- Ajay Vij, Country Managing Director, Accenture in India, wins the Male Ally Legacy Award championing women’s advancement in the organization.
- Teleperformance emerges victorious for the Citizen of the World (COTW) program – a charitable initiative that seeks to generate a positive impact on local communities.
Mumbai, November 3, 2023: Avtar Group, India’s pioneers in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Consulting, announced the winners of the 2023 Avtar & Seramount Social Excellence Award and Male Ally Legacy Awards (MALA). The Awards were announced in Chennai at the seventh edition of Avtar and Seramount Best of the Best Conference 2023, India’s most respected conference on DEI.
The awards were presented by the Chief Guest, Honorable Minister for Information Technology and Digital Services, Dr Palanivel Thiaga Rajan. The Minister also recognized and honored the 2023 Top 10 Best Companies for Women in India and Most Inclusion Companies’ Champions.
Presenting the awards, Dr Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, Minister of Information Technology & Digital Services, Government of Tamil Nadu, Elaborating on the various initiatives taken in Tamil Nadu over the years to bring the state where it is today, said, “Many companies are repeat winners and there are so many companies winning awards in all the categories. You can only win an award here if you have the right culture. Creating and sustaining the right culture is the hardest thing to do, especially in large organizations, which have been around for decades. It is the distinguishing variable to the competitive edge that the companies have. If Tamil Nadu is relatively successful today, it is because we are unique in progress across economics, human development, and relative social equity. The root cause of all this started in 1920-1921 when the Justice Party was elected to power. Women got the right to vote and the right to stand for office. Elementary education became compulsory for boys and girls, along with feeding them to ensure they comply with compulsory education.”
The Best of the Best is an annual DEI conference conducted by Avtar Group, India’s leading Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) solutions firm. The Best Practices of the 100 Best Conference (BOB) is a celebration of the winners of the 8th Edition of the Avtar & Seramount Best Companies for Women in India (BCWI), Most Inclusive Companies (MICI), Male Ally (Men championing gender inclusion) and Social Excellence Award towards Inclusion of Women in local communities.
The Male Ally Legacy Award celebrates male allies who have spearheaded change in the mindsets and attitudes towards women at the workplace. Meanwhile, the Avtar & Seramount Social Excellence Award for is a recognition programme to identify and celebrate the most impactful social impact initiative amongst applicant companies. This award was conferred upon, Teleperformance for their COTW (Citizen of the World) program – a charitable initiative that seeks to generate a positive impact on local communities, particularly vulnerable children, and their families, through fundraising, in-kind donation, and volunteer work. They also focus on children who are PWDs and offer career rehabilitation to disabled soldiers.
Themed at #GlidetoInclusion, the seventh successive edition of The Best Practices of the 100 Best Conference (BOB) 2023 brought forth conversations on how organizations can #GlidetoInclusion while harnessing the power of diversity.
Speaking at the conference, Dr Saundarya Rajesh, Founder – President, Avtar Group, said, “To build an equitable future, we need not just the voices of change, but allies of action. We proudly celebrate the champions of a new era – those who recognize that the convergence of DEI with Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) as a business imperative and a non-negotiable standard. The convergence of DEI and ESG is a mandate for building a world where all voices are heard, all talents are valued, and every individual is able to rise to the fullest of potential. And when talent potential is unleashed to the optimum, innovation is bound to soar, which is indeed the need of the hour. From 53% companies in 2021 stating that having a diverse workforce has positively impacted their innovation revenue, the number rose to 77% in 2023. This indicator is set to cross the 100% mark by 2025.”
The one-day conference had over 30 speakers from different walks of life deliberating over key challenges, solutions in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion journey of achieving equitable workplaces.
