Mercedes committed to building on "promising progress" in diversity report

Sam Hall
Friday 11 February 2022 14:50

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has revealed the "promising progress" being made by the team as it endeavours to create a "more diverse and inclusive team".

Mercedes launched the Accelerate 25 programme in December 2020 and the first-year report has highlighted the positive impact that has already been achieved.

It is hoped that by the end of the five-year scheme, over 25 per cent of new starters with the team will come from under-represented groups. Last year, Mercedes achieved 38 per cent.

Across 2021, the percentage of female employees rose from 12 to 14, with employees from ethnic minority groups rising from three to six.

"In the first year of our Accelerate 25 programme, we have made promising progress to develop a more diverse and inclusive team," explained Wolff.

"Through detailed internal scrutiny and with the guidance of our excellent partners, we have been able to take the first steps on our journey in enabling access to STEM education and careers and building a pipeline of talent who we hope may consider joining us in the future."

Whilst "pleased" with the progress made, Mercedes has recognised it has "a long way to go".

"To see a small but significant increase in our numbers of team members from under-represented groups is a sign that we are making progress, however, we remain acutely conscious that this is a long-term commitment and look forward to building on those initial steps," added Wolff.