Diversity, equity and inclusivity
VodafoneZiggo is a Dutch company with two foreign parent companies. VodafoneZiggo is one of the largest companies in the telecommunications sector and therefore an important employer in the Netherlands. Our activities are diverse, as are our customers and our people. Different qualities, perspectives and backgrounds stimulate discussion. And discussion leads to innovation. Innovation is not male or female, nor black or white. Thanks to today's diversity, equity and inclusion, innovation is the future.

Pillars
We are focusing on four pillars: LGBTIQ+, gender, ability and interculturality. We believe that everyone should have the freedom to be themselves, regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, sex, disability, origin or religion.

Our ambitions in these areas go beyond our organisation alone. We also want to have a positive impact on society for each of these themes. We are achieving this through our partnerships with Pride Utrecht, Refugee Talent Hub, Women in Cable & Telecommunications and the Edwin van der Sar Foundation.

In addition, through the Vodafone Netherlands Foundation, we are committed to reducing social and economic inequality by providing as many people as possible with access to the digital society via education and technology. By 2025, VodafoneZiggo aims to have helped two million people get ahead in society and to become a leader in the field of diversity in the telecommunications sector.

We maintain a constant focus on these four pillars. For example, we have an employee network for each pillar, in which like-minded people meet, discuss, and inform and inspire other colleagues. Throughout the year, these networks organise activities related to the theme.

Policy
VodafoneZiggo has a team which is completely focused on strengthening our diverse, equal and inclusive culture. The key question of the team is always ‘What do you need to be successful?’. In this way, we encourage everyone to get the best out of themselves. The team does research, holds discussions with colleagues and refines the objectives and ambitions. They also offer training sessions for managers to make them more aware of inclusivity and unconscious biases. The brand department developed the ‘Un-stereotype Framework’. This is a tool to test and improve the degree of diversity and inclusivity in communications. Lastly, they have trained dozens of ‘trust buddies’, who colleagues can approach for help and advice when they are facing discrimination and bullying at work.

LHBTIQ+
You can only achieve your maximum potential when you feel fully free to be yourself. This is why VodafoneZiggo advocates for the LHBTIQ+ community and has an employee network that organises activities all year round. Our offices also have gender neutral toilets. In addition, we are a proud sponsor of Utrecht Canal Pride and a partner of Amsterdam and Groningen Pride.

In 2022, we made a meaningful contribution to Pride with the ‘Role Real Models’ campaign at the Pride events in Utrecht, Amsterdam and Groningen. In this campaign, we use our technology to display realistic role models for and by the LGBTIQ+ community on the city streets. Visitors to Pride could become models as part of this campaign. Images of them were then immediately displayed on digital screens throughout the city.

Queers Connected
Through our employee network ‘Queers Connected’, colleagues inside and outside of the LGBTIQ+ community can enter into conversation with each other and participate in activities and workshops, such as a Gender & Sexuality masterclass.

Gender
A good gender balance in the organisation leads to better decisions and contributes to more innovation. VodafoneZiggo feels strongly about that. We are aware that there are still relatively few women working in the telecommunications sector and we are doing our best to change this. Therefore, we are working hard to improve the male/female/x distribution in all positions, levels and departments.

The aim of VodafoneZiggo is for 30 percent of the total workforce to be women by 2025. In the same year, we want 30% of our senior management positions and 35% of board seats to be filled by women. We are taking part in the ‘Talent to the Top’ initiative, which aims to help more women rise to the top of business.

Since 2022, candidates have the option of working 32 hours instead of 40 hours in full-time positions. This allows us to accommodate anyone who would rather work part-time, but in particular women, because they are on average more likely to work part-time.

Since 2019, VodafoneZiggo has held a ‘Girls Day’, during which young girls can get to know our company and the telecommunications sector. In addition, we are working with Women In Cable & Telecommunications to further strengthen the position of women in our sector. Each year, we celebrate International Women’s Day and organise activities and campaigns to put the women at our company in the spotlight.

Women Connected
Our employee network Women Connected focuses on the Gender theme within VodafoneZiggo. The network regularly organises events and workshops. For example, on International Women’s Day 2022, there was an online Gender Bias Escape Room to increase employees’ awareness of prejudices against women.

Ability
People with disabilities are more than welcome at VodafoneZiggo. Every year, we offer a number of them a full-time job that is in keeping with their needs and possibilities. The most important question is: ‘What do you need to be successful?’. Sometimes, this results in the provision of an adapted range of duties, a personalised distribution of hours or other aids.

With help from the Edwin van der Sar Foundation, we welcomed new colleagues with acquired brain injuries as Data Analysts. In addition, people with a labour market disadvantage now carry out some of the technician tasks, such as gathering the necessary materials. At our Central Office in Utrecht, we have set up a special coffee bar with our partner C-talents where deaf people work as baristas and employees can order coffee using sign language. Together with our partners EnergieQ and Onbeperkt Aan De Slag, we actively seek out talented people with a labour market disadvantage.

Go-getters Connected
For colleagues with and without disabilities, we created an employee network called Go-getters Connected. This network serves as a think tank for, among other things, improving accessibility in the workplace and in the digital environment. The network also organises events and workshops, such as a Lunch & Learn session in which colleagues speak about their own disability. We regularly shine a spotlight on our colleagues with disabilities at VodafoneZiggo by enabling them to share their personal stories on our intranet and corporate website. Here they can explain more about their disabilities and how they deal with them in their work and personal lives.

Interculturality
People from many different nationalities, cultural backgrounds, religious beliefs and ethnic backgrounds work at VodafoneZiggo. This diversity enriches our organisation, encourages mutual understanding and provides us with a broader perspective.

Our offices have quiet rooms, where people can focus on their religious, spiritual and cultural practices in peace and privacy. Furthermore, we observe various religious holidays and hold events. At VodafoneZiggo, we find it important that everyone can be completely themselves and do so with pride. Therefore, we have an online feature in which colleagues with a personal story can provide an insight into their lives, religion or culture.

Intercultural Connected
To increase awareness of diversity at VodafoneZiggo, we set up the employee network Intercultural Connected. This network brings together colleagues from various backgrounds to share experiences and ideas.