FAIRER Conference – Manchester 2025

DE&I has become toxic and divisive: How did we get to where we are today?

Honest reflections from the DE&I community

With DEI becoming politicised and divisive we ask our panel what does this mean for people leaders, how did we get here as an industry and what needs to be done to move forward and to bring people back together?

• Phillip McQuillen, Culture Diversity and People Lead at EON 

• Alicia McDonell, Group Head of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at Manchester Airport Group  

• Chelsea Slater, CEO of InnovateHer 

Workshop - How do we stop tinkering around the edges of inequity and instead drive systemic change?

Despite best intentions, many of the activities organisations take to address inequity are performative and lack meaningful impact. This interactive workshop examines and reimagines one key area of the employee lifecycle using the principles of appreciative inquiry. In a hands-on activity, participants will envision what a truly equitable and inclusive experience would look and feel like and then identify how it could be achieved within their organisation.

• Shagufta Sharif, Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Skipton Building Society
  Spotlight on data
  
  
• Brit Pickering, DEIB Manager at NESO
  Spotlight on impact
  
  
• Fireside chat with Phillip McQuillen, Culture, Diversity and People Lead at EON and Kane Joyce, Head of Workforce Strategy at Manchester City Council
  Spotlight on engagement
  Spotlight on engagement

Workshop – Build the skills required to be an effective D&I influencer  

How do we engage people in effective conversations that spark insight and inspire a willingness to confront and challenge personal beliefs and behaviour? Given the polarisation of views and hardening of positions that many people now demonstrate when it comes to DEI, this session will build a set of practical skills and techniques, grounded in principles of interpersonal connection and storytelling, that enable people to work through their resistances and to show up as authentic advocates of inclusive culture change. The session will provide participants with the opportunity to identify ways in which they can apply these tools to real life scenarios and different stakeholder groups with whom they need to engage and influence more effectively.

Keynote - What can get us through DEI’s current existential crisis