Inclusion is every bit as important as diversity in ensuring that shipping becomes a truly welcoming, authentic and inclusive community, says Mark O’Neil, CEO of Columbia Group.

Mr O’Neil was a guest speaker at the TradeWinds Shipowner’s Forum on the third day of NorShipping and discussed how People ‘with a capital P’ must be made to feel valued, listened to and included. This is the key to a truly diverse and welcoming industry, he said.

Referring to inclusion as ‘diversity’s forgotten twin,’ the head of Columbia Group said without inclusion, ‘diversity risks being woke window-dressing and moral washing.’ He said: “Inclusion makes it authentic, real, attractive, reliable and ensures the wonderful power of diversity is harnessed and harvested.”

Mr O’Neil was proud to reveal that 10% of Columbia Group’s seafarers are female, compared to the shockingly low industry average of 1% and the Group’s entire workforce is spilt nearly equally with a 48% to 52% female to male ratio. More than 50 females in the Group hold leadership positions. Despite these positive numbers and diversity and sustainability being part of Columbia Group’s core values since 2022, he acknowledged there is still more work to do.

Addressing the forum he said: “Our maritime sector faces many challenges which we have heard about this morning. But the greatest challenge in my mind is not AI, decarbonisation or digitalisation but it is the challenge to attract motivated, educated, healthy, fit, properly compensated people – with a capital P – of every creed and colour, and political and religious persuasion into our sector. And not only attract them into our sector but – and here’s the inclusion bit – keep them in our sector.

“If we don’t keep them, listen to them and involve them then they will go out disaffect and do more damage to our industry than failing to attract them in the first place. We’ll only achieve that if we make them feel welcome, listen to them, identify with their views and viewpoints and let them contribute and value them. In short if we include them in our business.”

Approaching diversity with a non-genre specific approach will enable the industry to cast its net far and wide, he said. “We will be the envy of every other industrial sector because those sectors are not so exposed to the wonderful variety of humankind which we are. We will attract more quality people ashore and aboard our vessels than we know what to do with. Each diverse genre will indirectly benefit from the greater understanding and relatability that such an inclusive approach will generate.”

Mr O’Neil also congratulated WISTA on the remarkable achievements they have already made over the past 50 years but urged the industry to look further than equality.

In conclusion he said: “We now need to do even more as an industry and really focus on every genre across the diversity spectrum to attract all people and keep them at the table with mutual respect, understanding and value of one another’s contribution. That is inclusion – and is no more diversity’s forgotten twin.”