Year after year, I’m amazed by the lack of diversity at the commercial real estate events I attend. It’s noticeable. It’s clear. Pre-pandemic, I consistently found myself at conferences filled with people who typically looked just like me. And if that left me feeling uncomfortable, I can only imagine how my underrepresented peers and colleagues must have felt. Yes, there’s been progress. No, it’s not coming nearly fast enough. As an ally, I know it’s my responsibility to do something about that.
This spring’s return to physical offices can generate new opportunities to build a more diverse, equitable and inclusive commercial real estate sector. As we’ve worked apart for the last two years, I’ve looked for ways to include more voices in our industry.
I’m excited about EY’s new role as a sponsor of the CREW Network here in Montréal. Its research agenda focuses on advancing women in commercial real estate; only 37% of the industry’s Canadian workforce is female. The network is also thinking beyond gender to cultivate inclusion based on race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. We specifically decided to target our sponsorship toward CREW’s mentorship program, feeling that this was a chance to focus our attention on the next generation of female leaders in the commercial real estate industry. We see this as an opportunity to enable women and others in our firm — and the industry at large — to tap into networking, mentorship and growth.
As we go back to in-person work environments, I’m hoping to uncover more ways we can join forces across the industry to ramp up our collective focus on diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I). When each of us commits to cultivating more inclusive ecosystems in offices, teams, organizations and associations, we can bring a richer chorus of voices, perspectives and people to the proverbial table every day.
I’m a big believer that while no one can do everything, everyone can do something. From how we recruit to how we build: there are a lot of ways to make our industry more inclusive. This spring, I’ll be looking inward and outward to find those opportunities and create additional momentum. We all can, by:
- Embedding inclusion as a core value in our physical workspaces. Everyone’s looking at their physical office space through fresh eyes right now. When you embed inclusion at the heart of design, you can design with a more diverse and equitable workforce in mind. How can your spaces reflect the nature and needs of your team today, the culture you are seeking to build, as well as the increasingly diversified talent you’d like to attract, recruit and retain next?
In our newest Canadian EY office, we’ll bring our EY@Work approach to life through collaborative spaces, flexible seating, informal areas and other adaptable layouts that allow our teams to come together and inspire progress. By acknowledging the unique needs of a diverse workforce through the type of spaces we provide, we can tee people up to succeed at work and beyond.
- Looking at our physical space with inclusion in mind. Creating a more inclusive industry takes a lot of collaboration. I’ve been fortunate to have key mentors in my own life illuminate for me ways that individual mindsets drive business outcomes.
Years ago, I was shocked when our managing partner here in Québec opened my eyes to the way job applicants view postings differently, with women feeling they need to meet all criteria before applying. That’s compared to men, who usually apply after meeting about 60% of listed requirements.
If that’s a gateway moment to building more female representation, consider all the different barriers our physical spaces might unknowingly reinforce. What kinds of access, location, programming or services could make our offices fundamentally more inclusive by catering to a broader cross-section of human needs? How can we work with one another to design new ways of addressing those areas?
- Connecting internal purpose with external recruitment. If you want to be different, you’ve got to act different. Recruiting the same old way won’t work in a tight talent market where more than half of Canadian employees will quit if not afforded the flexibility they seek. If you’re renewing the emphasis on inclusion in your corporate culture — and supporting it with frameworks, policies and programs, talent needs to understand those differentiators and how they connect to your organizational purpose. On the flip side, broadening where and how you recruit through new channels can help you access talent you may not have proactively approached in the past. The internal and external commitment to inclusion must go hand in hand.
The pandemic represents a pivotal moment in our history. We know that 48% of employees in Canada feel their work culture has improved since COVID-19 shuttered offices and sent folks home. This finding reveals a significant half of the workforce disagrees with that statement. Therein lies an opportunity to build something better.
