Paul has been an HR professional for over 30 years. He has worked in local government, the voluntary sector, and the health service – with a particular experience in the fields of recruitment, employee relations, employment law and diversity. When working for Barnardo’s he took on the role of national equality and diversity manager. After a short spell as an HR lead in an NHS trust, he was seconded into the Department of Health and Social Care’s Equality and Diversity Team to help them develop the first national strategy in this area. Paul currently works for NHS Employers – which represents and supports NHS trusts across England – and is assisting NHS organisations to embed diversity and inclusion best practices across the NHS. He also works on various diversity working groups and initiatives – with bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Linguists and the Recruitment Industry Disability Initiative – and frequently writes about all aspects of diversity through various social media channels.
Paul was honoured to be named in the 2020 People Management Diversity Power List
LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-deemer-85803a5/
Twitter: @NHSE_Paul
Q1: What is your biggest achievement as the Head of Diversity and Inclusion at NHS Employers?
If I’m honest, I think my biggest achievement has been helping the NHS to make sense of the Equality Act 2010 – across all of the nine protected characteristics – and more! When the Equality Act came in it was a huge gamechanger – and one of the most ambitious and comprehensive pieces of legislation ever seen in the world. So, the biggest challenge – and the biggest success – that I think the NHS faced was to find policies, systems and practices that would make equality, diversity and inclusion part of the everyday business of the service. 12 years on and I think we’ve made a pretty good job of that – although recognizing that there is always more to do.
Q2: What was the biggest challenge that you faced in your current position?
As a diversity and inclusion practitioner, you have to be able to gain the trust and confidence of a wide range of interest groups and stakeholders. The trust that you will adequately represent them alongside all the other interests and groups. And the confidence that that representation will be genuine and equitable.
Q3: What are your approaches to promoting and developing diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace?
My three principles have always been collaboration, connection and openness. It’s amazing what I’ve seen people do when you engage and collaborate with them in the right way. Whether it’s organizations, trade unions, networks and individual activists – if you give them the right encouragement and the right opportunities to work together, they will do great things. Equally, it never ceases to amaze me how unconnected things often are – and how much people don’t know about what others are doing. Not a surprise I suppose when we live in such a busy and fast-moving world! Finally, I have always worked on the basis that honesty is the best policy. This work is complicated and sensitive at the best of times – and so any additional “shadiness” or “vagueness” just perpetuates this! If I can’t do something – either because of time, resources or politics – I’ll say so. Then we can work together to find a way around the problem – and the challenges. Usually works in my experience!
Q4: Why DEI initiatives are essential in today’s healthcare institutions?
Nice simple one this! Staff who are happy at work, happy to be themselves at work and proud to work for an institution like the NHS will provide better, safer care for patients. If that workforce reflects the community that it serves – in terms of gender, gender identity, race, sexual orientation, disability, religion and age – then the more culturally appropriate those services will be to the whole community. Simple really!
Q5: What are the benefits businesses can get from implementing a DEI program?
The benefits really lead on from the previous point. Happier staff = less turnover = less sickness absence = less grievances / disciplinaries = happier patients. Ultimately, this will lead to higher productivity and a greater return on investment in respect of staff. My mantra has always been – throughout my whole career in HR – that our staff are our best resource. The last two years have demonstrated this in bucketloads! We would not have gone through this pandemic without the strength, dedication, resilience and commitment of the 1.3 million staff who make up the NHS.
Q6: What are the best ways to advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion with employees who disregard its importance?
Give those who are experiencing unfairness, inequity, discrimination and harassment a voice. People will listen to other people – and be influenced by them.
Q7: Could you give some examples of how prejudices prevent companies from succeeding in today’s marketplace?
The biggest factor in today’s marketplace is reputation. If a company fails to do the right thing and is publicly “outed”, it can have a devastating impact on their reputation – and ultimately their business. There are numerous global examples of this throughout history. Most recently, Disney in America have faced a huge backlash due to their failure to take a stance against some regressive LGBT legislation in the state of Florida. But this can be even more devastating at a local level as well. I know of NHS trusts and other public sector bodies who have been involved in acrimonious Employment Tribunal cases – often reported heavily in local / regional press – who have then struggled for years to recover their employment levels due to the lack of trust and confidence of their local communities. The continuing influence of social media will only serve to accentuate this. In this marketplace – reputation is everything!
Q8: What are your tips and tricks for a successful diverse and inclusive hiring process?
Never forget that recruitment is a two-way process. As much as applicants need to convince you that they are going to be an asset to your organization, never forget that you also need to show them that you are a good, values-based organization too. In that respect, don’t make the process too difficult or cumbersome. Make it a good experience – and you’ll find the right people. And even if you don’t, they will come back again for the next vacancy.
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