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MIM students walking in ESMT garden with TV Tower in background

The Inclusive Leadership Roundtable (ILRT)

Diversity, equity, & inclusion (DEI)

ILRT contact

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The Inclusive Leadership Roundtable (ILRT) at ESMT Berlin is an effort of its students, staff, faculty, and administrators to prioritize the values and practices of diversity, equity, and inclusion within the school and to champion the same in academia and the business community.
  • The ILRT seeks to right what is wrong in the underrepresentation of women and marginalized groups in positions of socioeconomic power and to build paths to equity and equality as an influencer and collaborator on the global stage.

  • All goals, strategies, projects, and output of the ILRT, where not legally mandated as confidential, will be open and transparent to all internal and external stakeholders of ESMT.

Projects

  • Blended diversity and inclusion course

    A group of ESMT students and staff have been working since November 2020 to develop a blended-delivery Diversity and Inclusion training program. The training, which aims to introduce the topics of Diversity and Inclusion from practical, academic, and strategic levels, will be mandatory for all ESMT students going forward, and we plan to deliver it beginning in Fall 2021. By emphasizing the importance of Diversity and Inclusion at ESMT and cultivating sensitivity and knowledge about these topics, we will make ESMT a more welcoming place and prepare students for both their studies and their careers as future business leaders.

  • Event inclusion policy

    Events provide a platform for us to engage with stakeholders. They are a visible manifestation of our values and should reflect our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). The goal of this checklist is to make it easier for event planners to integrate diverse voices into our events.

Achievements

  • Disability support and service (Students)

    ESMT is committed to ensuring that students with disabilities can fully participate in the programs, activities, events, and services offered by the university and its partners. We stand ready to reduce barriers to access, whether the need for support arises from a visible or invisible disability, a chronic or long-term illness, or a physical or mental impairment.

    Reasonable and appropriate accommodation is the tool; equity in access is the goal. Current and prospective students are encouraged to direct questions or concerns related to disability, equity, and inclusion at ESMT to the Student Services Office via student-services@esmt.org.

    ESMT students may access additional resources, such as information on medical compensation, information about mobility on campus, and qualification for state benefits (i.e., “Inklusionsleistungen”) on their learning platform (“Moodle” or “The Hub”)

    ESMT employees and job applicants, please direct your questions regarding disability accommodation to the Human Resources department at HR@esmt.org.

  • ESMT Code of Conduct

    The Code of Conduct (CoC) defines and describes the behaviors prohibited between members of the ESMT community, namely discrimination, sexual and sexualized harassment, bullying, and stalking. In addition to the principles by which we stand and the measures to prevent these situations, the CoC contains the school’s responsibilities and procedures related to the violation of this regulation, as well as the resources available to those affected. 

    The school is committed to developing and maintaining a violence-free environment where social interactions are characterized by mutual appreciation and respect.

  • Staff training

    We want all members of the ESMT community to feel that they belong and are acknowledged at ESMT - it is therefore important and necessary to train all staff on how they can contribute to creating an inclusive campus culture for students and employees alike. Starting 2022  staff training was implemented.

    This diversity training gives staff at ESMT the opportunity to reach a better understanding of diversity, equity, and inclusion. We will talk about significant concepts and terms like unconscious bias, discrimination or micro aggression. While we will touch aspects on the organizational level like regulations and policies, our focus will be on challenges for staff in their everyday work.

    Goals:

    • Raising awareness for diversity at ESMT
    • Having a good understanding of crucial terms and concepts
    • Feeling more secure in dealing with diversity topics in everyday work

Leadership committee

As the ambassador to the internal stakeholders of ESMT, the ILRT Leadership Committee (formerly: ILRT Steering Group) will contribute to the development of diversity and inclusion goals and collaborate to ensure that all programs, policies, output, and operations of the school are designed, implemented, and evaluated accordingly. This includes affirmative action for the recruitment and retention of women and marginalized groups in ESMT leadership, faculty, and student bodies.

As an ambassador to external stakeholders, the ILRT Leadership Committee will identify leaders in cultural and institutional change efforts, draw from their expertise, collaborate in these efforts, and ensure that ESMT contributes visible and measurable resources and leadership. This includes engagement with and active promotion of the women and marginalized groups of these initiatives in ESMT seminars, conferences, and formal collaborations.

  • Antariksha Rajkumari, ILRT Leadership Committee Member and Student, MIM 2021-2023

  • Zeinab Gueye, ILRT Leadership Committee Member and Student, MIM 2021-2023

  • John Galloway, ILRT Leadership Committee Member and Manager, Student Services, Programs

Get involved!

Membership in the ILRT is currently open to all ESMT degree students, alumni, and faculty and staff. Diversity of age, sex and gender representation, race, ethnicity, physical ability, religion, sexual orientation will be honored in ILRT composition and recruitment. If you would like to get involved, please go to the MS Teams app:

  • Click on "Join or create a team" located in the bottom left corner,

  • Select "Join a team with a code", and

  • Paste in this code: m3v7wv2. This code only works for ESMT community members who have an ESMT email address ending in "@esmt.org".

  • This should provide you with direct access to the ILRT Team!

  • From here, please review the channel "-New ILRT team members" for further information.

  • Meetings are on the third Monday of every month from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

  • The agenda and past meeting minutes are available to members in the MS Teams group within the ILRT-Notebook. This is located in team's the main navigation to the right of "General" channel.

  • If you have any problems, please email: ILRT with an explanation of your issue.

Inception timeline

Encouraged by a student-led initiative, the then Executive Management Committee (EMC) of ESMT Berlin proposed the creation of the Inclusive Leadership Roundtable (ILRT) at its meeting in 2017. The EMC subsequently formalized the role of the ILRT as an advisory body to the EMC in 2020. With this, the ILRT assumed the mandate to provide, propose, and pursue methods and approaches for achieving diversity, equity, and inclusion goals at ESMT within the framework of its official charter and its ongoing strategic planning and with the approval, cooperation, and financial and administrative supports of the Management Committee and additional ESMT leadership.

  • Formation of ILRT and Steering Group: March 21, 2017

  • Creation and adoption of final Charter for the ILRT: January 14, 2019

  • Presentation of recommendations to ESMT Executive Management Committee: July 7, 2020

  • Mandate as advisory body to ESMT Management Committee: October 6, 2020