Addressing delegates at the ENEI annual conference on Wednesday, he said: "We must be prepared for the next stage of social and cultural change.
"Tomorrow's working world will provide new challenges, so it is vital to equip employers and employees with the tools to cope with them and encourage them to think differently."
This was echoed by psychologists Pete Jones and Tinu Cornish who, on behalf of enei, are conducting a study into unconscious bias, the theory that there is a tendency for people to recruit and work best with workers who bear similarities to themselves or to others in their company and this is done, for the most part, involuntarily.
They revealed that over a quarter (25.2%) of employees have biases towards others, which impact their behaviour in the workplace, and that these are likely to manifest themselves when they were in stressful or frustrating situations. Perhaps because of this, many people interviewing for new positions stated that they felt they had been victims of stereotyping, with those with a disability, a strong faith, regional accents, children or part time workers feeling this most acutely.
Denise Keating, CEO, ENEI, added: "Creating a diverse workplace - by employing individuals from a wide range of backgrounds, ages and life experiences - can make a company more competitive and a more interesting place to work.
"In the current economic climate, we need to do all we can to ensure organisations recruit and retain the best people from the widest possible talent base. We must also recognise different approaches are required for different people who have different needs and expectations. The emphasis is placed on valuing difference as opposed to fitting in. We hope our conference has opened up the topic for wider discussion, and has placed it firmly on the radar of all businesses wanting to see their productivity increase."
