We live inclusion
We put people at the heart of our business. We have an unparalleled focus on inclusion, with a diverse team of visionaries, thinkers and doers. We embrace all perspectives, collaborating to make a positive impact.
At Jacobs, we understand that “inclusion” is a verb, not a noun. It means being transparent and taking action on our statements, commitments and initiatives that drives meaningful, measurable change both in our company and in the communities that we serve. It means creating a workplace where our differences are accepted, celebrated and harnessed to bring the innovative, extraordinary solutions clients demand from us. It means creating a culture of belonging where everyone can thrive — a culture that we call TogetherBeyond℠.
Bold, accountable leadership
We are operationalizing TogetherBeyond and amplifying inclusive behaviors and improving diversity at all levels of our organization, from our Board of Directors and Executive Leadership Team to the 21,000 members of our eight grassroots employee networks. Our Board of Directors is now 55% diverse and our Executive Leadership Team 67% diverse (race and gender).
We are committed to holding all leaders accountable to making sure that broad-based diversity is reflected in their own teams, using data analytics to measure our progress with the same rigor and transparency as our financial performance metrics. Inclusive behaviors are now a key formal component of all our leaders’ performance and salary reviews, and all leaders at Vice President level and above are required to mentor two or more junior members of staff, at least one of whom must have a different lived experience from themselves (i.e. on the basis of ethnicity, gender, race, geography, disability, sexuality or veteran status). With this framework in place, we can be confident of delivering on bold, aspirational goals such as those of our global Action Plan for Advancing Justice and Equality and our 2025 aspirational 40:40:20 goal (40% men, 40% women and 20% any gender) — to ensure that we are propelling a new generation of diverse visionary thinkers throughout our company.
Partnerships and recognition
Jacobs received its first top score in the 2021 Disability Equality Index, a national benchmarking tool on corporate policies and practices related to disability inclusion and workplace equality.
Jacobs has been named STEM Learning U.K.’s Inspirational STEM Employer.
For the third year running we were identified by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) as a Best Place to Work for LGBTQ Equality, earning a top score of 100%. Steve Demetriou signed a pledge expressing support for the Standards of Conduct for Business: Tackling Discrimination against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex (LGBTI+) People put forth by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
We were named one of the Times Top 50 Employers for Women, and awarded Employer of Choice for Gender Equality by Australia’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency for the fifth year running. Steve Demetriou is one of 70 Catalyst CEO Champions for Change, a commitment that enshrines our dedication to advancing women in the workplace and leading for equity and inclusion.
We strengthened our commitment to developing and hiring the best diverse talent with organizations like the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, and Building Equality, the U.K. construction industry’s leading LGBTQ+ alliance. We are a proud member of NSBE’s Board of Corporate Affiliates — their top national support level — and Jacobs’ Freddie Fuller recently completed his three-year tenure as National Chair of the Community of Minority Transportation Officials.
Driving equality at every level
Through TogetherBeyond we tackle topics that are important to our employees such as equality, unconscious bias and allyship. While providing training and resources to our people is important — over 97% of them have completed our Advocate & Ally inclusion learning program — equally effective are the regular authentic and courageous conversations our grassroots employee networks are creating around these topics.
Partnering with members of these networks has allowed us to launch meaningful policies and programs that directly impact the wellbeing and potential of our people:
- Our focus on creating equal opportunities within Jacobs, including as to historically underrepresented groups continues to increase as we deliver on the promises laid out in last year’s global Action Plan for Advancing Justice and Equality.
- In partnership with McKinsey, nearly 300 employees are participating in their Connected Leaders Academy programs, which seek to create a unique learning environment and safe space for sharing common experiences, helping promising Black, Latinx and Asian employees build their network and become part of a new wave of Jacobs leaders.
- Our Black and Latinx employee networks, Harambee and Enlace, continue to lead STEAM outreach efforts in the communities that we serve and are working to bring a new generation of diverse visionaries from underrepresented and underserved groups into the industry.
- We also galvanized our commitment to supporting indigenous communities in the regions that we serve, rolling out anti-Indigenous-racism training and observing Canada’s first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation with a video message from Steve Demetriou. In Australia we observed National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee (NAIDOC) Week by celebrating the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and launching our Reconciliation Action Plan to educate employees and remove any existing barriers preventing indigenous communities from joining our company and supply chain.
- In partnership with our Women’s Network, we launched gender-balanced interview teams, provided flexible working arrangements, improved caregiver leave, rolled out our first domestic violence policy in Australia/New Zealand, piloted a “Male Champions of Change” allyship program, and created “Bridge the Gap”, a program that actively supports parents returning to work.
Delivering our Action Plan for Advancing Justice and Equality — Key Achievements
In January, we observed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a U.S. company holiday for the first time, and encouraged all of our U.S. employees to make it a “day on, rather than a day off” by using the day to volunteer in their communities to honor Dr. King’s legacy.
We invested over $500,000 in contributions tangibly benefitting the Black community and helping create a new generation of Black talent through targeted STEAM programs. Examples include a partnership with SEED LA’s new campus in South Los Angeles, scholarships for outstanding Black students at the University of Connecticut and with the Cowrie Scholarship Foundation in the U.K., and a Tier 1 partnership with Howard University where Jacobs is renovating a computer lab and creating five scholarships.
We are focusing on growing our Supplier Diversity Program Framework, spending over $1.3bn in 2021 on diverse suppliers across the company.
- We are taking action, in partnership with our Prism network, to ensure that our LGBTQ+ family can truly “bring their whole best self to work”, establishing gender-neutral restrooms, publishing guidance to support transgender employees who are transitioning at work and supporting the employee and manager with trained HR specialists and ensuring U.S. healthcare plans are inclusive. Jacobs colleagues around the globe joined Prism, our LGBTQ+ network, in celebrating events like Pride Month, Transgender Day of Visibility, Non-Binary People’s Day and International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia. We also joined Tent’s LGBTQ+ Refugee Mentorship initiative, committing to mentoring over 50 refugees who have fled persecution from Afghanistan and other countries.
- At Jacobs we value the unique insights and talents that people with disabilities bring to our culture and business practices. In partnership with ACE, our employee network for people with disability and their allies, we are developing our company’s first Accessibility Action Plan, to be launched in FY22. Earlier this year, Steve Demetriou became one of 72 CEOs to sign Disability:IN’s CEO Letter on Disability Inclusion, demonstrating our commitment to creating an inclusive global economy where people with disabilities participate fully and meaningfully. We also joined The Valuable 500, an organization that seeks to ensure disability inclusion is on business leadership agendas across the globe.
- Through VetNet, our employee network for veterans, their families and current military reserve members, we continue to work to recruit, develop and retain the best military and veteran talent, partnering with key organizations like Hiring Our Heroes, Boots2Roots and HirePurpose. In November we were proud to receive the HIRE Vets Gold Medallion for Veteran Recruiting. Our One World employee network continues to celebrate cultures around the world and foster global connectivity, nurturing and supporting our diverse employees and clients across all ethnicities and cultures.
- Empowering employees to maximize their potential, our Jacobs Careers Network continues to organize and support career-enriching development and networking opportunities in all our geographies.
Providing information, resources, and networking opportunities regarding physical, mobility and cognitive disabilities to disabled staff and to staff who provide caregiving services.
Empowering our employees across all career stages to maximize their potential and make Jacobs the industry leader and workplace of choice.
Leveraging the company’s unique and vibrant Latino talent contributing to our company’s profitable growth strategy, attracting and retaining Latinos, while fostering leadership, community involvement, diversity and cultural pride.
Positively impacting the black employee experience through recruitment, development, and retention of black talent.
Providing an inclusive environment that actively nurtures and supports our diverse employees and clients across all ethnicities and cultures.
Creating an environment where LGBTQ+ employees feel able and empowered to bring their whole self to work.
Advocating for veterans and current military reserve members, including support for transitioning veterans.
Accelerating a cultural shift by empowering women and promoting gender equality.