50:50 Future
Lyndsey Britton-Lee and Lynsey Harbottle on delivering a diverse future
A future built by teams that lack diversity is one that is scarcely worth living in, which is why it is so important that diversity and inclusion (D&I) training is top of the agenda in key industries like science, technology and engineering. Lyndsey Britton-Lee and Lynsey Harbottle set up 50:50 Future after building careers in these unchanging sectors. In their own words, they explain how their education and training initiatives are helping to break down barriers within organisations so that everyone can thrive.
Edited by Richard Dawson Photographs by Christopher Owens
Tell me about your career and background.
We both have an extensive background in the technology industry, having set up organisations to foster inclusive communities and engage more diverse audiences in the STEM sectors.
What we have discovered over the years is that there is a large gap that needs to be plugged within the sector in terms of both skills and diversity, so we decided to spin out the diversity strand of our education initiative ‘50:50 Future’ into its own entity in February 2019.
Tell me about 50:50 Future
50:50 Future Ltd is a Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) training and consultancy company that values difference. As more organisations are realising the importance of diversity and inclusion as a business strategy, they come to us when they are just not sure where to start with it all.
Because we don’t come from corporate training backgrounds, our informal approach makes it much more comfortable for the content to land and for people to ask questions and get a deeper understanding of what can sometimes be a tricky or dry topic!
We are often told that participants were at ease from the offset and were relieved that we weren’t the ‘diversity police!’
What do you love most about what you do every day?
We love hearing the perspectives and lived experiences of others and always being around a variety of people across a range of sectors.
Have you had to make sacrifices in your chosen career, and have they been worth it?
Running your own business is not for everyone! It can be extremely stressful for a number of reasons, especially financially when you’re in the early stages of building your client base and reputation.
Not to mention the lack of company benefits i.e., maternity leave packages! We think it is totally worth having our own freedom to work in the way we choose to fit with our lifestyles though - we wouldn’t have it any other way!
What are some daily rituals and why are they part of your routine?
We don’t tend to have any daily rituals as such. For us, especially at the moment, the beauty of our ‘routine’ is just about being flexible – we have young children and things can change day to day.
We also have hybrid working where sometimes we’re in the office, at a client’s premises or delivering virtually from home. We enjoy the mixed bag of it all - it keeps it interesting for sure.
“We are often told that participants were at ease from the offset and were relieved that we weren’t the ‘diversity police!’”
What does work-life balance look like for you?
Ultimately, it’s about making sure that we are happy – we love our work and spending time together doing what we are passionate about but it’s also really important to us that we have quality time with our kids and partners outside of work.
It’s great being able to offer both face-to-face and virtual delivery as we can try to plan our work commitments around our ‘life jobs’ and childcare, which makes packing everything in a lot easier!
How do you stay focused in a world of distractions?
Because we wear a lot of hats in our business, it means we get more creative licence when we’re not delivering training or having meetings to get some headspace away from the day-to-day, explore new themes and content and become more innovative with what we deliver.
I think working across different areas of the business keeps us more engaged and productive.
If you had the power to change the world, what would you change?
It’s got to be social justice really, doesn’t it? Making the world a fairer and more equal place to live in.
Find out more at 5050future.co.uk
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