22-24 festival has been strong, despite the pandemic disruption. Steadfast, Willis Towers Watson, Zurich and Marsh are among the major industry players that are sponsoring this year’s events in Australia and New Zealand.

Consultancy The Bridge International says companies that embrace diversity and inclusion as part of the culture will usually enjoy bigger commercial success.

“Culture sets the tone. It’s what people feel when they work for an organisation or deal with them as customers,” Partner Sara Elmstrom said.

She says organisations that embrace diversity and inclusion “have a solid platform for outstanding customer experience and employee engagement, in turn leading to sustainable commercial outcomes”.

For more on the Dive In events in Australia and New Zealand, click here.