D&I Year in Review 2024
We are delighted to share our D&I Year in Review 2024, outlining some of our key success and initiatives over the past year. Click here to read the full document.
Since launching our global Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) strategy ‘in all that we do’ in 2021, we have taken significant steps to ensure the principles of diversity and inclusion are embedded in the way we operate as a firm. D&I is firmly recognised as a leadership priority and a core part of our strategy, our employee networks have grown, new D&I committees have been established, and we have introduced policies, procedures and training to actively support inclusive decision making.
We also strive to have a workforce as diverse as the societies that we live in. It is widely accepted that the legal profession must do more to accelerate the attraction, retention and promotion of under-represented talent, and at Bird & Bird we are no different. We are focussed on improving the diversity of our leadership so that it better represents the world around us.
This year we committed to reaching 30% women in the global partnership, our first public goal of this kind, which sits at the heart of our five-year business strategy.
We achieved Mansfield Certification for the third consecutive year, and launched our 10,000 hours pledge – where partners collectively pledge to spend at least 10,000 hours over the next five years contributing towards our responsible business agenda – as well as rolling out mandatory Working with Respect training for all our partners. These actions demonstrate how seriously we take the role of leadership in shaping an inclusive culture, and a willingness to be transparent about our progress.
Additional global highlights include our new global D&I induction training, SayMyName AI tool and Progress Through Pride podcast. Across our international offices, our teams have run initiatives including reciprocal mentoring, internships and data collection, alongside an ongoing calendar of events and training. We are delighted to share more information about these, and a selection of other initiatives and activities, in this report.
Turning our D&I strategy into a reality is a collective effort, it does not happen by chance. We rely on inclusion flowing through everyone’s behaviours and actions, every day. That is the foundation we work from – we all contribute towards creating a workplace where everyone feels safe and respected. That is part of what makes Bird & Bird such a fantastic place to work.
There is no ‘end point’ to building an inclusive and diverse firm, but it is a pleasure to take a moment to pause and reflect on what we’ve been able to achieve over the past year. We look forward to building on this momentum in 2025.
