Why diversity drives high-performance at Slattery

Diversity is no “tick box” exercise at Slattery. The quantity surveying firm recently earned a prestigious property award for building a culture that celebrates difference. How did they do it?

Slattery took home the PwC Award for Diversity for companies with less than 2 employees at the Property Council of Australia / Rider Levett Bucknall Innovation and Excellence Awards in May.

Slattery earned the judges’ applause for building a business with diversity at its heart.

Of almost 100 staff around Australia, 40 per cent are women and five directors are female. Employees range in age from 19 to 73, identify with 23 different cultural backgrounds, practice 13 different religions and at least five per cent identify as members of the LGBTIQ community. 

Sarah Slattery, who was appointed managing director in 2017, is the first woman to lead a quantity surveying firm in Australia.

Senior quantity surveyor Lisa Phoa says the company’s approach to gender diversity is something of a virtuous circle.

“There are many young, talented female leaders in our company, and that gives me confidence, as I can see a pathway for myself,” Phoa says.

But gender is just one component of a diverse workforce, says Sarah Slattery.

“True diversity encompasses a range of factors – from age and ethnicity to religious background and diversity of thought.”

Slattery recognises the inherent strength in an age-diverse team with employees that range from a fresh-out-of-school 19-year-old to a highly productive 73-year-old.

“A diverse workforce is one that brings together people from all age groups – from the enthusiastic Gen Y tech-wizard to the veteran Baby Boomer who has seen it all before,” Slattery says.

“Our elder statesman is known as the ‘go to’ person when anyone is facing a technical conundrum. He’s always available and approachable and brings depth to our team. Together, youth and experience add strength to our workplace.”

Tom Dean, a senior associate with the firm, says working with people with both youthful enthusiasm and experience is richly rewarding.

“It’s interesting to work in a diverse team. Different mindsets and ages challenge the way we think – and ultimately deliver better outcomes for our clients,” Dean explains.

 

Driving diversity through the talent pipeline

Sarah Slattery says “getting more people into the talent pipeline” remains a recruitment challenge across the industry.

To combat this, Slattery’s recruitment philosophy emphasises personal traits over skillsets or exam results.

“We look for people who show an innate sense of curiosity, a capacity to learn, an enthusiasm for our industry, an ability to overcome adversity and the confidence to engage with clients,” she explains.

“These traits are more important than where someone went to university or how many high distinctions they achieved.”

But how do you unearth these traits among a mountain of CVs? It may be that the person held down two jobs while at university, balances the needs of a young family or wants to step back into the profession after time away, Slattery explains.

One recent recruitment campaign used a rainbow of Smarties to attract attention, emphasising that Slattery hires “all types”. The advertisement was viewed more than 30,000 times in just one week.

“We don’t need an entire office filled with outgoing go-getters who want to spend their days with clients. We also need the thinkers and technical experts who prefer to be in the office, and without whom we wouldn’t get the job done,” Slattery adds.

 

Diversity is just smart business

When Peter Slattery established the firm in 1976, he built an inclusive culture from the outset.

Sarah Slattery says “Dad was creating an inclusive culture long before diversity was a thing. He was delighted to see Slattery recognised with this award, but for him it was no surprise. He thinks it’s just the way to operate.”

Senior associate Tom Dean says the award has encouraged his colleagues to redouble their efforts.

“We were promoting diversity without realising it was part of our culture. Now that is has been confirmed that Slattery does a great job around diversity we can celebrate this, while also looking for ways to improve.”

Sarah Slattery’s message is clear. “Don’t make assumptions about anyone because of their age, cultural background or gender.

“Growing a workplace culture centred on inclusion, diversity and respect encourages people to flourish. It also means they bring their ‘whole selves’ to work and give 100 per cent to every task. And that, in the long run, creates profitable, high-performance workplaces,” Slattery concludes.