Creating a People-First Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Strategy

Ben Mansour is Head of People, Capability and Organisation for Anglo American’s steelmaking coal business in Australia, responsible for the company’s workforce of more than 5,800 people.

Ben returned to Anglo American in October 2021, bringing more than 20 years’ experience in corporate human resource roles, including as General Manager Employee Relations & Human Resources at Rio Tinto, and Head of Human Resources for Virgin Australia.

Ben holds Bachelor degrees in Commerce (Human Resources), International Business (Finance) and Arts (Economics), along with post-graduate qualifications in Industrial Relations and Occupational Health & Safety.

Human Resources functions look different in 2024.

Policies are still important but these days it’s about challenging the norms and making a difference for our people at work and in the communities where they live.

As Head of People, Capability, and Organisation at Anglo American in Australia, it’s my role to futureproof our role in the mining industry through thought-provoking leadership and a strong performance culture.

We are re-imagining mining to improve people’s lives.

We need to inspire our people to thrive and embrace the impact they themselves have on business success.

No one worth their salt can afford to rest on their laurels in this industry.

To build a workforce for the future, we must be ahead of trends and employee expectations, and create opportunities for innovation that drive increased productivity.

It starts at the top, and we all must lead by example.

Anglo American operates five steelmaking coal mines across Central Queensland and I have worked as the Human Resources Manager at each of them.

You can’t develop an organizational strategy without understanding what our frontline coal workers face every day.

And the leadership must be accessible; our doors must be open to anyone so every idea to propel us forward can be harnessed.

I’m now based in our head office in Brisbane but I still try to get to sites as often as possible.

Visible leadership is felt leadership.

And, together with the CEO, we hold Let’s Listen forums where no topic is off the table.

With our Values and Purpose front of mind, we set ourselves a task to create an inclusive, diverse, and equitable people strategy.

We developed new programs designed to have a positive impact on our teams and, through that, the drive to increase female leadership became a priority program for us.

It was an opportunity to directly influence culture while reflecting our commitment to shaping an industry-leading and preferred workplace.

We created an environment where women could easily connect with accessible mentors to propel their career goals.

We designed a forward-thinking strategy to elevate women into leadership roles, ensuring informed decision-making and equal representation at every stage.

Anglo-American has also established an industry-leading Workplace Support Unit to provide training and support for those exposed to bullying, harassment, victimisation, and domestic violence.

Together with the WSU, our inclusion programs Enabling You, RealYOU (LGBTIQA+ networking), Let’s Listen Forums (with the CEO) and WoMine networking have helped us shift the dial.

We are ensuring our inclusion and diversity programs reach all workforce cycles to lay the foundations for true equity in the future.

We’ve achieved significant milestones, including women now holding almost a third of key leadership roles at Anglo-American’s Australian operations.

As part of our workforce engagement strategy - which includes supporting thriving, resilient rural communities where our people live - we have joined forces with the new Dolphins NRL team.

Both organisations are dedicated to the advancement and success of regional Queensland sport, and that includes health and wellbeing development initiatives.

Together with the Dolphins, we will deliver active programs for schools, community, and junior rugby league gala days, support the Dolphins Cup for Central Queensland school kids, and provide mining employment pathways for the Dolphins network of players.

As an added benefit of the partnership, we’re proud to be the founding sponsor of the Dolphins’ new Women’s Academy, ahead of their launch of a WNRL team in 2028.

Developing opportunities for women in sport is more important than ever and we’ll be working together to improve diversity and inclusion across both our industries.

The success flowing from these initiatives has been two-fold: creating a sustainable, competitive advantage through attracting and retaining capable people, and improved company outcomes through challenging leadership to implement effective and long-term change in this space.

Recognition for Excellence in Diversity Programs and Performance at the 2024 Resources Awards for Women on International Women’s Day has cemented in our minds that we have laid the right foundations.

We are focused on re-imagining mining with true gender equity and inclusion while delivering on our goal to be an employer of choice in this industry.

It’s just the start, but we are committed to driving a culture where talent knows no gender and where every individual is given the opportunity to thrive.