Time to make the industry stronger

Female technician

Overcoming the challenges of the past 12 months puts even more emphasis on seeking out new expertise and know-how, especially as we try to encourage the next-generation into the industry.

And let’s be honest, the more views we have, the stronger it makes us; expanding our outlook, bringing new ideas, perspectives and solutions to the problems we face. 

International Women’s Day was a timely reminder that there’s still a great deal of work to be done to improve the level of diversity in automotive, but equally we’re making great strides too.

The IMI is an incredibly positive example. Did you know 58% of our workforce is made up of women, covering a huge range of positions including Technical Experts, Finance, Managers and Team Leaders. You can meet some of our fantastic team here.

Of course there’s a moral imperative to expand diversity in the industry and more widely in society, but with the events of the past year, there’s also an enormous economic reason to be more inclusive. Put simply, it makes good business sense to be as open as possible and improve how the sector operates.

At a time when we need the rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic to be as strong as possible, it makes sense to open our net to bring in the range of talents we need to succeed. Especially when the next-generation are heading back to school this week, and older students are thinking about where they want their careers to take them. And don’t forget the cohort of workers who have sadly faced redundancy in the last few months and may well have skills that will transfer particularly well into automotive.

There are a huge number of roles in automotive available, you only need look at the IMI’s Autocity site to see what’s on offer. Something for everyone. By firing the imaginations of the next-generation, showing what we have to offer, we should improve diversity and make the industry stronger.

The IMI will be doing even more to promote diversity. We’re commissioning a task force to investigate, research and make recommendations on how to improve the effectiveness of automotive businesses through the industry, becoming a more attractive employment opportunity with specific focus on the greater inclusion of under-represented groups. There’ll be much more on that in the near future.

In the meantime, if the IMI can help in any way please get in touch. We’re available on +44 (0)1992 519025, or send emails to hello@theimi.org.uk if you need us.
 
Look after yourselves and your families.

With our best wishes,

Lesley