#SiamoEnel Ambassadors of inclusion and uniqueness

#SiamoEnel
Ambassadors of inclusion
and uniqueness

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Diversity and Inclusion

For us, diversity is an incredible resource: a strength that can foster innovation and growth. We value the uniqueness of each individual, their ability to contribute with their own characteristics, experiences, perspectives and qualities to the Group’s achievements, and in doing so they help to make us an open and resilient organization. For this reason, we pay special attention to creating an environment that provides equal opportunities for all and ensures our organizational wellbeing.

We reinforced our commitment to these ideas in 2013 with the publication of our Human Rights Policy, followed in 2015 by our Diversity and Inclusion Policy, a fundamental reference for our culture of caring. Its core principles are cornerstones for the development of specific initiatives that address as a priority aspects of gender, sexual orientation, age, multiculturalism and disability and the diffusion of a culture of inclusion at all levels and in all organizational contexts.

Among the gender diversity initiatives developed in Italy, our Workplace Harassment Policy, published in 2019, plays a significant role. It reaffirms our commitment to creating a workplace environment in which people are treated with dignity, respect and decorum and provides preventative measures through training and awareness-raising initiatives. We also created a telephone helpline and a mandatory course dedicated to reporting harassment.

In order to address the subject of financial awareness, we must challenge cultural biases and promote gender equality in household financial management. In fact, in 2023, we organized a series of meetings to incentivize our employees to enhance their financial literacy skills.

Regarding sexual orientation, in 2020 we joined Parks - Liberi e uguali / Free and Equal, an association made up of a variety of companies that promotes global inclusivity and that of LGBTQI+ individuals in particular. As of July 2021, we extended parental leave benefits to include same-sex couples in civil unions, thereby expanding and improving our existing internal policy. In addition, it is now possible for same-sex couples in civil unions to utilize leave as parents of children with serious disabilities recognized under Italian Law 104.

We believe that ethnic and cultural diversity is an extraordinary asset. We are committed to promoting and enhancing knowledge, relationships and cross-cultural contamination both inside and outside the Group.

We consider the contributions of people of all ages and life-long learning as a shared asset and a source of innovation and growth. To deepen our understanding of age management, we have created several projects with the aim of raising awareness about ageism and overcoming preconceptions and stereotypes. One example of this is the Re-Generation project.

The Re-Generation project, launched in 2021 together with the International Distance Learning University UNINETTUNO, allows our colleagues over the age of 45 to enrich their professional skillset with new skills in order to reinvigorate their academic career and take advantages of the opportunities offered by digital tools.

We also fulfill our commitment to these ideas through numerous projects aimed at the inclusion of people with disabilities.

In line with our Valuability® approach, we launched the Value for Disability project globally in 2020, a program that enables the use of inclusive products and services for our colleagues as well as our customers. These range from the accessibility of our offices and Spazio Enel, to digital accessibility and personal skills development training.

Our goal is the creation of shared value: disabilities exist, they are part of life and therefore they are resources that should be appreciated and valued.

Considering this, we put in place numerous initiatives to encourage a cultural mindset change regarding disabilities. One example of this is the webinar “Comunicare, Convivere e Innovare / Communicate, Coexist and Innovate,” with the participation of trained professionals and faculty. In July 2022, we created the new Assistive Solutions Team to offer a dedicated service to all colleagues in Italy with temporary or permanent disabilities who need disability-related information or a solution regarding accessibility, either digital or related to their workplace or workstation.

For those with visual or hearing disabilities, training courses are offered to familiarize them with the assistive technologies provided, which promotes greater autonomy and allows users to stay up-to-date in the constantly changing process of digitalization. For example, blind colleagues can learn to use Jaws, a screen-reading program that leverages speech synthesis to allow users to access the most popular software applications as well as the internet. Those with a visual impairment can learn to use Zoom Text, which enables them to enlarge any application on the screen as well as change colors and alter the shape of the mouse cursor. Hearing impaired colleagues can use Pedius, an application that enables communication thanks to speech synthesis and voice recognition technologies. For example, during a phone call or meeting, users can speak in their natural voice or write a message, which is then read aloud by an artificial voice. At the same time, the system transcribes in real-time everything said by other people on the call. In addition, Veasyt, a professional sign language video remote interpreting service available online or via app, is made available during training and corporate events.

The Easy Space - Design for All project aims to define new guidelines to set up and manage office spaces so they are suitable for everyone, because an inclusive workplace is not just the right furniture or user-friendly technologies: relationships are also very important. Therefore, we offer training initiatives for our teams that welcome colleagues with disabilities and for our People Partners. One of these courses is Diversa-mente, meant to encourage participants to adopt a new approach that sees diversity not as a limitation but rather as a value within the context of work. It also helps participants to listen to the specific needs of people with disabilities.

Upskilling 4 and Healthy Work 2.0 are online courses dedicated to colleagues with cognitive/behavioral disabilities who strive to strengthen their IT skills, their ability to utilize remote work tools autonomously, and their participation in working life. Among the initiatives available to all colleagues is a webinar about the concept of neurodiversity and the positive implications that the inclusion of neurodivergent people can generate in the company environment. The goal is to stop considering neurological characteristics as defects, and therefore limitations, and instead see them as differences that create opportunities.

Lastly, there is the interactive project Think Out of the Chair: three webinars to overturn stereotypes and prejudices. Starting from an analysis of the words “disabled” and “disability,” we create a new narrative built with positive descriptors that is beneficial to people and the business ecosystem.

On the occasion of some important international days, we have highlighted and shared the experiences of those who know firsthand the myriad nuances our uniqueness can assume through the communication campaign “La Nostra Abilità / Our Ability.” This campaign is a series of videos made in 2022 and 2023 with the help of colleagues who, with their unique abilities, manage their working lives every day.

The percentage of companies offering inclusive products and services is still low. Our commitment to complete inclusivity and valuing of diversity also extends outwards, to the communities in which we operate.

Our aim is to innovate the relationship with our customers with disabilities, improving their experience and their access to our products and services. In 2021, we carried out a qualitative survey in Italy among people with hearing, visual and motor impairments. In 2022, we asked BVA Doxa to extend the scope to also include caregivers, the elderly and immigrants with a basic knowledge of the Italian language. This survey will help us fine-tune new ideas and tangible actions to improve the quality of the experience for our more vulnerable customers.

Here are some of the initiatives we have already launched:

  • Enel X Store4All
    Inclusive shopping, a “fast lane” for people with disabilities and sign language software available on tablets make Enel X stores and spaces more usable and accessible, guaranteeing an equal shopping experience for all customers.
  • ENELPREMIA WOW! for All
    As part of Enel Energia for the Free Market’s loyalty program, we regularly include coupons that help clients purchase goods and services that can improve their daily lives. For example: sign language classes, online pharmacy discounts, audiobooks, platforms that help children with cognitive impairments with schoolwork, and coupons to support hearing health in conjunctions with our other partners.
  • New accessible electric charging stations and JuiceAbility
    With Enel X, we are redesigning electric vehicle charging stations to make them accessible to all types of customers, including those with disabilities. Furthermore, JuiceAbility – a solution stemming from our collaboration with the Italian startup Avanchair, which won the 2020 National Innovation Award – allows people who use electric wheelchairs to charge them using our public infrastructure.

We also support external projects that align with our vision. At the 2021 Cresco Awards, promoted by Fondazione Sodalitas in collaboration with ANCI, we recognized the Municipality of Fossacesia, in the province of Chieti, for Diversamente Chiosco. The project is a café run entirely by young people with disabilities, with the aim of promoting their entrepreneurial spirit and social inclusion. In addition, within the program supporting the areas in central Italy struck by the 2016 earthquake, we donated three mountain huts for hikers to the Amatrice chapter of CAI. The new structures are specifically designed to accommodate individuals with disabilities and were placed along trails approved by CAI as accessible to travelers with disabilities and their required equipment.  

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Together with Enel Cuore

Our commitment to inclusion and diversity can also be seen in the work down through our non-profit organization Enel Cuore. It supports third sector organizations and projects that aim to show the value of people with disabilities and foster their increasing inclusion thanks to art, sports, nature and initiatives in the world of work. Here are some of the many projects we support:

  • TennistavolOltre Plus
    A project carried out alongside the Federazione Italiana Tennistavolo (Italian Table Tennis League) to boost the motor and sports skills of youth with disabilities.
  • Stazione Bar&Cucina
    An ethical and inclusive restaurant to employ young people with disabilities, created in Finale Emilia by the Associazione Rulli Frulli Lab.
  • Orchestra Regionale Inclusiva della Toscana
    A project by the organization In-Armonia that makes playing in an orchestra accessible to people with disabilities.
  • Dynamo Camp
    A recreational therapy center where children who are experiencing a severe or long-term illness can regain their self-confidence after hospitalization.
  • A spasso con le dita
    A project focused on the inclusion of blind or visually impaired children through the production of tactile books, a traveling exhibition and educational workshops.
  • Mettiamo su casa!
    A call for proposals to support initiatives that foster the independence of adults with disabilities through forms of co-housing and innovative home automation and design solutions.
  • Piada52
    A street food project to support the employment and social integration of young people with disabilities, which has transformed neighborhood life for a community in Forlì.