By Gabriela Kaczmarek, Rosie Luffingham, Molly Arabella Kirk and Tehreem Malhi
This week, Iram Satti, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Manager at Bloomsbury tells us a bit about what it means to be a DEI manager. In doing so, she demonstrates her unbridled passion for equality and diversity and the importance of mental health.
As the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Manager at Bloomsbury, what are your primary responsibilities? Can you walk us through a typical day in your role, if there is such a thing?
I am about four months into the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Manager role at Bloomsbury. As far as I can recall, no two days have been the same (yet)! It's an incredible role, very varied, but at its core, it's about ensuring everyone is seen, heard and valued at Bloomsbury – this includes staff at Bloomsbury as well as everyone who works with Bloomsbury, such as authors, illustrators and readers. I am involved in a lot of projects and initiatives across the business, which puts me in a really great place to oversee and contribute to all of the positive work we're doing.
The 2022 Publishers Association's UK Publishing Workforce: Inclusion and Belonging survey noted the gradual improvements to diversity within the publishing industry but also underlined the areas that require further attention to ensure inclusivity. What progress have you seen within Bloomsbury and the wider industry? What steps do you think are still needed to make the industry more inclusive?
The conversation is there. It's loud, people are listening, and we need to act. In complete honesty, I have been in the industry for over a decade, and I know there are still a lot of issues that still need a lot of work. There are a lot of positive schemes and initiatives to increase diversity in the industry. However, I believe we need to do more about development and retention within the industry as a whole. A line I find myself saying more often than not is, "you can have a diverse workforce, that doesn't necessarily mean you have an inclusive environment." Two areas that I feel incredibly aware of include socio-economic barriers and regional diversity within the industry.
Bloomsbury are still very much working towards the DEI Action Plan that we published a few years ago – we are constantly reviewing it and looking at what we can do better.
Last year, you completed the Introductory Certificate in Counselling at Newman University – first of all, congratulations on this big achievement! How has undertaking this course translated to your work in publishing?
Thank you! The Intro to Counselling course was interesting, insightful and eye-opening for me. At the time of studying, I was a Commissioning Editor for a Diversity and Inclusion list at another publisher. We had come out of the pandemic, and I was thinking a lot about mental health generally, and I was thinking about my own mental health. Counselling and psychology have always interested me to varying degrees throughout my life. I have an AS-Level in psychology, and I am a fan of the hit comedy Frasier (original, but I still need to watch the new season). As well as learning theory and practice, I realised how lacking counselling is in regard to DEI. I know there is a lack of diverse counsellors, and I was genuinely thinking of a career change then. Everyone has mental health – you can have good mental health one day and be struggling the following day – it's an area of well-being that should be looked after. I would say 'active listening' is something that the course taught me – to create space for people and ensure that they know they have that space. The course has helped me in the DEI role because active listening, empathy and maintaining a sense of grounded-ness are important in this work (all areas I am still working on!).
As a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Manager and someone who works in a large publishing house, you've likely encountered many exceptional works by under-represented voices. Could you share one or two of your favourite books written by authors from under-represented backgrounds and whether these have influenced you and your approach to your work?
Great question – I had to think about this! There are quite a few books that I could mention here, but I want to mention Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa. In terms of my personal experience, ashamedly, Satoshi Yagisawa is the first Japanese author I have read. I absolutely adored this book – it was the first one I read this year, and I am still recommending it wherever and whenever possible. It was beautiful to experience different parts of Japan and generational differences in the book.
We need to branch out, all of us, to pick up a book that we wouldn't usually read by someone we haven't read before because it's about understanding and acknowledging different characters. In life, we are all going to be around people who are different from us (hopefully!), where we can learn new things, understand different perspectives, and be challenged to see things from a new perspective. Characters in ‘fiction’ can do the same. What an amazing privilege and opportunity to have that!