Inclusion, diversity and equity are part of who we are at KPMG. We embrace diversity of background, experience, and perspective and we’re committed to inclusion and equity at every level.
At KPMG, we want to attract and retain the best talent. We recognise the strength that comes from having a diverse workforce and building a culture where we support all our people to achieve their potential.
Gender Action Plan
We are proud to support a wide range of initiatives which advocate for gender equity and support the next generation of female leaders.
- KPMG is proud to support Going for Growth, a programme for female entrepreneurs which encourages women to accelerate the growth of their business. More than 800 female entrepreneurs have completed the programme to date.
- KPMG was one of the lead sponsors of the 20x20 campaign, which aimed to increase visibility of women across all sports, and continues to support women in sport through our sponsorship of Irish golfer Leona Maguire, jockey Rachel Blackmore, and athlete Rhasidat Adeleke.
- We are a founding member of the 30% Club in Ireland and are engaged with hosting a number of relevant industry events. We are also active on the Professional Services Group, inputting to the 30% Club Flourishing Equally in the Workplace Framework.
- Our Executive Speaker Series aims to promote female leadership in KPMG. Guests have included: Former President of Ireland, Mary McAleese; Samantha Barry, Editor in Chief of Glamour Magazine (US Edition); Lady Chanelle McCoy, co-founder of Chanelle Medical; Marissa Carter, founder of Cocoa Brown; and Olympian and Entrepreneur, Derval O'Rourke among others.
LGBTQ+
The focus of our LGBTQ+ Committee is to create a visible allyship in KPMG, to help educate and engage people on LGBTQ+ issues, and to ensure we are open and inclusive for all staff.
Our LGBTQ+ Committee hosts a range of events every year in the lead up to the Pride parade in June. This year we hosted an Executive Speaker Series event with Panti Bliss, drag queen and gay rights activist from County Mayo who was at the forefront of the 2015 marriage referendum, and our annual Pride BBQ. We also shared a series of videos from our KPMG colleagues and members of our LGBTQ+ Committee who got together for coffee and a chat about important topics like visibility, language, and coming out. You can watch all the videos here.
We also actively support the LGBTQ+ community by providing skills-based volunteering to BeLonG To, a charity supporting LGBTQ+ young people, and by engaging with networks such as INVOLVE.
Connecting our cultures at KPMG
As signatories to the Diversity Charter Ireland, we have made a public commitment, alongside other leading organisations in Europe, to promote inclusion and diversity. One of the ways we do this is by celebrating the cultural and ethnic diversity of our people.
We are proud to have more than 62 different nationalities of people working in KPMG Ireland and to have a dedicated Ethnicity Committee whose purpose is to celebrate cultural diversity, support people relocating to join KPMG Ireland; and to raise awareness of ethnic and cultural minorities.
Our Ethnicity Committee organises a Multi-Cultural week each year – celebrating cultural diversity through food and music and raising awareness. Our second Multicultural Week brought together nearly 1,000 colleagues to celebrate cultural diversity. The Committee also launched an International Buddy Programme and a Multicultural Network.
Our commitment to inclusion, diversity and equity extends into our community where our people volunteer with Business in the Community on their Career Buddy and EPIC (Employment for People from Immigrant Communities) programmes, helping marginalised immigrant jobseekers secure employment and education.
Inclusion & Accessibility
We are committed to making our firm accessible to all and to creating a culture where our people with a disability are supported to grow and thrive:
- We work with the Trinity Centre for People with Intellectual Disabilities (TCPID) which promotes the inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities in education and society. We have and continue to hire placements from this programme.
- Access for people with physical disabilities is provided across all our offices. We also provide parking for employees with disability and ensure they have the support they require.
- We celebrate International Day of People with Disabilities (IDPWD) annually through our Executive Speaker Series. In recent years, we've hosted activist and sports journalist Joanne O'Riordan and Ailbhe and Izzy Keane of Izzy Wheels to mark the day.
Sensory Friendly Hours
At KPMG, we want to create a workplace that is inclusive of all our people. We have introduced Sensory Friendly Hours to support neuro-diverse colleagues in our offices. This time offers a calmer and quieter dining space with reduced noise and soft lighting.
Supporting our community
We recognise the benefit that diversity of background brings to KPMG and are committed to promoting equity and social mobility. We aim to support young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to reach their full potential by supporting them along their education pathway – from primary, to secondary and through to higher level education.
- KPMG has a longstanding partnership with CBS Westland Row, a DEIS Band 1 school. Our 1:1 mentor programme encourages students to stay in school and guides them on their longer-term career journey. We also offer placements to TY students from DEIS schools in Dublin 1 and Dublin 3 schools and work with young people in Dublin 2 and Dublin 8 who avail of the YMCA services.
- We fund scholarships for students from disadvantaged backgrounds to attend Belvedere College and Gonzaga College.
- We support the Trinity Access Programme, which assists people from areas with low progression rates to higher education, and the DCU Access in the Workplace programme, providing paid work experience to Access students.
- In memory of the late Denis O’Connor, former Managing Partner of KPMG, we are proud to provide four scholarships annually to promising students from disadvantaged backgrounds to attend the UCD Quinn School of Business. To help ensure these students not only have access to the programme, but also the support they need to thrive in their studies, we offer mentorship and an internship to each of the students. We have awarded 12 scholarships since 2020 with a goal of supporting 40 students over ten years.
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