Leading DE&I For A Brighter Future!
Driving Ownership, Action and Impact.

Context & Challenge: With awareness well established, the challenge was to embed DE&I into daily operations, especially within a manufacturing-led, multi-location workforce. We needed a scalable model that ensured local ownership, cross-level participation, and cultural relevance - without losing sight of strategic direction.

Objective: To operationalize DE&I through employee-led activation, visible leadership support, and inclusive storytelling, driving mindset shift, behavioral change, and a culture of belonging across the organization.

Key Strategic Moves:

• Embedded DE&I into the organization’s fabric by activating ERGs across all sites - tasked with translating national priorities into hyper-local, employee-led action plans.

• Curated DE&I APAC Week as a flagship culture moment, blending learning with engagement through interactive workshops, audio-visuals, gamified experiences, and a high-impact Talk Show featuring Covestro’s global leadership to build top-down trust and visibility, ‘Chai Pe Charcha’ sessions with industry experts and disability inclusion enablers.

• Humanized inclusion through lived experiences, showcasing real employee stories via Inclusion Diaries and Walk in My Shoes - peer-led formats that encouraged vulnerability, empathy, and reflection.

• Wove allyship into daily culture by empowering ERGs to lead site-specific activations from reverse mentoring and cultural exchange sessions to inclusive language toolkits and floor walks with leaders - making DE&I practical, and personal.

Strategic Outcomes:

• 8 ERGs established, with 25+ DE&I champions across locations driving local engagement and ownership.

• 95% employee participation in DE&I APAC Week activities reflecting strong resonance across functions and locations.

• 12+ DE&I events and talk shows conducted during the campaign, including a flagship session with Covestro’s global leadership, fostering authenticity and leadership alignment.

• 2.5x increase in platform engagement and inclusion storytelling, reflecting growing employee trust and openness.

• Marked improvement in inclusion sentiment, particularly in manufacturing reinforcing the shift from awareness to action.

Value Unlocked: The campaign embedded DE&I into the fabric of Covestro (India)’s culture, moving from awareness to ownership. By empowering employees and elevating leadership voices, it created a shared commitment to inclusion that was actionable, authentic, and aligned to business realities.