Community outreach
Uncovering exceptional talent
3 min read
It’s time for our workforces to reflect our society. Let’s make it happen.
Talent is everywhere, opportunity is not. At Multiverse, we provide equitable access to economic opportunity, for everyone.
Our commitment
Absolutely everybody deserves to find their own path to a life of learning and a top career. That applies to Multiverse’s own people as much as the apprentices we support.
As we build a better system, we commit to making sure diversity, equity and inclusion are driving forces in all we do – from the design and delivery of our programs, to our recruitment, to our culture, to our learning and development.
What do we mean by diversity, equity and inclusion?
Diversity
Diversity includes the full spectrum of human difference and is about ensuring organizations are representative of the communities they serve.
Equity
Equity is about providing individuals with fair access to opportunities and resources by meeting their needs and counteracting systemic barriers.
Inclusion
Inclusion is the feeling of belonging within the workplace, creating a culture where individuals feel valued, respected and encouraged to fully participate.
Our Apprentice Community
To build the diverse, equitable and inclusive workforces of the future, we have a three pillar strategy: widening access to apprenticeships, creating an inclusive learning environment and designing inclusive programs.
Our Vision
We are breaking down an old system – and building a better one. To do that, we are committed to leading the way in inclusive hiring and making sure everybody has the pathway to success.
Widening Access to Apprenticeships
We're committed to widening access to apprenticeships for individuals currently underrepresented in the sectors we work within. When recruiting apprentices to place with our clients, we have a dedicated Community Outreach Team building partnerships with schools, charities and youth groups to reach exceptional talent.
Multiverse and OneTen work collaboratively to create new pathways for Black individuals through apprenticeships. OneTen is a coalition of leading executives and their companies who have committed to upskill, hire and advance one million Black individuals over the next 10 years into family-sustaining jobs with opportunities for advancement. As an endorsed talent developer we’ll support their mission by providing Black individuals with full-time jobs and training through professional apprenticeships at OneTen partner companies.
When partnering with clients to upskill existing employees, we work closely to support them to reach individuals within their organizations who may be underrepresented in certain areas of the business, for example supporting women to develop the data science skills to progress into technical roles.
Creating an Inclusive Learning Environment
As part of the Multiverse applied learning model, each apprentice has their own Multiverse coach providing personalized sessions throughout their apprenticeship journey. Our coaches and curriculum are targeted at equipping apprentices with both the technical and durable skills necessary to navigate the full range of workplace opportunities and challenges. Additionally, our dedicated Apprentice Support Team also provides learning strategies, exam adjustments and referrals to mental health support as required.
Community is a core pillar of the Multiverse experience. It's how our apprentices create a powerful network of peers. Through inspiring and thought-provoking events and content, our community amplifies a diversity of voices. These include activities led by our apprentice Women's Network, LGBTQ+ Network called Prism, Multicultural Network and Neurodiversity Network.
We know that not everyone will have access to mentorship through their personal networks, so we're delighted to offer Multiverse apprentices both a mentoring programme delivered by industry professionals and a buddying scheme. Our latest community programme, Elevate, empowers apprentices to develop their public speaking, influencing and leadership skills – all vital tools for career progression.
We also welcome guest speakers like Kyne, a star of Canada’s Drag Race, YouTuber, TikTok Sensation and Mathematician and host topical panel events on issues that impact our community. The team works closely with the partners and community members to ensure content and speakers are representative of the diversity of our community’s identities, interests and industries. These events celebrate difference, build an inclusive environment and support apprentices to develop personally and professionally.
Designing Inclusive Programs and Curriculum
We are committed to designing apprenticeship curriculum and assessments that are consistently accessible and inclusive. To achieve this, we launched an Inclusive Programming Taskforce within our Learning Team. They are in the process of rolling out our Inclusive Programming Framework which will be applied to all aspects of the learning journey.
We're excited that our Alumni Team are building a community offer for all Multiverse alumni. As part of this work, we will be seeking to deepen our understanding of the long-term impact of a Multiverse apprenticeship on a learner's career. DEI will be core to this work as we know from external research that there is a range of barriers individuals from underrepresented groups face regarding career progression. As part of this project, we'll work towards having the robust, long-term data we need, to design alumni opportunities that will support all of our apprentices to achieve their goals, far beyond graduation.
Impact Report 2023
We continue to transform the diversity of the corporate workforce and in our Impact Report 2023 we share further progress in this space. We look forward to updating this page in due course.
Gender
Apprentices placed by Multiverse
- Women 46%
- Men 48%
- Non binary+ 3%
- Unknown 2%
Existing employee apprentices at Multiverse
- Women 46%
- Men 34%
- Unknown 20%
Ethnicity
Apprentices placed by Multiverse
- Asian 9%
- Black 50%
- White 10%
- Hispanic/Latinx 14%
- Multiple ethnicity 11%
- Other 2%
- Unknown 3%
Existing employee apprentices at Multiverse
- Asian 9%
- Black 44%
- White 16%
- Hispanic/Latinx 1%
- American Indian or Alaskan Native 1%
- Unknown 29%
Apprentices who are disabled or have additional support needs
Apprentices placed by Multiverse
- Yes 10%
- No 82%
- Unknown 8%
Existing employee apprentices
- Yes 4%
- No 62%
- Unknown 34%
Indicators of socio-economic disadvantage
Apprentices placed by Multiverse
- Apprentice meets 1 or more indicators of socio-economic disadvantage 52%
- Apprentice meets no indicators of socio-economic disadvantage 48%
Existing employee apprentices
- Apprentice meets 1 or more indicators of socio-economic disadvantage 24%
- Apprentice meets no indicators of socio-economic disadvantage 76%
Our Workforce
We want to be a leader in DEI, so we’re working hard to drive the change we want to see in the world, inside Multiverse.
Our Vision
As we approach 700 employees globally, we're putting DEI at the centre of our rapid growth. This means building a diverse workforce at all levels of our organization – and creating a working environment where everyone can thrive.
Recruitment
Everything we do in this space is undertaken with the goal of being representative of the geographies in which we operate – and our apprentice community. Gender diversity has been a long-term challenge for the tech world. We're proud that 56% of our US Team identify as women, this increases to 64% of our Global Leadership Team (director level and above). We're also proud of our thriving LGBTQQIAAP community, comprising 19% of our US Team.
We continue to invest in early talent through our own apprenticeship program – something we know is a fantastic route into our organization for exceptional talent from a diversity of backgrounds.
Last year we identified improving the diversity of our Global Leadership Team (director level+) internally as an area of focus. Steps that we took included introducing robust DEI monitoring processes, rolling out Inclusive Recruitment Training to all staff involved in hiring, and launching our first internal, Global Leadership Accelerator program.
In the last 12 months, the representation of colleagues who identify as Black, Indigenous or People of Color (BIPC) at director+ levels, globally, has increased from 6% to 19%. This is good progress but we still have work to do and are committed to building a leadership team that is representative of our wider workforce and of the communities we serve.
Data definitions and methodology:
Hispanic/Latinx: We're collecting this data in line with the US Census Bureau which explains that 'Hispanic origin can be viewed as the heritage, nationality, lineage, or country of birth of the person or the person’s parents or ancestors before arriving in the United States. People who identify as Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish may be any race.' As a result, the percentage of individuals who are Hispanic/Latinx should not be added to the percentages for other categories.
Neurodivergent: Neurodiversity describes the idea that people experience and interact with the world around them in many different ways; there is no one "right" way of thinking, learning, and behaving, and differences are celebrated. Neurodivergence might include dyslexia, ADHD or autism as examples.
Development & Retention
To create a working environment where everyone can thrive, all Multiverse staff receive Diversity, Equity & Inclusion training from the point of induction with regular sessions throughout the employee lifecycle. Like with our applied learning model, we believe regular reflection, implementation and continuous improvement is crucial to creating an inclusive environment where all staff and learners can thrive.
We launched our first internal Leadership Accelerator as a route for internal talent from backgrounds currently underrepresented in our leadership team to grow within our business as we scale. This is a 12 month program where each participant is paired with a member of the Senior Leadership Team to take part in a structured mentorship and sponsorship relationship. In addition, participants complete bi-monthly training and group coaching.
Culture
At Multiverse, DEI is underpinned by both our social mission and our values. We celebrate differences, embrace the diversity of our colleagues, and enjoy learning from one another. Through our annual inclusion calendar, we have regular opportunities to educate ourselves on a range of topics through book clubs, events and webinars, including our Accessibility & Inclusive Design Workshop and our cross-business program for Pride.
Each team at Multiverse has a DEI Champion who make up our Global DEI Committee, US DEI Sub-committee and Learning & Delivery DEI Sub-committees. Their role is to work within their team to embed inclusion into everyday practices, listen to their colleagues, and share ideas and feedback. This year, we will also launch our first global Employee Resource Groups.
Multiverse US Team Diversity
Gender
- Women 56%
- Men 43%
- Non-binary+ 1%
Sexuality
- Heterosexual 62%
- Gay 9%
- Bisexual 5%
- Lesbian 3%
- Pansexual 2%
- Prefer not to say 2%
- Unknown 18%
Ethnicity
- Asian 8%
- Black 21%
- White 40%
- Hispanic/Latinx 7%
- Multiple ethnicity 8%
- Other 3%
- Unknown 20%
Individuals who are disabled
- Yes 6%
- No 67%
- Prefer not to say 6%
- Unknown 21%
Individuals who are neurodivergent
- Yes 10%
- No 62%
- Prefer not to say 3%
- Unknown 25%
