Integration andawareness  Inclusiveworkplace  Robustmeritocracy  Spotlight on flexibleworkarrangements  13  Macquarie supports working parents and those with carer’s  responsibilities through a variety of means. In Sydney,  Macquarie has well established relationships at two childcare  centres which offer childcare services to permanent  employees. Macquarie also offers casual places through  these centres to respond to the need for flexible childcare  arrangements. In the US and UK, backup childcare is  available to employees when they need to be at work and  their regular childcare is unavailable for any reason. In  addition, backup adult and eldercare is also available in the  UK for all staff with carer’s responsibilities.  Where possible, Macquarie offers its staff the opportunity to  work flexibly in relation to hours, days and place of work in all  regions and may include, for example, flexi-time (having a  different or flexible start/finish time), job share and working  from home. Flexibility is offered in response to a range of reasons  including family or carer’s responsibilities, pursuit of further  studies, recreational reasons such as sporting commitments  or community work, phased retirement or a career break. Macquarie recognises the importance of empowering staff to  manage their work and time as effectively as possible. This is  reflected in the most recent staff survey in which the majority  of staff believe they have sufficient flexibility to balance their  work and personal/family needs. Macquarie is committed to encouraging an inclusive  workplace and ensuring that workforce diversity is an integral  part of the way we do business. Macquarie continues to  invest in promoting and supporting opportunities for staff to  engage in initiatives such as business or region-specific  ‘Diversity Weeks’, Diversity Councils, International Women’s  Day events, Bring our Daughters to Work Day, and  networking and career forums. The employee-led networking  groups for women, working parents and Lesbian Gay  Bisexual Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) staff and allies  are gaining momentum and help to reinforce the diversity  and inclusion agenda at a grass roots level. In 2013  Macquarie’s LGBTI Australian employee network, Banking &  Financial Services Group allsortswas awarded the Pride in  Diversity Employee Network of the Year.  Macquarie continues to expand its memberships with the  leading external employer forums in each region in the areas  of gender, race, sexual orientation and gender identity,  disability, age and religion. These forums provide Macquarie  with access to research, networks and events, and allow  benchmarking against diversity and inclusion best practices.  Macquarie’s commitment to diversity and inclusion was  affirmed in the 2013 staff survey in which the overwhelming  majority of staff globally agreed that Macquarie provides an  inclusive environment that encourages diversity. Macquarie provides policies to support flexible work  arrangements in all regions (refer to ‘Spotlight on flexible  work arrangements’). These policies are complemented by a  range of initiatives including ‘Care for Kids’ (an online portal  for working parents providing access to research and  resources), backup childcare, childcare vacancy and  emergency childcare search, and return-to-work coaching  for parents. In addition, reporting on staff on a Full Time  Equivalent basis has been implemented to encourage  opportunities for job sharing and to optimise workforce  planning. As a result of the efforts over the past three years, Macquarie  has achieved high return to work rates and retention rates of  those staff who have taken parental leave.  Macquarie aims to attract and retain a diverse range of  candidates, ensuring meritocracy in hiring, reward and  promotion decisions. To achieve this, Macquarie embeds  equity and transparency in all people-related practices and  processes, for example:  Furthermore Macquarie continues to actively participate in  sponsorship, mentoring and networking programs, both  internally and externally in all regions, including the Chief  Executive Women’s Leaders Program, the Women in  Banking and Finance Mentoring program and FTSE 100  Mentoring Program. – unconscious bias training is embedded in core talent  programs, recruitment processes and remuneration and  promotion criteria  – the recently launched Macquarie Director Program  includes modules specifically focused on Macquarie’s  diversity objectives  – a review of remuneration outcomes is conducted  annually to ensure pay equity for like roles and  performance across all groups and regions  – Executive Committee members have diversity-related  metrics included in annual performance assessments. 