Shahzad is the first BT Race champion and acts as the executive sponsor for the Ethnic Minority and Muslim Networks, as well as chairing the Senior Ethnic Board. He has instigated a sponsorship and mentoring programme to help BAME talent achieve their maximum potential, and has reviewed all of the recruitment policies to promote diversity of all kinds. Externally, he sits on the BITC Race Equality Board and is an active member. He also supports several charities and has engaged Human Appeal as their Muslim Network charity partner, as well as supporting the Football for Peace charity which works in socio-economically deprived areas. Shahzad won the inaugural Alliance Manchester Business School Global MBA Citizen Award, the Gold Medal for excellence from the British Quality Foundation and the Finance team of the year award.