Diversity builds career development at Enbridge

Many organizations have introduced programs focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) over the past few years, but Enbridge Inc. has gone further, establishing a unique initiative it calls The Human Library.

“It’s essentially a collection of stories about employees’ lived experiences,” says Jacqueline Bezaire, a senior advisor in the legal services department at the Calgary-based energy infrastructure company. “There are articles and videos where people talk about bias and their journeys to feeling included.”

Bezaire, who worked in human resources at Enbridge before moving to legal services, was featured in one of them. “I was born with no fingers on my right hand, and I spent most of my life hiding it,” she says. “It takes a lot of energy for someone like me to tell their story over and over, and by capturing it in a video we can share the message without continuing to ask people to put themselves out there.”

The videos are stored on the company’s intranet and viewable by all employees. “We encourage people to share them at meetings,” Bezaire says. “Mine was shared at an all-company forum, which was really impactful, as thousands of people had a chance to hear my message.”

The Human Library is just one of many programs Enbridge has established as part of its DEI efforts, according to chief human resources and inclusion officer Melissa Moye. “We’re committed to being what we call a first-choice employer,” she says. “We value diversity of thought and an inclusive way of working that brings ideas and creativity and innovation out of everyone.”

In fact, Moye says, the organization’s DEI programs actually work to support professional development and career growth for its employees.

“We have a formal structure of employee resource groups focused on ethnic and racial groups, women, Indigenous people, veterans, people with disabilities and LGBTQ+ staff,” she says. “And through them come mentorships, sponsorships and customized ways to advance training, leadership development and even benefit offerings, based on what we learn from these groups.”

Bezaire is the Canadian co-chair of Enbridge’s Diverse Abilities Network employee resource group. “Having all these different employee-led groups come together in a safe space, collaborate with each other and educate others about diversity is one remarkable way that Enbridge leads,” she says. “And we have some amazing champions at all levels of the organization who embrace and live inclusion day to day.”

Enbridge has also set goals for diverse representation in its workforce. “We’ve made public some targets for hiring under-represented groups, including women and people with disabilities,” says Bezaire. “And we have robust talent acquisition support to ensure our leaders are provided with resources to remove bias from our hiring practices.”

That includes checks and balances and training to ensure unconscious biases are addressed and all applicants have equitable access to opportunities at Enbridge.

“We’re building those DEI questions and considerations into the selection process,” Bezaire says. “We’re asking ourselves if we have the right representation here and are not just ticking boxes. It’s just ensuring that we’re approaching these processes from a more equitable and inclusive perspective.”

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Advertising feature produced by Canada’s Top 100 Employers, a division of Mediacorp Canada Inc. The Globe and Mail’s editorial department was not involved.