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Diversity by Design – The New Face of Corporate America: Spotlight on Hispanic Leadership
Written by Judy Turnock
Left to right: HACR CEO Roundtable Moderator Norma Garcia (Telemundo), George Chavel (Sodexo), HACR CEO Roundtable Host Randall L. Stephenson (AT&T), John W. Chidsey (Burger King Corporation) and Leo Kiely (MillerCoors)
Hispanics represent 15% (nearly 50 million) of the U.S. population and continue to be the fastest growing population segment. Some estimates indicate the actual number could be as high as 60 million and that by 2050, the Latino population could reach 30% of the total U.S. population. Since Hispanics have the highest employment rate of any U.S. non-white group and their purchasing power is nearing $1 trillion, their power as consumers will only continue to grow, along with their potential as a source of corporate intellectual capital.
For more than two decades, the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility (HACR), a coalition of 13 national Hispanic advocacy organizations, has been the driving force in guiding corporations to leverage this opportunity. HACR, along with its corporate members, advances greater Hispanic inclusion in corporate leadership, the C-Suite and the boardroom through corporate partnerships and signature leadership events.
Sharing CEO Wisdom and Experience
The May 2009 CEO Roundtable was the pinnacle of the 17th Annual HACR Symposium: The Power of Hispanic Inclusion, held in Dallas. It provided key insights into current Hispanic inclusion efforts from host Randall L. Stephenson, chair, chief executive officer and president of AT&T, as well as featured presenters John W. Chidsey, chair and chief executive officer of Burger King Corporation; Leo Kiely, chief executive officer of MillerCoors; and George Chavel, president and chief executive officer, Sodexo. Top Hispanic executives from corporate member companies as well as national Hispanic leaders were able to share in the CEOs’ wisdom and experience, thus enhancing the understanding of perspective on both sides of the issue.
The discussion covered innovative strategies and effective models for increasing Hispanic participation in Corporate America through employee retention, outreach and leveraging brand loyalty, especially important given the rapidly increasing Hispanic Market Consumer (HMC). “The CEO Roundtable is a terrific forum for exploring issues of critical importance, both to the Hispanic community and to Corporate America,” reported AT&T’s Stephenson.
Companies known to value diversity and inclusion will attract and retain the highest-quality talent across ethnicity, race, gender, age and other factors, such as cultures, work styles, lifestyles, management approaches and professional background.
Diversity and inclusion, all urged, are clear business advantages.
“With the world around us becoming increasingly diverse, being inclusive is not only the right thing to do as a good corporate citizen, it strengthens our business,” said Chavel. “At Sodexo, the social and economic contributions of our Hispanic
employees are fundamental to our goal of making every day a better day in the communities we serve. It is an honor to share these success stories with HACR as we work to achieve even greater inclusion for Latinos at Sodexo and throughout Corporate America.”
The dynamic peer-to-peer dialogue proved to be a high-level networking experience. “The CEO Roundtable has allowed us to share success stories with current and future corporate members on how to increase the number of Hispanic consumers and employees to grow market share, increase stockholder value and maintain leadership positions in a changing marketplace,” said HACR Chair Ignacio Salazar, president and chief executive officer of SER-Jobs for Progress National, Inc.
Encouraging and Sustaining Hispanic Corporate Leadership
Companies readily acknowledge that diversity and inclusion are competitive advantages, but achieving the promised rewards requires nuanced approaches and changes in corporate culture. Hispanic executives gathered at the 2009 HACR Corporate Executives Forum (CEF) in Dallas, where they discussed business issues and daily challenges and shared solutions based on first-hand experience. The CEF is a high-level, influential and effective group, whose vision is to increase retention of Hispanic executives throughout Corporate America. These kinds of collegial strategy sessions have been successfully used to empower African-American corporate executives who are members of the Executive Leadership Council. The CEF follows that model, with Hispanic executives providing sustenance, encouragement, solutions and, ultimately, business opportunities to one another.
2009 Participating Corporate Directors, left to right: back row, Luis Nieto, Alejandro Silva, Tom Castro; middle row, Michael Montelongo, Monica Lozano, Charles Garcia, Patricia Diaz Dennis, Donna Alvarado, Aida Alvarez, Gilbert Casellas; front row, Pastora San Juan Cafferty, Maria Sastre, Cari Dominguez, Vilma Martinez, Nina Vaca, Patricia Salas Pineda
Increasing the Number of Corporate Directors of Hispanic Heritage
With the latest figures showing Hispanic directors holding less than 4% of corporate director seats on the largest corporate boards, the turnout at the 2009 HACR Corporate Directors Summit was impressive. Seventeen corporate directors came to Dallas in May to attend the three-day Summit. Increasing the representation of Hispanics in corporate governance has proved challenging, and the experience and perspective of these corporate directors provide the best information for assisting corporate partners who want to build the number of Hispanic board members.
“Companies that want to achieve success in a global marketplace need a board that reflects the communities in which they do business as well as the population overall. Ensuring Hispanic representation on their board of directors and in the executive suite is essential to achieving this diversity,” said HACR President and CEO Carlos F. Orta. “HACR’s goal is to increase Hispanic presence on corporate boards and executive staffs, which will help to identify best practices in the area of corporate responsibility.”
Participants discussed the challenges and opportunities that come with board service, as well as more general topics like best practices in corporate governance and strategies for creating a pipeline of Hispanic senior executives. An action plan for increasing Hispanic representation on corporate boards is in development.
To tap into the opportunities HACR offers, visit www.hacr.org.
The Power of Hispanic Inclusion
18th Annual HACR Symposium
May 17 and 18, 2010
The Ritz Carlton, San Francisco, CA
Cargill’s Global Business Demands Diversity and Inclusion
Cargill, a leading global producer and marketer of food, agricultural, financial and industrial products and services, has proved the value of diversity and inclusion as a business advantage. Today Cargill is one of the nation’s largest private companies, with 159,000 employees in 68 countries, one-third of them in the U.S., and it has started to integrate diversity and inclusion into many of its business practices.
“We don’t see diversity and inclusion as a stand-alone entity,” explains Margaret Studer, vice president of Corporate Diversity. “It’s how we work.” Studer, who is a 33-year Cargill veteran, speaks from experience, with work experience spanning several countries and most of Cargill’s businesses.
A Flexible Strategy Gets Results
Cargill’s embrace of diversity and inclusion into its everyday culture brings positive results all along the company’s ranks. The breadth and variety of its businesses — from serving the small chicken farmer in China to managing its Geneva-based commodity trading activities — has prompted a highly decentralized organizational structure that enables each business unit to respond in its own way to diverse cultures, employee populations and customers. In Europe, for example, where the economies are integrated across national borders, Cargill’s diversity efforts are often organized business by business, whereas in Latin America Cargill often approaches the issue on a country-by-country basis.
“We have found that the market responds very positively to a local management
team versus a team made up of mainly expatriates. As a result, Cargill gains a more
in-depth knowledge of the real workings of those markets.”
Margaret Studer
Vice President of Corporate Diversity
Cargill
“Along the supply chain,” explains Studer, “we have found that the market responds very positively to a local management team versus a team made up of mainly expatriates. As a result, Cargill gains a more in-depth knowledge of the real workings of those markets.”
Support From the Top
The success of Cargill’s diversity and inclusion initiatives stems from strong support at the top. “Greg Page, our chief executive officer, leads the initiative,” says Studer. “I report regularly to him and to the board, and they challenge me on results. Because our senior VP of HR, Peter Vrijsen, fully understands that the same old procedures don’t work if you want to make real environmental change, unique ideas are truly welcomed.”
CEO Page sponsors Cargill’s African-American Employee Resource Group and, as a past participant in Cargill’s reverse mentoring program, was mentored by a female Cargill manager. According to Studer, Cargill’s Hispanic-Latino Employee Resource Group has contributed to a broader understanding of the potential that this group can contribute to Cargill’s businesses throughout the United States and also in the growing Hispanic community in Minneapolis, Cargill’s headquarters. “This resource group is eager to create a link with the larger Hispanic-Latino global population,” says Studer, “and that enhances our business growth prospects, as well as our employment branding in these communities.”
Thanks to a corporate culture that places diversity and inclusion at the top of its agenda, Cargill, already a global success, is on course for greater employee and customer satisfaction and continued growth. For more information on exciting and rewarding careers, visit www.cargill.com.
George Chavel President and Chief Executive Officer Sodexo
Rohini Anand Senior Vice President and Global Chief Diversity Officer Sodexo
The Power of Inclusion: Sodexo and Diversity
Sodexo, a leading global provider of integrated facilities management services, focuses on perfecting its core businesses, and its efforts deliver significant results. In 2008 Sodexo had revenues of $19.3 billion, with 355,000 employees serving at 30,600 corporations, health-care, long-term-care and retirement centers, schools, college campuses, government and remote sites in 80 countries.
Defining a Journey
Since 2002, Sodexo has been on a focused diversity and inclusion journey with the goal of changing its corporate culture. “Diversity and inclusion was one of six company strategic imperatives, with a clearly articulated business case and strong executive commitment,” explains Rohini Anand, senior vice president and global chief diversity officer.
“It was not a special program, task or assignment, but rather, part of our fabric and our brand promise for recruitment, retention and business development,” adds George Chavel, president and chief executive officer, Sodexo.
In an industry where business growth means winning competitive bids, with price often the only differentiator, Sodexo’s diversity and inclusion leadership has become a competitive advantage. “What we bring to the table,” reports Chavel, “is of great value to our clients. We reached the tipping point in 2006, when our managers realized that the new behaviors led to business growth.” And culturally competent behaviors matter. “We are guests in every client’s facility,” says Chavel, “so we have to be able to understand each of them, and adapt.”
“We’re striving for an inclusive work environment,” says Anand, “using our ‘top down, middle out, bottom up’ strategy to engage everyone fully.” Seven employee network groups have spread the strategy, in spirit and in specifics, throughout the geographically dispersed company. Executives rotate as sponsors of these network groups.
Sodexo chef serves up nutritious school meals for students
Strategy for Success
Another key factor in the successful strategy has been a sophisticated diversity and inclusion scorecard, which represents 25% of the executive team’s bonus and 10% to 15% of other managers’ bonus. It tracks quantitative measures, but it also tracks qualitative components. “We want to encourage certain new behaviors at all levels,” explains Anand. “The qualitative items are measurable and ensure that we focus on the underlying behaviors and processes in order for us to achieve the representation outcomes that mirror our customers and communities.” The commitment to diversity and inclusion is deep despite the current economy. Chavel is such a strong advocate of the benefits of diversity to the company that he has decoupled the diversity bonus from the financial performance of the company.
Sodexo, much honored for its diversity and inclusion results, values the recognition, especially as the number of competitors grows, but its focus is on the future. “It’s another opportunity to learn how we can recalibrate our strategy to improve next year,” says Anand.
Explains Chavel: “We need 2 million new employees globally over the next ten years, so we have to prepare our own employees for senior positions and attract others through a culture that resonates with our teams, partners and clients.”