Diversity targets are becoming more common among big employers as the workforce changes.
BT’s rival Sky said earlier this year that by 2025 it wants 20pc of its employees in the UK and Ireland to be from an ethnic minority background, with at least a quarter of these to be black.
Norton Rose Fulbright, one of the world’s biggest law firms, said late last year that aimed to have 25pc of its UK employees and 15pc of its partnership from black, Asian or minority ethnic backgrounds by 2025.
The Bank of England has set targets for ethnic diversity among its staff, missing several of its 2020 goals. It wants 18pc to 20pc of its senior managers to be black, asian or minority ethnic by 2028, as well as 23pc of its more junior staff.
Kate Grussing, a recruiter who helped the Bank of England find a new governor, said BT’s move was likely to accelerate the trend.
Companies are “seriously reviewing their ethnicity agendas and more are considering targets of some kind to drive greater traction”, she added. “Having a blue chip plc like BT setting targets publicly will be a great catalyst to getting other companies off the sidelines.”
Ms Grussing, who recruits for senior executive roles, said more of her appointments are now “coming with a strong positive bias to recruit more ethnically diverse candidates”.
BT unveiled its diversity target as part of a series of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiatives. Major investors are increasingly judging companies on factors outside their financial performance.
BT has suffered a depressed share price as it invests heavily in upgrading Britain’s broadband network and is considered a potential takeover target.
Mr Jansen said the push had “zero” to do with BT’s share price.
He said: “Of course I am aware of it, but over the last few years things have changed in the way which investors see the ESG agenda and it is more important than it was a decade ago, but this is all driven by us because what we do is so fundamental and core to the economy and our reach is so wide. And it is the right thing to do for our people and our customers so it is not even a choice.”
