Editor's Note: Diversity Delivers March 06, 2008 March 2008
By Jennfier Juergens
Last July, Associate Editor Anne Marie Lee and I attended Working Mother's conference on Best Companies for Multicultural Women. One of the most interesting things to me—aside from the fact there were more Fortune 500 companies represented than I'd ever seen—were the titles of participants at the event: Chief Diversity Officer (Deloitte), Global Head of Diversity and Talent Management (Citi Markets and Banking), Diversity & Inclusion (Novations Group). Who Knew?
I certainly didn't realize how many companies actually had whole departments for diversity, though we've been writing about this topic for years.
We also thought diversity a timely subject considering what's going on in politics. A woman and an African-American running for our country's highest office? It's about time.
As Anne Marie Lee writes in her cover story, "The Power of Many, "Leading corporations like IBM, UPS and pharmaceutical giant Boehringer Ingelheim have long embraced diversity through their company policies and initiatives and are continuously broadening their efforts to attract new talent and connect with the global marketplace. In doing so, they are among a growing list of big companies garnering attention as some of the top workplaces for women and minorities."
This story made me think of my first job at Dollar Savings Bank in the Bronx. I was the only white female bank teller. All the others were African-American. When it came time for lunch one day, I went to sit with a group of tellers who clearly looked at me in shock. I slunk away from the table and was chastised later by someone sitting there. It just wasn't done. Though the feeling was humiliating, it taught me a valuable lesson: If a member of the team doesn't feel included, whether it's based on race, gender, disability or any other personal trait unrelated to performance, it's going to lead to turnover, loss of talent and no sense of belonging. It's something really important to think about in the workplace.
New Feature
For the past couple of months we've featured "Where Are We?"—pictures of places from photographers across the globe. Check out the shot on "The Daily Perk" and send me an e-mail with your guess. Winner gets a MARRIOTT gift certificate. Oh, and if you can guess where I am in the picture above (Hint: It's on the East Coast), there's another certificate we'll give you as an award. Good luck. Enjoy the issue.
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