Why is Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DEI) so important to Aon?
As a leading finance and professional service business, our colleagues and colleague experience is fundamental to deliver business, societal and shareholder impact. Inclusion, diversity and culture are at the heart of the Aon story, with one of our three core values being “United through trust as one inclusive, diverse team”, with our Inclusive People Leadership Strategy having Diversity, Inclusion and Early Careers as three of the key strands.
For Aon, rather than being a separate stream of work, D&I is embedded in everything we do from our marketing, attraction and engagement, through to our assessment and selection and our onboarding, training and development.
Valuing diversity and inclusion at Aon is not about special treatment or meeting a required quota; it's about fair treatment and the availability of opportunities for all, and through this brings innovation to our clients through diversity of thought.
What is Aon doing to champion DEI?
At Aon, our Early Careers mission and vision embeds I&D into everything we do:
Mission: “We inspire and develop the next generation of inclusive leaders”
Vision: “We unlock the potential of the early careers talent pipeline by harnessing innovation & continuous improvement, igniting diversity of thought, inspiring collaboration, connectivity and community to drive Aon’s growth.”
We’re continually updating our process to increase inclusivity, some changes are highlighted below:
Marketing & Attraction
Widening attraction: Advertise at c.100 universities, nationwide student jobs boards, increasing inclusion and reducing self-selecting out
Diversity partnerships & events: Partnering to increase reach, though Bright Network, #10000BlackInterns, Stephen Lawrence Foundation, UpReach
Insight Programmes: Three insight programmes with Bright Network engaging with female, ethnically diverse and black heritage candidates. Programmes are 4-5 weeks and provide students an insight to our careers, skills development, industry insights, 1:1 mentoring and FastTrack for roles
Linking with Business Resource Groups & Aon programmes: BRG’s support events and developed strategies e.g. Diverse Future Leaders Programme.
Assessment & Selection
Focus on potential: Selection doesn’t assess experience, as this is impacted by background. We use unbiased assessments
Reduced focus on uncontextualized grades: Not giving extra credit simply for higher levels of attainment e.g. first class degree, due to the impact of background on these metrics
Fair consistent process: Candidates referred by Aon colleagues (inc. senior) undertake the selection process and meet the same benchmarks
Review of online assessment: Aon Assessment Solutions conducted a review of potential adverse impact Early Careers selection process, including making updates
Support: We proactively ask candidates at each stage of process if they require support or adjustments for a broad range of reasons
Are there D&I initiatives/networks for employees to join?
Our Business Resource Groups are voluntary, colleague-led groups, typically organised around a particular dimension of diversity or shared background. For colleagues, BRGs can offer connection, support and the opportunity to meet colleagues from across levels, business areas and locations around the world at Aon.
And for Aon, BRGs help give a voice to under-represented groups – enabling colleagues, managers and leaders to listen to different perspectives, build their cultural competence and understand what support is required to help every colleague succeed.
Our BRG's include: Aon Pride Alliance (LGBTQ+), Multicultural Network and Social Mobility Group.
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Find out more about Aon and their current opportunities here.