At AKG our purpose is to empower the people and communities we work with every day, regardless of gender, sexuality, age, disability, neurodiversity or background. And for us to serve these communities effectively, we must reflect their diversity in our own workforce.
Diversity
Innovation
Ensuring diversity, equality and inclusion in the workplace is not only right, but it also drives innovation and value for all our businesses, helping us understand and respond to the current and future needs of our customers, stakeholders and clients.
Our commitment
We are committed to:
building a diverse workforce with different backgrounds, perspectives, life experiences, gifts and challenges
improving the engagement, retention and promotion of the talent we have
creating a safe, inclusive workplace where everyone can do their best work and feel they belong.
Key Statistics
64
Of our team are women
78
Different languages spoken to aid communication with our clients
16
Of our team members identify as First Nations
10
Of our team are people with disability
55
More than half of our leaders are women
CEOs for Gender Equity
AKG is committed to gender equity and boosting women’s participation within the workforce. Currently, AKG has 51% women as leaders. Nic Fairbank our Group CEO has been a CEOs for Gender Equity (CGE) Board Member since 2019 and the AKG is well placed to drive forward gender equity, raise the percentage of women leaders within AKG and inspire others to do the same. Within our businesses we support women to train, access assistance, and get meaningful employment whatever their background and life experiences.
A real future
The Real Futures Women’s Business Second Chance Hub is our specialist First Nations service in Western Sydney, Kempsey and Carnarvon, that provides culturally safe, women’s only spaces and helps women overcome gender-based barriers to education and employment; creating scalable learning and employment pathways. This service is supported by UN Women, the BHP Foundation and the Angus Knight Foundation.
What reconciliation means to me is “all of us together” it’s going to take everyone to play a part in being successful.
Marty Chambers, Indigenous Engagement Manager
Empowering First Nations peoples
AKG has a rich 30-year history of helping First Nations peoples into fulfilling employment, building capability through our training business, and proactively partnering with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in Australia to deliver employment and economic development outcomes across a range of major human services contracts.
We are no less committed to these outcomes in our own workplaces and business operations.
I enjoy being part of a team that’s involved in changing attitudes and creating work environments where Indigenous people feel welcomed, supported and respected.
Manuela Todisch, Indigenous Program Manager
Practical action for reconciliation
AKG’s Australian Reconciliation Action Plan is underpinned by four principles:
Relationships: We are committed to earning the trust of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, organisations and stakeholders nationally by working inclusively and in true partnership with communities.
Respect: We are actively growing our cultural awareness of the richness and diversity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, and embedding protocols that value, uplift and celebrate First Nations customs and practices.
Opportunities: We strive to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as we create innovative and inclusive strategies that increase Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander participation in sustainable and satisfying employment, meaningful training and successful career transactions with Angus Knight Group.
Governance: We are committed to actively driving the development, implementation and ongoing review of a Reconciliation Action Plan that supports our organisation’s business plan, so that Angus Knight Group is continually supporting the national reconciliation movement.
Reconciliation strategies
The plan includes strategies to ensure inclusion and enhance the experience of all our employees by:
establishing traineeships for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders people
offering mentorship for our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees
providing cultural awareness training for all Angus Knight Group leaders and employees.
Culturally appropriate workspaces
We aim to celebrate the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community through culturally appropriate workspaces that feature, at the entry point of each site:
an Acknowledgement of Country and First Nations peoples, and the Uluru Statement from the Heart
a framed language map.
We demonstrate respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples by observing cultural protocols including Acknowledgement of Country and Welcome to Country at all events.
The employee experience
We improve the experience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait employees by having an online network that meets regularly to consult on employment and retention strategies, including targeted professional development opportunities.
We have developed a 12-month Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander calendar of cultural events and celebrations and actively encourage staff to participate, particularly in NAIDOC and Reconciliation week.
We have increased the understanding, value and recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, histories, knowledge and rights through cultural learning by:
offering an online cultural competency package as part of our induction process
creating an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander resource page on our group intranet
promoting Reconciliation Australia’s Share Our Pride online tool to all staff.
Strengthening First Nations participation in our business
Our Indigenous Participation Plan (IPP) enables Angus Knight to strengthen and broaden the work we do to create employment pathways and outcomes that enhance economic opportunity for First Nations peoples across Australia.
The plan allows all businesses across the Angus Knight Group to:
maximise employment and career development opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders
support Indigenous businesses by firmly embedding Indigenous-first procurement practices in our processes, and through partnerships, collaboration and Indigenous-focused supply chain enhancements.
Four pillars
Across the group, the plan is focused on four pillars:
people and culture
partnerships
procurement
performance
We are proud of the commitment we are making as a business to First Nations peoples, and look forward to strengthening our current relationships as well as forming new relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals, communities and partners.
Help us build solutions that work
Our team is always exploring new ideas and opportunities to build meaningful solutions with real impact. We work best co-designing with employers, local stakeholders and people with lived experience. Connect with us to explore how we can work together for change.
AKG is privileged to work in many countries across the globe. We acknowledge the traditional owners and First Nations people for all those places and recognise their connections to lands, water, sky, and community. We are dedicated to learning about local Indigenous People and culture, to sharing what we learn, and to listening and respecting Indigenous voices. We pay our respects to them, their elders and their cultures.
