MFS workforce grows to over 100 employees embedding diversity and inclusion

Figures shared by the lender said that 44 per cent of its current employees were female and 56 per cent were male.

It continued that 38 per cent of the MFS were English, Welsh, Scottish, Northern Irish or British. Around 18 per cent are Indian, with the remaining 44 per cent spanning a range of other nationalities including Chinese, Pakistani, Lithuanian and Polish.

More than 20 languages are spoken among the team, including French, Latvian, Portuguese, Greek, Tamil, Hindi, Malayalam, Romanian, Polish, Russian, Spanish, Farsi, Urdu, Gujarati, Marathi and German.

Over half of the MFS team said they speak multiple languages.

The firm added that there was a wide range of religions practiced, including Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism. Although around half said they were atheist.

MFS said that the company celebrates a wide range of religious festivals, both through social events, gifts and via social media.

Employees are encouraged to share and celebrate “religious and cultural events that are important to them”.

Other steps it has taken to improve diversity and inclusion include making sure team socials are inclusive, so food and drink preferences are catered for and they are non-compulsory so people choose events based on interests, tastes and beliefs.

It has also created videos about the importance of an inclusive workplace to ensure people from all backgrounds are “inspired to apply for roles in the company”.

Tiba Raja, executive director at MFS, said: “Diversity and inclusivity is a hugely important topic that all employers must grapple with. While we have always believed our team to be diverse and our culture inclusive, conducting regular internal studies helps us track progress and expose areas that we can improve upon.

“It is wonderful to see what a broad range of people make up the MFS family. Not only are we close to achieving a perfect gender balance – including at board level – but there is a vast number of religions celebrated, languages spoken and nationalities on display.”

He added: “Fundamentally, we believe passionately that this makes MFS a better place to work and build a career, but we also feel our client’s benefit.”

Raja said that diversity “brings with it fresh perspectives and experiences” and is “invaluable” because as a specialist lender as it is “essentially problem-solving on a day-to-day basis – the strength and breadth of our team better equips us to find solutions and work with a multitude of clients, themselves from greatly varied backgrounds”.