Episode 249: When HR Looks Outward: Social Mobility, Disability Inclusion and Better Business – Arlene Stokes, Chief People Officer at Aegon UK

Arlene believes HR has a responsibility to look beyond the organisation and help tackle the barriers that prevent people reaching their potential. At Aegon UK, she shares how listening to colleagues and stakeholders shaped an inclusion strategy centred on social mobility, with practical work supporting young people into employment and tackling in-work poverty.  Disability inclusion is a deeply personal passion for Arlene. She reflects on why disability is often misunderstood, why reasonable adjustments should be viewed as just the starting point, and how Aegon has redesigned its recruitment approach to hire for skills and potential. Arlene shares brilliant metrics demonstrating enhanced candidate experience and stronger commercial outcomes. Alongside her role at Aegon, Arlene chairs a family services charity and makes a compelling case for skills-based volunteering. Throughout the conversation, Arlene's view shines through: when HR combines commercial thinking with social purpose, organisations perform better and create opportunities for people who might otherwise be left behind. Thank you to Kin&Co for sponsoring this episode What makes or breaks large-scale transformation? Rarely the strategy - almost always the culture. Kin&Co is a certified B-Corp and female-owned consultancy on a mission to make work better for 10 million people by 2030. Using cutting-edge behavioural science, they help global organisations transform cultures and drive measurable impact on strategy, people and performance. They've developed a new behavioural blueprint for transformation, drawn from their experience at some of the UK's most iconic organisations. If you're curious, read their latest thought piece on transformation and assess your cultural readiness. Ready to build a culture that measurably drives performance? Read their thought piece at The Transformation Blueprint to learn more. References: PeopleScout UK Arctic Shores: Task-based assessments for recruitment Advancing Social Mobility in Scotland - Business in the Community Career Ready Scotland | Career Ready