Yasir Mirza to lead Diversity and Inclusion at BBC Studios

YASIR MIRZA has been appointed as Head of Diversity and Inclusion at BBC Studios effective mid-March 2020.

He will lead on devising and implementing a new strategy to improve representation across the business on and off-screen through this newly created post and will report to HR Director Jabbar Sardar.

Mirza joins BBC Studios after spearheading a diversity strategy for the broadcaster encompassing its new out-of-London sites, its leadership coaching and communications to the public around diversity at Channel 4. Before that, he led on diversity and inclusion for Open Society Foundations, a philanthropic organisation.

Yasir Mirza said: “I’m hugely excited to be joining BBC Studios. It’s an opportunity to work with teams of the highest calibre who make content for global audiences, and I’m looking forward to helping the business improve its representation of the world we live in today.”

Earlier, he was Head of Diversity and Inclusion for six years at Guardian News & Media. There he worked closely with journalists to broaden and deepen the diversity of content, representation and devising a more inclusive organisational culture.

“Driving diversity and inclusion both on- and off-screen is a clear priority so that we can better serve our audiences and truly reflect modern Britain,” said Jabbar Sardar.

“We’re thrilled Yasir will be at the helm as we build on existing work to further embed diversity and inclusion into every facet of our culture.”