Rajesh has chaired the BAME + Allies network for the last four years, celebrating diversity, increasing development opportunities to achieve equal representation in management positions while reflecting our diverse customer base and driving retail success. He was instrumental in setting up the network and in getting Board sponsorship around the network’s objectives, and he has developed BAME-specific mentoring schemes with director-level sponsorship. With the help of the BAME network, Sainsbury’s continues to create a more welcoming environment by celebrating diversity very visibly. From developing engaging and educational content, to using Yammer internally to create discussion and highlighting ethnic minority role models, through to celebrating important cultural occasions, such as Diwali and Chinese New Year and attending this year’s Black Pride, the network actively engages with the business around a variety of topics such as the need for diverse recruitment pools and the need to measure BAME recruitment and retention statistics. They also hold an annual BAME conference, attended by members of the board, to discuss the importance of BAME inclusion and methods for increasing diversity. Externally, Rajesh operates within an informal network for accomplished BAME professionals and regularly attends BAME networking events in London organised by various thought leadership groups to share his experience and learn from what others are doing.