e customer platforms Melissa Robertshaw. Robertshaw acknowledged the lack of female representation in the tech sector and said Coles was looking to tackle it within its own teams. “The program really helps these women succeed, and helps in the transition between studying at university and starting a career,” Robertshaw told Inside Retail.  “One of the parts of the program that is really important to me, and was why we wanted to partner with [Dream Big], is that it also provides opportunities for our team members to act as mentors, and connect and engage with students.”  As mentors, Coles staff will provide insight and advice around diversity, inclusion, leadership and performance, and will help build  their personal brands as authorities and ambassadors. Collaborating on the project also gives Coles an opportunity to showcase the work it’s doing in its technology department, and potentially bring onboard some new talent to help drive the business into the future, Robertshaw said.  The diversity effect One of the goals of STEAM Ahead, and many of Coles’ internal programs, is to create a safe workplace for everyone that also reflects the diverse communities the supermarket serves.  “I’ve seen that having diverse employees creates high-performance teams, whether that be from differing experience or ideas,” Robertshaw said. “And whether you’re at the start of your career, or returning to work after a period of absence, I think it’s really important to have different programs in place that are set up to help support people through that transition.” For example, Coles ran a program called Relauncher in 2021, which served to help people who had taken time away from the workforce – for parental or carers leave, for example – find jobs in tech at the supermarket. At the end of the six-month program, team members were guaranteed a permanent position, which led to the creation of 15 roles in the business’ team.  Harrier Talent Solutions’ chief customer officer Richard Wynn recently told Inside Retail that, ideally, recognising diversity in the workplace isn’t an objective, it’s simply a given. “Sadly however, this isn’t reality in every workplace – so therefore, the need for it to be a ‘thing’ is vital. For now,” Wynn explained.  “That is, until more companies act and change, like Coles. It is a proven fact that diversity in the workplace increases the organisation’s morale, and it creates efficiency and effectiveness. Colleagues from every single type of background bring valuable skills and thoughts to the table.” Leading through adversity Robertshaw’s ‘leading through adversity’ module will focus on many of the difficult moments Coles has faced over the last few years, from a pandemic and a global supply-chain crisis, to the damage flooding and bushfires have wrought within the chain’s communities.  “We’ve had to deal with some of the biggest challenges over Coles’ 100-year history,” Robertshaw said. “Not only in the way that we work and operate, but our team members have also had to deal with supporting their local communities; they’ve lost homes, jobs, places of work, and they’ve had to continue to deliver and rock up to work every day.  “It’s something that makes me so proud to work at Coles, and it’s really important to me to be able to use this opportunity to share some of these stories.”