Multiculturalism and pluralism
Autogrill has always believed that its most valuable asset is people. With operations in 30 countries worldwide, the Group is multicultural and plural place where diversity represents richness and value added for the entire organization. This is why the Group has been working for years to foster a welcoming and inclusive workplace where differences are respected and everyone can express their uniqueness.
Diversity as richness
To pursue this goal, Autogrill promotes specific initiatives and has adopted various tools, including its Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Policy, which was drawn up in 2021 and extended to the entire Group over this last year..
The aim of the Policy is to provide insights, guidelines and goals for making our organization even more committed to inclusion, mutual respect and the enjoyment of diversity. The Policy’s field of application is wide, embracing disability and underprivileged categories in general, gender equality, equal treatment and non-discrimination, generational diversity, multiculturalism and the work-life balance.
One example of the Council’s work is its participation in Building Awareness of a Diverse, Equitable and Inclusive Workplace, an eLearning programme designed to disseminate best practice in the field of diversity in the workplace.
Another is its promotion of Selecting a Winning Team, a training course for managers that teaches an inclusive approach to personnel hiring and onboarding.
A culture of respect to go beyond prejudice
Various training and awareness programmes in the last few years have helped bring Autogrill people closer together on a journey towards greater tolerance, acceptance and mutual respect. A special focus here is on unconscious bias, those “mental short cuts” we take when in search of a quick fix. Such bias can lead to non-inclusive behaviour in, for example, interaction with bosses and colleagues or assessing people in their workplace. Special training - workshops, online sessions and other interactive methods – enables unconscious bias to be identified, so people can see how it may influence decision making in the workplace and then learn how to deal with it and mitigate its negative effects.
Raising awareness of the more common unconscious prejudices and devising strategies to manage them was a vital step forward for Autogrill in fact, enabling us to build an increasingly plural organization.
Other initiatives are moving in the same direction, such as helping people with disabilities to find jobs in Italy (in partnership con Auticon) and France.
A journey in continuous evolution
The Group’s commitment to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion is part of its wider policy on sustainability, as well as being in line with the goals of the Agenda 2030 by combating inequality and championing the uniqueness of the individual.
In nurturing a workplace increasingly respectful of people’s differences, Autogrill has also set itself some very specific targets, such as, above all, women having a 40-50% share of leadership roles by the end of 2030.