Leila Mckenzie-Delis

Leila McKenzie-Delis is an entrepreneur, author, and CEO focused on advancing diversity, inclusion, and belonging in business and society. Her personal experiences, growing up in Harrogate, Yorkshire, as a transracially adopted individual, significantly shaped her perspective on identity and opportunity. Despite excelling academically and graduating with a first-class honors degree, she encountered barriers to accessing graduate-level employment that her peers did not. This early professional experience highlighted the systemic issues she would later dedicate her career to addressing, serving as a driving force behind her commitment to creating equitable opportunities for all.

After building a successful career in executive search and running several businesses, McKenzie-Delis recognized a persistent lack of diversity in leadership roles. In 2019, she founded DIAL Global (Diverse, Inclusive, Aspirational Leaders), a global community aimed at fostering a more open, equitable, and high-performing business environment. DIAL Global’s mission is to encourage organizations to rethink their working culture, recruitment practices, and understanding of diversity. Concurrently, she established The McKenzie-Delis Foundation, a charitable organization dedicated to furthering research in diversity, inclusion, and belonging. In 2020, the foundation launched the McKenzie-Delis Review, a comprehensive report on diversity and inclusion within the UK workplace, providing data-driven insights into the state of workplace diversity.

Leila McKenzie-Delis has expanded her influence through various mediums, including authoring books such as ‘Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging’ and ‘The CEO Activist: Putting the ‘S’ in ESG’. She hosts the ‘Diverse & Inclusive Leaders’ podcast, which features interviews with thought leaders on topics of inclusion, belonging, and equity, and also hosts the ‘CEO Activist Podcast’. Her work involves managing numerous directorships and advisory positions, actively promoting and campaigning for the benefits of inclusion and diversity across various sectors. She continues to lead DIAL Global and The McKenzie-Delis Foundation, working towards a more diverse and inclusive society where individuals from all backgrounds can thrive and contribute.