The IoD is bringing directors together to set out a roadmap for greater diversity and digital transformation in the boardroom.

The virtual event, on 16 June, features a panel of experienced directors, who will debate and challenge the progress being made on these two critical issues.

The first panel session, Diversity and Inclusion Deficit in the Boardroom, will explore the lack of ethnic diversity of UK boards. The panel will explore how boards can create a culture of diversity and inclusion to develop a pipeline of leaders. It will also examine how leaders of ethnically diverse backgrounds have reached leadership positions.

The panel includes: Harriet Green, former Chairman and CEO, Asia Pacific at IBM; Charu Gorasia, Director General, Capabilities and Resources at the Home Office; Anuradha Razdan, Executive Director, Hindustan Unilever and Vice President HR, Unilever South Asia; Charlotte Valeur, experienced FTSE Chair and investment banker; and Pramila Srivastava, who recently retired from The Coca Cola Company as Vice President of Strategic Transformations.

The second panel, Digital Transformation Deficit in the Boardroom, will explore how Covid-19 has brought digital disruption to the forefront of every organisation’s strategy. Panellists will ask if today’s boardrooms are ready to fully embrace digital transformation and if it should sit alongside traditional committees like audit, risk and compliance.

The panel will include: Charlotte Valeur, experienced FTSE Chair and investment banker; Brian Solis, digital anthropologist and futurist who serves as Global Innovation Evangelist at Salesforce; Natasha Davydova, Global Head of Infrastructure and Information Security, Allianz; and Ashish Kumar Gupta, Corporate Vice President, Head Europe and Africa (Diversified Industries), at HCL Technologies.

Raj Singh, Chairman, IoD Berkshire, who will chair both sessions, said: “These will be inspiring and thought-provoking panel discussions with successful, international business leaders of diverse backgrounds who are championing these causes in the boardroom. We welcome questions from attendees as we look to set out an agenda for change.”

The IoD secured vital support for directors during the Covid-19 pandemic, including financial assistance for wage bills and changes to insolvency rules. Through its Policy Voice programme, it provides government with first-hand reports from those dealing with the crisis.