Rise to the Occasion

The past few years have sparked significant cultural change and required everyone, including industries, to reflect and seek ways to contribute to positive change and create a more inclusive and equitable Canada. As part of the design sector, JennAir has spent time listening and learning about the inequality of opportunity in our industry and is committed to playing our part to have an impact. There is currently no published data on the number of racialized designers in Canada but Toronto Metropolitan University, a leading educational institution in interior design, reports significant under-representation. In 2019, the University published the 2019 Student Diversity Self-ID Report to set a baseline for representation of students from equity groups (women, racialized people, Aborigional Peoples, persons with disabilities and 2SLGBTQ+ people) as well from the three largest racialized groups (South Asian, Chinese and Black). The data showed the School of Interior Design was experiencing low representation of Indigenous, Black and South Asian students. In addition, we know that in Canada, across all programs, there is a significant gap in graduation and employment rates between racialized and non-racialized youth in the sector. These factors have led us to invest in the development of the JennAir Disrupting Design program.

Through this program, our mission is to break the structural barriers for Black, Indigenous and people of colour to have better access to study and work in the design sector. We believe that better representation of racialized Canadians in interior design will drive stronger, more diverse design work.

The JennAir Disrupting Design program is aimed at creating access and opportunities for racialized designers in the industry. As a first step we have formed a partnership with The Creative School at Toronto Metropolitan University to create the JennAir Scholars Award - a $375,000 scholarship over five years to support Black, Indigenous and students of colour in the Bachelor of Interior Design program and planned Masters program. In addition, we have worked with TMU to create a paid internship program for design students offering real world experience to help build their resumes. Finally, for racialized design graduates at TMU, we have created a sponsorship program matching graduates with successful working interior designers. In addition to our work with TMU, JennAir commits to collaborating with three racialized designers each year for kitchen renovations. The designer's work would be featured on the JennAir website and social channels.

Over a year ago, JennAir conducted in-depth interviews with racialized designers in Canada to understand the barriers to better representation in the industry. To ensure the Program’s direction continues to be guided by those with lived experience, JennAir has established a Disrupting Design Advisory Board consisting of Black, Indigenous and industry leaders of colour. This board will guide the JennAir Disrupting Design program’s focus over the short and long term. 

The JennAir Disrupting Design program is rooted in our brand history and its value of progress: born to lead, never to follow. We firmly believe that a more diverse industry will drive more progressive designs. Ultimately, we stand for progress and believe in investing in inclusion and diversity (I&D) initiatives to fuel change. At the same time, and as we have heard from design partners and industry leaders, fueling progress is also about taking stock of our internal I&D commitments. To this end, Whirlpool Canada, which markets the JennAir brand, has developed the Stronger Together team. This team of employees, supported by executive sponsors, are focussed on creating a culture where everyone feels comfortable and safe bringing their full self to work. 

After forming in 2020, the Stronger Together committee invited employee input to inform areas of focus. Three work streams were created to foster a culture consistent with Whirlpool Corporation’s values of I&D within all levels of the organization: Celebrating Diversity, Understanding Microaggressions and Diversity Through Recruitment. Since the creation of the Stronger Together committee, Whirlpool Corporation has seen an improvement in the employee experience among equity-deserving groups. 

Whirlpool Canada’s parent company, Whirlpool Corporation has deep rooted values of integrity and respect that drive our commitment to employees and to the communities in which we operate. We strive to provide a collaborative, safe and welcoming environment to ensure that Whirlpool Corp. is the best place to work and a place where our employees truly feel welcomed, valued, heard and respected. Additionally, we are dedicated to improving the quality of life for all who reside in the communities in which we operate. You can read more about Whirlpool Corporation’s ESG efforts in our 2021 ESG/Sustainability Report linked here.

As a brand that pushes the boundaries of progress, JennAir has taken time to listen, reflect and do our own work in order to launch an impactful, sustainable and authentic strategy for Disrupting Design. We recognize that driving change requires time, learning, resources and financial support from businesses across our industry. We are taking steps to do our part, which is why we are proud to say that the JennAir Scholars Award is the largest scholarship with mentorship and job placement programs for racialized youth entering the design sector in Canada. We also realize that there is still a lot to learn. Part of why the JennAir Disrupting Design program is being launched is to further understand the gaps in the sector and what can be done to bridge them. We are committed to leading this program and doing it in a participatory way with the collaboration of Toronto Metropolitan University and the guidance of the Advisory Board. We are dedicated to listening to the designers most affected by underrepresentation - Black, Indigenous and designers of colour—and are creating platforms to bring their voices to the forefront.