DE&I – BEST COMPANIES IN EQUIPMENT FINANCE

Fully aligned with its strategic ambition, diversity, equity and inclusion are a cornerstone of DLL’s vision to be a purposeful and inclusive place to work. The company’s goal is to create safe workplaces in which each member (how DLL refers to its employees) feels respected, accepted, valued and welcomed for who they are. DLL believes its members’ unique perspectives, talents and qualities make the company stronger together.

DLL’s commitment to DE&I is evident throughout the organization, starting at the top. In 2022, CEO Carlo van Kemenade signed the CEO DE&I Action Pledge, a CEOdriven business initiative aimed at advancing DE&I in the workplace.

At the top corporate level, DLL’s current priority and focus are fostering an inclusive culture, improving gender balance at the leadership level, creating development initiatives for women and ensuring its hiring policy is current and balanced. At the local office level, DLL’s ambassador networks manage local context and initiatives applicable in their areas.

DLL prides itself on training and educating its members about DE&I through the “Understanding Our Differences” workshop, which focuses on diversity, and the “Building Bridges” workshop, which focuses on inclusion. DLL uses the education from these trainings to speak openly with each other while embracing others’ opinions and differences.

DLL also created an ‘Allies for Inclusion’ program. At DLL, an ally is any person who actively promotes and aspires to advance the culture of inclusion through intentional, positive and conscious efforts to make DLL an environment of inclusion. Unlike DLL’s global
DE&I ambassadors, who lead local member diversity networks and include enhancing diversity in their performance goals, anyone in DLL can become an ally. “At its core, allyship is the act of unlearning and relearning,” Iman Eddini, chief human resources officer and member of the executive board, says. “It is not an identity, but a lifelong process of building relationships based on trust, consistency and accountability with individuals who belong to historically marginalized or under-represented groups.”

At DLL, allyship is not merely an interest in helping people from disadvantaged groups, nor is it the befriending of people in those groups, including them in decision-making or performing a small collection of acts at one specific time. It requires ongoing effort and action — a unique blend of empathy, perspective-taking, decisiveness, advocacy and activism. DLL members can go ‘all in’ by completing a training that consists of several elements and modules around DE&I.

In many of its offices around the world, DLL budgets and leadership backs member-led committees. These committees focus on varying areas ranging from supporting working parents and caregivers, community involvement, well-being and DE&I.

These committees are empowered and encouraged to create member engagement and inclusion, which has created success over the years. In DLL’s U.S. offices, the DREAM (Driving Respect and Embracing All Members) committee leads several experiences throughout the year. One of the committee’s most notable events is the local office’s participation in the Capital City Pride (CCP) festival. DLL has seen its member participation increase year after year during this annual event, of which DLL is a sponsor. In 2021, DLL received the CCP Company of the Year award for its efforts and involvement.

DLL takes concrete action to ensure that DE&I is not just an idea, but truly anchored in the company. This starts with building awareness throughout the company and taking away unconscious bias through various methods including actively establishing local networks, organizing panel discussions and providing learning programs. •