The firm is one of only 16 businesses across Ireland to receive the prestigious Gold mark.
Grant Thornton Ireland has been awarded the Investors in Diversity Gold accreditation by the Irish Centre for Diversity, Ireland’s leading equality, diversity and inclusion body, in recognition of its commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion (ED&I) across the firm.
The Gold mark reflects significant investment of time and resources in the firm’s culture, to strengthen policies and processes at all levels, led by a dedicated ED&I team, including senior leadership within the firm. The Gold accreditation continues the firm’s ED&I journey and follows on from the Bronze and Silver accreditation awards received in 2022.
Grant Thornton Ireland has a unique people-focused and people-driven culture in the professional services space and is the largest professional services firm to have received this award in Ireland.
Through its Embrace ED&I Employee Resource Group Programme, the firm has five established Pillars – Ability, Ethnicity & Culture, Family, Gender Equality and LGBTQIA+ whose initiatives and activities are inclusive of all of Grant Thornton Ireland’s 3,000 employees and 9 office locations.
In 2023, Grant Thornton Ireland was also awarded the Outstanding Employee Resources Group Award at the National Diversity and Inclusion Awards, has been shortlisted for the ED&I Company Of The Year in the upcoming same awards to be announced in early 2024 and shortlisted in the ED&I category in the upcoming Business and Finance Annual Awards.
Receiving the award, Partner and Head of ED&I at Grant Thornton Ireland, Dan Holland commented,
‘We are delighted to be recognised with the Gold award for our continued commitment to an equity, diversity and inclusion strategy across the firm. We are the first professional services firm of our scale and one of just 16 businesses across Ireland to receive the Gold award, which only reinforces that we are leading in this space and will continue to do so.
‘At Grant Thornton Ireland, we pride ourselves in having a culture of acceptance and valuing the benefits, learnings and perspectives that a diverse and inclusive workplace brings to our business and to our clients. We are immensely proud of this achievement and want to thank all our fantastic colleagues who have contributed to this success. While important to pause and celebrate this prestigious award, we will quickly refocus and continue to expand our ED&I investment’.
Grant Thornton’s ED&I Programme is supported by 100+ employee resource group members, who engage with the senior leadership within the firm, ensuring there is continued representation throughout the year.
Caroline Cummins, Managing Director of the Irish Centre for Diversity, said
‘Grant Thornton Ireland’s progress to Investors in Diversity Gold has been impressive. The submission assessment highlighted how much of priority has been placed on ED&I progress and the value of purposeful ED&I initiatives backed by powerful actions through the activities of Grant Thornton Ireland’s people network.
The many standouts include decisions and actions from the Chair and leadership team that demonstrate an eagerness to both support and ensure progress. This backing allowed the business to excel by directly addressing the areas for improvement revealed by ED&I audits. Very well done to everyone at Grant Thornton Ireland and we look forward to sharing more of your journey of continuous improvement.’
