Creating a culture of diversity, equality and inclusion
International Women's Day on 8 March 2023, is a global day celebrating the social economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. It's a day to celebrate the inspiring women who helped shape today's progress and look towards the future.
The theme for International Women's Day 2023 is #EmbraceEquity. Equity isn't just a nice-to-have anymore, it's a must-have. By having more females in leadership positions, we will hopefully see economic and social advancements with wide-ranging benefits for the community and the workplace.
As owner and operator of Westfield destinations in Australia and New Zealand, we at Scentre Group, know our customers believe providing a fair and equitable workplace is one of the most important things we can do as a responsible business. (Source: Westfield 20233 iQ Responsible Sustainable Business Study)
We have implemented a range of initiatives to improve gender representation through our approach to recruitment, career development and policies. We are proud to announce Scentre Group is one of nine Australian organisations to be listed in the 2023 Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index (GEI) for the fourth year running.
The Bloomberg GEI measures gender equality across five pillars: female leadership & talent pipeline, equal pay & gender pay parity, inclusive culture, anti-sexual harassment policies, and pro-women brand.
Our 2023 GEI result of 79.4% is our highest ever score - above the global average overall score of 72.94%, above the REIT industry score of 69.38% (32 organisations) and above the average overall score of 75.19% for Australia.
Our CEO Elliott Rusanow explains: “Since Scentre Group was established in 2014, we’ve been committed to increasing female representation at all levels of management and across all functions.”
“We take a multi-disciplined approach to addressing gender equity, including pay equity, recruitment practices and culture and our Gender Equity Working Group.”
“We are well on our way to achieve gender equity across our business, and to meet 40% female, 40% male and 20% either gender (40:40:20) at all workplace levels by 2025.”
CEO Elliot Rusanow with the Scentre Group Female Leadership Program in 2023
One of our initiatives to improve gender representation is our Emerging Female Leadership program for developing female talent for broader roles across the business. This initiative is now in its second year with approximately half of the participants having received a promotion or transfer to new teams to expand their skills.
General Manager Retail Administration and Gender Equity Working Group Lead, Katie Paull said: “The program creates a unique opportunity for participants to broaden their business acumen and showcase their skills.”
“Aligned to our strategy and company ambition, the program encourages creativity and learning. It’s delivered in an environment where participants are supported and guided by the most senior leaders in our business to raise their future potential - so Scentre Group is the best place for talent to grow.”
Learn more about Scentre Group’s responsible business policies or explore a career with Scentre Group