Accent Catering Services has appointed Operations Director Kerrie Cole as its Access Champion, joining the Access Champions Collective within Accessible Hospitality Alliance (aha). Kerrie brings a clear ambition to open up workplace opportunities and enable more people to contribute their talents.
Her appointment follows Accent’s decision to join aha in August. For Kerrie, progress begins with a willingness to embrace change and recognise the skills, experience and perspectives that businesses gain when people can participate fully.
Kerrie said of her appointment: “I jumped at the chance to become the Access Champion for Accent Catering Services. It really frustrates me when workplaces are not open to change and I would love to be a driver in making the workplace accessible for all.
“There is so much talent out there and companies thrive when they welcome, and facilitate, a diverse team that all bring different skills, experiences and views. I can’t wait to spend time with like-minded people who can help me to make significant differences in this area.”
Her perspective raises a practical question for employers, how much talent could become available if established ways of recruiting and working were more open to change? Understanding where people encounter barriers creates opportunities to reconsider those practices, from how a role is advertised to how someone is enabled to perform it.
Through aha’s Access Champions Collective, Kerrie will have opportunities to exchange experience with fellow members, explore barriers encountered across the industry and learn how others are addressing them. Her operational perspective will bring valuable insight to those conversations, connecting the ambition for more accessible workplaces with the everyday decisions that shape them.
She will also attend The aha Forum at the BT Tower on 11 November alongside her colleague Antony Prentice, Commercial Director at Accent Catering Services. The forum will provide an opportunity to engage directly with the experiences and ideas informing accessibility across hospitality and catering.
Robin Sheppard, Chair and co-founder of aha, said: “Kerrie’s enthusiasm begins with seeing what people can bring to a business and wanting to give that talent room to flourish. Her willingness to question established ways of working, alongside an appetite to learn from others, will be a valuable addition to the Access Champions Collective.
“Progress comes through listening carefully, sharing experience and putting what we learn into practice. We look forward to welcoming Kerrie and Antony to the BT Tower and working with Kerrie as she brings that approach to her role at Accent.”
Challenging long-held assumptions about human capability and who is best suited to different roles is also a theme of Dr Irene Di Giulio’s keynote at the 11 November forum. Her session will explore disability and spaceflight, examining how scientific research can challenge assumptions about the requirements of a role and who potentially best meets them.