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Why? \u201cWe believe firmly that true innovation is achieved not in a vacuum but through the powerful intersection of ideas from employees from a wide range of diverse backgrounds who bring different ideas to the table, or the production floor in our case. We are a global company, supporting patients worldwide, and it\u2019s critical that our workforce is representative of those patients,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Building a diverse workforce and an inclusive work environment takes focus, investment and commitment, she says. \u201cIn MSD we support and accelerate our diverse talent through coaching, mentoring, on-the-job training and learning and development programmes. We believe it\u2019s not enough to simply attract a diverse workforce, it\u2019s critical that we support them and encourage them to reach their full potential through targeted, bespoke training and mentorship programmes.\u201d<\/p>\n
It still has work to do to ensure greater diversity, which is why it has identified a number of priorities for the coming years. For example, in \u2018operations\u2019 at MSD Ireland, the part of its business that supports medicine production, more men than women hold senior roles. This is in contrast to its plant manager population, the most senior roles in its Irish operations, where it achieves a better balance, with two women and three men.<\/p>\n
Why is this the case? \u201cWe all know that traditionally Stem subjects have attracted more male than female students. While this is starting to change and we are seeing this positive trend in our graduate intakes, it will take time for this to have an impact on our leadership demographic,\u201d Kenny explains.<\/p>\n
But there are other factors at play too which seem to inordinately affect women. \u201cWe\u2019ve heard also that certain roles, such as those in production operations, can be less attractive because of a perception that the shift-based, site-based nature of the work could mean less flexibility for those juggling busy work and life demands,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
This matters, because experience in areas such as operations is a great asset for high-performing employees, providing day-to-day experience on the ground and an all-round understanding of the manufacturing business, she points out. \u201cTherefore, as a company we are challenging ourselves as to how we can support the practical nature of production but build in greater flexibility.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pandemic has helped. \u201cThis year has certainly offered us a great opportunity to leverage technology to enable teams to be dispersed yet still operate effectively,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n