Member Article

TrueCue wins Inclusive Employment category of the Lord Mayor’s Dragon Awards

Women in Data hackathon

City-based analytics products and service brand, TrueCue, is proud to announce it has won the Inclusive Employment category of the City of London Corporation’s Lord Mayor’s Dragon Awards, held last night as a virtual ceremony.

TrueCue – a division of Concentra Analytics - was nominated for this prestigious award for its contribution to promoting greater diversity and inclusion in the data and analytics industry. Designed and hosted by TrueCue, the Women in Data hackathon brought together women who are interested in the field, as well as offering participants an unparalleled opportunity to gain information, advice and upskilling opportunities in this exciting sector.

The hackathon attracted more than 300 participants from 41 different countries, who were set the task of teaming up to solve challenging problems with limited time to analyse a dataset on Covid-19. Participants were given the opportunity to improve their analytics capabilities and presentation skills, as well as speaking to women working in the tech industry – all while learning more about the global pandemic through data. The annual Dragon Awards scheme celebrates social impact such as this, lauding businesses achieving excellence in Greater London and the wider region. Part of the City Corporation’s commitment to work in partnership with businesses, the awards encourage charities, organisations and neighbouring boroughs to create a more responsible, inclusive and competitive London.

A total of 14 companies made the shortlist for these awards, recognising firms that went the extra mile to build strong community relationships, tackle disadvantage or inequality, promote inclusion or boost skills. The activities of this year’s applicants supported over 188,000 people, provided almost £3 million in support and mobilised volunteers who contributed over 13,000 hours to community groups and other worthy causes.

James Don-Carolis, Managing Director at TrueCue said: “We are incredibly proud to have won the Inclusive Employment award and be among some of the companies who have been recognised as going that extra mile to promote greater diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

We hope the hackathon has inspired participants to pursue their professional goals and given a taste of what it might be like to pursue a career in the data industry. Alongside this, we want more businesses to think outside the box to create new initiatives to bridge the diversity and inclusivity gap, and the Women in Data hackathon is proof of this.“ Subsequent feedback from the hackathon was overwhelmingly positive. In fact, not only did the hackathon promote diversity and inclusion in data and analytics, but also led to TrueCue hiring two participants who have recently joined the team as Analysts. It also enabled more women – some of whom had been away from the labour market for a significant period of time – being subsequently hired by other leading companies.

The awards are held every year by the City of London Corporation – the governing body of the ‘Square Mile’ – to recognise businesses which build strong community relationships, tackle disadvantage or inequality, promote inclusion or boost skills.

This year’s awards were organised for the first time by Heart of the City, the City Corporation-funded charity which supports hundreds of small and medium-sized enterprises with their responsible business programmes.

Rupert Morrison, CEO, Concentra Analytics said: “I am incredibly proud of the team at TrueCue, not only for their analytics work in the field of diversity and inclusion, but also for our own contribution to driving diversity and inclusion within the sector, through this fantastic initiative. Well done to all involved!”

Lord Mayor of London William Russell said: “This extraordinary year has presented enormous challenges for individuals and organisations across London and the UK, and has highlighted more than ever the important role businesses can play in working for the benefit of their communities.

“I was really impressed with the innovative, creative and impactful ways companies like TrueCue, which have themselves faced difficult times during the pandemic, have given their time and effort to help make a positive impact on people’s lives.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by sarah Treadwell-Jones .