
PR & Communications agency Glasnost became the 224th company to sign the Diversity Charter on August 27, 2020, also joining ADI’s network. “Glasnost” in Russian means “transparency. Everyone knows the policy of Mikhail Gorbachev, the last head of state of the Soviet Union, of “glasnost and perestroika” (transparency and reform). The Amsterdam-based small business also believes in the power of openness and changes in the media landscape. Seven years ago, the Old South-based company was founded. Now Glasnost wants to commit to diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
Glasnost wants to focus on increasing the influx of talent from non-Western immigrant backgrounds. The company believes in the positive effects for the social environment, as well as business interests. Furthermore, the corporate culture will become even more inclusive. A first step here was the joint signing of the Diversity Charter with all colleagues.
“At Glasnost, we believe we can connect humanity with the power of openness. Having an open mind is essential to this and is the most important core value at Glasnost. As a company and as a “profession,” we are not yet a reflection of society, even though we have been actively working on this for three years. In collaboration with Amsterdam – Diverse & Inclusive, we are now looking at how to make the profession and working at Glasnost more attractive to Dutch people with a non-Western migration background. This is secured as a core process in the organization, which means structural attention to growing in diversity and actively contributing to change. Daarnaast willen we door ons werk, commerciële communicatie, kijken hoe we onze klanten en onszelf kunnen blijven uitdagen om stereotypen op sekse, seksuele voorkeur en afkomst positief kunnen beïnvloeden. As far as we are concerned, both are needed to really cause change.”
Wouter Glaser, founder and managing director