Black Future Month - Spotlight on Dennis Oware-Simpey

Dennis has become the new chair for our Within employee network and we caught up with him to discuss Black Future Month.

Why is Black Future Month so important to you?

I love the way Compass has reimagined Black Future Month. I saw a quote somewhere that said ‘History fed, Generation led’ and I think that is a great narrative! Which leads me onto the theme for this year ‘Reclaiming Narrative’, it gives black people an opportunity to correct some of the negative stereotypes that have been labelled against us. BFM is so important as it’s a time to embrace and celebrate the positive influences that black culture has on today’s society.

How can we ensure we raise awareness of all cultures within Compass Group UK and Ireland?

Compass is huge with thousands of employees, therefore we need to really utilise our marketing and communication channels as a way of spreading awareness of our DE&I networks. Spotlights and case studies on different employees can also help to highlight the different cultures we have within our organisation.

What does allyship look like, and what does it mean to you?

Humans are naturally drawn to people they can identify with and this is why allyship is important. Our allies are engaged for the right reasons; they want to educate themselves on something they may not be familiar with and create an inclusive workforce. Allies can communicate to fellow colleagues who may not be naturally comfortable or confident in working alongside/managing employees that are different to them. It resonates more when people see someone who looks like them involved in a network – this is particularly important to the Within network as we work towards more ethnic minorities at management level.

What are you planning on doing to mark Black Future month?

On a personal level, I will be attending as many Black Future month events as I can. This month is a great time to connect and network with people in Compass Group and across our industry. I would also like to highlight some of the things the Within network are planning throughout October – the main being the InclusiviTEA taking place on Tuesday 15th October at 3pm. We have created a toolkit that covers a range of topics related to Black Future Month, with themed recipes, quizzes and videos from some of the Within Ambassadors