Press Release - Diversity City Launch

American Launches Site Promoting Diversity in United Kingdom’s Legal and Financial Services Sectors

Author: Amos Jones, Contributing Editor
Published: March 29, 2007.

LONDON, March 29, 2007 — Stuart Young, a third-year Doctor of Laws candidate at Harvard, announced today the official launch of the Web site Diversity City, www.diversitycity.org.uk. Dedicated to promoting diversity awareness in London’s legal and financial services industries, Diversity City includes interviews with diversity consultants, executive summaries of books and articles on diversity, and links to diversity news.

Young said the idea of an online diversity resource came to him after an interview with a British firm recruiting at Harvard Law School last year. “I was speaking with a partner of a firm that did not have a diversity committee,” Young recalled. “I simply explained some of the theories on diversity I had learned from my Harvard professors, and the partner told me that I had made the best argument for a diversity committee that he had ever heard. Although I took this as a compliment, I realized that the conversation around diversity in the UK was only beginning to take off.

“I want Diversity City to be an easy-to-use, one-stop site where diversity officers and senior managers can get clear and concise advice on the benefits of diversity initiatives without having to spend a lot of time researching the details or hiring consultants. And it’s free, so it’s a great value for the money.”

With writers and editors on three continents, the site already features informative commentary from some of the world’s most effective leaders in diversity. Carl Cooper, Chief Diversity Officer at the 1,400-lawyer global firm of Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Gates, is quoted in one transcript as advising on his approach to diversity. “You need to identify where your firm is and where you want to go,” he explains. “Are you going for diversity because you believe it will help the bottom line? Or will it give you a sense of moral superiority because diversity is the ‘right’ thing to do? So you have to come to terms with what you’re trying to do in order to have a successful program.”

When asked whether this Web site could decrease demand for the services of diversity consultants in the UK, Young said that he hoped to have the opposite effect. “I’ve spoken to black lawyers in Britain, and they’ve told me that the diversity consultants in the UK, although on the right track, don’t have the same theories or practical experience as their American counterparts. So the content I’m offering isn’t currently available on the British Market. But as the Web site grows in content and name recognition, conversations around diversity should increase in prominence in London.”

This, Young hopes, will stimulate overall demand for diversity consultants, who will be necessary in order to tailor diversity initiatives that will be the most effective for individual firms.

So far, the response to Diversity City has been overwhelmingly positive, Young said. Several MPs, including George Osborne, the Shadow Chancellor, have commended Young for his promoting diversity.

“As we complete with China, India and others, British businesses will need to foster diverse and flexible work environments to help them flourish in international markets and attract foreign investment into the UK,” Osborne said. “I'm glad to see that Mr. Young is promoting the opportunities that are available through diversity, and I wish him every success.”

Former Labour MP Oona King was optimistic, as well. “Diversity initiatives are an excellent way to combine social justice with economic growth,” she said. “It's critical that businesses in the City create multicultural work environments in order to have access to the best talent in Britain. … I applaud the work of Diversity City.”

Young says he’s keen to expand the Web site by working with City businesses. He encourages any diversity officer to submit relevant articles and other resources. Young can be reached at stuart@diversitycity.org.uk.

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