Funding was provided by a group of investors including Paul Atkinson, non-executive chair of Taranata Group, John Hall and Philip Pritchard.

Over the next five years, organisations will come under increasing pressure to reduce inequality. In 2021, ethnicity pay gap reporting is expected to become a statutory requirement in the UK, followed by disability.

Pay gap reporting is being introduced in more countries at a time when there is growing demand from stakeholders including customers and investors for organisations to be more transparent and accountable.

Spktral’s platform helps organisations to quickly and easily prepare their own pay gap reports and see where inequalities lie. The user can either undertake the process inhouse or fully outsource it to Spktral. Further bespoke analytic capabilities can help organisations address issues identified during the pay gap reporting process.

These services include analytics support, equal pay analysis and benchmarking, stakeholder communications, learning and business change programs. These valuable insights into where improvements can be made will ultimately enhance organisations’ brands and reputations as employers.

Anthony Horrigan, chief executive officer of Spktral, said: “As a result of this investment, Spktral is now ideally placed to help its clients address the wider sustainability agenda that’s gathering pace among business leaders globally.

“Diversity, inclusion and equality are part of the global sustainability agenda and are recognised as being key to an organisations’ future success and attractiveness to employees, customers and investors. Studies have identified a direct link between diversity and business performance. Spktral’s goal is to help clients quickly and easily understand where they lack diversity. From there we can help them develop a plan and measurement framework to address this complex issue.”

Fiona Hathorn, chief executive officer of Women on Boards, added: “The issue of inequality in organisations will continue to maintain its profile over the coming years. While Brexit may have delayed the legislative agenda, we will see more on equal pay in 2020 as a result of the #metoopay campaign led by Dame Moya Greene.

“More cases will be taken through an open legal process as opposed to being resolved under non-disclosure agreements, increasing reputational risks for employers as these cases are profiled by the media. It is imperative that organisations take the case of equality and inclusion seriously and ensure that they act on all pay gap reporting to make a positive change.”

Spktral’s database also allows clients to view the UK Government’s gender pay gap reporting data and to view and benchmark their performance against this government data.