Business in Colour Awards to spotlight inclusive leadership 

Business in Colour Awards to spotlight inclusive leadership 

Awards

Honouring extraordinary leadership in racial and cultural inclusion at work, the MindTribes Business in Colour Awards is the first program of its kind in Australia. 

The awards are a movement celebrating excellence in anti-racism, cultural strength and inclusive leadership across Australia’s public and private sectors. 

The event in November will feature prolific South African-Australian writer, activist and political analyst Sisonke Msimang, and the ceremony will be hosted by award-winning journalist Neary Ty. 

The awards are hosted by MindTribes, a leading consultant and practitioner in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in Australia. Established in 2012 under the leadership of Div and Vick Pillay, the organisation has since grown into an award-winning diversity and inclusion management consultancy, specialising in race & cultural inclusion. The rationale behind these awards is that antiracism efforts are often hard to mobilise and underinvested in, compared to other DEI change work. 

“As a team, we have been imagining these awards for the last 5 years; watching how other awards for women have created a shared understanding of what good looks like. We need the same business community effort behind addressing racism.  These awards aim to celebrate progress in the antiracism space and inspire others who haven’t gone as far to keep going”, said Div Pillay, CEO of MindTribes.  

First Nations people are at the heart of MindTribe’s Business in Colour Awards.

“They don’t have a ‘First People’s’ category, but are ensuring representation through nominations and judges,” said Francesca Salvo, a senior executive at Microsoft Australia and strong champion of the Awards. 

“By shining a light on those organisations who are standing up to make a real difference, we also have the opportunity to learn how we can be better leaders in cultural diversity and inclusion.”

As a sponsor, Microsoft ANZ is standing firm in their support for diversity and inclusion progress through their support of the Awards. 

This commitment is also reflected in Microsoft ANZ’s ongoing initiatives, says Salvo, noting that this is seen “from the diversity of teams that design our solutions, through to our ongoing investment in ERGs and Communities of Practice”.

“These awards allow our employees to promote nominating through our client and partner community, in turn allowing Microsoft to reaffirm our own commitment to do the hard work, have meaningful conversations that go beyond technology, and foster community-led change for broader systemic impact.”

Francesca Salvo, a senior executive at Microsoft Australia

There is a significant gap when it comes to recognising the advancements of racial and cultural inclusion in the business community. These awards allow a platform to showcase excellence and define good business practices. 

The MindTribes Business in Colour Awards night will welcome 250+ private and public sector professionals to hear finalist and winner stories addressing racism in the workplace. 

These winners and finalists would have been through rigorous judging from over 20 judges who represent integrity and outstanding leadership in our business community. 

There are five categories to enter: Exemplar [for First Nations and racially diverse employees]; Sponsor [individual leaders sponsoring change]; Inclusive Companies [for organisations who have progressed action plans and antiracism strategies]; Research Excellence [for those researchers who have given us the data, the business cases for change]; and Collective Impact [for those staff led networks, resource groups and committees who mobilise change from the grassroots]. 

It’s not the typical black-tie awards night experience. Attendees will see food trucks serving global and ethnic flavours, South Asian and South-East Asian dancers and African drummers bringing rhythm, colour, and energy to the crowd, with respect and centring of First Peoples, given at the very start, commencing with a Welcome to Country and throughout the awards.

MindTribes Business in Colour Awards will take place 13 November 2025 in Melbourne. More information on how to submit for the Awards and tickets can be found here

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