Company: Hugo Boss AG, Metzingen, Germany
Company Description: As a global fashion and lifestyle company in the premium segment with approximately 18,000 employees worldwide, HUGO BOSS is one of the leading suppliers of high-quality men's and women's clothing. HUGO BOSS has a long history; the company was founded in Metzingen in 1924. It pursues a portfolio strategy that currently consists of two strong brands - BOSS and HUGO.
Nomination Category: Individual Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Maverick of the Year
 Nomination Title: Rashmi Verma - Extraordinary achievements in DE&I at HUGO BOSS
- Which will you submit for your nomination in this category, a video of up to five (5) minutes, explaining the achievements since July 1, 2021 of the nominated woman, OR written answers to the questions? (Choose one):
Written answers to the questions
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video. If you are submitting written answers to the questions for this category, provide them in the spaces below:
- Briefly describe the nominated individual: history and past performance (up to 200 words):
Total 178 words used.
Rashmi Verma is the Global Head of Diversity & Inclusion for HUGO BOSS. She is the first to hold this position.
Globally HUGO BOSS has 17000+ employees with 131 nationalities working across 38 countries. Our employee base is a mix of Corporate, Retail and Production employees - which brings in many different working conditions like white and blue collar jobs and shift work. HUGO BOSS also works with many suppliers and partners for materials sourcing and manufacturing. And finally, the finished products have 7000+ point of sales in 127 countries.
In this global company setup, Rashmi established the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) function from scratch. She has developed DE&I Ambition and Strategy with clear action plans and measures to ensure that DE&I becomes an integral part of the business.
In March 2023, HUGO BOSS with its long standing history of 99 years witnessed an iconic moment where along with Rashmi Verma, our CEO Daniel Grieder launched an inspiring initiative Mix & Match to strengthen and boost our inclusion journey. More details available here: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/hugo-boss_insidehugoboss-activity-7046814556290990085-CdMA/
- Outline the nominee's achievements since July 1 2021 that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):
Total 246 words used.
In a very short time span and alone in her function, Rashmi effectively worked with colleagues and leaders across many departments and locations to deliver fabulous achievements.
- Policy: To pledge for our commitment to provide an inclusive work environment for our employees and partners, an Anti-Discrimination, Anti-Harassment and Gender Equality Commitment and Policy were released.
- Awareness building and Training: 50+ awareness building training and articles have been published for HUGO BOSS employees to learn and embrace inclusion.
- Practical day-to-day Inclusion:
- For non-binary inclusion: All gender toilets were established in Metzingen, Ticino and Copenhagen
- For differently abled: Accessible meetings procedure has been setup for our virtual meetings
- International Days Celebrations: Celebrating and bringing awareness for several International days consistently across the year. Each of these are innovatively crafted with people representing the theme to keep it authentic and meaningful (more in section C).
- Engaging People:
- Diversity Task Force: It provides an active employee voice and feedback on various activities, helping to drive diversity & inclusion.
- Communities: Employees to come together based on shared characteristics, interests, or life experiences to create a safe space to exchange. Our communities are referred to as CREW – Creating a Really Equitable World.
All of these were happening for the first time within the company and therefore required challenging of the existing status quo, developing new realities and change management.
With her positive attitude, collaboration and perseverance Rashmi has created a new wave of energy and culture of inclusion within HUGO BOSS.
- Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 99 words used.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion information shared publicly on our HUGO BOSS GROUP website: https://group.hugoboss.com/en/company/diversity-inclusion
Rashmi intends to create a change beyond her job. Therefore, she is often speaking at conferences and events to motivate women across all age groups (e.g. university students to experienced professionals). She was the Key Note Speaker for the Women in Future conference. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/rashmi-verma-2474a17_womenfuture22-activity-6992876155976437760-pciJ?utm_source=share&
https://group.hugoboss.com/fileadmin/media/pdf/sustainability/company_commitments_EN/HUGO_BOSS_Anti-Discrimination_Anti-Harassment_Gender_Equality_Commitment_EN.pdf
https://group.hugoboss.com/fileadmin/media/pdf/sustainability/company_commitments_EN/HUGO_BOSS_Anti-Discrimination_Anti-Harassment_and_Gender_Equality_Policy_EN.pdf
https://footwearnews.com/business/retail/international-womens-day-fashion-footwear-brands-1203252538/
https://en.prnasia.com/releases/apac/2022-women-future-conference-keynote-announced-dream-big-chase-it-380299.shtml
https://group.hugoboss.com/en/newsroom/stories/breakthebias
https://group.hugoboss.com/en/newsroom/stories/international-womens-day-2023
https://group.hugoboss.com/en/newsroom/stories/desire-to-inspire-kristina-szasz
https://artsthread.com/competitions/hugo-boss-competition-2023
- Explain why the achievements you have highlighted are unique or significant. If possible compare the achievements to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the nominee's past performance (up to 250 words):
Total 248 words used.
Rashmi has spread DE&I within HUGO BOSS and beyond.
- Celebrating Black History Month, Italian Night, International Women’s Day; Iftar Night; Mother’s and Father’s Day; International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia; German Diversity Day; Pride Month; International Brunch; Intergeneration Month; Diwali; International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women; International Day of Persons with disabilities.
- Inclusive Company & Brand:
- Internal: With the motto to make inclusion in action in everyday business, our top leadership, several brand teams are being trained.
- Marketing and brand campaigns: Along with the SVP, Marketing Director and SVP; Creative Direction increased the diverse representation in our campaigns and events like brand refresh and fashion shows.
- Consumer insights: Along with the Global Consumer & Market Insights team established D&I related questions in our regular surveys. This helps us in measuring consumer sentiments, comparing to market standards and establishing future initiatives for improvement.
- Gen Z Board: Involved in conceptualization and setup of a Gen Z board that will act as a sparring partner for HUGO BOSS managing board on strategic decision.
With her dedicated efforts and zeal, within 2,5years Rashmi has placed HUGO BOSS on the several awards:
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