Ability

Why Ability?

The Ability network is for PwC colleagues with a work-related challenge, their leadership and allies. Together we look for practical solutions that provide colleagues with a work-challenge the opportunity to achieve success. Being open and good communication are keys to that success. Ability commits to opening doors, to increasing (digital) accessibility, to optimising processes for hiring new colleagues and to creating awareness. At PwC we don’t focus on the limitations, but on the opportunities and possibilities. That’s why we deliberately chose the name ‘Ability’. By using different language, we change the perspective which then changes behaviour. And that leads to more inclusion.

Meet Christijn. An athlete, content creator, creative and solver at PwC. Christijn is also a member of PwC's Ability network.

'It's not about how you fall, but how you get up'

Christijn Groeneveld

What activities does Ability organise?

Ability regularly organises activities for her members and other interested parties, where they can share experiences so they can learn from each other. For instance activities with themes like leadership, accessibility and empowerment. In addition, every year we highlight the different days that exist to address specific abilities. The Ability network also helps new colleagues with work-related challenges to get off to a good start and as they progress through their careers.

What does PwC do for people with a work-related challenge?

PwC is interested in the talent and not in the limitations. We don’t want to miss any talent, because the human capital is crucial to our organisation. We actively commit to hiring people who have a distance to the labour market and offering a sustainable job within our organisation. In the last few years we have been quite successful in sustainably placing a number of colleagues. We continue to dedicate ourselves to finding people with the desired profiles - highly educated and ambitious - and linking them with job opportunities within PwC. Over the years, we have already presented a variety of role models that we are quite proud of. Colleagues with different challenges who shared their inspiring stories, from visually impaired to dyslexia to parkinson. Furthermore, we formulated an ability strategy based on the PwC values and the needs of different stakeholders. We are very enthusiastic to get started with this strategy in the next few years!
In 2023, we started collecting data on employment challenges, gender identity, and sexual orientation. We were already collecting data on sex and the cultural background of our colleagues. In line with CBS, we have implemented a new definition for cultural background to ensure our data remains comparable.

Most important initiatives:

Awareness session with new colleagues. We are happy to support new colleagues with a work-related challenge for a solid start to the next step in their career.
Inclusive working environment, both physically and digitally. In the aid resource catalogue we have included an overview of all digital and physical tools available within PwC.
On International Accessibility Day and International Day for People with Disabilities we invite role models to speak and raise awareness for colleagues with a work-related challenge.

In 2023, we have started a callout for information in the area of work-related challenges based on the UN definition*. PwC is one of the first organisations to do this. We do this in addition to a callout for information on ethnic background, gender identity and sexual orientation. We ask all our colleagues if they are willing to voluntarily share whether they have a work-related challenge. This enables us to measure whether we are truly offering equal opportunities.

*= UN definition: Persons with disabilities include those with long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments that may hinder their full, effective, and equal participation in society due to various barriers.