Barclays Capital Disability Affinity Resource Group
With permission from Barclays Capital, we are sharing the following information:
The name of their group is Disability Champions Network (DCN):
Its Mission/Goal is to provide a forum that allows all Barclays Capital staff to broaden their understanding regarding people with disabilities by sharing ideas, networking, and performing community activities, to support Barclays Capital employees with disabilities or staff who have family members with disabilities, and to assist in the advancement of the Barclays Capital diversity program by recruiting, developing and retaining qualified candidates with disabilities
The DCN network holds monthly meetings. All members are invited to attend or dial in via conference call. The Network has an informal steering committee responsible for all operations of the network including philanthropy and employee development. It also has a strong partnership with Barclay’s dedicated Diversity Campus Recruiting team who are invited to all meetings and events.
The most innovative initiative is increasing the accessibility and awareness around closed captioning. Barclays Capital has the technology to provide closed captioning and the goal of the DCN network is to promote its use during broader management announcements and dedicate a firm wide budget to satisfy employee accommodation requests.
The greatest challenge is recruiting individuals with disabilities. The challenge of identifying qualified candidates is twofold: First, self identification, and Second, process efficiency. The first challenge relates to individuals willing to self identify and hosting recruiting programs where they feel comfortable attending. Once candidates express interest, the second challenge is efficiently filtering resumes and e-mails to match qualified candidates with Barclays’ requirements. In response, the Network continues to work with Emerging Leaders and has recently begun building direct relationships with disability offices at core recruiting schools.
The committee members’ goal to starting a group was identifying a willing and able senior sponsor who is passionate about the mission. A successful sponsor will recruit other members of the team and be impactful when directing the agenda. Networking with other firms and partnering with external organizations also plays a very important role in increasing awareness and sharing ideas.
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NBDC would like to thank Barclays Capital for their contribution to this initiative and encourage all NBDC members to contact Information Services at lfrancis@abilitiesonline.org for information on how to be a part of the Disability Affinity-Employee Resource Group Consortium.
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