On Thursday 5^th June 2025, we opened our doors at our CATCH Facility and welcomed delegates for our final event of Humber Business Week, our CATCH EDIB Conference.

Chair Paul McCartan (Yara) welcomed everyone to (not so) sunny Stallingborough, welcoming faces both new and old to the conference. Paul began with an introduction to Equity, Diversity, Inclusivity and Belonging, as well as the CATCH EDIB Charter and the importance of EDIB in the workplace.

Paul then introduced the guest speakers for the event, Fintan Canavan and Ivaylo Arnaudov from Protiviti Global Business Consulting, who provided a fascinating insight to Generational Diversity in the Workplace and Unlocking the Productivity Potential of a Multigenerational Workforce.

Sitting down for a fireside chat, Fintan and Ivo explained how their study had been completed in conjunction with the London School of Economics, following concerns from businesses and clients about generational divide in the workplace, and a lack of research and support about what can be done to improve productivity and relationships within the workplace.

Protiviti focused their initial study on meetings. It was found that 35% of workplace meetings were considered to be unproductive, and that by including multiple generations and engagement teams from departments across the business,  a shift in culture and beliefs surrounding meetings can  allow for improved knowledge sharing and relationships to be built, bridging the gap between generations within the workplace.

Fintan and Ivo also spoke about the preliminary results from their second-year study surrounding the use of AI in the workplace, with delegates opening up the conversation about their experiences on the use of AI in the workplace. While it is often found to be a fast-growing and useful tool across industries and sectors, it was found by Protiviti that there is some concern across younger generations about future entry level jobs, however it is this generation that are the most comfortable using this technology.  Intellectual property and data security was also found to be a concern for most.

The session culminated with breakout discussions, with delegates discussing not only the topics that had been covered, but also the generational challenges that they faced within their own workforces, and how having open discussions with senior leaders could result in a positive impact across the company surrounding generational diversity.

Fintan and Ivo closed the conference by introducing their third-year study, which will launch later this year and is looking for businesses and participants to join them as they continually research generational diversity within the workforce.

The next CATCH EDIB Network will be held on Thursday 10^th July. For more information about the CATCH EDIB Network and membership, please contact lisa.buck@catchuk.org.