Building disability-smart business

BDI promotes economic and social inclusion by making it easier for corporations to employ and do business with disabled people. Members jointly fund a "not for profit", expert resource which builds their capacity to deliver the business improvement. In 2012 BDI had some 350 members employing nearly 20% of the UK workforce.

Business Disability Forum promotes the economic and social inclusion of persons with disabilities by making it easier for corporations to employ and do business with disabled people. Business Disability Forum enables private and public sector organisations to: 1) position disability as an opportunity to do with customer experience, talent, business improvement, productivity, brand reputation, civil & human rights, and investment in human potential 2) define, deliver and measure best practice against a recognised standard 3) overcome the obstacles which confront enterprises in any country seeking to deliver best practice for applicants, employees and customers 4) problem-solve via business-to-business collaboration such as its Technology Taskforce working to create a more accessible global ICT marketplace for everyone 5) encourage regulations which are credible to both businesses and people with disabilities, reflecting UN CRDP principles Members of Business Disability Forum jointly fund a “not for profit”, expert resource which builds their capacity to deliver the business improvement which in turn delivers benefits to both business and society. Partner members invest £20,000 annually.

Solution, Innovation and Impact

Business Disability Forum has a 20 year record for thought leadership, having invented this enterprise membership “model” for helping to build “disability-smart” companies supported by a network of outstanding disabled opinion leaders as expert advisors and ambassadors. Business Disability Forum has some 350 members who employ nearly 20% of the UK workforce. 40% are multinationals; more than 7 million best practice guides are in distribution. Thousands of managers have had training and built new relationships with disabled individuals. Its Technology Taskforce enables large corporations to remove ICT related obstacles globally for millions of employees, applicants, citizens and customers.

Funding, Outlook and Transferability

While UK-based, Business Disability Forum has a track record for enabling multinationals and stakeholders in countries such as Croatia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Germany, Canada, South Africa, Russia, Hong Kong, and Australia. Its management guidance is translated into Mandarin, Maltese, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, and tailored for Canada, Australia and South Africa. Its standard is being piloted in Australia. It has advised emerging business disability networks in Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Moscow.