Elisha Kirkham

CRN: What's the most pressing issue preventing progress with diversity today that no one's talking about?

EK: "Outside of the obvious (closing the pay gap, proactively working to build more inclusive work environments etc), I think we're unfortunately on the brink of entering our ‘diversity fatigue' era. Diversity and inclusion has been such a hot, top of the agenda item for so many of our organisations for a number of years now, but I sometimes fear that key messages and impactful lines of thinking that should be informing our strategies as organisations can get lost in and amongst the volume of conversation.

"You only have to open up any social media app on your phone to be immediately hit by some form of D&I related content or advocacy (guilty as charged, just look at my LinkedIn..), and I am torn on how I feel about it. On one hand, I'm of the school of thought that the more voices the better, that we should be shouting about these topics from the rooftops until we see the necessary change. But on the other hand, I worry that the sheer volume of content and conversation around the topic risks the people who arguably need to hear and engage with it most, switching off and it essentially just becoming white noise. Intentionality and clear direction in the conversation is key."

CRN: How much progress do you believe the industry has made in diversity since you started working in IT?

EK: " I think we can all confidently say that we still have some way to go in the D&I space, but across my ten years working in the industry we have absolutely made significant and undeniable progress.

"From the notable increase of women in leadership roles, to the fact that the large majority of organisations are now proactively working to build in mechanisms that hold them accountable in this space are all fantastic indicators that we're seeing things move in the right direction. The work from here needs to be focussed on an industry-wide, conjoined approach to sharing best practice, and engaging the right people in the right conversations so that we can continue to see that momentum build."

CRN: What should senior management teams be doing more of to help create a more inclusive industry for everyone?

EK: "I am a big believer in the fact that upskilling managers on how to proactively work to foster environments of psychological safety within their teams and their organisations as a whole is at the very core of us successfully creating more inclusive workplaces for everyone. I truly believe that as leaders we have a responsibility to create environments that hold belonging at the heart of them, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, or disability.

"In my experience, working to foster an environment that is psychologically safe for all acts as the bedrock for that. I like to think of it as laying the foundations of a house. Until you have an environment in which people feel that they are truly and authentically enabled and empowered to be their full selves, all of the things that as managers and leaders we consistently strive for – team success, optimal performance, impactful collaboration and communication – are going to be much more difficult to achieve. Finally, I believe working, through both conversation and education, to breed cultures of curiosity rather than judgement, of leaning in in contrast to leaning out, and actively role modelling this consistently at the highest level, is integral."

CRN: How did you first get into the IT industry?

EK: " Honestly? By complete and utter accident! I left university at 21 with zero clue what I wanted to do with my life, decided to take a year out to try and "figure the whole life thing out" (still doing this 10 year later at 32..), knew I had to get a job to pay the bills in the meantime, and that job just so happened to be on front desk reception in Softcat's Manchester office. I'd never had the technology industry raised as a potential option for me up until that point, and probably would have laughed in your face if you had told me then that I'd be sat here 10 years later so energised and passionate about enabling diversity in this industry that I've spent the last decade falling in love with, as I was (and probably still am) the biggest technophobe I know!"

CRN: Do you think companies should be compelled to publish ‘ethnicity pay gap' data?

EK: " I believe so. It feels like the natural next step in the positive movement we've seen since the mandating of gender pay gap reporting."

CRN: Who have been your biggest role models in your professional life, and how have they helped you to succeed?

EK: " It's genuinely impossible to name only a few, as I have been incredibly lucky throughout my career to be consistently surrounded by inspirational leaders and mentors, each with a completely different leadership style and viewpoint from which I've been able to learn from and grow. That being said, what they have all unquestionably had in common has been a strong sense of self and connection to their values system.

"That has been one of the biggest learnings I've taken with me throughout my career, specifically as I've progressed into leadership roles, doing the work to truly understand yourself and what you stand for at your core so that you're then able to build that into everything you do, every decision you make, articulate it effectively to your people and teams, and as a result allow you to take them on that journey with you. I suppose you could wrap it all up in one word: purpose."