| | JUNE 2022MANAGEHRMAGAZINE.COM8In MyOpinionBy Kyra Patterson, Chief Human Resources Officer, AVANGRIDReflecting on the past two years, a few words jump out almost immediately: Unprecedented. Injustice. Divided. As a nation, we examined who we are and what we believe in, from the way we work to what ­ and more importantly, who ­ we stand for. This type of introspection, this upheaval, has influenced the entire employee lifecycle, from attracting and onboarding to retaining talent. We are in a critical moment ­ to take an inventory of what has been done, and what is being done, and to ask: Are we acting with intent? If not, how would it look different if we were? For AVANGRID, this meant recognizing where we are as an organization and tailoring our approach accordingly. We have made strong strides towards a more diverse and inclusive work environment: Our non-union employee populations have seen significant increases in women and people-of-color hires; we've promoted more women into senior leadership in 2021 than ever before; and we're offering structured flexibility through hybrid and remote work when possible. We know that we still have room to grow. Our current change and growth were made possible through our commitment to a three-prong strategy ­ building community, driving opportunity and creating and sustaining a diverse talent pipeline. We foundationally believe that our leadership is accountable to creating safe spaces to have real and authentic conversations, removing barriers and leading AVANGRID into improved performance as an outcome of innovation through diversity. Building Community With intention, we are building community both internal and external to AVANGRID. Internally, we've established seven Business Resource Groups (BRGs) since 2019, each led by a senior leader, to provide a safe space where our employees can raise important issues and celebrate the variety of different cultures, ethnicities and identifies. These groups are also avenues to embed diversity and inclusion into our DNA through group-organized events and communications. Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) Council, which launched in 2020, is made up of leaders from across our business and geographies, including the chairs of our Business Resource Groups. The Council provides stewardship of our DE&I agenda, leads efforts to embed DE&I into operating norms and advises on DE&I initiatives by integrating perspectives on culture, strategy and business priorities.FROM INTROSPECTION TO ACTIONOur diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives are still young, but we have a clear vision and goalposts to build an organization that reflects the communities we serveKyra Patterson
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