Our goals for inclusion and diversity

An inclusive organisation for a diverse group of people

PwC’s ambition for inclusion and diversity

We aim to be an organisation that leads in inclusion that is an attractive place for diverse talent. To achieve those aims, PwC continuously strives to create an inclusive culture in which all employees feel engaged and can be themselves. A company where everyone has room to develop their diverse qualities and in which the expression of different ideas is welcomed.

We are acting to increase diversity in our workplace and encourage skills development to assure a broad appreciation of inclusive thinking and the value of diversity, inclusive action and inclusive leadership. Connection and collaboration are key at PwC and our policy for inclusion and diversity gives us the capability to bring different perspectives together in unexpected combinations. As a result, we build trust and deliver sustained outcomes together.

People make the difference

At PwC, we respect and value diversity. People from different backgrounds and perspectives who work together create true added value. For our clients, our colleagues and for society in general. We know that, ultimately, it's our people who make the difference.

Visible and invisible elements of diversity

We are committed to strengthening inclusion and diversity in the broadest sense. In doing so - via our networks, events and initiatives we focus on both visible elements of diversity (e.g. gender, ethnicity, physical abilities) and invisible elements (e.g. identity, sexual orientation, professional profile, values, personality traits). Inclusion is the starting point for all I&D programmes within PwC. Inclusion rather than diversity, as diversity is not key to collaboration, it is only through inclusion that you truly connect.

Setting objectives, monitoring and reporting

We support our policies by defining measurable objectives each year in relation to diversity within our organisation. This is based on historical data, current figures and the expected impact of I&D initiatives set up to support our strategy such as inspiration and awareness sessions, trainingen en training and coaching, and connection with our networks. Progress is monitored against the objectives throughout the year and adjustments made as needed.

In 2023, we have started collecting data on work-related 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.

Goals for diversity

We have set the following long-term goals for the percentages of female employees and colleagues from diverse cultural backgrounds:

30% female partners and 35% female directors in 2030
15% partners and directors from a diverse cultural background in 2030

To achieve our long-term goals, we set annual targets for intake, promotion and turnover. For instance, we aim to have women make up a minimum of 25% of all partner appointments and 35% of all director appointments.

Our challenge lies primarily in retaining and advancing both women and colleagues from diverse cultural backgrounds. To help achieve that goal, we’ve started sponsoring both target groups in an arrangement where a partner or director supports a colleague in their development within our organisation (read more about our sponsor programme here).

Our objectives contribute to the SDGs

PwC endorses the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. An annual assessment is made of which SDGs are most important to our stakeholders and we then select those where we can make the greatest difference. Two of our current focus SDGs are strongly related to inclusion and diversity: SDG 5, gender equality, and SDG 10, reduce inequality. The annual targets up to 2030 that we have defined for the percentage of women and colleagues from diverse cultural backgrounds contribute to these SDGs.

To respond adequately to SDG 10, we focus primarily on cultural background. In line with our attention for inclusion in the broadest sense of the word in which we focus on visible and invisible elements of inclusion and other aspects of SDG 5, 8, 10, and 13.

We also measure the progress made in contributing to the SDG goals each year with a custom-developed impact measurement method. Appropriate indicators are determined for each SDG, then used to calculate an impact score.