Everyone is talking about diversity and inclusion (D&I). But what does that mean for the business relationships that Audi maintains, and how can we integrate D&I here? Our general understanding of diversity is that people with different skills and stories come together to work. Not all people are represented equally in (economic) life, and they do not have the same opportunities of participation from the outset. This is why we are campaigning actively for more diversity. Our aim is to contribute to making our professional environment more diverse overall.
We have already taken a number of measures that help us act in a more diverse and inclusive way. We have been implementing holistic diversity management since 2017, the international production sites of the Audi Group have been gradually following suit since 2019, and the worldwide sales locations will follow in the future. Audi is focusing increasingly on creating a common understanding and raising the awareness among the employees in its own organization. This includes training courses on unconscious bias, toolboxes for inclusive leadership and equal-opportunity processes, as well as cooperations with external initiatives to promote diversity.
We are now expanding this commitment to our business relationships. We want to work together more closely with diverse suppliers in our day-to-day work, for example with social businesses and minority-owned businesses (MOBs). Together with our suppliers, we aim to demonstrate that diversity and inclusion are important aspects that can be leveraged on our journey toward successful and more sustainable cooperation.