At Transdev, our DEI journey stems from our Purpose: We empower the freedom to move every day with confidence, thanks to safe, reliable and innovative solutions that serve the common good. We realize there can be no common good without embedding DEI into our culture and into the way we do business.
Diversity is having a broad spectrum of people at the table (representing traits such as race, gender, sexual orientation, age, ethnicity, disabilities, religious beliefs, veteran status, life experiences, etc.)
Equity is making sure that everyone has an equal chance and right to be at the table. That they have access to opportunities and resources.
Inclusion is making sure that everyone feels like they belong and are able to speak up and share their thoughts.
We started our DEI journey by looking inward – looking to our employees – and asking them how they wanted to play a role and initiated our Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council. Our Council is an employee-led advisory board whose goal is to foster DEI awareness and serve as active change agents for Transdev. The rotating, 10+ member council is reflective of the diversity at Transdev from all levels – from our front line to our executive leaders – with representation demonstrated by race, gender, sexual orientation, age, ethnicity, disabilities, religious beliefs, veteran status and life experiences. With the support of two Executive Committee sponsors, the Council develops diversity, equity and inclusion priorities aligned with Transdev’s mission. They have made incredible progress and continue their efforts with the same drive, motivation and passion they had day one.
“Transdev U.S. is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion both as an employer and business partner. We support the daily work required to be a company with a truly diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce that understands and respects each other’s needs and perspectives and reflects the communities we serve.”
Laura Hendricks, Chief Executive Officer, Transdev North America
We approach DEI through three main pillars: Building an Inclusive Culture, Communications to Build Communities and Recruiting for a Diverse Community.
Every year the council develops a roadmap that supports each of these three pillars. Once the initiatives are kicked off, they then move into the business to be continued and sustained. For us, it’s about embedding DEI into our culture, operationalizing and reinforcing that focus on DEI is part of how we do business.
DEI is a continuous journey. We are proud of the mechanisms, programs and other elements we have put in place to date. Our DEI Council roadmaps and the company’s backing and commitment have already produced some insightful and meaningful programs which have been imbedded into our business. Here are just a few:
In 2021, we launched our “Ask Me Anything” sessions. They are informal sessions, moderated by a DEI Council member on Microsoft Teams, that are positioned as a great opportunity to hear directly from some senior leaders about their career growth, their experience with and position on diversity, equity and inclusion, and a chance to ask them just about anything. They are well received and well attended.
We continue to encourage all employees – at all levels – to get involved and give back to the communities we serve. We now offer all our DEI Council members a membership to the trade organization of their choice, such as Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS), Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO), Latinos in Transit (LIT), and continue to promote Transdev’s overall involvement.
Our mentorship program, Mentor@Transdev, relaunched in November 2021. The program kicked off focusing on the mentorship of women and in the coming years will ideally be refined and expanded to other groups. Special care was taken to pair each of the mentees with a mentor who has the expertise, personality and experience to support their mentee’s goals and aspirations.
We are proud of our formal workforce development partnership with Xavier University of Louisiana – one of the premier U.S. historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). This partnership helps Xavier students have unique access to our company and provides them with new options and opportunities as they begin to decide and develop their career paths and interests.
Creating and operating in a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment is an essential element of how Transdev does business. It’s important for our current employees and our prospective ones, alike. It demonstrates how we live our purpose every day through how we care for each other, how we share our knowledge and how we dare to think differently. DEI is a journey and we look forward to where it will take us.
