Diversity, inclusion and teamworking is not a peripheral soft skill — it is a core professional duty. The RICS Rules of Conduct 2022 place a direct obligation on members and firms to treat others with respect and to encourage diversity and inclusion. Assessors expect you to demonstrate both understanding and practical application.
Be clear on the distinction between four related but separate concepts.
Diversity refers to the demographic mix of a team or organisation — the range of backgrounds, identities and experiences people bring. Inclusion goes further: it describes whether those people actually feel valued, heard and able to contribute fully. A team can be diverse on paper yet deeply exclusive in practice.
Equity is about fair access and outcomes. Unlike simple equality, equity recognises that people face different barriers and may need different support to reach the same starting point. Teamworking pulls all three together: the collaborative output produced when diverse, included people work towards shared goals.
Under the Equality Act 2010, nine protected characteristics provide the legislative foundation for fair treatment in employment and service delivery:
As a surveyor you need to understand that discrimination can be direct (treating someone less favourably because of a characteristic) or indirect (applying a policy that disproportionately disadvantages a group). Both are unlawful.