Deloitte story: Laura Grootenboer

‘I’m energized by the human side of impactful transformations’

- Laura Grootenboer, Head of Sustainability Engagement NSE

 

Within five years time, Laura Grootenboer, Head of

Sustainability Engagement North and South Europe

(NSE) at Deloitte, has added an impressive list of

impactful roles to her name. From the Deloitte

Impact Foundation to the Internal Sustainability

Team, and now also as a co-lead for ‘Proud at

Deloitte’. ‘I’m passionate about making a positive

societal and environmental impact through

collaboration, inspiration and motivation. How lucky

am I, that I get to spend 100 per cent of my working

hours doing this?’

 

‘For me, Deloitte is the perfect fit’, Laura (29) says. ‘To make an impact on society I could

have joined an NGO or worked in the public sector, but the unique position and company

culture of Deloitte makes this the perfect place for me to be. I have access to a huge pool of

smart, passionate people and plenty of other means. There’s a culture of entrepreneurship

and innovation to help drive change. Moreover, we have a large scale of influence through

our extensive network becasue we work across all industries. The only thing left for me to

do is to encourage and equip my colleagues to join my mission, whether it supports

sustainability or diversity, equity, and inclusion. And this is exactly what I love to do most!’

 

More than just a tagline

Five years ago, Laura started working at the Deloitte Impact Foundation (DIF) to drive project

engagement and storytelling. ‘Making an impact is at the core of our purpose. And it’s more

than a tagline alone. Through the DIF, all Deloitte colleagues are able to use their

professional skills to make a positive difference in society, pro bono. It was my job to

enhance the visibility of impact opportunities our people could join and to show that anyone

within Deloitte can make a meaningful difference with their unique skills. In 2020, I started

my own DIF project for a non-profit organization Climate Action Project. We created an app

that encourages young people across the globe to consider the environmental impact of

their daily choices (e.g., food, purchasing and mobility). Within Deloitte, I started a

Changemakers Network with partners of the various service lines to increase the number of

DIF projects we were setting up. Our DIF efforts have expanded enormously, thanks to all

our changemakers throughout the organization.’

 

 

Empowering people to make a positive impact

It energizes Laura to make a positive impact on human behaviour. ‘I’m intrigued by the

human side of impactful transformations. Aligning and empowering people for a greater

purpose. Deloitte is not a manufacturing company - it’s an organization driven by people.

Everything evolves around the passion and talent of our people and the choices they make.

In my experience, most people want to do better, but they could use some help in shaping

and prompting the actions they need to take. That’s something I love to help them with’,

Laura says excitedly.

 

That is why, after three years at DIF, she has moved to the central Internal Sustainability

Team for North & South Europe. ‘Deloitte teams across 29 countries in our region, from

Iceland to Lebanon, are in the middle of a sustainability transformation we’re calling

WorldClimate. Our team is setting the strategy and driving the delivery, and it’s my job to

encourage, inspire and empower our colleagues from every corner of our firm to be

catalysts of change.

 

For instance, we are currently implementing a Sustainable Delivery Clause which is our

commitment to work with our clients to find more sustainable ways of working, from

prioritizing virtual collaborations to choosing the most sustainable ways to travel when

meeting in person for the moments that really matter. We want to make sustainability part

of our client conversations from the very beginning. It’s a crucial step in planting the seeds

towards more positive impact, for us and for our clients!’

 

Showing diversity

For Laura, making an impact goes beyond the borders of daily work. Recently she became

the co-lead of the Proud at Deloitte network for colleagues who feel an affinity with the

LGBTQ+ community. ‘I have a girlfriend and I used to think I didn’t need to be very

outspoken about that, until I attended a meeting where one of the female partners of

Deloitte shared about a fun weekend she had had with her wife and children. I was

surprised to notice how big of an impression this remark made on me. I realised how

important it is to show diversity and to be a role model. If we don’t discuss these matters, it’s

like they don’t exist, which makes it harder for people to be themselves.’
 

 

‘With Proud we want to take action in support of LGBTQ+ inclusion’, Laura says passionately.

‘So far, we have – among other things - added a Deloitte policy for Gender Transition

Support, a policy for rainbow family leave, and added gender-neutral toilets at our offices.

To create awareness around LGBTQ+ inclusion, we set up campaigns and join Pride events

such as the Amsterdam Pride (watch the video below). As a co-lead, I’m committed to

accelerating the pace of change in the field of LGBTQ+ inclusion. How can we adjust our

business culture? And how can we create even more effective LGBTQ+ allies? These are

great challenges that I’m excited to work on, together with my colleagues on the Proud at

Deloitte Core Team.’

 

Laura recently joined the Deloitte Green Room Podcast for an episode on ‘Activist

Leadership’. Listen to the broadcast here.

 

Choose your impact

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