Firm Announces All-White, All-Male Diversity Panel: ‘Everything After This Is Progress’

Harcourt Blythe has announced an all-white, all-male diversity panel as part of a new inclusion strategy designed to make next year’s improvement almost impossible to miss.

The seven speakers will discuss Widening the Circle from seven armchairs, having unanimously declined a suggestion to widen the panel.

“This is about establishing an honest baseline,” said senior partner Jonathan Blythe. “Everything we do beyond this is better.”

The firm says it is the first time it has assembled such a panel deliberately. Previous examples were attributed to diaries.

Its Head of Inclusion, Nadia Rahman, proposed beginning with a representative group and having a useful conversation. The organising committee considered this well-intentioned but statistically unhelpful.

“If we get it right now, where do we go next year?” asked Blythe. “You cannot expect people to approve a strategy without a credible upward line.”

The speakers were chosen to reflect a breadth of perspectives. One became an equity partner at thirty-six. Another had to wait until thirty-eight. A third transferred from a different Super Sister and is expected to speak movingly about arriving somewhere he knew only half the people.

There are disagreements too. Some believe the firm has already solved inclusion. Others believe it would have solved it sooner if people stopped mentioning it.

Rahman will not speak, but has been asked to prepare the questions, brief the panellists and remain available in case anyone wants a statistic. The firm describes this as a prominent role behind the scenes.

An associate asked whether the people doing that work could have some of the speaking time.

Blythe said it was important not to confuse expertise with leadership.

The event’s publicity features the seven men beneath the phrase Room for Everyone. Marketing has increased the size of the room rather than altered the photograph.

Attendees may submit questions in advance, provided they explain how the question will help celebrate progress. One asking who actually makes partnership decisions was returned because the answer was already on the poster.

Next year’s target is to include at least one person who was not on this year’s panel. The seven current speakers have been asked to block the date so the firm can maintain continuity while it identifies that person.

The event has sold out.

A considerable number of staff wanted to see whether they were really going to do it.