Equality, diversity, inclusion and belonging is not a box to tick. It is a business investment, and there are some things the law requires. Decide where to put your money, time and effort.
Bramwell Hotels is growing fast, from four hotels to twelve in two years. You have just been hired as Bramwell's first Head of People. Belle Hopps is teaching you the job before she steps back.
Investing in people costs money, time and, possibly, disruption now. The return comes later and may come slowly: more potential recruits, staff who stay longer, fewer employee disputes, and a business reputation for looking after people that attracts both customers and staff. Get it wrong, or fake it, and the costs are still incurred, through lost talent, high labour turnover, more staff disputes and a damaged brand.
Across four decisions you will judge how to invest in people well when the budget is tight. There is no single "nice" answer that always wins: what counts as best depends on the brief the board sets you.
A quick read of Bramwell's people data. Use it to spot where the problems are before you decide anything.
Illustrative data for Bramwell Hotels, invented for this activity.
The board has set aside a people budget of £250,000 for the year, to invest in better people practices on top of normal wages. It is not enough to fund everything to a high standard, so you have to choose where it does the most good. As you go, watch four things:
Bramwell already meets its legal duties: equal pay for equal work, and reasonable adjustments for disabled staff and applicants. These decisions are about whether, and how far, to go beyond the legal minimum, and where a real problem still needs fixing.
Bramwell's founder, Priya Vance, will hand you one priority for the year. It changes what "a good job" looks like. By default the board decides for you, just as in real life.
Bramwell Hotels, Belle Hopps, Priya Vance and every colleague in this activity are invented for teaching. No real business or person is portrayed. The situations reflect ordinary, well-documented people-management challenges in a growing service business, and all figures are illustrative teaching devices, not real accounts.
The people-management ideas draw on: the AQA A-level Business specification (7138); Acas guidance on preventing discrimination, inclusive workplaces, grievances and flexible working; GOV.UK on gender pay gap reporting and the Equality Act 2010; and the Equality and Human Rights Commission on equal pay, positive action and reasonable adjustments.
Your result is a judgement about your decisions. It is separate from the luck of any complication, which is shown above. "Substance" means how far a choice changes real policies, decisions or day-to-day practice, rather than only what the business says or displays.
These are the meters as they finished this time, including any complication.
The thinking this activity builds, in plain business terms.
Download a record of the brief you were given, the choices you made and how they turned out, with a few questions to think through. It saves as a web page you can open, print or hand in.
Bramwell Hotels and all characters are invented for teaching. No real business or person is portrayed. Situations reflect ordinary people-management challenges in a growing service business. Budget figures and measures are illustrative teaching devices. Ideas draw on the AQA A-level Business specification, Acas, GOV.UK and the Equality and Human Rights Commission (see the intro screen for links).