Twenty years ago, Sajida Hussain approached the reception desk of an assessment centre and said she was there for an interview. Despite wearing a suit, Hussain was asked if she was in the right place. ‘To me it felt like they saw what I looked like,’ she says, referring to her ethnicity and hijab, ‘and it felt like, from their perspective, I didn’t deserve to be there.’
As a young university student, Hussain already felt out of place, and though she knows the comment was likely not malicious, it amplified what she was already thinking. ‘It doesn’t put you in good stead for your interview when you’re trying to make a good impression,’ she explains.
Hussain emphasises that people have largely been incredibly receptive to her identity, but this brief encounter is something Hussain still shares as a learning experience decades later. It wasn’t until the last few years that Hussain, now a legal director at Addleshaw Goddard, began to reflect on the lack of South Asian representation within the sector.
During the last four weeks of South Asian Heritage Month, which began in 2020, the same year that Hussain joined Addleshaws, Hussain has seen her colleagues enjoy Bhangra dancing, traditional henna art and South Asian cuisine; things her younger self could have scarcely believed possible in a corporate law firm.
A mock trial during her school years got Hussain interested in the law, before Ally McBeal crystallised her ambitious goal of making it to a global firm. ‘I’ve never been scared of a challenge and, for me, getting into an international firm was a challenge,’ she says.
However, being the first person in her family to go to law school meant she struggled with training contract applications. A senior individual in a prominent law firm began mentoring Hussain, which eventually helped her land a training contract at DAC Beachcroft. Now, as the co-chair of AG Embrace Manchester (Addleshaws’ ethnicity network) Hussain is eager to pay forward the goodwill she received and do what she can to increase visibility and representation of Muslim and South Asian lawyers.
Hussain adopted the co-chair role at Embrace because it was ‘the right thing to do’, but initially remained hesitant to share her personal experiences, not wanting to be judged or pitied. It wasn’t until a couple of years ago, during Addleshaws’ reverse mentoring scheme, where colleagues from underrepresented backgrounds speak to partners and board members about their life experiences and journey’s into law, that she began to open up. ‘Sometimes I wish I would have been a little braver in terms of telling my story; people want to learn about your background, ethnicity, heritage and what a person’s individual experiences are,’ she says.
Hussain soon realised that lots of people could benefit from hearing her story: ‘If I went through these experiences, then it’s possible that others have too. There are a lot of people out there who still don’t feel like they can bring their true identity to work, but there’s no reason why they should feel like that; I’m trying to lead by example.’
Mentorship can take many forms depending on what someone needs. ‘Sometimes you need a coach, sometimes you need a sounding board, sometimes you simply need someone to vent to when facing challenging events. For example, I walked into a room where I was the only ethnically diverse person and someone gave me a weird look. Unless you have been in that situation, it is hard for you to understand what a “weird look” means or feels like. It’s just frustrating that such things still sometimes happen but thankfully it’s less than 10 or 20 years ago. Luckily,’ Hussain says, ‘I’ve got an amazing support network of allies.’
With a visible presence on LinkedIn, Hussain is now returning the favour. She regularly receives messages from juniors about issues she struggled with, such as whether to wear a hijab, how to tell colleagues you’re fasting, or whether to attend networking drinks with alcohol. ‘There’s part of me which feels this is really good and [I’m] making a difference,’ she reflects, ‘but there’s also part of me which feels sad because sometimes I come across people still grappling with the same challenges I went through 20 years ago – it tugs at your heartstrings.’
There is no right way to answer such questions, Hussain emphasises. ‘The starting point is that everyone is an individual,’ she says, and this is, she believes, the key value of building an inclusive culture from the ground up: ‘My experiences have shaped me to be who I am and that has added value in terms of what I bring to the firm, the practice and my expertise, because I think about things differently. I think that’s largely because of all the blockers that I’ve had to go through, that I’ve had to start thinking laterally. And I do think that’s an added value advantage that not many people can offer.’
A key part of creating a varied culture begins with recruitment, Hussain says, as she highlights that Addleshaws has been challenging recruiters to put forward the best candidates, regardless of their background. ‘People who come with different learned experiences can be more creative and offer different perspectives and solutions.’
But visual representation is a two-way street, and it is crucial that there is more representation on the side of the people conducting the interviews. ‘I know this can be a key factor when someone is trying to pick which firm to work for,’ Hussain says.
Despite the current pushback against DEI from some quarters, Addleshaws is standing firm, according to Hussain. ‘Addleshaws always has a strong and powerful message when it comes to DEI, regardless of what is happening in the world,’ she says. ‘It is important to focus on the things that firms and individuals can control and it’s about doing the little things that make a difference to future generations,’ Hussain adds.
When organising work social events, Hussain says Addleshaws casts the net wide in terms of accommodating a variety of needs, considering factors such as dietary requirements, alternatives to alcohol and timings that suit colleagues with childcare responsibilities.
‘My vision for the next 10 or 20 years is to get to a place where everyone is comfortable in being their true authentic self, regardless of whether you’re neurodiverse, ethnically diverse or what your religious beliefs are. The key is getting buy-in and getting investment from senior leadership, including at board level – there’s only so much you can do at the junior end without senior support behind you. At Addleshaws, our strategy starts with the board and filters down.’
‘It’s worse than it was 12 months ago, but it’s better than it was two weeks ago,’ says Jason Hungerford (pictured right), head of international trade at 
