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Company headquarters:
CEO, Royal Dutch Shell PLC The Hague, the Netherlands
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Peter Voser | Royal Dutch Shell
Investing in diverse talent and bringing D&I values to new geographic heartlands will help Shell become the most competitive and
innovative energy company. Left: Peter Voser meets Shell’s employee network leaders in the U.S; Top right: Rima Saidi and Andrew
Brown (centre) are pictured with Deputy General Manager Sheikh Thani Al Thani (far left) and the HR team after receiving the award for
Shell’s efforts on ‘Qatarization’; Bottom right: Nanhai Chemical Plant, China.
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Shell sees diversity and inclusion at least 20% in the long term; inclusion and fairness issues in the
as interrelated, and believes that, to • Having local people fill more workplace.
achieve its aspirations, it needs to than half the senior management The survey, now conducted annu-
focus on both. positions in every country in ally among all employees, asks
which it operates; respondents to rate their agreement
The D&I framework • Continuously improving the or disagreement with the following
The framework upon which Diversity and Inclusion five statements:
Shell does its D&I work focuses on Indicator (DII) as measured • Where I work I am treated with
three areas – Talent, Leadership and by its annual internal Shell respect;
Competitiveness. These are repre- People Survey. • I am free to speak my
sented at the ‘Top of the House’. So how does the company assess its mind without fear of negative
progress towards those targets so far? consequences;
The gender target focuses on the • My organization has a working
progress of senior women with- environment in which different
in the organization, and here the views and perspectives are valued;
numbers are fairly encouraging. As • My organization has a working
of year-end 2009, women repre- environment that is free from
sented 14% of Shell senior man- harassment and discrimination;
agement globally, compared with • The decisions leaders in my
9.9% in 2005. However, the com- organization make concerning
pany concedes that things have not employees are fair.
moved as quickly as it would have Survey data is analyzed across mul-
Shell’s D&I Framework focuses on talent, liked – economic conditions and a tiple variables, including business
leadership and competitiveness. fragile pipeline in terms of market segment, function, job level, gender,
availability have tended to hold base country, and, in a few select
Shell’s need for talent now and back progress. countries such as the U.S., race/
a sustainable future supply makes Through its most recent reor- ethnicity. The DII is a very good
it essential for the organization to ganization the representation way for Shell to measure progress
broaden how and where it looks for of women in senior leadership on inclusion, as it assesses potential
talent, especially in growth markets increased slightly from what it was disparities among sub-groups as to
and regions. as of year-end 2008, even though how they perceive the inclusiveness
Diversity in its talent base and there are no women currently on of the culture.
leadership increases creativity, the Executive Committee. Shell
improves decision-making and helps stresses that the longer-term out- Embedding D&I at Shell
the company to better understand look is encouraging. The reorganization carried out
the needs of all of its stakehold- Shell’s progress towards its target in 2009 across the whole of Shell
ers, including customers, suppliers, on the employment of local nation- brought major changes to the way
partners and governments. als in senior roles has been encour- the company’s HR services are deliv-
aging. 2009 data showed that the ered, and, consequently, to the way
Global targets proportion of countries where local the organization developed its D&I
Having a clear set of measurable nationals hold the majority of senior strategy. In particular it widened
targets, backed by the commitment roles now stands at 37% of all coun- responsibility for delivering against
of its senior leaders, is a key factor in tries where Shell operates. D&I targets to more people across
Shell’s D&I progress to date. Shell’s third target, continuous the organization and brought D&I
The three key global targets for improvement of its DII score, draws closer to the everyday activities of
Shell’s work on D&I are: on information from five Shell Shell’s businesses.
• Increasing the proportion of People Survey (SPS) questions that While key elements of the Global
women in senior management to measure employees’ perceptions on D&I strategy remained – such as
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Peter Voser | Royal Dutch Shell
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What’s next for Diversity & Inclusion ?
has been appointed by the opera- from our experience in Shell Qatar The pilot workshop took place in
tor, the North Caspian Operating that a cultural awareness program March 2010, and was well received
Company, as an Agent Company would help this diverse team work by participants. Since then, the D&I
responsible for the planning and together more effectively. We also team has extended the program
development of Phase II of the knew that the earlier it was done, with a special workshop designed to
Kashagan project. Shell is also a the better for everyone. train facilitators – including Kazakh
partner in the NC Production “We therefore built on the content nationals – who will be able to take
Operations Company (NCPOC) from the Qatar workshop to create a the program to a wider audience.
BV, a joint venture with the program tailored to Kazakhstan. As Shell’s D&I work also contributed
Republic’s state-owned oil and gas well as learning the basics of cross- to its progress in the newly reopened
company, KazMunayGas. cultural team working, participants market of Iraq. Following the lifting
The project entails technical had the opportunity to talk and of international sanctions, Shell was
teams from many parts of the world learn about the Kazakh way of life, one of the first foreign contractors
working closely with local nationals. food and history. We also ensured to return to Iraq after winning the
Bernard Plaitin, Talent & Learning that we involved Kazakh nationals contract to develop the Majnoon
Manager, said: “We already knew in the workshop.” oil field.
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Peter Voser | Royal Dutch Shell
This oil field is located 60km other cultures, and particular infor- Developing Diverse Talent
north-east of Basra city. Shell won mation about Iraqi culture. One of the key motivators for Shell’s
the contract to develop the field in The workshops are now progress- work on D&I is to enable the
December 2009 and is now work- ing beyond the pilot stage and are company to attract, recruit and
ing there in a joint venture with planned to eventually become part develop the best possible talent
Malaysia’s Petronas Oil Company of the onboarding process for every- from the widest possible talent base.
and the Iraqi state partner, South one joining the project. So how does this work in practice?
Oil Company (SOC). As well as helping build rela- Shell has global recruitment
The project currently involves tionships with local governments targets of 50% women for commer-
150 Shell personnel with numbers and other stakeholders, Shell’s cial positions and 28% for technical
set to increase in 2011 – a mix of D&I values align closely with its positions. These targets may vary in
operational managers, trainers and corporate responsibility and sus- specific countries where local legis-
supervisors – who work alongside tainability goals. A good example lation would have different require-
their Iraqi colleagues at the oilfield of this is Shell’s partnership with ments and availability.
to improve capability, increase pro- the Nigerian government and the These targets are designed both
duction and raise standards, as well healthcare organization, Family to meet current and future recruit-
as support staff based in Dubai. The Health International (FHI) formed ment needs and maintain an on-
short-term goal is to take full opera- to help prevent the spread of AIDS going feeder pool of female talent.
tional control of the staff on site, in the Niger Delta. Recruitment, along with other
including contractual agreements Since it was set up in 2007, the development activities that support
and HSE standards. Going forward, partnership, known as Niger Delta the progression and retention of
the hope is that Shell practices will AIDS Response (NiDAR), has been women, assures Shell is positioned
be commonplace throughout the delivering comprehensive community- to make sustainable progress against
project organization over the next based care and treatment services at its global target of 20% women in
20 years. cottage hospitals in five states in the senior leadership positions.
In introducing these changes to Niger Delta. Its work has included Behind all Shell’s recruitment tar-
people’s ways of working, as well extensive counseling and testing of gets is the key principle of equal
as the obvious difficulties that stem individuals for HIV/AIDS, with opportunity at all levels, while tak-
from the security situation, Shell those who tested positive enrolled ing into account national norms
faces major cultural challenges. into comprehensive HIV services. and government policies.
However, Shell’s D&I awareness and In 2009 Shell’s work with the
experience have proved a great help. partnership was recognized Learning
As one of Shell’s D&I consultants when Nigeria’s Shell Petroleum Helping Shell become a truly
explained: “Shortly after the con- Development Company (SPDC) diverse and inclusive organization
tract was signed, we began discus- was named as the first winner of is about ensuring that all its people
sions with our partners on how we an annual award for Partnership understand and support the prin-
would work together. SOC made in Collective Action. The award ciples of D&I. To make this hap-
it clear that they wanted us to take came from the Global Business pen, the organization has a series of
steps to ensure that our people Coalition, a group of major compa- learning offerings, designed both to
understood their culture. Because nies that works to fight HIV/AIDS, raise general awareness of D&I and
of our experiences in other markets tuberculosis and malaria. to develop potential leaders from
– such as Qatar – we already had
written plans on how to do that.” “Visibility of role models for all under-represented
Building on previous programs on groups is key, and the more we can progressively
working across cultures, Shell’s D&I reflect all aspects of the demographics in the societies
team devised and piloted a one-day and countries where we operate, the more we will create
workshop. It covered both general an inclusive environment.”
James Dorrian, EVP Learning, Organization Effectiveness and
advice on working effectively with Diversity & Inclusion, the Netherlands
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“To accelerate progress in this area, I think there are two things
we can do. One is to be careful whom we appoint into senior
positions, because, ultimately, they have great influence over
under-represented groups from this subject. Second is the general pipeline. I think we have
within the organization. to look into the future and develop the type of talent pool
The Women’s Career Develop- that we need and start to adjust the balance way ahead.”
ment Program (WCDP) is a three- Tan Chong-Meng, Senior Business Leader, Singapore
day course offered worldwide. To
date, more than 2,000 Shell women courses on D&I specifically for peo- The various initiatives targeted
have attended. It aims to help ple working within HR: Knowledge diverse audiences, ranging from cur-
women to realize their full poten- of D&I (KODI) and Skill in D&I rent senior leadership team mem-
tial through self-knowledge and a (SIDI). bers to all employees, and together
better understanding of the career they represented a holistic approach
prospects open to them. Supporting the career development to overcoming barriers to women’s
Another important learning tool of diverse groups progress.
for Shell’s work on D&I is a series Over the years, Shell has fostered One of the 2006 interventions
of seven ‘Lunch and Learn’ sessions a number of initiatives to support involved a focused effort to have at
that offer participants the opportu- people from under-represented least one qualified woman on the
nity to deepen their knowledge of a groups in reaching their full poten- short list for 70% of managerial
variety of D&I topics. Each session tial. One of these was a major proj- positions in the U.S., U.K., and the
runs for around 90 minutes, dur- ect on the Progression and Retention Netherlands.
ing which time participants actively of Women in Shell, which began In addition, a series of pro-
engage in a variety of small and large in 2005 with a survey conducted grams were initiated to strength-
group activities. The seven topics among employees that looked at bar- en or widen the scope of Shell’s
are an introduction to D&I, plus riers to women’s advancement. best talent management practices.
specific sessions on gender, micro- The research took place in the Key activities included encourag-
inequities, generations, disability, Netherlands and the U.K. However, ing more high-potential women to
cultural thinking and sexual orien- its findings were combined with attend the WCDP, reviewing and
tation. Currently, over 200 Shell those from other Shell studies, adjusting female representation in
staff globally have been trained to including one from the company’s attraction and recruitment activi-
facilitate these programs. global IT organization, in order to ties for Graduates and Experienced
Further education for line manag- produce a Shell-wide picture of the hires, and developing a standard
ers and supervisors takes the form of current situation. exit interview template/process with
Shell’s Managing Inclusion course. Recommendations for actions specific D&I related questions.
This one-day, instructor-led class were then made and rolled out Another major initiative aimed at
is designed to help managers maxi- first in the U.S., U.K., and the helping under-represented groups
mize their teams’ effectiveness, and Netherlands, only to be adopted reach their full potential was the
provides tools to enable participants eagerly by the global businesses, development of Shell’s Asian Talent
to create the kind of inclusive envi- which made many of the activities Council (ATC).
ronment in which all employees can part of their D&I plans. Ultimately, For Shell, Asia represents a sig-
perform their best work. the activities were applied across nificant part of the portfolio in
Finally, Shell recognizes the key most of the 90+ countries world- terms of both current contribution
role played in talent development by wide in which Shell operates today and growth potential. For this rea-
the HR organization, and runs two with a very consistent approach. son, Shell has been placing increas-
ing emphasis on developing its
“My sense is that it is too easy for people to lose perspective – pipeline of Asian talent. The ATC
they get caught up in their daily work and put D&I to the back is the primary regional body that
of their minds. So we need to strengthen our focus in this area. supports and directs these efforts,
This is difficult because the results we want won’t be achieved in working across functions and busi-
a day or a week – we need a continued effort over a long period, nesses to facilitate the development
and must make this an important part of what we do.”
Peggy Montana, Senior Business Leader, United States
of an integrated virtual market-
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profile
Peter Voser, Shell’s CEO, has been in his role for almost a year and a half. During
that time he has instituted major structural and cultural change. So how have
these changes affected Shell’s long-standing commitment to D&I?
place for Asian talent. development by helping to identify in support of common goals and
ATC activities include regular and address key coaching and devel- interests that are aligned with busi-
reviews of the demand inventory of opment themes. ness objectives. At present, more
upcoming jobs, and active ‘broker- Alongside these major initiatives, than 40 such networks are active
ing’ to facilitate cross-business/func- Shell has also encouraged the devel- across the Shell world. Importantly,
tional moves. The ATC also works opment of diverse talent by its as well as helping the company
with Shell’s Global Recruitment strong support for employee net- work towards its D&I goals, these
team to help resource external Asian works. These are voluntary groups networks also provide a valuable
talent, and supports Asian talent of employees that come together channel for communicating with
many different employees. As men-
tioned above, when he took on the
“Over the years, I’ve learned that smart people who CEO role, Peter Voser made engag-
are good leaders attract smart people. ing with employee network leaders
They’re not threatened by intelligence or a component of his information
diversity – they harness it. So, surround yourself with gathering, and their support proved
people who are different from you,
and smarter than you. And nurture them.”
valuable to the Transition 2009
Ann Pickard, Senior Business Leader, Australia change program. PDJ
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