Respect at Work toolkit
Aviva is the world’s fifth-largest insurance group and the biggest in the UK. They are one of the leading providers of life and pensions products to Europe and have substantial businesses elsewhere around the world including Asia, America and Australia.

With the increasing globalisation of business, differences among the cultures of various nations can complicate interactions among business people from different nations. People of different cultures share basic concepts but view them from different angles and perspectives, leading us to act in ways that we believe are appropriate but that people from other cultures may not be comfortable with or may not understand.

An appreciation of cultural diversity enhances cross cultural sensitivity when working in an international environment and helps managers function in the increasingly global business environment.

Aviva are committed to creating a workplace of respect and inclusion with this in mind we were commissioned to develop a leading edge and innovative e-learning tool that would assist the organisation in raising awareness and competence in diversity and inclusion. This also included how to put their diversity values and principles in to practice in their global workforce and for the benefit of their customers.

We were commsioned as subject matter experts to provide information and develop new models and approaches which would position this tool as an interactive and stimulating resource for the organisation. The Respect at Work e-learning toolkit encourages and promotes a more inclusive workforce and in keeping with the Aviva principles the toolkit has been developed to ensure that it is transferable and transportable to other countries and nationalities.

This content included:

Diversity:
Diversity is about celebrating differences. Successful global organisations, such as Aviva, need to embrace the diversity of all employees, in all locations and recognise the benefits and richness that this brings to us all. Within this section we developed products to help disseminate the business case for diversity including, global demographic changes and how to embed diversity through best practice.

Respect:
Respect at work is a prerequisite to a healthy, creative and productive working environment, where the contributions and perspectives of all employees are value. As a core value of Aviva’s, Aviva wanted to explore how to reap the benefits of respect at work. We developed a bespoke training module that included a newly developed micro-inequities model with a focus on micro-advantages which will help employees to be reflective of the impact of their behaviour. An interactive e-learning game was especially developed for this section of the toolkit to highlight the link between diversity and respect.

Bullying & Harassment:
According to research, workplace bullying costs the USA $180M and Australia A$36 billion per year, this is a global issue that Aviva wish to combat as part of their toolkit. To support this the Global Diversity Practice provided learning tools to recognise and understand the complexities and impact of unacceptable behaviour and learn and discover positive strategies to address these effectively.

Multi-cultural awareness:
Multicultural Awareness is a greater understanding, sensitivity, and appreciation of the values, experiences, and lifestyles of different groups and cultures. Working in a global organisation, the importance of understanding the impacts of cultural values on business norms, practices and behaviours is a must. This area of the toolkit highlights these sensitivities through a selection of presentations and activities.

Sexual Orientation
An individual’s sexual orientation is a factor which attracts conflicting reactions and views of a varying nature globally. The purpose of this section of the toolkit is to raise awareness of the different legislations and workplace practises globally and link these in the Aviva culture of ‘respect’. This section of the toolkit presents best practice and evidence in organisations on initiatives introduced to combat prejudice as well as special programmes such as networks, L&D programmes. Commonly held myths and beliefs are highlighted and information provided to dispel the myths and raise understanding on being in a sexual orientation minority. Case Studies, quizzes, games, reflective activities, scenarios, reports and presentations were developed to facilitate employees learning and ability to translate in to every day working practice. This toolkit will be utilised across the world and is seen as an important part of Aviva’s diversity strategy and will help them to be an industry leader and an inclusive employer. This in turn will provide for the needs and requirements of its diverse customer base.