Fariyal Khanbabi, Dialight Group CEO & Chairman of Dialight Foundation, on Sustainability and the Importance of Gender-Balanced Boards

ESG Decoded is the podcast powered by Global Affairs Associates, a ClimeCo company to share relevant updates related to business innovation and sustainability in a manner that is clear and actionable.  In this episode, Amanda Hsieh talks with Fariyal Khanbabi, Dialight Group CEO & Chairman of Dialight Foundation.   Dialight is the world leader in LED industrial lighting technology (listed on the London Stock Exchange) with millions of LED fixtures installed worldwide. It launched its first LED product 51 years ago and continues to innovate in LED lighting technology. Fariyal is the 2020 winner of Silver Stevie® Award in the Woman of the Year – Manufacturing category. Prior to Dialight, she held the positions of Chief Financial Officer for Blue Ocean Group Ltd. and Chief Financial Officer at Britannia Bulk Holdings, Inc., and Chief Financial Officer at Britannia Bulk Plc (a subsidiary of Britannia Bulk Holdings, Inc.). Fariyal received an undergraduate degree from the University of Leeds. Listen as Amanda and Fariyal discuss how Dialight is helping its customers meet their environmental and safety goals by focusing on fully recyclable products and lighting designs that reduce pollution. We are reminded of ‘other’ benefits of sustainability: 1) how it can increase employee engagement and strengthen company culture and 2) it can be a driver in meeting company financial goals. They also discuss a topic that has received increasing airplay in the past few years, gender-balanced boards. Unlike many other companies, Dialight did not just talk about gender-balanced boards, they took action! This topic is important for men and women.  While women are navigating the path to leadership opportunities, men need to know how to show up as allies on the journey. We want to engage with you about this episode. Share your best practices related to gender-balanced boards. We still have a lot of ground to cover.   As a resource boost, learn more about Dialight Foundation which is dedicated to transforming the lives of people in need in the communities around Dialight facilities, with a focus on children and youth, providing them with the resources to become beacons of light. http://www.dialight.com/dialight-foundation/ Subscribe to ESG Decoded where you consume your podcasts and connect via social media to share your feedback and topic suggestions. Enjoy this episode!