Global banking giants, corporate leaders, British institutions and a major athletics apparel brand have all been named winners at the 2022 European Diversity Awards, (EDAs) held on Friday night London’s InterContinental Hotel.
The thirteenth event, sponsored by United Health Group this year, celebrates leading diversity and inclusion champions while recognising achievements across race, age, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity and religious belief.
It was a big night for banks as Silicon Valley Bank, Santander and BNP Paribas were crowned winners. Arsenal and Ukraine star Zinchenko was Post Office were crowned 10x Banking Diversity Team of the Year. The star-studded ceremony also saw the likes of Arsenal star Oleksandr Zinchenko, honoured for his incredible work to support his war-torn homeland. Gunners defender Zinchenko won the coveted Media Diversity Champion of the Year for his work to protest against the atrocious campaign being waged by Russia and President Vladimir Putin against his war-torn homeland of Ukraine.
DIVERSITY CHAMPIONS
FA Women’s Super League Chair Dawn Airey was also bestowed with a top honour at the ceremony, attended by songstress Emeli Sande and Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes. Amjad Khan from HSBC won the Ruebik sponsored Inspirational Role Model of the Year award while Santander’s Embrace Network were awarded with the Silicon Valley Bank UK partnered Outstanding Employee Network of the Year and Ama Ocansey from BNP Paribas took home the Haleon-backed Head of Diversity of the Year accolade.
Successful sports clothing brand lululemon took home the DeNovo Legal Services Marketing Campaign of the Year for their Blissfeel Shoe launch, which saw the company depict the imperfect and messy experience of running and celebrate the nuances of designing a shoe specifically for female runners: an enterprise which saw lululemon scan 1.2 million women’s feet to develop the optimum shapes for its debut trainer.
DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION PROGRESS
It was also a big night for football as Barclay’s FA Women’s Super League Chair Dawn Airey won the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award, sponsored by Collins Aerospace, for her work to advance the women’s game and for being at the top of business for over four decades, including as a non-executive director at Channel 4 and former CEO of Getty Images and Channel 5.
“These awards exist to shine a light on those who have worked tirelessly to champion diversity and inclusion during what has been an extremely challenging year, particularly with the cost-of-living crisis and spiralling food and fuel costs,” stated Linda Riley, Founder of the European Diversity Awards. “Every deserving winner has made real achievements in race, age, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or religious belief over the past year. The corporations and business leaders who picked up awards are dynamic and reflect the huge efforts corporate organisations are now making to improve diversity and inclusion. We should never forget how far we’ve come but there is still so much more to do.”
EDA’S 2022 WINNERS
This year’s winners and highly commended include:
lululemon Community Project of the Year
Winner: Warsaw Taskforce – Oliver Wyman
Highly Commended: Happy Smiles Training CIC
10x Banking Diversity Team of the Year
Winner: Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Team – Post Office
Highly Commended: European Employee Resource Groups – AMS
Sanofi HR Champion of the Year
Winner: Vitor Silva – InterContinental Lisbon
Highly Commended: Rebecca Roberts – Kellogg Europe
myGwork Social Mobility Initiative of the Year
Winner: Pathways to Consulting – Oliver Wyman, McKinsey, Bain and BCG
Highly Commended: The Social Mobility Foundation
Optum Charity of the Year
Winner: Anna Kennedy Online
DeNovo Legal Services Marketing Campaign of the Year
Winner: Blissfeel Shoe Launch – lululemon
Highly Commended: Color Carne – Bold Stories Italy
IHG Hotels & Resorts Supplier Diversity Programme of the Year
Winner: AB InBev
Highly Commended: Diageo
Silicon Valley Bank UK Outstanding Employee Network of the Year
Winner: Embrace Network – Santander
Highly Commended: Ethnic Diversity Network ERG – AECOM
EmployAbility Hero of the Year
Winner: Dinah Bons – Trans United Europe
Highly Commended: Linda Johnson – Kirklees Council
Ruebik Inspirational Role Model of the Year
Winner: Amjad Khan – HSBC
Highly Commended: Erika Vonderlinn – Avanade
Haleon Head of Diversity of the Year
Winner: Ama Ocansey – BNP Paribas
Highly Commended: Sarah Fennell – Macquarie
BP Diversity In Technology Initiative of the Year
Winner: Silicon Valley Bank UK
Highly Commended: News UK Tech
Media Diversity Champion of the Year
Winner: Oleksandr Zinchenko
Highly Commended: Sir Mo Farah
Abercrombie & Fitch Diversity Champion of the Year
Winner: Karen Bosher – Greene King
Highly Commended: Michelle Sequeira – Mercer
Deutsche Post DHL Group Company of the Year
Winner: London Stock Exchange Group
Highly Commended: London South Bank University Group
Collins Aerospace Lifetime Achievement Award
Winner: Dawn Airey
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Check out last year’s European Diversity Awards winners here.
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