PMI Launches Inclusivity Initiative

Philip Morris International (PMI) has launched a year-long research and convening initiative titled “Inclusive Future.” The initiative will explore best practices and established thought leadership to advance the discourse surrounding inclusivity and devise effective and timely ways to promote inclusive cultures.

“Measuring diversity is the easy part. Measuring and understanding inclusivity is far more complex as we discovered through trialing inclusivity measurement efforts at PMI,” says Silke Muenster, chief diversity officer at PMI, in a statement.

“While established frameworks, language and tools exist for measuring inclusivity today, it is clear that they are far from adequate. In the context of a world that shifted radically in 2020, this new initiative will help us to develop compelling ways to further inclusion within the PMI global organization and, we hope, beyond our walls as well.”

The Inclusive Future work will unfold in phases over the next 12 months, starting with a quantitative and qualitative exploration of the state of inclusion today. This facet of the study will feature a year-long research partnership with the Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland, to study how inclusion is currently measured and how this should evolve to drive impact. This will culminate in the publication of the Inclusive Future study results in March 2022.

As part of the initiative launch, Muenster will participate in a virtual event on International Women’s Day hosted by flagship SHE media site BlogHer alongside other female change makers dedicated to advancing economic empowerment for women everywhere. She will also speak on a high-level panel at the Gender Summit on March 10.