Cu Phan, General Manager, Surface Development and Planning Reporting at Olympic Dam was just 4 years old when his passion for inclusion and diversity began.

Together with his 2-year-old brother and parents, his family made an illegal and harrowing midnight escape from post-war Vietnam to Hong Kong. During the long sea journey, they were crammed into a small over-crowded vessel and faced hunger, thirst and danger.

Eventually, the boat started taking on water and the family feared for their lives. Cu’s father managed to get some rope and tie the family together, rationalising that they would live or die as a family. “We ran out of food and water and had to go to dry land somewhere in China to beg for food and water,” explained Cu. “One couple sensed my parents’ desperation and offered to buy me. My parents were so afraid, they quickly ran back to the boat with me and my brother.”

After 30 days at sea, the boat finally arrived at Hong Kong, and the family ended up in a razor wire fenced refugee camp with strict security in place to ensure no one escaped. Three years later the family was sponsored through the Uniting Church of Australia. “I came from nothing. I was a refugee and didn’t speak a word of English. I grew up on welfare and we lived in public housing.”

Cu’s keen observations, even at an early age, sowed the seeds of championing diversity and inclusion. “You’re surrounded by immigrants in low socioeconomic environments and people who are very different,” he said. “I always wondered what made some people thrive while others didn’t.”

“I’ve never felt disadvantaged as a poor refugee. My loving family gave me drive, motivation and determination to give back and add value to the country that gave me this opportunity.”

Cu joined BHP 11 years ago and has been advocating for a culture that respects and embraces the differences of its people. “It’s not about equal opportunity but acknowledging that everyone is at a different starting point and that we all have a role to play in creating a diverse and inclusive workplace.”

He believes that it’s not money or resources that makes the greatest companies, but that they’ve created an inclusive environment and tapped into the diverse thinking, gender, race, and the background of their people.