NatWest Group’s Black Professionals Network (BPN) recently brought together a community of over 150 Black professionals from across 20 FTSE 250 companies including McKinsey, Deloitte, KPMG, Netflix, Barclays, Citi Bank and more at an inaugural event in London. We interviewed colleagues and BPN members Sharniya Ferdinand and Honey Ajuwon on the importance of the event and what’s coming next…
Q. How did the idea of this event, and creating a community of Black Professionals across different organisations, come about?
Sharniya: During lockdown I felt quite isolated and one of the things I did to alleviate that was catch up regularly with colleagues from NatWest Group’s Black Professionals Network, of which Honey is a co-chair. Those calls meant so much because we were able to share and discuss things impacting our careers, and we were able to share and celebrate our wins and support each other. Knowing the value I personally got from that network, it felt right to create something bigger that would have real meaning to our community, and also be able to show Black professionals that although in your day-to-day work it may sometimes feel as if you are the only one, actually there are so many other people who are working hard and who understand the experiences you’re having.
Honey: We were also really motivated by the positive change we’d seen happening around racial equity and inclusion from other organisations as well as NatWest Group, largely due to the work and support of Black employee-led groups in those organisations. We wanted to celebrate this work and harness the momentum for a greater purpose – and the best way to do this was to collaborate and bring Black professionals together.
Q. And the theme of the event - Black Visibility is Power – tell us more about that?
Honey: When we launched the bank’s Black Professionals Network in 2021, which aims to encourage psychological safety, provide well-being support and career development guidance to Black colleagues across NatWest Group, our launch event focused on Black Excellence. The event commemorated and celebrated Black people striving to be the best version of themselves. This year we wanted to build on that theme by bringing together Black professionals from a range of sectors and companies, and showcasing Black excellence, with a focus on how the power of visibility is driving change in our organisations.
Sharniya: We all know the phrase ‘representation matters’ and what it means for people from diverse backgrounds to be able to see people who look like them achieving great things. But to be able to do this, we need to be visible – both to our own communities, and to colleagues and senior leaders in our organisations. The Black Visibility is Power theme seeks to encourage, empower and champion the potential of Black professionals at large, by nurturing their aspirations and inspiring them to become future leaders.
