According to the diagnosis carried out annually by the UN Women tool, iFood's stage of maturity in female empowerment went from Perfector to Director, increasing its score by 100% (from 32% to 64%) from October 2020 to October 2021, with an impact within the company and its entire ecosystem. This progress was only possible due to the commitments made and the tools provided by UN Women to measure its initiatives and map the next steps.
This significant advance is directly related to a series of initiatives implemented during the period, with emphasis on the establishment of clear and measurable diversity and inclusion goals (50% of women in leadership and 35% in senior leadership by 2023), linked to inclusion indicators aiming to psychological safety, O iFamily, a support program for FoodLovers mothers and fathers (iFood collaborators), with initiatives such as coaching for pregnant women before, during and after returning from maternity leave and increasing paternity leave to 60 days (enjoyable throughout the first year of the child's life). child), the implementation of female leadership, support network for victims of domestic violence, the launch of a complete anti-harassment training, measurement and mitigating pay disparities and promotions using an algorithm artificial intelligence, among many others.
As a data-driven company, which recognizes and values decision-making based on data and evidence, iFood is familiar with the importance of consistently measuring the results achieved, and prioritizing initiatives based on data and evidenced improvement opportunities.
The conclusion is clear: progress in diversity and inclusion is directly related to making commitments, establishing and disseminating clear and measurable goals, and a comprehensive action plan to achieve your goals.
The UN Women’s Empowerment Principles
The Women’s Empowerment Principles, also known by the acronym “WEPs” (Women's Empowerment Principles), were created in 2010 by UN Women, with the aim of offering guidance on female empowerment within the corporate world and promoting gender equality within the value chain and in the communities where the signatory companies operate.
There are seven principles that involve a complete view of the company's operations inside and outside the home, involving everything from senior leadership engagement, non-discrimination at work, health and well-being, development opportunities, action in the value chain, working in communities and measuring impact.
Since then, more than 5,700 companies around the world, and in Brazil companies such as Natura, Magazine Luiza, Coca-Cola, among others, have publicly committed to the female empowerment agenda inside and outside the home, integrating a global network and United Nations site.
In 2020, together with the Movile Group, iFood signed the UN Women's Women's Empowerment Commitment, taking the significant first step of senior leadership engagement as part of its diversity and inclusion strategy.
The first step of the Commitment is to carry out an in-depth diagnosis of the empowerment initiatives guided by the seven principles, measuring commitments, implementation, measurement and transparency. The objective is to encourage and ensure that signatory companies practice what they preach and provide transparency about the results achieved.
The result of the initial diagnosis categorizes the company according to the stage of maturity of its operations: beginner, improver, achiever or leader. Companies that have few or no initiatives in place, just an interest in learning more, are categorized as beginners, and companies with a more advanced level of maturity, especially industries with greater impact on the value chain and communities, are considered diversity and inclusion leaders , serving as an example for others in relation to promoting the positive impact of female empowerment throughout its operating ecosystem.
According to the UN diagnostic tool, companies whose operations have a great social impact should be concerned with measuring their impact on the value chain and communities, ensuring, for example, the inclusion of companies owned by women in their supplier network, the protection of women and girls in the communities in which they work, advocating for the defense of women's rights. In other words: the company's actions must be considered in all their potential impact on society.
The initial diagnosis reveals the areas in which the company is performing well, as well as opportunities for improvement, which serve as a starting point for an action plan that will guide the Diversity and Inclusion strategy of the company's business. The survey is repeated annually to measure progress.
