100 Diverse Corporate Leaders in STEM

Transcription

GreATNess
A powerful word. A powerful aspiration.
As a goal, it drives us to be better.
To make changes that benefit family
and community. To achieve things
that make a difference.
Northwestern Mutual is made up of
people who see greatness in their
futures and are happy to reach for it.
We help by empowering, challenging
and rewarding them. By creating an
environment where diverse ideas,
perspectives and people flourish.
And by providing them with
everything necessary to be the best
they – and our clients – can be.
northwesternmutual.com
Northwestern Mutual is the marketing name for The Northwestern Mutual
Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, WI (NM) and its subsidiaries.
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Table of Contents
About the Publishers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Letter From The Publishers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
About STEMconnector® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
SECTION I BUILDING A DIVERSE, STRONG STEM PIPELINE
Letter from UST Global . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Letter from Sodexo North America. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Letter from The Executive Leadership Council. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Letter from Silicon Valley Education Foundation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Letter from Diversity Woman Media. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
SECTION II STEM RISING STARS
Angelique Adams. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Director, Global Technology Developmentent, Alcoa
Heidi Vlasak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Sr. Quality Engineer, Boston Scientific
Barbara McAllister Whye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Director, Innovation for Employability, Intel
Russell Smith. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
VP, Product Management, McKesson
Filippe Cade. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Vice President/Director of Engineering, Professional Environmental Engineers
Miguel Quiroga. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Executive Director Customer Experience, Video/Broadband Division, Verizon
SECTION III 100 DIVERSE CORPORATE LEADERS IN STEM
Kimberly Foster Price . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Vice President, 3Mgives, 3M
Shelly Swanback. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Group Operating Officer, Accenture
Lois Cooper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Vice President, Corporate Development and Inclusion, Adecco Group North America
Anish Rajparia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
President, Major Account Services, ADP
Malina M. Hills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Vice President, Space Program Operations, The Aerospace Corporation
Floyd W. Green . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Vice President and Head of Community Relations and Urban Marketing, Aetna
Gena C. Lovett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chief Diversity Officer, Alcoa
50
Patricia L. Kampling. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Chairman, President and CEO, Alliant Energy Corporation
Kate Lindsey. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
President and CEO, Alpha Corporation
Maureen A. Borkowski . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Ameren Transmission Company
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 3 Cynthia M. Patton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Senior Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer, Amgen
Byron Jones. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Chief Financial Officer, University of Phoenix, Apollo Education Group
Sharon Elliott . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Vice President, Human Resources, AREVA
Marian Croak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Senior Vice President – Domain 2.0 Architecture and Advanced Services Department, AT&T
Beth McMullen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Vice President, IT, Avnet, Inc.
Paul E. Martin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Corporate Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Baxter International, Inc.
Sharyn Jones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Vice President, U.S. Head of Talent Management, Bayer Corporation
Jo-ann M. Olsovsky. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Vice President and Chief Information Officer, BNSF Railway
Ted Colbert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Chief Information Officer, Boeing
Horacio Rozanski . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
President and Chief Operating Officer, Booz Allen Hamilton
Mona Patel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Vice President, Clinical Training and Fellowship Education, Boston Scientific Corporation
Ray Dempsey, Jr. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Vice President & Head of External Affairs / President, BP Foundation, BP
Carlos J. Barroso. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Senior Vice President, Global Research & Development, Campbell
Sarena Lin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Corporate Vice President, Strategy and Business Development, Cargill
Gwenne Henricks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Vice President, Product Development & Global Technology / Chief Technology Officer, Caterpillar Inc.
Jacqueline Hinman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
President and Chief Executive Officer, CH2M HILL
Shirley Cunningham. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Ag Business and Enterprise Strategy, CHS Inc.
Padmasree Warrior. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Chief Technology & Strategy Officer, Cisco
Alexander Cummings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, The Coca-Cola Company
Michele Kang . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Chairman, Cognosante
Theresa Hennesy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Senior Vice President, Group Technical Advisor for Engineering & Platform Services, Comcast Corporation
Avis Braggs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Manager, Information Technology, ConocoPhillips
Christine M. Pambianchi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Senior Vice President, Human Resources, Corning
Greg Morrison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Cox Enterprises
Deborah Dean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Vice President, General Counsel, Dassault Systèmes Americas
Larry Quinlan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Global Chief Information Officer, Deloitte
Rodney O’Neal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Chief Executive Officer & President, Delphi Automotive PLC
Lloyd H. Dean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
President & Chief Executive Officer, Dignity Health
Dexter Cole. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Vice President of Programming, Science Channel, Discovery Communications
Nikki Katz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Vice President, Product Management & Mobile Network, Disney Interactive
Kim Ann Mink . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
President for Elastomers, Electrical and Telecommunications, The Dow Chemical Company
Hilda Pinnix-Ragland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Vice President, Corporate Public Affairs, Duke Energy
Ellen Kullman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Chair of the Board & Chief Executive Officer, DuPont
Monique Hunt McWilliams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Chief Diversity Officer, Eli Lilly and Company
Ken Bouyer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Americas Director of Inclusiveness Recruiting, EY
Pamela Drew . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Executive Vice President and President of Information Systems, Exelis
George Paz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Express Scripts
Cisco Sanchez . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
IT Vice President, Enterprise Foundational Services & Enterprise Business Services, FedEx
Felicia J. Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Group Vice President, Human Resources and Corporate Services, Ford Motor Company
Alicia Boler-Davis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Senior Vice President, Global Quality & Customer Experience, General Motors
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 5 Carey Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
President, Honeywell Technology Solutions Inc., Honeywell
Rod Adkins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Senior Vice President, Strategic Partnerships, IBM
Kimberly Stevenson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Corporate Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Intel
Adriane Brown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
President and COO, Intellectual Ventures
Anita Zucker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Chair and Chief Executive Officer, The InterTech Group
Liz Dente . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Vice President of Human Resources Service Delivery, Planning and Execution / Acting Chief Human Resources Officer,
ITT Corporation
Wanyonyi Kendrick. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Chief Information Officer, JEA
Seema Kumar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Vice President, Innovation, Global Health, and Policy Communication, Johnson & Johnson
Bernard J. Tyson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Kaiser Permanente
Kathy H. Hannan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
National Managing Partner, Diversity and Corporate Responsibility, KPMG LLP
Yolanda Lee Conyers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Vice President, Global HR Operations and Chief Diversity Officer, Lenovo
Frank Armijo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Vice President of Energy Solutions, Lockheed Martin
Ann Cairns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
President, International Markets, MasterCard
Nimesh Shah. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Senior Vice President and General Manager, Managed Services, McKesson
Lorinda Burgess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
Vice President, Finance and Customer Care, Medtronic, Inc.
Shafiq Anwar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Chief Information Officer, Michelin North America
Irene Rosenfeld. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Mondelēz International
Steve Mizell. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Executive Vice President, Human Resources, Monsanto
Eduardo Conrado . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Senior Vice President, Marketing & IT, Motorola Solutions
Adele Gulfo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Chief Strategy Officer, Mylan
Arleene Porterfield. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Vice President, Global Information Technology, NI
Terrance Williams. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
President and Chief Operating Officer, Nationwide Agribusiness
Cynthia C. Earhart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Executive Vice President Administration, Norfolk Southern Corporation
Karl Gouverneur. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Northwestern Mutual
Carolyn L. Green . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
President and CEO, P.E. Engineers
Mehmood Khan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Executive Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer, Global Research & Development, PepsiCo
Anne Roby. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Senior Vice President, Praxair, Inc.
Maria Castañón Moats. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Chief Diversity Officer, PwC US
William Gipson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Chief Diversity Officer / Senior Vice President, Research and Development, Global Hair Care, Color, and Salon Professional,
Procter & Gamble
Barbara G. Koster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Prudential Financial, Inc.
Sanjay Verma. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Divisional Vice President, Global Services, PTC
Shawn A. Covell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Vice President, Government Affairs, Qualcomm
Rebecca R. Rhoads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
President, Global Business Services / Chief Information Officer, Raytheon Company
Dawne S. Hickton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Vice Chair, President and CEO, RTI International Metals, Inc.
Radhika Kulkarni . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Vice President, Advanced Analytics R&D, SAS
Tammara Combs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Serendipity Interactive, LLC
Tracy S. Faulkner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Vice President, Global External Affairs, Downstream, Shell
Anne Cooney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Chief Operating Officer Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics, Siemens AG
Gerri Mason Hall. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Senior Vice President / Chief Human Resources Officer, Sodexo
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 7 Sandy Price . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Sprint
Kari Escobedo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
Vice President, Enterprise Systems Development, T-Mobile
Surya Kant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
President, North America, UK and Europe, Tata Consultancy Services
Earl Newsome. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Corporate Chief Information Officer and Vice President, Digital, TE Connectivity
Kelvin Baggett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Senior Vice President of Clinical Operations and Chief Clinical Officer, Tenet Healthcare Corporation
Lisa Ballantyne. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Vice President and General Manager, Turner Construction Company
William Plummer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, United Rentals, Inc.
Heidi Musser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Vice President, IT Shared Services, USAA
Nikki Arora . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Corporate Marketing Officer, UST Global
Radhika Venkatraman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
Vice President, IT - Enterprise Sales Cycle and Ordering Systems, Verizon Communications
Mike Bauza. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
Vice President and Chief Information Officer, LATAM, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Clint Lewis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
Executive Vice President and President, U.S. Operations, Zoetis
About the Publishers
EDIE FRASER
STEMconnector® /
Million Women Mentors
Edie is leading STEMconnector® and bringing information and results to STEM Leaders in every sector
and offering more than 15 major Councils, products
and initiatives.
Edie has published 10 major reports/publications
and has written three books including Do Your Giving
While You’re Living, co-authored by Robyn Spizman.
She was publisher of CEOs Who Get It; the CEO Magazine, The Diversity Primer and The Diversity Officer.
Edie is proud to have worked with more than 200 Fortune companies on their women and diversity leadership. Edie is also a Senior Consultant to Diversified
Search. Prior to joining Diversified, Edie was Founder
and CEO of Diversity Best Practices (DBP), a member
service for diversity practitioners where she designed
the CEO Diversity Leadership program, including
the prestigious CEO Diversity Awards. Edie is also the
founder of the Business Women’s Network (BWN).
Edie has won more than 43 awards for her commitments to women, diversity and philanthropy. She
serves on several major boards. She is Vice Chairman of the World Affairs Council of DC and on the
national board of SCORE. She has been inducted
into the Enterprising Women Hall of Fame and a
Founding member of C200. Edie received the Lifetime Achievement award from Diversity Woman
Magazine and its Mosaic Award. Edie was on the
cover or Women of Wealth Magazine for her philanthropy and mentoring.
Edie also serves as Vice Chair for Diversified Search,
the largerst women-owned executive search firm in
the US. Edie lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband Joe.
LORENA S. FIMBRES
Chief BD Officer
STEMconnector® /
Million Women Mentors
Lorena serves as Chief Business Development Officer for STEMconnector® and Million Women Mentors. She is responsible for developing new business
and serving members within her portfolio through
customized strategies and consulting. Lorena is responsible for developing and implementing the
STEMconnector® and Million Women Mentors
brands. Through STEMconnector®’s 100 Leaders in
STEM series, Lorena has a track record of driving
projects that involve over a hundred Fortune executives (and their teams) at a time.
Lorena is the executive publisher of 100 Diverse
Corporate Leaders in STEM, which aims to recognize top diverse executives across industries that
are committed to a diverse, strong STEM pipeline.
Lorena´s publications include 100 CEO Leaders in
STEM (2013), 100 Women Leaders in STEM (2012), The
American Institute of Architects´ Small Business Resource Guide: Contacts to Contracts and the 2011
Women´s Business Leadership Tribute.
Prior to moving to the United States in 2010, Lorena held several positions of increasing responsibility within the government of the State of Sonora,
including in the Executive Office of the Governor.
Lorena has a passion for politics and her political
experience includes campaign management and
political marketing. She served as a senior member
with an executive team that oversaw 101 parallel
campaigns at the local and state levels.
Lorena holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration
from the internationally-recognized Tecnológico de
Monterrey. A native of Sonora, Mexico, Lorena lives
in Washington, D.C. with her husband Francisco and
their daughter Lorenza.
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 9 As a leader in higher education,
Apollo Education Group
is committed to supporting
STEM education.
Letter From The Publishers
Congratulations! To all the companies and
executives profiled in the pages to follow, our
deep recognition and admiration. Showcasing STEM careers and leadership is part of
the answer to “How do we encourage more
students in STEM careers?” You all are leaders
and role models.
STEMconnector® is proud to, once again,
bring together the collective thoughts and
recommendations of one hundred business
executives for a stronger STEM pipeline. This
publication follows the success of 100 CEO
Leaders in STEM (2013) and 100 Women
Leaders in STEM (2012). All agree that Science, Technology, Engineering & Math (STEM)
careers will determine the success of our nation in a competitive world and diverse leadership is in the heads of CEOs, their senior
management and their boards of directors.
After publishing 100 CEO Leaders in STEM, we
developed a white paper on what the CEOs
are saying about the future of STEM careers.
When asked about the area where businesses should be focused in order to guarantee
a strong STEM pipeline, number one response
was technology, followed by women and diversity.
In this edition,100 Diverse Corporate Leaders in STEM, we continue to reflect on the
growing importance of women and diversity.
Our hope is to empower not only the influencers of the students making a career decision,
but also corporations looking to advance
leadership. Throughout these pages, you will
learn more about the opportunity, the challenges and how our 2014 leaders have overcome their own challenges and are actively
supporting others coming up the jobs pipeline.
To our sponsors and partners: Thank you! It is
because of your vision and trust that we can
continue delivering thought leadership “in a
pill” to all of the STEM stakeholders. Thank you
to our lead sponsors: UST Global, Sodexo,
Silicon Valley Education Foundation. Thank
you to our supporting sponsors: Apollo Education Group, Cisco, Northwestern Mutual,
Tata Consultancy Services and Walmart.
As we embarked in the mission to identify the
leaders for this issue, we relied on all chief executives who were phenomenal in assigning
a team to work with us. To all of those teams:
our deepest gratitude. This publication was
made possible in part for your support, your
flexibility and patience. We share the success with you. Feel extremely proud. A special
recognition to The Executive Leadership
Council, Diversity Woman and Bloomberg
BusinessWeek.
It’s all about mentoring! Throughout the
years, we’ve been asking what has influenced our honorees’ decision to pursue a
STEM career. The answer has been consistent:
mentoring.
STEMconnector® is a strong promoter of
mentoring as a key to impact career choices,
particularly with minorities and under-served
communities. In January, we launched our
Million Women Mentors initiative, which,
through a network of strategic sponsors and
partners, is actively working to connect at
least one million mentors to one million girls.
Million Women Mentors is also working to support corporations with their mentoring best
practices.
In an effort to adopt the concepts of mentorships, apprenticeships, internships and
sponsorships, we included a STEM Rising
Stars section where six of the companies
feature up and coming team members. They
share their vision and personal experience.
It is compelling to see how role models are
not only the top person, but really across the
organization. It really keeps the ecosystem
evolving.
The collective leadership in this publication
reflects on issues around:
• The importance of STEM Education and
workforce development as a critical element to the future and competitiveness of
our nation
• How to encourage students to choose
a STEM career, particularly women and
underrepresented minorities
• Traits that corporate leaders need to
effectively support and advance STEM
education
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 11 Letter From The Publishers
Edie Fraser and Lorena Fimbres, STEMconnector®
Creating tomorrow’s
STEM leaders today.
There is a certain way.
The need for innovative Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education in the US is
urgent. As a leading IT services provider, TCS recognizes that its future and this nation’s increasingly
knowledge-driven economy depends on more Americans with STEM skills entering the workforce
each year. In e orts to improve employability and create new talent, TCS is focusing on advancing
STEM education and technology inclusion by working with national partners to strategically engage
with community organizations while using technology to promote social good. We collaborate with
key partners and programs like Npower, STEMconnector, US Chamber of Commerce Foundation,
US2020, Million Women Mentors and TCS goIT Student Technology Awareness Program. Under our
guiding principle of “Impact through Empowerment,” TCS is strengthening the future of our country by
investing in skill development of youth in America today.
Visit tcs.com and you’re certain to learn more.
Clearly, the “race for the best diverse talent” is on every agenda.
• Winning the “race for talent” through
the appointment and advancement of
diverse leaders is a number one priority.
• Retention and growth is a great challenge.
These diverse leaders bring solutions and
success models.
• To achieve diversity, companies need to
engage champions across the company,
regardless of not having a diverse background.
• Diverse leadership at the top proves critical to recruit others.
• Best organizations for diversity demonstrate accountability.
• Representation, engagement, succession
planning, supplier diversity, and executive
leadership are all measured and play a
vital role.
A diverse nation is the nature of our US demographics. We can’t forget that the USA is
soon becoming a diverse nation. Rapidly the
entire nation will be a diverse majority, not the
minority.
The case is clear: diverse leaders are considered a business imperative. Their leadership prowess and business acumen are
driving forces today.
The customer base is, thus, built with the recognition of the diverse population changes.
The marketplace for all business takes note of
a diverse market as an opportunity.
• Diverse leadership in business is a competitive advantage and a driver of performance.
• Diversity is related to business success.
Diversity in the “C Suite” and throughout
the infrastructure is tied to culture and ROI.
• Recruiting of diverse talent - Pipeline in and
Pipeline up - has never been more critical.
This publication celebrates diversity. We look
forward to continue to support corporations
on their journey to build a stronger, more diverse STEM pipeline. n
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 13 Letter From The Publishers
• Corporate STEM structures – STEM Councils
• Strategic/smart STEM investments linked to
workforce development
• Companies’ STEM initiatives
• Importance of partnerships
• Mentorships, apprenticeships, internships,
sponsorships, etc. – the importance of role
models
• The U.S. as a global innovator
• STEM metrics and results
• How should those working to improve the
STEM workforce measure success?
• The role of employee resource groups to
advance diversity and STEM
The profiles included here are vibrant. We
hear from those profiled that we must tackle
STEM as it is critical to competition, talent,
technology and advocacy along the way.
Technology and innovation is at the forefront as it was demonstrated last years with
the CEOs honored. Statement after statement for any company to stay competitive,
we must support STEM through building strong
talent. Innovation and STEM success are tied.
For today, and for the future.
It means doing more by using less. It means reducing energy waste,
reducing water usage, reducing greenhouse emissions and increasing
our partnerships with local and organic farms. Acting sustainably is
not only good business, but our moral responsibility. Because the way
we treat our planet today can positively impact the lives of
generations to come. That’s what we do.
www.sodexoUSA.com
©Sodexo Multimedia Library
QUALITY
OF LIFE
MEANS
VALUING
RESOURCES
STEMconnector® is a consortium of over 120 companies, associations, societies, policy organizations, government
entities, universities and academic institutions concerned with STEM education and the future of human capital.
With several products and services, STEMconnector® is both a resource and a service, designed to link “all things
STEM.” The STEMconnector® website contains profiles of more than 20 categories of STEM-related entities and
details ‘Who is Doing What’ on over 6,600 STEM-related organizations in all 50 states. STEMconnector®’s network
includes organizations at the national, state, local and global levels. STEMconnector® focuses on the STEM workforce and jobs, with a particular emphasis on diversity and women. Our work spans the entire pipeline (K-J—Kindergarten to Jobs) and how STEM education experiences translate into careers. STEM 2.0 partnerships are at our
core troughout STEMconnector®. The STEMconnector® team advises and counsels our members and partners
to ensure best STEM practices and scalable investments. STEMconnector® helps other organizations determine
programs whose outcomes meet their desired objectives and needs. Some of our initiatives include:
STEMconnector®’s STEM Innovation Task Force (SITF) is comprised
of 30 industry, government, education, and non-profit leaders. The
SITF has a grand vision of accelerating sustainable STEM careers and wealth through innovation science and excellence
in tomorrow’s new economy. The task force will accomplish
their agenda of developing STEM human capital through a
number of high powered working groups that focus on certain priority areas of STEM innovation. The STEM Innovation Task
Force has three signature initiatives:
1. STEM 2.0 is focused on identifying the critical career
capabilities that students need (in addition to a traditional STEM education, also referred to as STEM 1.0) to
unlock successful STEM careers in the future. The SITF has
decided to focus on Digital Fluency, Innovation Excellence, and Employability as the three critical capability
platforms. There will be two parallel platforms that align
these capabilities with industry demands for career &
job readiness and the education system for engagement & delivery channels.
2. STEM Career Accelerator Week - The aim of this event
is to encourage high school students to pursue STEM
majors and careers through an engaging visit to a major STEM facility, direct interaction with STEM professionals, and hands-on learning activities. The event involves
teachers and parents to enable crucial conversations
on STEM careers. In 2015, STEM Career Accelerator Day
will expand operations to 20 hosting cities!
3. STEM Global Talent Summit - The STEM Innovation Task
Force, in partnership with Diplomatic Courier, launched
the first annual Global Talent Summit in Washington, DC
on January 14, 2014. The summit featured speakers from
a broad cross-section of leaders from government, education, industry, and the non-profit sectors. Discussion
topics included: changing demographic profiles; technology developments; and the skill gaps, all in relation to
STEM human capital development. Outcomes were taken to Davos. Plans are in process for the next summit in
January 2015, and other global forums and publications.
STEMdaily® provides hot, relevant
news to a broad audience of stakeholders involved in STEM education.
The electronic daily news provides summaries of 20 stories
across 14 different categories with links to the original content in an easy-to-read format. STEMdaily® includes a variety
of sources: major news outlets, business wires, blogs and affiliate submissions. As of September 2014, STEMdaily® reaches
over 20,000 individuals. After being released, all stories are archived in a searchable database available for research and
reference. Sign up at www.STEMconnector.org/STEMdaily
Powered by STEMconnector® and sponsored by Apollo Education Group, EdTech
Weekly Report is the one-stop source for
everything happening in the EdTech and
digital & distance learning space. Curating stories from a variety of sources, EdTech Weekly Report™
focuses on the macro-trends in the policy, technology development, and media spheres that are making EdTech the
change issue for education. Additionally, STEMconnector® will
track and offer events, competitions, and STEM Briefs™ that will
put it at the nexus of the changing face of education in the
United States and in the world. Sign up at www.STEMconnector.org/EdTech
Launched in early 2014, Million
Women Mentors will support the
engagement of one million women (and men) in STEM to serve as
mentors by 2018. MWM is an engagement campaign and national call to action that mobilizes corporations, government entities, non-profit and higher
education groups around the imperative of mentoring girls
and young women in STEM fields. As of September 10, MWM
has received over 170,731 pledges to mentor.
MWM’s Leadership Council includes its Platinum Sponsors:
Cisco, PepsiCo, Sodexo, Tata Consultancy Services and Gold
Sponsors: ADP, Alpha Corporation, The Diana Davis Spencer Foundation, FleishmanHillard, Microsoft Research and
Walmart. Other sponsors: Adecco, General Motors, Intellectual Ventures, UST Global, Freescale and Reston Limousine.
To get involved go to www.MillionWomenMentors.org. For
more information: [email protected] and
[email protected]
MWM is the collective action of 54 national partners. The four
founding partners are STEMconnector®, National Girls Collaborative Project (NGCP), MentorNet and NPower.
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 15 About STEMconnector®
About STEMconnector®
STEM Councils are formalized, intra-organizational structures that offer frameworks
for coordinating strategic planning of STEM
engagement. In addition, STEM Councils
provide a forum for professionals in the private sector, government, non-profit and education field to convene and share
best practices. STEMconnector® convenes three meetings
per year for its member organizations to share best practices
in STEM programming and, in particular, to showcase examples of model STEM Councils. STEMconnector® has witnessed
and helped to nurture approximately 40 corporate STEM
Councils since 2012. STEMconnector® aims to see the formation of 200 corporate STEM Councils by the end of 2015.
Three formal workgroups have been established to discuss
STEM with a particular industry and jobs focus: STEM
Innovation Task Force, STEM Food & Ag Council and STEM
Higher Education Council.
The STEMconnector® STEM Higher
Education Council (SHEC) is the
leadership forum of pubic and private colleges and universities intently focused on STEM education and careers. It is committed to
the highest levels of achievement and success for students,
institutions, businesses and communities in STEM-related educational and professional endeavors, serving to fill the pipeline for jobs. The STEMconnector® STEM Higher Education
Council (SHEC) mission is to bring focused energy to higher
education’s leading high-impact practices, increasing the
emphasis on STEM pipeline-to-jobs (STEM 2.0). SHEC will inventory and integrate current efforts, building on the energy
of others in support of boundary-breaking collaborations between higher education (two and four year institutions) and
industry, to achieve significant results that can be recognized
and scaled-up.
The SHEC will host the Jobs-Driven Economy Summit, followed
by a book release on February 24, 2015.
STEM Results is the first national census of
effective STEM education programs. The
project maps and collects data on best
practices in STEM education and workforce
development. Organizations with proven
models that track results are encouraged to participate in
the project. The goal of STEM Results is to share successful
models and increase the visibility and exposure of effective
initiatives. Organizations are invited to draft a STEM Results
profile that outlines the program’s goals, objectives, inputs,
and outcomes to illustrate how the particular program produces a positive outcome or results in student achievement.
Organizations are then grouped into category types, and
are analyzed by outreach, budget, and date established.
The STEM Results project will continue to increase the number
of participating organizations, in addition to continual outreach and promotion of the most effective models.
STEMconnector®’s STEM Food & Ag
Council is a unique public-private partnership dedicated to driving educational and career opportunities for the
next generation of the food and agricultural workforce. The
STEM Food & Ag Council assembles government, business
and education leaders aimed at increasing collaboration
and mobilizing resources to connect today’s youth to the
STEM food and ag careers of tomorrow. Goals include aligning education with workforce need and raising awareness of
the cutting edge careers in food and agriculture. The Council’s mission is to prepare the next generation for meeting the
human capital needs in the food and ag industries, as well
as solving the challenges related to feeding 9 billion people
in 2050. Together, the Council will join with America’s youth to
inspire, nurture and engage individuals to passionately pursue food and ag careers by unlocking their full potential as
leaders and professionals.
At STEMconnector®, we believe it is
important to recognize and showcase
thought leaders making a significant
contribution to STEM education and
careers. This series brings together a
collection of leaders taking an active
role as STEM ambassadors within their companies and
industries. The goal of this series is to build a collective voice
calling for strong STEM leadership. To date, three issues have
been released: 100 Diverse Corporate Leaders in STEM (2014),
100 CEO Leaders in STEM (2013) and 100 Women Leaders in
STEM (2012). Every publication is complemented with a year
of promotion and strategic events that will bring together
the vision of one, collective voice.
STEMconnector® hosts virtual Town
Halls that present dynamic speakers
on critical topics in STEM education
and closing the STEM skills gap. Focusing on issues that are topical and timely, the events are
archived on our site and broadcast using Google+ Hangouts On-Air. The goal of the Town Halls is to present diverse
viewpoints and engage broad audiences. All events leverage our social media platform, giving audience members
the opportunity to participate in, chat and ask questions directly to panelists. In the last year, we have hosted Town
Halls on the following topics: 100 CEO Leaders in STEM; STEM
Competitions; The Maker Movement: Implications for STEM
Education; Federal and State Resources for STEM Schools;
Corporate Resources to Support Best Practices in STEM Education; STEM Schools: Field Report; The Future of Computer
Science Education; and Women in STEM.
STEM PUBLICATIONS - Some of STEMconnector®’s
publications include three white papers written in partnership
with Tata Consultancy Services: The STEM Imperative
(thoughts and vision from 100 CEO Leaders in STEM), The
Future of Computer Science and Women in STEM: Realizing
the Potential. In 2013, STEMconnector® and My College
Options released a national resource on STEM students, jobs
and careers.
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 17 About STEMconnector®
The understanding and vision
to lead by example.
It means a new way of thinking and a new way of doing business with
our clients. Being the source of innovative thinking. Understanding
that budget limitations should not limit performance. Knowing that to
truly serve our clients, we must be our clients; share their aspirations
and the motivation to excel. It means doing whatever it takes to
create a better experience for their people and the people they serve.
That’s what we do.
www.sodexoUSA.com
©Sodexo Multimedia Library
QUALITY
OF LIFE
MEANS
INSPIRATION
Building a
Diverse,
Strong STEM
Pipeline
Letter from UST Global
Sajan Pillai, Chief Executive Officer
Diversity Fuels Our
Growth
Our diversity enriches us as a company, as professionals and as individuals.
Our clients rely on
our ingenuity.
At UST Global, we created Step IT Up America to
fast-track IT education and help meet our own need
for talent. We are working with local community colleges, foundations, and civic organizations to identify women who have the desire and aptitude to be
successful in the program. The selected women, with
our experts, structure, and processes, will be provided advanced training and career opportunities.
The best way to ensure our own diversity
of thought and ideas
is by making sure our
team members represent a wide variety of experiences,
cultures, languages,
backgrounds
and
abilities.
We have 15,000 employees and operations in 24
countries, so diversity is natural for us. But we go further to actively pursue it. We have several large-scale
partnerships and programs that help us bring quality
IT training and jobs to populations that don’t have
easy access to career opportunities in technology.
Right now we’re training 30,000 people in Mexico
through a partnership with Centro Fox and Former
Mexican president Vicente Fox, we’re rolling out a
nationwide STEM initiative to educate and hire 5,000
minority women from U.S. inner cities by 2020, and
we launched a program to hire and train 10,000
people with disabilities in India.
In corporate environments, diversity in STEM is crucial for the innovation pipeline. Innovation is dependent on a variety of human experiences, and a
diverse STEM-trained workforce can be a significant
competitive asset for a corporation. It is therefore
important to connect the diversity initiatives of corporations with ongoing STEM initiatives.
STEM creates the basic skill sets needed for innovation. Nations and humanity at large depend on innovation to solve increasingly complex problems in
healthcare, resource constraints (food, water and
air), energy, and shelter. Without STEM talent, our
nation would fall behind – and that would be detrimental to our economic development. In this era of
increasing competition, hyper-connectivity and globalization, human capital in STEM will become the
biggest asset of a nation.
About Sajan Pillai
As CEO, Sajan Pillai provides leadership to all of UST Global’s professionals while heading up the company’s
global business operations. His responsibilities include acquisitions, client development, global operations,
and service delivery.
Mr. Pillai brings us his extensive background in the offshore IT industry, having served as co-founder of Softek
Systems in India and as an engineer in one of top three consulting services companies in India. He has also
architected and managed several large software systems for MCI Telecommunications in the United States
and subsequently held senior management positions in Tanning Systems, a U.S.-based software solutions
company.
Mr. Pillai graduated with a degree in computer science and engineering from the College of Engineering,
Trivandrum, India.
However, the United States is staggeringly behind
in STEM education. The US is significantly behind
the world leaders in STEM education at the primary
and secondary level. We only produce 60,000 top
engineering graduates per year, which in absolute
numbers is 23rd in the world. Less than 17 percent of
the entire student population is proficient in math or
science, yet STEM career opportunities are growing
300 percent faster than non-STEM. Fifteen out of 20
growth jobs of this decade require significant STEM
skills, yet less than a third of the population has any
exposure to core STEM education – and significantly
less are proficient at STEM to be able to seize those
opportunities. The average STEM job pays 75 percent more than average non-STEM jobs, and that
difference is increasing.
STEM education is a national priority. However, we
need an active education agenda with the collaboration of academics, government agencies and
the private sector to make the difference.
Corporate leaders have several key and vital roles
to play in STEM education. The most important is being advocates calling for standards at the national
and regional level. Corporate giving is another area
where with clear and specific focus on ROI, we can
redirect fairly substantial resources to STEM education agenda. Corporate leaders can also inspire
the power and potential of volunteerism of their
employee base to be effectively engaged in STEM
education. They can also leverage their existing re-
lationships and networks, like community colleges,
to focus on STEM education.
STEM support is often executed regionally with a
central STEM support strategy. Here are some steps:
1) evolve a central strategy that ties STEM education to the corporate workforce needs; b) create a
list of regional projects that focuses on innovative
approaches to STEM education; c) create corporate-wide metrics to build and monitor STEM progress; and d) provide support structures like “Assets
and Expertise Maps” available within the corporation. Corporations often have a diverse workforce
with a multi-region/multi-country focus, with several
departments. With a head coordinator at the central level with clear regional projects, you can create a corporate model for sustained STEM support
and success.
Diversity in STEM education is a current problem and
a future opportunity. Today women and minorities
are 28 percent of the total workforce, yet only 7 percent of the STEM workforce. The earning potential
of the population that is STEM-trained is significantly
higher (by 75 percent) than their non-STEM counterparts. STEM training would give us opportunity
for social inclusion at regional and national levels.
Expanding focus beyond those who have already
declared interest in a STEM career opens up possibilities for attracting new, untapped talent. n
About UST Global
UST Global® is a leading provider of end-to-end IT services and solutions for Global 1000 companies. We
use a client-centric Global Engagement Model that combines local, senior, on-site resources with the cost,
scale, and quality advantages of off-shore operations.
The industry-leading expertise found within our Centers of Excellence (CoEs) plays a key role in our success
with clients. The CoEs deliver pragmatic IT solutions that allow clients to consistently achieve their most critical business objectives. Our Partner Program complements the Centers of Excellence. The program aims
to develop strategic relationships with best-of-breed organizations to provide UST Global developers with
advance access to new technology and educational resources.
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 21 Letter from Sodexo North America
Michael Norris, President and Chief Operating Officer / Market President, Corporate Services
Young girls and
women are less
likely than their
male counterparts
to work in STEM
(Science, Technology,
Engineering,
and Mathematics)
fields. In fact, just
24% of women work
in STEM fields. The
good news is that
women in STEM careers earn 92 cents
for every dollar their
male-STEM counterparts earn versus 75 cents in other fields. What’s
more, 80 percent of the fastest growing occupations in the United States depend on mastery of
mathematics and scientific knowledge and skills.
Like Sodexo, I am passionately committed to developing the next generation of STEM leaders – both
women and men – and for that matter, helping to
prepare all young leaders entering the workforce
to be successful. With the global marketplace expanding at unprecedented rates, demographic shifts and emerging global trends playing an
ever-increasing role in the American economy, it
has become increasingly apparent that business
leaders, industry experts and Academics can offer
a more comprehensive approach to preparing
future leaders to successfully enter the workforce.
institutions. Furthermore, in order to cultivate student interest in STEM fields, it is important to provide relevant and exciting examples of STEM job
opportunities. For instance, the head of a national
Facilities Management Association suggests providing a “big picture” simulation of the roles and
responsibilities of engineers and facilities managers. This has the potential to generate more interest in the field, much more so than describing the
tactical aspects of the day-to-day job.
In an interview with Million Women Mentors
(MWM), a collaborative effort designed to engage one million science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) mentors for girls, I expressed:
“It’s incongruent that in 2013 women accounted
for 57 percent of bachelor’s degrees awarded in
the U.S., but STEM accounted for less than 10 percent of all degrees. Given that by 2020, 81 percent
of new workforce entrants will be women or minorities, at Sodexo we hear a call to action today
to mentor and prepare girls and young women
for unbridled success in tomorrow’s demanding
global marketplace, and are excited to support
this critical STEM careers imperative.”n
(First published on SodexoInsights.com)
A successful recruiting strategy starts with reaching employees long before they are ready to
enter the workforce. This happens through community partnerships and alliances with academic
...in order to cultivate student interest in STEM
fields, it is important to provide relevant and
exciting examples of STEM job opportunities.
About Michael Norris
Michael Norris is Chief Operating Officer of Sodexo North America and Market President of the Corporate Services. His division has annual revenues of more than $1.4 billion and serves more than 1,800 client
locations nationwide, including on-site restaurants, food courts, catering services, vending facilities, convenience stores and leisure sites including conference centers and hotels.
Before joining Sodexo, Michael was President of Loews Cineplex Entertainment US, with annual revenues
in excess of $1 billion. Joining the company as Senior Vice President for operations and concession in 1995,
he was named President in 2001, with responsibilities including marketing, brand positioning, operations,
real estate, concessions, design and construction, strategic planning, training and film acquisitions. He has
been a strong advocate for developing the next generation of STEM leaders in each of these and other
emerging fields.
Michael also served as President of the National Association of Theater Owners, and has served as a board
member of Variety -The Children’s Charity and the Will Rogers Institute. He currently serves as a board member of the Cass Community Center in Detroit, MI, the United Negro College Fund and an Inaugural member
of the STEMConnector’s STEM Innovation Task Force.
About Sodexo
Sodexo is committed to developing the next generation of STEM leaders. We believe there is a unique opportunity to seize upon the momentum built in recent years and to transform discourse into solutions; to
mentor and prepare young people for unbridled success in tomorrow’s demanding global marketplace.
With that marketplace expanding at unprecedented rates and demographic shifts playing an increasing
role in the American economy, it is clear that business leaders, industry experts and academics must offer
a more comprehensive approach to preparing future leaders to successfully enter the workforce. In order
to cultivate student interest in STEM fields, it is important to provide relevant and exciting examples of STEM
job opportunities. At Sodexo, our diversified operations offer career fields that span culinary arts to facilities
management and functional disciplines from finance and human resources to safety and risk mitigation.
We deliver more than 100 types of services within our portfolio – with operations spanning industry sectors
such as healthcare, education, government, aviation, and senior living. www.SodexoUSA.com.
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 23 Letter from The Executive Leadership Council
Ronald Parker, President and Chief Executive Officer
In today’s world, where
science and technology are integrated into
just about everything
we do, skills in Science,
Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)
have
become
the
foundation
for
the
global economy and
a requirement for employment,
advancement
and
global
leadership. The Executive Leadership Council
(ELC) has long recognized the importance of these
skills in charting the course to corporate leadership.
In ELC’s early years, its members focused on strengthening Historically Black Colleges and Universities
(HBCUs) through the Technology Transfer Project
(TTP) at a time when there was a significant “digital
divide” and disparity in resources and equipment for
black students. TTP was one of the flagship programs
for The Executive Leadership Foundation (ELF) in its
mission to support the development of the global
black corporate leadership pipeline and the professional growth of the next generation of talented
black managers and executives.
The leadership commitment to STEM was envisioned
and launched at a point in time when HBCUs were
dramatically behind majority institutions of higher
education in the acquisition, integration and use of
information and communication technology (ICT)
in administrative, teaching and learning processes.
The project was created to help HBCUs stay competitive with their majority counterparts and ensure
that HBCU graduates were “schooled and experienced” with emerging information and communication technology.
During its fifteen years, the TTP actively engaged
and assisted 85 HBCUs. In 2011, TTP was transferred
to the Information Technology Senior Management
Forum, comprised of senior-level African-American
ICT executives in Fortune 500 corporations. ITSMF’s
mission is to fill the executive pipeline with the next
generation of African-American ICT executives.
Although TTP now resides with another organization,
ELC remains committed to promoting STEM literacy
and proficiency among black students who are severely underrepresented in STEM fields.
ELC is proud that several of our members who are
black corporate CEOs earned degrees in Engineering: Ursula Burns of Xerox, Don Thompson of McDonald’s and Arnold Donald of Carnival Cruises.
ELF, with generous support from Exxon Mobil Corporation, has devoted several of our most recent Business Case Competitions to finding ways to increase
interest in STEM education and employment.
In 2013, ELF’s Business Case was “Addressing the
Need for STEM Literacy in Our Workforce.” Three
About Ronald Parker
Ronald C. Parker is president and CEO of The Executive Leadership Council (ELC). He joined the organization in 1994 and has served on both the council and foundation boards. Mr. Parker recently retired from
his post as senior vice president for human resources, labor relations, and global diversity and inclusion at
PepsiCo, where he worked for nearly 30 years. His involvement with succession planning, workforce analysis,
and developing the cultural competency of PepsiCo’s leaders forms a base of experience that complements ELC’s goals to place more African Americans in C-suites and on public company boards.
Mr. Parker began his career at American Quasar Petroleum before moving to Texas Christian University
(TCU) as assistant director of athletics in charge of national recruitment. He later joined an emerging petroleum services company where he focused on national recruitment and employee development.
Mr. Parker is a board member of Baylor Regional Medical Center and the YWCA of Metropolitan Dallas. He
earned his undergraduate degree in political science from TCU where he now serves on the International
Board of Visitors and the Board of Trustees.
teams representing Duke University Fuqua School
of Business, Vanderbilt University Owen Graduate
School of Management, and The Wake Forest University Schools of Business delivered compelling
recommendations for growing talent domestically,
particularly among women and minorities, to meet
current and future workforce needs.
An earlier Business Case Competition sponsored by
ExxonMobil explored expanding Reasoning Mind
Inc., an innovative learning curriculum program for
developing underrepresented students in grades 2 6 for excellence in math and science. The program
was designed to help prepare students for potential
STEM careers. Another competition sought innovative
STEM education solutions for middle school students.
Major technology companies such as Apple,
Google and Facebook have acknowledged the
lack of diversity on their corporate boards and senior executive leadership teams. ELC has worked
with companies such as Cisco to help increase the
number of black students with higher proficiencies
in the STEM disciplines, thereby creating the pipelines to these leadership positions.
Through our Community Impact Initiative, ELF has
provided more than $1 million in support for programs and initiatives such as LEAD Programs, INROADS, A Better Chance (ABC) and the North
Carolina Central University Summer Youth Business
& Entrepreneurship Academy. All of these programs
engage high school students preparing for college
with ELC members and focus on developing STEM
skills and their application to business leadership.
We all have a responsibility to steer more minority students toward studies and careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. It will take conscious and
aggressive intervention and support. But, that’s what
will be necessary to close the achievement gap and
increase the number of women and minorities in the
fastest growing aspects of the global economy.
We encourage corporations to partner with one of
the hundreds of proven organizations that are devoted to coordinating the efforts of major companies
to promote STEM education and skills development,
and help increase diversity in STEM education and
employment. It is critical that black and brown students receive their fair share of resources and that
efforts are made to measure and increase impact
over time.
More women and minorities need to recognize that
careers in STEM can lead to great satisfaction, success and stability over time. Respected business leaders such as ELC members, and influencers in the arts,
culture, sports and entertainment can help students
understand the value of STEM skills and show them
the connection between learning those skills and
applying them to everyday life and conveniences. n
About The Executive Leadership Council
The Executive Leadership Council (ELC) is the preeminent membership organization committed to increasing the number of global black executives in C-Suites, on corporate boards and in global enterprises. Our
mission is to increase the number of successful black executives globally by adding value to their development, leadership and philanthropic endeavors, thereby strengthening their companies, organizations and
communities across the lifecycle of their careers.
Comprised of more than 500 current/former black CEOs, board members and senior executives at Fortune 1,000 companies, we work to build an inclusive business leadership pipeline that empowers global
black leaders to make impactful contributions to the marketplace. Priority focus areas include increasing
the number of global black executives in CEO positions and those one and two levels below by an addition of at least one in each Fortune 500 company; and increasing the number of global black executives
on boards of publicly traded companies by 200, while continuing to invest in the talent pipeline to create
the next generation of global corporate executives through its development programs. These aspirations
will help advance innovation and competitiveness of corporations, ensuring the long-term success of
communities by bringing diverse thinking to the decision-making table.
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 25 From Silicon Valley Education Foundation
Muhammed Chaudhry, President and Chief Executive Officer
Muhammed Chaudhry
founded the Silicon
Valley
Education
Foundation
(SVEF)
on the belief that a
new kind of organization was needed—
one with a different philosophy and approach
to the challenges in legacy systems. He saw the
need to create a nonprofit resource and advocate for students and
educators, focused on
the critical areas of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), that was dedicated to putting
all students on track for college and careers.
Several years ago, SVEF recognized that low-income
and minority students in less-advantaged school
districts were being under-served in key STEM subjects such as math and science. Study after study
proclaimed that the achievement gap was getting worse, not better. Here in Silicon Valley, in the
shadows of tech companies that are changing the
world and the massive wealth that these companies create, tens of thousands of low-income and
minority students were falling behind and not gain-
ing the skills that will be so necessary to succeed
and prosper in the 21st century economy.
Even with a diploma in their hands, too many of
our students graduate from high school lacking the
knowledge and skills they need to start college or
begin a meaningful career. Employers bemoan the
lack of job applicants with ready-to-use skills and the
time and money they need to spend training new
workers. They are especially looking for people with a
strong STEM education, but the U.S. talent pool is currently too shallow to meet their needs. According to
the U.S. Department of Commerce, as early as 2018
the U.S. will face a skills shortage of 230,000 STEM professionals. This skills shortage has the potential to be
economically devastating, especially in Silicon Valley.
Partnering with some of the biggest tech companies
in Silicon Valley, as well as the school districts in their
backyard, SVEF began investing in STEM education
programs to start providing the future generation of
workers to fill the STEM pipeline. SVEF understands
the need to supply this talent pipeline, and believes
there is a great opportunity to supply it with our own
students here in Silicon Valley. Since 2008, SVEF has
provided rigorous math and science support programs to students across Santa Clara County, and
into San Mateo and Alameda counties, to develop
our own local talent.
About Muhammed Chaudhry
Muhammed Chaudhry serves as President and CEO for the Silicon Valley Education Foundation (SVEF).
Under his stewardship, SVEF has become the leading education not-for-profit resource preparing students,
especially those in underserved populations, for college and careers in Silicon Valley. The foundation is
dedicated to elevating scholastic achievement in the critical area of STEM. With Muhammed’s leadership
the foundation has forged strong partnerships with the industry and education community to develop innovative programs to support public education.
Muhammed is a Board Member of the Californians Dedicated to Education Foundation and the Hispanic
Foundation Silicon Valley. He is on the National Science Foundation’s Advisory Committee, as well as the
Advisory Board of Silicon Valley Reads and California Consortium of Education Foundation. His personal
interests include golf, long distance running, and volunteering with various philanthropic causes. Prior to
SVEF, Muhammed held management positions in brand marketing with The Clorox Company and Dazzle
Multimedia. Muhammed holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from San Jose State
University and is a graduate of the Stanford Executive Leadership Program.
Approximately 1,500 students enroll in SVEF’s summer math and science classes each year. Focusing on rising 8th and 9th graders, these programs
give students the solid foundation they need in
math and science before they enter more rigorous
courses in high school. Working with schools and
teachers, we identify those students who would
benefit the most from our intense math and science
summer intervention courses to put them back on
track to graduating from high school both college
and career ready. We focus our efforts on schools
with high populations of minority students – mainly
Latino students – whose test scores show there is a
more critical need. Statistics show that less than 3%
of Silicon Valley’s high tech workforce is Latino, yet
Latinos make up 27% of the general population in
the region.
SVEF believes that in order to receive a world-class
education, students must have access to the most
cutting edge education technology products. By
bringing innovative edtech entrepreneurs into the
classroom with Silicon Valley’s best and brightest
teachers, the Learning Innovation Hub, or iHub, seeks
to do just that. One of SVEF’s newest programs, the
iHub systemically convenes the business, nonprofit
and educational communities to improve product
efficacy and facilitate a rapid cycle feedback loop
that increases the number of effective innovations
in the classroom and ultimately improves student
achievement.
In addition, SVEF recently partnered with the San
Francisco 49ers Foundation to create the 49ers STEM
Leadership Institute. This program provides a group
of high-achieving students from Santa Clara public
schools with a chance to be part of a cutting-edge
academic program focused on STEM. While recent
studies show that women occupy a small percentage of the technical jobs in Silicon Valley tech companies, 43% of the students in the initial class of the
49ers STEM Leadership Institute are female. The goal
is to have these students major in STEM subjects in
college and have successful careers in STEM fields.
Thanks to Muhammed Chaudhry’s vision and his
strong philosophy of building partnerships with industry, school districts, and community groups, SVEF
is forging new ways to bring more resources to our
schools and our students to help create the next
generation of Silicon Valley innovators and leaders. n
About Silicon Valley Education Foundation (SVEF)
Silicon Valley Education Foundation (SVEF) is a nonprofit resource and advocate for students and educators.
We drive scholastic achievement in the critical areas of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)
by combining resources and partnerships to provide innovative academic programs. Our mission is to make
Silicon Valley the leader in academically prepared students. We provide programs that prepare our most
vulnerable students – minority students and those from underserved schools – for college and careers. SVEF
works closely with school districts to pioneer new solutions for the classroom. We use the latest research and
thought leadership to introduce students and teachers to tools they can use now and in the future. SVEF
uses a combination of policy advocacy, direct service programs and resources for innovation.
We provide direct service programs that target subjects students struggle most with, including helping 8th
graders successfully complete Algebra I (a key indicator of high school and college success) and 9th graders with their first laboratory science class. New programs include the 49ers STEM Leadership Institute for
high-achieving students from underserved schools, as well as the Learning Innovation Hub (iHub) to identify,
improve and deploy the best edtech products throughout Silicon Valley schools. SVEF is dedicated to putting all students on track for college and careers. To learn more, visit www.svef.com.
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 27 Letter from Diversity Woman Media
Sheila Robinson, Founder and Publisher
As founder and publisher of Diversity Woman Media, LLC, my
goal and mission has
been consistent over
the past decade, to
advance the careers
of women of all races,
cultures and backgrounds.
Throughout
this time, I have found
that the reason that
many industries such
as STEM lack drawing
more women in their
field is primarily based on lack of knowledge and
experience. Despite all the efforts to advance more
women in science and technology the needle has
barely moved. On a daily basis I found myself researching trends to advance the development of
women. First and foremost we need to create more
awareness and educae girls and women on the
career opportunities in this field, and inform them
early on in order for them to prepare to succeed.
Secondly, training and development programs that
can support women with transferable skills from other industries or businesses. Mentor Programs have
proven very successful in other industries and this is
why I am delighted to join STEMconnector® in their
Million Women Mentors mission! The program will
not only get more women prepared to succeed in
STEM fields, but it will also get STEM practitioners and
leadership to play a key role in preparing their pipeline for their workplace future.
One of the overarching themes for us at Diversity
Woman as a content provider is to continue to inform and educate how technology is driving the
marketplace and how it is imperative for women to
get on board. For example, one of our recent cover
stories on “The New Tech Boom,” focused on companies and female executives who are leading to
bring more women in the technology profession.
My core mission is two-fold - to inform, educate and
attract girls and women from - underrepresented
groups to STEM fields and to close the gender gap
in this industry. There have been so many efforts over
the last couple decades to draw more women into
About Sheila Robinson
Sheila Robinson is Founder, Publisher and CEO of Diversity Woman Media, LLC, an organization that provides
ideas, solutions and resources to support the leadership and executive development of women of all races,
cultures and backgrounds through is magazine, website, social media and live events. Sheila is a pre-law
graduate of North Carolina Central University and received her Masters in Entrepreneurship from Western
Carolina University with Beta Gamma Sigma honors and selected “Most Outstanding Student” in her class.
She has certificates from Stanford University’s Professional Publishing Program and Wharton’s School of Business Chief Learning Officer Program. In 2009 she was honored with the MEAC Image Award for her career
achievements and as a positive role model for young women. Other honors include the 2011Minority Business Person of the Year by the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce and one of the 2012 Diversity MBATop
100 Leaders by Diversity MBA Magazine Award. Sheila has been featured on the cover of Publishing Executive Magazine and named as one of 50 Top Women in Magazine Publishing for the significant contribution
she has made in her industry. She is currently pursuing an Executive Doctorate in Leadership at the University
of Pennsylvania (2015).
STEM fields and while there are some success stories as a result of this, there is still have such a long
way to go in having a true diverse field that would
contribute greatly to improving our economy and
global success.
As the founder of “IamaLeader.org,” a non-profit
organization designed to develop students with
leadership skills and to prepare them for their careers and workplace leadership, we are constantly
providing opportunities for them to connect directly
with STEM leadership and professionals. We also
have programs in place to connect college students with internships. While our focus is currently
on high school and college our goal is to design a
website portal beginning at kindergarten. It is crucial that we expose engineering, computer science
and other STEM career opportunities as early as possible. The perception is that if girls are not exposed to
certain subject and career paths, they are unlikely
to elect to follow them in college, particularly since
most STEM fields have historically been influenced
bias toward boys. However a research study conducted by The University of Wisconsin at Whitewater
and the University of Wisconsin at Madison, states
a study conducted with hundreds of thousands of
schoolchildren in 86 countries found that there are
no significant differences in boys’ and girls’ math
scores. And in cares where differences were found,
sociocultural differences -- rather than biological
ones -- appeared to be the cause. As we encourage students to pursue careers they are passionate
about, I believe we must educate them as early as
possible on STEM opportunities so that they will have
K-12 to focus on the required studies required to
gain access to the colleges that will prepare them
to pursue the STEM job of their dream. n
About Diversity Woman
Diversity Woman is a national magazine with a readership of over 100,000 women of all races, cultures and
backgrounds. The mission is to provide leadership and executive development to support gender diversity
in the workplace, with a special focus on the diverse population of women in achieving their career and
business goals. Diversity Woman is the only magazine on the market that is structured exclusively to help
smart, savvy women of all races, cultures, and backgrounds achieve these goals and that serves as a forum to connect accomplished women directly with other women in leadership roles.
Each issue is brimming with insights from women business leaders and other experts who speak from real
world experience, offering sage advice, information, and inspiration. Our readers find tips covering: Leadership and Executive Development, Business Development, Business Etiquette, Financial Planning & Money
Management, Workplace Trends & Politics, Mentorship and Coaching, Technology Trends, Health and
Wellness, Lifestyle and Travel and Profiles of Successful Women Leaders and Executives
Diversity Woman is designed to educate women of all races, cultures and backgrounds, and facilitate
their continued success through solution-based editorial, web site products and services, special events,
and conferences.
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 31 STEM Rising Stars
Angelique Adams
Director, Global
Technology
Developmentent
Alcoa
I
started
as
an
intern at the Alcoa
Technical Center in
1998, after completing
my undergraduate degree in Chemical
Engineering at Penn State. At a campus
networking event, I met an Alcoa employee
who got me energized about the company.
After 18 months at the Tech Center, Alcoa sent
me back to PSU full time to get my PhD in Fuel
Science, which helped solidify my expertise
in Carbon Materials and prepared me for my
R&D career. I have spent the past 10 years at
Alcoa applying my engineering and science
skills to help the company achieve world-class
smelting operations by providing technical
support to the plants and developing and
deploying new smelting technologies. I now
oversee smelting R&D, an international team of
15 scientists, engineers and technicians.
There are three things that helped get me
where I am that are applicable to any young
professional in STEM:
1. Thirst for Knowledge –I took the initiative to
learn more about my field by taking non-core
courses. I know a lot about smelting, but I also
took courses related to statistics, project management, finance, etc.
2. Mentoring – I’ve had mentors since I was at
PSU, and still do. Don’t be afraid to reach out to
people for help, and be willing to help others.
3. Being coachable – When someone gives
me advice, feedback or constructive criticism,
I take it to heart and try to make a change. This
way, people are willing to come back and give
more advice, making you even better.
Being in technology is thrilling. I’m passionate
about it because even after 16 years, so many
new and exciting things happen every day. n
Heidi Vlasak
Sr. Quality Engineer
Boston Scientific
My fascination with
science started at an
early age. A friend
and I dissected a bird
that had died in my
parents’ yard. I was
intrigued with the layers of soft-tissue, articulating joints, vasculature, and organs. Biology
became my passion. With the guidance of
remarkable teachers, I decided to pursue science in my life and in my studies. I studied APlevel biology, chemistry and genetics while in
high school. This prepared me for the biology
program at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN.
I began my career in the bio-tech and pharmaceutical industries where I was often the
only woman in the lab. I joined Boston Scientific
(BSC) thirteen years ago where I was able to
collaborate with more women. I currently work
for great leaders who have an interest in developing me professionally. I work closely with
clients, patients, industry regulators, the Heart
Rhythm society, researchers, analysts and other
professionals as a Senior Quality Engineer.
In addition to regular job responsibilities, I make
time for volunteerism. Six years ago BSC assembled our first STEM Council where a team and
I joined a school outreach program. Partnering with the Sister Academy in Minneapolis, we
focused our efforts on closing the gender gap
in math proficiency. Girls, in particular, benefit
from early engagement in STEM to grow and
nurture a lasting interest in their studies. Educators understand this trend and welcome our
assistance in championing all students in STEM.
Today, I mentor seventh-grade students following a simple philosophy: Educators guide the
HOW [how the subjects are taught]… and STEM
champions show students the WHAT [what can
be done with the knowledge]. In partnership,
we accelerate understanding and excitement
in STEM. n
STEM Rising Stars
STEM Rising Stars
STEM Rising Stars
Barbara McAllister
Whye
Director, Innovation
for Employability
Intel
My journey towards a STEM
field began at home with
my parents and siblings.
As the youngest of 8 kids, I
had plenty of guidance and many of them had
chosen to major in STEM degrees. The siblings
encouraged me to follow their lead, found summer camps for me to attend to get exposure
to what was possible. Their role modeling had
a tremendous impact on my decision making.
Mentoring was incredibly important in helping
me complete my electrical engineering degree
and MBA. My college and grad school cohort
helped me overcome roadblocks and created
a sense of community, and we continue to support each other’s careers today. I’m working on
a PhD at ASU in Technology and Human Social
Dimensions. People often tell me that I don’t
look like an engineer; that reminds me that we
still have engineering stereotypes to overcome.
My vision is that all learners will have access to
a quality STEM education, and that the quality
of one’s education will not be dependent on
their zip code. I know that not all students will be
STEM students, but every student should know
what opportunities are available to them. To
achieve this vision, we must expose students to
STEM early and shift from the idea that “math is
hard” to “math is life.”
To young professionals who are in STEM careers:
curiosity and the ability to learn, relearn and
unlearn are paramount to success in today’s
environment. When you stop asking questions
or think you know everything, you stop learning.
Keep learning and focus. Find a way to hone in
on what’s most impactful and really have clarity of purpose – it will lead to success.
“The power of one, if fearless and focused, is
formidable, but the power of many working together is better.” -Gloria Macapagal Arroyo n
34 | 1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Russell Smith
VP, Product
Management
McKesson
My personal and professional success has been
predicated on delivering
strong business results,
proactive
leadership,
and engaging and maintaining relationships
that have a meaningful impact. In addition, my
foundation was set early with a strong emphasis on education coupled with leadership disciplines gained as a United State Marine. My
business career consists of both corporate and
entrepreneurial experiences of leading enterprise business groups across multiple industry
verticals, many of which were STEM focused.
Our nation’s future will have a significant dependency on technology innovation and infrastructure management. Technology products
and services will become more complex, resulting in a demand for talent in STEM leaders
of tomorrow. Young professionals have a great
opportunity to excel with a STEM career, as our
public and private sectors have an increased
demand. In addition, our current college systems are experiencing significantly low participation rates across the STEM disciplines. As a
result, immense opportunity will exist for those
whose choose to participate.
Mentoring has been a significant contributor it
serves as a catalyst for positive exchanges of
information from leaders/professionals that articulate workplace dynamics, situational leadership, and talent development. I’m a strong
advocate of mentorship as it’s a key component for the development of our communities
and educational disciplines associated with
STEM. Mentorship in its purist form helps followers
identify their unique strengths and weaknesses
and tie them to their personal and career aspirations. Benefits of my mentorship experiences
have resulted in: leadership proficiency, communication effectiveness, analytics, teamwork/
collaboration and proactive engagement. n
Filippe Cade
VP/Director of
Engineering
Professional
Environmental
Engineers
My name is Filippe Cade
… and I am a black engineer, part a threatened
and endangered species. Black engineers
make up only 5% of the engineering population. Despite these steep odds, at an early
age, I was set up for success by my own family. My mother made me and my four siblings
work on math problems every day during the
summer to keep our math skills at a high level.
That fostered my passion for math and science,
and having older siblings that shared this passion served as a great source of inspiration. In
fact, one is now is a civil engineer and another
is an Optometrist. Both have provided a great
deal of mentorship to me. Further, I have a
twin brother who took every single math and
science class right by my side in high school
and in college. He is a fellow engineer, which
serves as a daily source of encouragement. I
was fortunate to have STEM achievers in my
own family that helped to propel me where I
am today, and I want to serve in a similar role
to propel other young people into math and
science degrees and careers. My vision for the
future is for young people to be encouraged
to be engineers and mathematicians and
doctors and rocket scientists because they see
men and women that look like them excelling
as engineers and mathematicians and doctors and rocket scientists. My hope is for other
young professionals to be so visible and active
in their communities such that my vision becomes a reality. I hope, in my lifetime, that the
black engineer will no longer be threatened or
endangered. n
Miguel Quiroga
Executive Director,
Customer
Experience, Video/
Broadband Division
Verizon
Miguel is Executive Director of Customer Experience
for
Verizon
Communications’ Video/Broadband Division.
He is responsible for establishing and leading
the business integration strategy and execution
of cross channel customer engagement efforts
for both contact center and digital channels including TV, online, mobile, social, and voice. He
leads a team focused on creating and implementing customer engagement practices to
balance customer experience and profitability.
Miguel views STEM education as key to developing the creative problem solvers and innovators of the future and that access and
awareness via corporations help bridge the
connection between education and business
practice. He believes businesses can bring
STEM-based opportunities to life for students
entering the workforce and business leaders
must recognize how important it is for students
to identify with role models who have similar
experiences and backgrounds.
Miguel holds an MBA from Columbia University
and a BS in Computer Science from The University of Texas at Dallas. He serves on the National
Advisory Council of DonorsChoose.org, a nonprofit that allows individuals to donate directly
to public school classroom projects and was
listed in the top 10 Most Innovative companies
in 2014 by Fast Company. Miguel is an advisor
for the Parental Readiness & Empowerment
Program (PREP), a program of the Educational
Opportunities Project of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, which focuses on
improving student performance and equitable
educational opportunities. He is also a member of HITEC, a global leadership organization
of Hispanic business and technology executives. n
STEM Rising Stars
Be challenged to make the best better
Enlighten
STEM
Science | Technology | Engineering | Math
Providing End-to -End IT Services and Solutions
UST- Global.com
100 Diverse
Corporate
Leaders in STEM
Kimberly Foster Price
Vice President, 3Mgives
3M
3M captures the spark of new ideas and transforms them into
thousands of innovative products. Our culture of creative collaboration inspires a never-ending stream of powerful technologies that make life better. 3M is a science-based diversified
technology company that never stops inventing. With $31
billion in sales, 3M employs almost 90,000 people around the
world—including 8,200 researchers—and has operations in
more than 70 countries.
3M is not just a company that creates; it is also a company
that cares. Through its philanthropic arm, 3Mgives, the company develops and invests in innovative community programs
that make a difference. Since 1953, 3M and the 3M Foundation
have invested more than $1.4 billion in cash and products in
education and charitable organizations. These donations were
bolstered by thousands of employee and retiree volunteers. In
2013, 3M earned the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Best Commitment to Education Award, the Excellence in Mentoring Award
for Corporate Leadership and the United Way Spirit of America
Award. For more information, visit www.3Mgives.com.
Kimberly Foster Price serves as Vice President of 3Mgives. In this role, Price leads the
development and implementation of 3M’s
global strategic philanthropy and community engagement, including oversight of the
3M Foundation. 3Mgives supports the company’s Employee Resource Networks and the
Global Women’s Leadership Forum.
Through her example, Price inspires others to
pursue professional excellence and community service. In addition to her professional
accomplishments, she has earned a reputation as a guide and mentor to countless others. As an education advocate, Price guides
and directs 3M’s investment in a comprehensive education portfolio, especially in the
area of Science, Technology, Engineering and
Math (STEM), to encourage the next generation of innovative thinkers.
Committed to her community, Price serves
on the Board of several local organizations,
including the Greater Twin Cities United Way,
the local United Negro College Fund Leadership Council and Generation Next. Price
is an active member of The Links, Incorporated, the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, Minnesota Women’s Economic
Roundtable and the Executive Leadership
Council. Price’s significant professional and
civic accomplishments are reflected in her
recognition as a 3M Community Volunteer of
the Year, Minnesota Attorney of the Year, Centennial Girl Scout Honoree, Diversity Journal
Woman Worth Watching and one of Savoy
Magazine’s Most Influential Women in Corporate America.
Price earned her Juris Doctor from Columbia
University School of Law, her Master’s degree
in Public Affairs from the Woodrow Wilson
School of Princeton University and her Bachelor’s degree from Bowdoin College. Price
and her husband, Ron, are the parents of
three adult children: Darrius, Alison and Julius.
*Member of The Executive Leadership Council
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What is your advice on using private-public partnerships to tackle our most pressing education
challenges in STEM?
It is important that public and private entities collaborate to increase student interest and achievement in
STEM. 3M always welcomes the opportunity to collaborate, or “co-labor,” with community partners like Saint
Paul Public Schools or Generation Next, a coalition
of civic, business and education leaders focused on
closing the achievement and opportunity gaps for students of color in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Collaboration is not new to 3M; it has been a part of our culture
for more 100 years. Just as we encourage our scientists
and researchers to work together to share technology
across the company to develop new customer solutions, we use this same approach in our efforts to support STEM initiatives.
3M’s 40 year-plus partnership with the Saint Paul Public
Schools is a great example of how we use our company’s expertise to strengthen STEM education. 3M has
worked with the school system to provide cash grants,
mentoring and skill-based volunteering; this includes
funding a volunteer coordinator at two inner city
high schools to connect teachers and students with
3M mentors. We have more than 500 employees and
retirees serving as mentors. The company also developed the 3M STEP (Science Training Encouragement
Program) for students from St. Paul Public Schools. This
program connects high school students with 3M scientists as mentors and also gives the students summer
jobs in 3M labs.
Around the globe, 3Mers are serving the next generation of scientists. Our efforts reflect offering science
encouragement programming and computer classes
in Brazil. to working with the communities creating a
science lab and learning sessions to children in Bangalore.
Fostering interest in science, technology, engineering
and math and developing the innovators of the future
is something that we take seriously at 3M and our partnership with public organizations is helping us achieve
our goals.
How is your company using diversity with STEM-initiatives? Is this part of your comprehensive strategy?
3M believes in using all of our resources to find innovative solutions to complex challenges. Recently, 3M
implemented a bold new plan to broaden the company’s community outreach and engage the next
generation of innovative thinkers by creating a stronger
link between our Employee Resource Networks (ERNs)
and our philanthropic arm, 3Mgives. To integrate the
ERNs into 3Mgives, the company recently appointed
Meredith Crosby as Director, 3Mgives Strategic Initiatives. In this role, Meredith is developing the strategy
for 3M’s extensive work around STEM education and
education equity as well as the engagement of the
ERNs. This effort allows us to build on 3M’s heritage of
collaboration by further advancing our engagement
in diverse communities around STEM education.
Are you a mentor and what is your view of mentorship?
I am a firm believer in mentoring. I have reaped the
benefits of having great mentors throughout my career
and I have had the privilege of being a mentor. I have
found mentoring to be extremely rewarding.
At 3M, mentoring has proven to be one of the most
effective ways to encourage women and students of
color to pursue math and science careers. Mentoring
gives students a connection to someone in the field
who can help with career-related questions, provide
personal support and guidance and expose students
to the life-long benefits of a STEM career.
What Employee Resource Groups does your company have in place?
3M has eleven Employee Resource Networks: Global
Women’s Leadership Forum, African American Network, China Resource Network, Disability Awareness
Network, Latino Resource Network, Military Support
Network, Native American Network, New Employee
Opportunity Network, GLBT+ Network and South Asia
Network. Our ERNs are vital to executing the 3M strategy and are a living embodiment of the company’s
strategy of having high performing and diverse global
talent. ERNs are also essential to helping us strengthen
our engagement with diverse communities around
STEM.
In addition to the company’s ERNs, 3M also has Business Resource Teams (BRTs), which are designed to
leverage the cultural insights and business knowledge
of 3Mers located in our headquarter offices across our
various businesses. BRTs inform our international giving
to leverage our STEM programs in locations including
Asia, Africa and Latin America. We partner across the
globe to share for success. n
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 39 3M
Why do you believe STEM Education and workforce
development are critical to our nation’s future?
As a science-based, diversified technology company,
3M has a keen awareness of the importance of fostering the next generation of innovators. Every day, 3M
scientists use science and technology to solve problems. So we know firsthand the important role that
STEM graduates will have in solving some of the world’s
most pressing challenges. That is why we are committed to developing and supporting programs that
inspire and support student achievement in STEM.
Shelly Swanback
Group Operating Officer
Accenture
Accenture is a global management consulting, technology
services and outsourcing company with more than 293,000
people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Combining
unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across
all industries and business functions, and extensive research
on the world’s most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance
businesses and governments. It has extensive relationships with
the world’s leading companies and governments and work
with organizations of all sizes—including 91 of the FORTUNE
Global 100 and more than three quarters of the FORTUNE
Global 500.
Through its Skills to Succeed corporate citizenship focus, Accenture is committed to equipping 700,000 people around
the world by 2015 with the skills to get a job or build a business.
The company generated net revenues of US$28.6 billion for
the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2013. Its home page is www.
accenture.com.
Shelly Swanback is the Group Operating Officer for Accenture’s Digital growth platform.
In this role, she is responsible for accelerating growth, executing business strategy and
leading Accenture’s Digital business operations globally.
forming business processes, IT and operations
including large scale technology implementations.
Shelly holds a Bachelor of Science degree in
finance and computer information systems
from Colorado State University.
Shelly previously served as the lead for Accenture’s North America Technology practice,
where she was accountable for sales support,
solution design and delivery of Accenture’s
technology services and offerings.
She previously served as a board member
of the Women’s Vision Foundation and the
Global Leadership Council for Colorado State
University’s College of Business.
Other roles include serving as managing
director for Accenture’s Communications,
Media and Technology North America operating unit and Managing Director for Accenture’s Denver office.
She currently resides in Arvada, Colorado
with her husband, Steve, and two children,
Andrew and Lauren. Shelly and her family
enjoy spending time in the mountains, youth
sports and golfing. Shelly has coached for
many of her kids’ sporting teams.
During her 23 years with Accenture, she has
worked with Fortune 100 companies trans-
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To address these concerns, those of us who are STEM
professionals must talk about STEM careers in a way
that is relevant and connected to today’s generations
and working world. Specifically, we need to spend time
with students and help them easily envision their own
futures in STEM careers. We do it at Accenture—and it
works.
I believe strongly that companies need to develop
private-public collaborations, such as teaming with
universities and the incredible nonprofits that help
educate about and encourage STEM careers. Investing time and money to help equip people with the
skills they need to pursue STEM careers is important for
our future.
How has your corporation coordinated investments
in education with future workforce needs?
Technology-led innovation is at the heart of our business at Accenture, so STEM skills are critical to our success—and we take these investments seriously.
We support students interested in STEM careers through
scholarships that encourage STEM-related degrees
and through paid undergraduate summer internships
that provide first-hand exposure to careers in engineering and technology. We also continuously look for
programs that are important for future STEM careers,
e.g., degrees including technology and data science
components.
Additionally, we team with nonprofits as part of our
corporate citizenship initiative, Skills to Succeed, which
plans to equip 700,000 people by 2015 with the skills
they need to get a job or start a business. As part of
this, we work with nonprofit partners to deliver technical training and education in STEM.
How is your company connecting diversity initiatives with STEM initiatives? Is this a part of your
comprehensive strategy?
While we have distinct diversity and STEM initiatives,
they are also interwoven.
For example, through our women’s theme, “Defining
Success. Your Way.,” we encourage our more than
100,000 women to create their own paths to professional and personal success. As part of this, we provide
mentoring and sponsorship initiatives and hold quarterly forums on leadership topics associated with STEM
skills and careers. It’s all part of our more than $870-million annual investment in training for our people.
Leaders are in great demand as business builders and role models. What advice do you have for
minorities and women coming “up” the system?
It’s an important question and one for which everyone
can give a different and meaningful answer. Here’s
mine:
• Assume you can do anything you set your mind to;
also realize you won’t do it alone. Seek mentors,
help, feedback and support along the way.
• Develop a routine that includes learning and
reflection; don’t just go through the motions every
day, based on what you are asked to do.
• Be proactive about asking for feedback – from
those who work with you, around you and above
you. This will help you form a stronger sense of who
you are, where your strengths lie and where you
need to focus. It’s as important to focus on your
strengths as it is to work on your areas for improvement.
• Take time to enjoy your life outside of work. I’m very
proud of what I do as a wife and a mother. I’ve
coached my son’s and daughter’s soccer, basketball and baseballs teams. People ask me how I balance my time and make this work with my career.
My answer is that I make it work because I love
doing it, and I find that when I am enjoying what I
do outside of work, it positively reflects on my work
at Accenture.
We have a wide variety of Employee Resource Groups
(ERGs) at Accenture—they’re part of our passion to
cultivate a diverse workforce. Our ERGs are organized
around common interests or experiences including:
military veterans; gender; persons with disabilities; ethnicity (including African American, American Indian,
Asian Pacific American and Hispanic American); sexual orientation and gender identity and expression;
and faith or religion.
The ERGs provide all our people great opportunities
to discuss career management questions; become
involved with our diverse recruiting and corporate
citizenship efforts; and build cultural awareness, both
internally and with groups outside of the company.
What I love about our ERGs is the sense of community
they create. Each one has its unique “personality,”
and all of them provide a fun and passionate forum
for sharing positive experiences and challenges. n
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What do corporations need to do to create more
STEM careers and fill existing jobs?
The first thing we need to do is expand our thinking on
what STEM careers are and become more “creative”
about how we describe these careers. Many people
count themselves out of being interested in or qualified
for a STEM career based on the idea that the careers
are too technical or too hard, that they won’t work in
teams or that they won’t be working in the new digital/
social world in which we live.
Lois Cooper
Vice President, Corporate
Development and Inclusion
Adecco Group North America
At Adecco Group North America, we are a family of recruitment companies and workforce solutions organizations that
are leaders in their respective markets and industries. Every
day, we provide the services and the insight to empower job
seekers and employers to achieve their full potential. We are
also part of the global Adecco family of companies — a Fortune Global 500 organization employing over 31,000 staff and
operating in more than 60 countries worldwide.
With 70,000 associates on assignment every day, Adecco
Group has an unmatched opportunity and responsibility to
lead in the area of diversity and inclusion. We are using our talents and resources to establish and sustain a diverse workforce
and connect under-represented groups with employment.
As Vice President, Corporate Development
and Inclusion for Adecco Group North America, Lois Cooper is responsible for developing strategic partnerships and initiatives that
support the organization’s business strategies
and positively impact the bottom line.
Ms. Cooper has more than 20 years of professional experience in organizations across a
variety of industries. Her career has included
positions in the advertising, financial services
and entertainment industries. In these positions she developed expertise in a number of
areas, including change management, organizational design and development, and corporate social responsibility and inclusion.
Ms. Cooper has been named as a Top Executive by Uptown Professional Magazine for
the last 3 years. She selected as a 2009 Black
Achiever in Industry by the YMCA of Greater
New York. She is also a 2006 honoree of the
Network Journal’s 25 Influential Black Women
in Business Awards. She has been featured as
Diversity Journal’s “Front-Runners” in Diversity
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Leadership Series 2006 and honored as one
of Diversity Journal’s Women Worth Watching in 2007. Ms. Cooper is a featured speaker
for the World Diversity Leadership Summit,
and has spoken at various Conferences in
the United States and globally. She has also
been quoted in Diversity Spectrum, Diversity
Best Practices’ Chief Diversity Officer (CDO)
Insights and other publications.
Ms. Cooper received her BA from American
University in Washington, D.C and her MBA
from Baruch College in New York City.
Adecco Group respects, values and practices effective diversity management to capitalize on the strengths of a diverse workforce
and continue to be a human resource industry leader. Partnerships with diverse suppliers
position us as a leader in the industry. Working
with a diverse group of employees with various backgrounds and perspectives creates
a competitive advantage, and ultimately,
global success.
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With this in mind, Adecco supports the State University
of New York/Farmingdale’s annual STEM Summit. The
Summit hosts hundreds of high school and college students as they spend a full day interacting with national
STEM leaders from organizations such as NASA. Simultaneously, local educators are being equipped with new
knowledge and skills that they can take back to their
classrooms. This collaboration between educators and
employers will help us to build the key skills needed in
the future.
How do we encourage students to continue their
study of STEM subjects, particularly women and
underrepresented minorities?
It is critical to integrate STEM into everyday learning
opportunities, including the Arts. Many in the industry
also refer to this approach of incorporating the Arts
into the learning experience as STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math). There are many
creative solutions to achieve this goal. One initiative,
called Math-A-Magic, incorporates scientific principles
into a magical experience for youth. When programs
like this are introduced to youth in diverse communities, they are more inspired to explore the possibilities
of STEM careers. Parent involvement is also critical to
the success of these initiatives.
Mentoring is certainly another way to encourage students of color and women to pursue STEM careers.
Students need to meet successful STEM professionals
that look like them. Adecco has been involved in youth
mentoring for 10+ years. In the program, colleagues
from our Information Technology, Accounting and
Finance teams pair up with mentees throughout the
school year. They share about their pathways to their
current careers and assist students with homework and
projects. Another group that needs to be included in
these efforts are individuals with disabilities. Because of
technological advances today, these students have
a wonderful opportunity to enter the workforce. Each
October, during Disability Employment Awareness
Month, Adecco conducts a job shadowing day with
students from Abilities, Inc. The students spend time
with our colleagues and are able to watch them as
they work. The group then has lunch with a motivational speaker that also has a disability. It is a time of
encouragement and inspiration.
I feel there should be an increase in corporate sponsorships of global STEM and STEAM camps and other
programs for girls and diverse youth. Corporations and
youth can mutually benefit from these programs and
long-term relationships. The company can develop
workforce skills and introduce students to career
opportunities. Corporations also need to understand
that there is not a “quick fix” for this and have to invest
for the long-term, however, the return on investment
will definitely pay off.
challenges in STEM?
It is critical to build on the success of organizations such
as Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Girl Scouts, Girls, Inc.,
etc. to stay competitive in today’s market. Corporations will benefit from a partnership with organizations
that have a direct pipeline into local communities.
Conversely, these organizations should take advantage of the business perspective of their corporate
sponsors to ensure that their programs are developing
current and future workforce skills.
One example of Adecco’s involvement in this type
of initiative is through Abilities, Inc. Adecco has been
a member of the Business Advisory Board for over 20
years. The role of the Board is to review program curriculum to ensure that those who go through the program
will have the appropriate job skills to find employment.
As a staffing company, we are able to use our understanding of what employers are looking for to ensure
that these skills will be developed and that their students will be prepared for the workforce.
What counsel would you provide around “collaborating to achieve success” in STEM education and
the workforce?
Collaboration is critical to achieving success in STEM
education and employment. Adecco has a long
standing history of partnering with diverse organizations to build a diverse pipeline of talent for our customers. One example of this is through the National
Urban League. Through the national office and its
affiliates across the country, we have successfully hired
hundreds of individuals for our customers. Specifically
in Dallas, Texas, the Urban League has hosted Adecco
job fairs and has promoted the job fairs through their
local public service announcements. This is one example of how employers and diverse organizations can
work together to have a positive impact in a local
community.
These types of partnerships also work on a large-scale
basis as well. Through forums such as STEMConnector,
educators and corporations are able to share a host
of ideas and best practices. I see this as an excellent
opportunity for companies such as Adecco. n
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Why is STEM Education/workforce development
critical to the future of our nation?
The development of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and workforce development is critical to global economic
growth—and the United States. Statistics have proven
that where there is innovation and technology, the
local economy prospers. For continued U.S. competitiveness in an increasingly technological environment,
leaders must emphasize STEM careers at an early age.
I believe our community should foster and focus on
these areas throughout our educational system, while
making the attainment of related certificate programs
and degrees easier and more affordable. Encouraging
participation by diverse groups, including women and
people of color, is essential to this growth and success.
AnishRajparia
President, Major Account Services
ADP
With more than $12 billion in revenues and 65 years of experience, ADP® (Nasdaq: ADP) serves approximately 637,000
clients in more than 125 countries. As one of the world’s largest providers of business outsourcing and Human Capital
Management solutions, ADP offers a wide range of human
resource, payroll, talent management, tax and benefits administration solutions from a single source, and helps clients
comply with regulatory and legislative changes, such as the
Affordable Care Act (ACA). ADP’s easy-to-use solutions for employers provide superior value to companies of all types and
sizes. ADP is also a leading provider of integrated computing
solutions to auto, truck, motorcycle, marine, recreational vehicle, and heavy equipment dealers throughout the world. For
more information about ADP, visit the company’s website at
www.ADP.com.
Anish Rajparia is President of Major Account
Services, which focuses on businesses with 50
to 1,000 clients, and ADP Canada. He was
previously President of ADP’s Small Business
Services, TotalSource®, and Retirement Services businesses.
Anish has also served as President of ADP
Employer Services International (ESI), where he
was responsible for HR and payroll outsourcing
business across Europe, Asia/Australia, and Latin
America. He successfully grew share in Europe,
expanded presence in emerging markets, drove
growth with multinational companies through
ADP Streamline®, created focus on beyondpayroll offerings, completed three successful
acquisitions, and increased margins across ESI.
The ESI role was an expansion of Anish’s prior
responsibility as President, Employer Services
Europe beginning in July 2006. During his tenure he accelerated the growth of the business, enhanced the core payroll offerings,
expanded the suite of HR offerings, launched
Money Movement, and significantly improved
the margins of the business.
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Anish joined ADP as Vice President of Business
Development, and was rapidly promoted to
Senior Vice President, Employer Services Group
Strategy and Marketing. During his tenure in
these roles, he was integral to developing
overall strategy, identifying viable acquisitions
and alliances, and driving various marketing
initiatives and external communications.
Before joining ADP, Anish was the co-CEO
and Chief Operating Officer of Parlo, Inc., an
e-learning company. Prior to Parlo, he served as
a consultant with McKinsey & Company, where
he advised financial services, technology and
consumer organizations on strategy, marketing, operations and acquisitions. Anish’s career
began at Xerox Business Services with various
positions in sales, pricing and marketing.
Anish holds a master of business administration degree from the Harvard Business School
and a bachelor of science in electrical engineering and computer science from Duke
University. He is fluent in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Gujarati.
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Analytics and business intelligence are also very
important to understanding the underlying dynamics and trends in a business and its market. Having
a strong mathematical foundation is very helpful in
quickly extracting key information from the numbers
and knowing how to apply them in making strategic
decisions.
Lastly, technology is also now very much a part of automating our client service and implementation functions. For ADP, there is nothing more critical because
our solutions have to work for every employee of each
client’s business, whether that client has one employee
or tens of thousands of employees. We are responsible
for paying 34 million people around the world and
administering benefits to 15 million people. The technology, both client-facing and internal, has to be solid
to take on that kind of responsibility.
As a diverse corporate leader in a company with
a strong technology base, what is your view of the
importance of diversity in tech?
Diversity is absolutely critical and this extends to backgrounds, knowledge, and functions. It is especially
important to innovation—bringing ideas from various
viewpoints to bear. I was raised in the religion of Jainism, which espouses anekāntavāda, a belief that a
multiplicity of viewpoints is essential, and that no one
point of view is the absolute truth. With this foundation
I have always believed that things are made better
when we include multiple perspectives
In addition, I believe that we need to have diversity
beyond tech. I’ve observed that the most sustainable
enterprises today are making sure they have diverse
workforces in all functions—service, implementation,
sales, the proverbial back-office functions, etc. As I
have learned from interacting with and mentoring
diverse associates, it has to be embraced throughout
an enterprise. When this is the case, from my perspective, the company is more reflective of its client base,
strengthens the outcomes, and leads to greater success.
What role do you see for STEM education and workforce development in our nation’s future?
STEM education has been phenomenal—just look at
the accomplishments and reputations of schools like
MIT, Stanford, RPI—and of course my alma mater, Duke!
Perhaps even more important is how STEM graduates
have applied their educations to innovation for the
betterment of the world. This has been the key to the
nation’s rise and will be the key to keeping it globally
competitive.
Increased investment is needed for STEM education in
the U.S. The trend seems to be toward the opposite,
with less emphasis on mathematics and smaller budgets for computers in public elementary schools. This
needs to be reversed if we are going to maintain the
nation’s role as a major innovator and engine of commerce.
Our schools could also use more investment to promote the STEM fields to children, especially girls, to
create more interest in pursuing futures in STEM. As the
father of two girls (ages 10 and 7), I can see that even
today girls receive less encouragement to pursue STEM,
despite the existence of initiatives like Girls Who Code.
What area of STEM are you most passionate about?
Mathematics, as it is the foundation of all of the STEM
fields. To paraphrase Galileo, the universe is written in
mathematical language, so if you don’t understand
mathematics you can’t comprehend the universe. This
is especially true for science and engineering, and I
think it’s true for business as well – not just being able to
read a balance sheet but the ability to think in mathematical terms and apply this thinking to solving problems.
If you’re in a negotiation or in competition for a business deal and you’re the only person with a math
background, I give you very good odds of coming
out ahead the majority of the time. When the makers
of “The Matrix” wanted to show Neo’s consciousness
breaking through, they did it by depicting reality as a
stream of numbers that only he could see. I’m still trying
to get to that level!
What area of STEM do you believe holds the most
potential for students considering their long-term
future?
I think it is the intersection of all of the STEM fields, and
the ability to apply all of them together, that is the most
powerful. There are still areas where you can specialize
in one, but to create the greatest innovation, the strongest ideas, the most forward thinking, you really need
all of them. If you approach your education with the
goal of being well-rounded, with a strong foundation in
mathematics, you can chart your own future. n
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How do you incorporate your STEM education in
your role as the president of a business division?
Technology and innovation are keys to differentiating
our business, which is in the rapidly growing and complex Human Capital Management industry. Therefore,
I prioritize spending meaningful time with technology
and products and understanding what my company
has to offer versus what the competition is doing, from
the perspective of our clients and channel partners.
As I try to identify ways we can be different, innovative, and simpler than the competition, it’s enormously
helpful to have a STEM background, and I draw on it
every day.
Malina M. Hills
Vice President, Space Program
Operations
The Aerospace Corporation
The Aerospace Corporation is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to the objective application of science
and technology toward the solution of critical issues affecting
the nation’s space program. Part of the corporation’s commitment to the future of our nation’s continued success in and
access to space is to inspire new generations who will continue the work of companies like The Aerospace Corporation.
Aerospace has made STEM the focal point of its education
outreach initiatives. Through employee volunteerism, and student and teacher collaboration, Aerospace focuses on inspiring middle and high school students to consider careers
in the STEM disciplines. Our mission is to develop a systematic
approach that will utilize the knowledge, skill, and expertise of
technical volunteers, promoting the advancement of science
and math education with our youth. The ultimate goal of these
partnerships is to encourage the prospect of cultivating future
engineers for the entire aerospace and defense industry.
Dr. Malina M. Hills is the vice president of Space
Program Operations (SPO). She assumed this
position in July 2014. In this position, she works
Air Force, government, and industry partners
to develop military satellites and to advance
national security space systems. She assists with
the development of system requirements, provides schedule/cost risk assessments, and solves
systems development problems. Hills oversees
four major mission areas: communications,
surveillance, weather, and navigation. SPO is
organized into five divisions: Space Based Surveillance Division, Environmental Satellite Systems Division, MILSATCOM Division, Navigation
Division, and Space Support Division.
Hills was formerly general manager of the
Military Satellite Communications (MILSATCOM) Division, and was responsible to the Air
Force Space and Missile Systems Center for
systems engineering and mission assurance
in the architecture, acquisition, development,
orbital operation, and sustainment of military
satellite communication systems, including
support for the Advanced Extremely High
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Frequency, Defense Satellite Communications System, and Enhanced Polar System, Milstar, Wideband Global SATCOM, Command
and Control System – Consolidated, and
Advanced Concept programs.
Prior to that, Hills served as general manager
of the Systems Engineering Division, principal
director of systems integration for the Space
Based Infrared System program, principal
director of the Business and Operations Analysis Subdivision, and principal director of the
Research and Program Development Office.
Hills has a bachelor’s degree in engineering
and applied science from Yale University, and
a doctorate in chemical engineering from
the California Institute of Technology.
Hills dedicates a significant amount of time
to mentoring, as senior advisor to the Aerospace Asian-Pacific American Association,
and as a judge in the corporation’s annual
Herndon Science Fair, which promotes science and math education at the secondary
school level.
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Mentoring is one of the most rewarding activities imaginable. There is nothing more satisfying than challenging someone to try something new and then watching
them succeed. For business, it’s the great force multiplier—the more folks grow, the more they can accomplish, and the more they can help others grow. I see
some folks who just need a little bit of encouragement;
they aren’t sure if they can do something, so we sit and
discuss all the great things they have already accomplished that make them the right person for this next
challenge. My mentees teach me new things every
day. I’ve been at our company for twenty-seven years,
but they provide an entirely new perspective on what’s
going on. Plus, their knowledge of the latest research
and development activities is both fascinating and
valuable.
Our company places a high value on science and
engineering education, so we have a three-step strategy for our future workforce: 1) Introduce them to science through STEM initiatives, 2) Bring them into the
company through internships and scholarships, and 3)
Keep them learning through fellowships and individual
training plans. Our STEM outreach is broad: the annual
Herndon Science Fair for middle and high school students; Take Our Children to Work Day; local school
visits to our Spacelift Telemetry Acquisition and Reporting System (STARS) where students can learn about
launching satellites and sometimes even witness a
launch; partnerships with AIAA, MathCounts, MESA,
and US FIRST Robotics; designing exhibits of space
debris at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space
Museum, to name a few. The more companies can
do to interest kids in science, the better off we all will
be. Second, Aerospace offers summer internship positions to students majoring in science, engineering, and
related fields. We include special activities for them
to allow them to interact, and to learn more about
space systems and different technical areas. Many of
these interns go on to become Aerospace employees after completion of their studies. Finally, we offer
fellowships to our employees to complete their master’s or doctoral degrees. This ensures that employees
can achieve their full technical potential. In return, we
expect them to mentor the next generation of scientists and engineers.
Who knows what will spark an interest in STEM subjects?
The best we can do is to expose students to a lot of different learning opportunities and let them determine
what interests them. Let’s encourage them to explore
the natural environment to understand how it works, to
build robots, and to fly experiments on a space station.
Let’s listen to what they have to say: their hypotheses,
their insights, their conclusions and lessons learned.
Fifty years later, some of us still remember the words
of reinforcement that we received from our 4th grade
science teacher. Let’s make sure they meet successful engineers and scientists of different genders, races,
and ethnicities, and reinforce the scientific method
and the joy of scientific discovery.
minorities and women coming “up” in the system?
Women and minorities are coming “up in a system”
that still is not fully inclusive to them. We may all share
the language of math, science, and engineering, but
we still may not be able to communicate well with
each other, which can lead to confusion and discouragement. Some may not feel comfortable competing
with others. My experience suggests that you should
focus on yourself. If you do your best technical work,
you can always be proud of your own accomplishments. Communicate your ideas, and ask questions if
you need guidance—people like answering questions.
Finally, cultivate a thick skin, and always be true to your
values; the former lets you accept other people, the
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How do you believe STEM education can improve a
nation’s competitiveness?
STEM education is fundamental to solving the complex
problems that America faces today. At The Aerospace
Corporation we frequently face complex problems
that require solutions by cross-disciplinary teams of scientists and engineers. “When is that spacecraft going
to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere?” “Where will it impact
Earth?” “Will it fall safely into the ocean or hit a populated area?” “Will it break up?” “Will the pieces burn
up?” We need astrodynamicists, mechanical engineers, and metallurgists to solve these problems. Complex problem-solving also requires smart and creative
scientists and engineers. We need people with cognitive diversity, who naturally frame and solve problems
in different ways. Computer simulations using agentbased modeling have shown that a group of like thinkers can end up with a sub-optimal or less accurate
solution, and that a group of diverse thinkers generally
obtains a better solution. I’ll pick that diverse team; I
wouldn’t want to evacuate a city if the spacecraft is
going to fall into the Pacific Ocean.
Floyd W. Green
Vice President and
Head of Community Relations
and Urban Marketing
Aetna
Aetna is one of the nation’s leading diversified health care
benefits companies, serving an estimated 45 million people
with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad
range of traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health
insurance products and related services, including medical,
pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities, Medicaid
health care management services, workers’ compensation
administrative services and health information technology
products and services. Aetna’s customers include employer
groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly
workers, health plans, health care providers, governmental
units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see www.aetna.com and learn
about how Aetna is helping to build a healthier world. @aetna
Floyd W. Green, III is Vice President and head of
Community Relations and Urban Marketing for
Aetna, Inc. He is responsible for developing grass
roots marketing strategies to assist in business
development, customer retention, healthcare
disparities and strategic partnerships. He is also
responsible for Aetna’s corporate philanthropic
investments to strengthen Aetna’s brand which
includes local and national granting, expanding employee volunteerism and employee gift
matching programs. His organization manages
the implementation of Aetna’s urban marketing
strategies designed to address the multicultural/
multilingual and generational needs of key constituents as well as to develop alternative distribution channels across all market segments. Finally,
his organization is responsible for all national and
local events/trade shows as well as the company’s award winning international briefing center. In January 2013, Floyd was appointed to the
national board of the Americans for the Arts. In
2012, he was appointed Commissioner by Mayor
Pedro E. Segarra, Mayor of Hartford to the Capital Region Development Authority. In addition, he
serves on the boards of the American’s for the
Arts, Center for Disease Control (CDC) National
Partnership Board for HIV/AIDS, Xavier University’s
Corporate Advisory Board, New Orleans, the inaugural corporate advisory council for the National
Parent Teacher Association (PTA), Uptown Professional Board of Advisors and the Howard University’s School of Communications Board of Visitors.
Floyd previously served on the award winning
boards of Hartford Stage and the Connecticut
Forum. He is a member of the Executive Leadership Council (ELC), 100 Black Men of America, the
National Association of Health Services Executives, the National Alliance of Market Developers,
Actor’s Equity Association and a lifetime member
of the National Black MBA’s and Alpha Phi Alpha
Fraternity Incorporated. Floyd is the recipient of
many professional and civic awards including
the International Global Award for Excellence
in Health Care Marketing, 2010 BEYA Emerald
Award for Community Outreach in science, technology, engineering and mathematic (STEM),
2012 and 2014 Uptown Professional magazine’s
top 100 executives in corporate America, one
of Savoy Magazine’s 2012 and 2014 selection as
100 most influential black executives in corporate
America. Most recently, he has been awarded
one of BlackDoctors.org/Johns Hopkins Center
for Health Disparities Solutions 2014 most influential Blacks in Healthcare.
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“In this climate of economic uncertainty, America is
once again turning to innovation as the way to ensure
a prosperous future. Yet innovation remains tightly coupled with Science, Technology, Engineering and Math
– the STEM subjects. Art + Design are poised to transform our economy in the 21st century just as science
and technology did in the last century. We need to
add Art + Design to the equation — to transform STEM
into STEAM.
STEM + Art = STEAM
STEAM is a movement championed by Rhode Island
School of Design (RISD) and widely adopted by institutions, corporations and individuals. The objectives of
the STEAM movement are to: transform research policy
to place Art + Design at the center of STEM; encourage integration of Art + Design in K–20 education;and
influence employers to hire artists and designers to
drive innovation” STEM to STEAM
It is critical that we continue to focus on arts and arts
education in many underserved communities. The
inclusion of Arts into STEM will allow those who struggle with normal academics to excel by using creative
measurers like in the Kinsella School here in Hartford
Connecticut.
“Kinsella Magnet School of Performing Arts is a datadriven, decision-making school focusing on individual
student progress, assessment, and achievement with
high academic expectations. This unique school provides all students the opportunity to develop their skills
through the performing arts. This philosophy combines
comprehensive training, cultural exposure, and arts
integration as a means to develop a child socially,
linguistically, and cognitively through a broad variety of hands-on experiences. All students can have
the experience of playing a musical instrument, creation through stagecraft arts, and content learning
via drama, dance, and movement. This process fosters
student problem-solving and critical thinking skills, and
encourages individual learning in which students arrive
at conclusions independently. The Kinsella approach
engages students on an emotional level and excites
them to learn”
What is the key to smart STEM investments?
There are countless examples of why this is important
and how these investments can be handled intelligently. One such example is Hartford Performs.
help students obtain deeper, broader and meaningful access to the arts – right at a time when funding
for things like art, music and sports was extremely tight
and the need for investment in literacy and numeracy
was at an all-time high. What the task force found
was a community partnership model that was equally
owned by the school district and the greater community – and it then committed to implementing it with
fidelity in the city. Why? Because research showed that
an investment not just in access to arts in school, or arts
out of school, but an investment into integrating the
arts into school curriculum had an impact on student
performance.
Now, after working in 26 schools (including 22 of the
24 lowest performing in Hartford), working with 103 arts
providers, offering 198 arts programs, touching 11,846
HPS students, and with three years of data, Hartford
has its own research proving that Hartford Performs
positively impacts student achievement. With 56 percent of students participating in any Hartford Performs
programs last year reporting that these programs led
to their very first visit to a museum, it’s easy to advocate for the arts purely on the basis of the power of
exposure and experience. The three-year evaluation provided an additional argument, however, to all
who seek the means to close the achievement gap
between the academic performance of Hartford students and their peers around the state. It’s the spark
– the gift – of excitement about learning
What STEM initiative that your company has supported are you most proud of?
I continue to marvel at what our employees are doing
to help promote STEM and STEAM initiatives. From
mentoring local school children to teaching kids science through building sustainable neighborhoods,
or donating computers and software to local nonprofits to funding the arts and arts education, all are
great work that continues to be celebrated. In 2013
our employees donated 6.8 million dollars to nonprofits across the country and 7000 employees logged
in over 400,000 volunteer hours. Many of the money
donated and hours volunteered were in the areas of
STEAM and STEM. The Aetna Foundation matched the
giving with over 4 million dollars and spends millions
every year in closing the disparity gaps in healthcare.
Aetna recognizes the importance of funding and supporting to help stimulate the next generation of innovators and differentiators. I personally sit on the board
of the American’s for the Arts. Because of that position,
I can personally lobby and advocate the importance
of STEAM and also see first-hand the value and incredible results. Because of the corporations work we have
been awarded many prestigious awards like the Civic
50, Latinos in Information Sciences and Technology
Association (LISTA) Corporate award, BEYA Emerald
Award for Community Outreach in science, technology, engineering and mathematic and the Americans
for the Arts BCA 10 Top 10 Corporations for the support
of the Arts. n
Hartford Performs started out as an arts task force, called
into being by the school’s Superintendent. It was asked
to research models from around the nation that could
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I have to be transparent regarding my support over
the years and with what Aetna has been doing in this
area. We have seen significant improvements when
the focus has expanded from STEM to STEAM. We have
also seen improvements in test scores, dropout rates
when our youth are exposed to an approach where
the arts and arts education are integrated with sciences, technology, engineering, and math. STEAM
is gaining momentum and we are excited to see its
progress across the country.
Gena C. Lovett
Chief Diversity Officer
Alcoa
A global leader in lightweight metals technology, engineering
and manufacturing, Alcoa innovates multi-material solutions
that advance our world. Our technologies enhance transportation, from automotive and commercial transport to air and
space travel, and improve industrial and consumer electronics products. We enable smart buildings, sustainable food and
beverage packaging, high-performance defense vehicles
across air, land and sea, deeper oil and gas drilling and more
efficient power generation. We pioneered the aluminum industry over 125 years ago, and today, our 60,000 people in 30
countries deliver value-add products made of titanium, nickel
and aluminum, and produce best-in-class bauxite, alumina
and primary aluminum products.
For more information, visit www.alcoa.com, follow @Alcoa on
Twitter atwww.twitter.com/Alcoa and follow us on Facebook
at www.facebook.com/Alcoa.
Gena C. Lovett was appointed Chief Diversity
Officer for Alcoa in January 2012, serving as
the company’s executive level diversity and
inclusion strategist. Gena provides strategic
direction to help all Alcoa employees operate effectively within a diverse and inclusive
organization. Gena brings to the Diversity and
Inclusion position solid operational experience, great respect within Alcoa’s external
communities and a passion for diversity and
inclusion. She recently helped the company
win the prestigious 2013 Catalyst Award.
From June 2007 through December 2011,
Gena led one of Alcoa’s largest manufacturing facilities. Here, she led manufacturing
operations for over 1,000 employees and had
P&L responsibility for three of Alcoa’s businesses – Alcoa Forged and Cast Products,
Commercial Vehicle Wheels, and Forged
Specialty Wheels. Under her leadership, safety
performance at the site improved 77.7%,
on-time delivery increased more than 50%,
employee engagement improved 24%, and
productivity, since 2009, improved 45%.
Gena has an extensive background in manufacturing, having spent 15 years in progressively demanding roles with Ford Motor
Company in Cleveland, Dearborn, Chicago,
Atlanta and Allen Park, Michigan. Gena
currently serves as a board director for University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Vice
Chairperson Cuyahoga Community College,
Trustee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame &
Museum and was recently appointed to the
ELC (Executive Leadership Council) and the
Council of Global Diversity & Inclusion Executives at The Conference Board. Additionally,
Gena is a member of The Links, Incorporated
and the 50 Club of Cleveland.
While based in New York, Gena also maintains
an office in Alcoa’s Cleveland facility where
she remains active in the Cleveland business
community.
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Through Alcoa Foundation, we invest in programs that
focus on diversity and STEM by addressing educational
and skill development challenges, especially for girls
and minorities. We support organizations like Academy
of Model Aeronautics, which brings model airplane
kits into elementary and middle school classrooms
and provides a fun way to promote STEM education.
Last year, as part of our employee Month of Service,
we brought those kits into the classroom of an underresourced elementary school and one student joyfully
stated, “This is so fun! This is science?!” This kind of “a-ha
moment,” when a child is dazzled by science, needs to
happen more often, and non-profit organizations can
ease the resource burden on schools. Alcoa also partners with organizations like the Society of Women Engineers to enlist college students as mentors to girls in
STEM, and with the National Society of Black Engineers
and the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers to
inspire the next generation of engineers from historically-underrepresented demographic groups.
At Alcoa, the best and the brightest engineers,
researchers, metallurgists and technologists are challenged, recognized, rewarded and encouraged to
develop to their full potential. It is a continual goal at
our company to grow the pool of talented candidates,
and encourage diversity. One of Alcoa’s core values
is respect—treat everyone with dignity and provide a
work environment that is diverses, inclusive, and stimulating. A STEM career offers tremendous opportunities
for women and minorities to assume leadership roles
and reach their full potential. My vision is that this will
be cultivated throughout the industry and STEM fields.
As a global leader in lightweight metals technology,
engineering and manufacturing, Alcoa recognizes
that we need the best STEM workforce, and that just
isn’t possible without diversity. Alcoa’s Chairman and
CEO Klaus Kleinfeld put it best: “Talent is the ultimate
sustainable advantage. And to get the best pool of
talent, you must have diversity of thought, experience,
skills and background.” Inclusion is prioritized at Alcoa,
and we have built meaningful targets into our operations, compensation structure and human resources
systems to encourage it. Our success depends on our
ability to create innovative solutions that exceed our
customers’ goals, and we achieve this by leveraging
the full spectrum of diversity within Alcoa.
Others have also recognized Alcoa’s diversity and
inclusion efforts as well. From the prestigious Catalyst
Award, which we received for breaking down barriers
to women in a traditionally male-dominated industry, to being recognized as a best place to work for
the LGBT community on the Human Rights Campaign
Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index, our efforts to
build an inclusive, diverse workplace have been validated and encouraged. We strive to be a role model
for other ‘hard hat’ companies by continuing to invest
in diversity and talent.
To those in the STEM pipeline now, I say: Take the time to
thoroughly hone your craft and skills because competence breeds confidence. For this, there is no substitute
for preparation. My parents instilled in me that anything
worth doing is worth doing well. This also helps with one
of the most precious components of a career: one’s
personal brand.
Also, be willing to stretch, accept developmental
assignments beyond your comfort zone and surround
yourself with truth-tellers who will keep you grounded.
Lastly, have fun! If you lack passion for what you do, you
won’t do your best work. n
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According to the Department of Education, only 16%
of American high school seniors are proficient in mathematics and interested in a STEM career. Only 20% of
parents would recommend that their children embark
on a manufacturing career. This skills and interest gap
concern all industries that rely on candidates with
strong STEM backgrounds—namely advanced manufacturing. Happily, there’s room for the private sector
to improve this situation—both in performance and
perception. By investing in education, training and
apprenticeship programs, companies are making a difference with this critical talent pool. When the private
sector talent to students as mentors, “skills-based volunteerism” becomes a powerful way for young people
to learn about the diverse and thrilling opportunities
that advanced manufacturing and STEM offer. Mentors help shape raw talent and direct students to fields
they may have never thought viable. Apprenticeships,
often in cooperation with a local community college,
further define a pathway to employment.
Patricia L. Kampling
Chairman, President and CEO
Alliant Energy Corporation
Alliant Energy Corporation is a Midwest U.S. energy company
with more than $11 billion in assets. Our company primarily engages in electric generation and the distribution of electricity
and natural gas. Our utility subsidiaries serve approximately one
million electric customers and 418,000 natural gas customers in
Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota. We maintain a strong fleet of
fossil fuel and renewable generating facilities, producing more
than 30 million megawatt hours of electricity each year.
Alliant Energy employs approximately 4,000 employees. Almost every career at Alliant Energy calls on STEM studies. Our
array of engineering departments includes substation engineering, system protection, boiler and turbine engineering,
thermal performance engineering and much more. Electricians, line crews, and natural gas techs keep energy flowing
to our customers. Information technology employees build,
support and maintain our systems. Even customer service representatives and corporate communications employees must
have a strong working knowledge of the utility industry and
energy generation.
Patricia L. Kampling is Chairman of the Board,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Alliant Energy Corporation.
Her broad experience within the utility industry has proven essential to Alliant Energy’s
ability to ensure competitive costs and reliable service for customers, while building and
sustaining a balanced portfolio of traditional
and renewable energy generating facilities.
Pat leads the performance and strategic
growth of Alliant Energy’s regulated utility
companies and provides executive direction
for Alliant Energy Resources, the parent company of Alliant Energy’s non-regulated businesses, including Alliant Energy Transportation.
Pat joined Alliant Energy in 2005 as Vice President of Finance. She transitioned to Chief
Financial Officer and then Treasurer. She
guided the financial objectives of the company, supported regulatory proceedings and
promoted environmental commitments. She
was also instrumental in developing a longterm strategic plan.
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M In 2011, Pat became President and Chief
Operating Officer responsible for overall
corporate operations and was instrumental
in the execution of Alliant Energy’s capital
plan, commitment to customers, environmental planning and safety initiatives. She was
named Chairman, President and CEO in 2012.
Before Alliant Energy, Pat spent more than 20
years at Exelon Corporation. She started as
an Engineer, and eventually became Senior
Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of
Exelon Enterprises and the Treasurer of Commonwealth Edison.
Pat holds bachelor’s degrees in Engineering
and Economics from Swarthmore College,
an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth
School, and is a registered Professional Engineer.
Pat credits her background in STEM studies and her early career in engineering for
her success in the utility industry. She asserts
that a STEM education gives you the knowledge and training to break down a complex
problem to its components in order to better
understand it and find a solution.
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By promoting STEM studies to young women and minorities, we help fill the pool of potential job candidates
as well as infuse it with diverse perspectives, talents
and backgrounds. Innovative solutions are born from
a STEM education and willingness to think in unique
ways. That’s good for our industry, customers and the
workforce at large.
We’re also seeing demand for STEM-savvy employees
in our support departments including customer service. Our customers demand and deserve a level of
service that depends on faster and smarter computers, systems and users.
Studying STEM trains your mind to break issues down to
their key components, which helps you better understand them and develop a solution. You can take that
skill to any career.
We have employees who serve on advisory boards for
women in STEM programs at universities, and serve as
mentors for female and Hispanic engineering students.
Their duties range from leading discussions on STEM
topics to participating in events to mentoring. Their
goal is to help students understand the expectations
and opportunities in engineering, and to help show
what an engineer really looks like.
Alliant Energy is also the lead sponsor of the Women in
STEM Banquet at the University of Wisconsin – Platteville.
This annual event is an opportunity for us to see the
pool of prospective interns and job candidates, and
it shows students our dedication to promoting women
in this field.
We also support STEM-related programs at community colleges. Students need to know that you do not
have to have a traditional four-year degree to pursue
a career in the utility industry.
I am most proud of our employees who feel strongly
about engaging with diverse students and young professionals. We’ve played an integral role in developing
the Women in EMS program at University of Wisconsin
– Platteville and in mentoring engineering students at
Iowa State University.
We have women leading and encouraging new
recruits for local chapters of the Society of Women
Engineers. We have an engineer in a leadership role
of a regional chapter of the Society of Hispanic Engineers. They recently hosted a science and math family
night that proved very popular.
What is your advice to those involved in promoting
STEM education?
I have two pieces of advice: make it more exciting
and make students aware of the opportunities.
Educators need to think beyond education. They need
to help their students make the connection between
their passions and STEM subjects.
Many students—women and men—have this notion
that it only leads to being an engineer, but they don’t
have a clear understanding what that means. It’s
much more than buildings and big machines – there’s
aerospace, industrial, mechanical, biochemical, civil,
materials science … there is bound to be something
that connects with a student’s passion.
That said, a STEM education doesn’t lock you into a
career as an engineer. I’m a perfect example. I started
as an engineer, transitioned to finance and am now
leading a utility.
minorities and women coming up in the system?
The key is having a passion for the work you are doing
and then aligning yourself with others who have the
same mission. It’s a great equalizer – when you have
the same mission or passion. The focus is on the success
of the mission and team members’ contributions. Make
relationships based on what you’re working on. You’ll
build important connections, learn as you go and find
opportunities to lead.
How does STEM leadership with a focus on diversity
help your company compete?
One of my top priorities is that Alliant Energy is an
exceptional place to work. All employees should feel
comfortable, valued and respected. It’s good for them,
good for our company and good for our customers.
Our Respect Core Value says, “We treat people with
respect and strive to create a workplace where people of diverse backgrounds, talents and perspectives
feel like they belong.”
I am proud of the work being done across our company to encourage an inclusive environment. We have
active Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) for women,
veterans, multicultural, LGBT and emerging professional
employees. They are open to all and you don’t have to
“fit” the title to join; you just have to be interested in the
topic. ERGs are entirely employee-driven, and we have
an ERG event almost every week.
From a business standpoint, we have a strong Supplier
Diversity program that directs hundreds of millions of dollars to vendors who meet nationally set diversity criteria.
Diversity is also part of our key operational metrics – it
is measured and monitored throughout the year, available to employees monthly and is part of determining
our overall compensation package. n
As far as women in engineering – I think our employees,
who are such great role models, are out there more
than other companies.
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The utility sector workforce is aging faster than most
industries. Since we have a growing demand for
employees in engineering and I.T., we must play a key
role in developing those future employees.
Kate C. Lindsey
Alpha Corporation
Alpha Corporation, a full-service woman-owned firm, provides
civil/structural engineering, program/construction management, project controls, and technology services for various
building types and heavy infrastructure projects. Clients encompass a broad spectrum including all government agency levels
(municipality, state, Federal), P3s, Fortune 500/Global 1000 companies, institutions of learning, commercial developers, energy
companies, contractors, architects, and more. The overall project portfolio exceeds $50B in program constructed value for the
past 35 years. The firm comprises engineers, program/project
managers, schedulers, estimators, risk managers, construction
managers and inspectors. Their range of skillsets and technical
expertise supports efforts throughout the project development
lifecycle—from planning through design and construction to
closeout—by blending knowledge in state-of-the-art engineering and best management practices/tools with hands-on construction and operations background. This foundation enables
tailored solutions that optimize constructability, control construction cost/time, and manage project risk, ultimately ensuring cost savings, quality, functionality, and sustainability.
Kate Curtin Lindsey is Chief Executive Officer
of Alpha Corporation, a Virginia-based company established in 1979. In 2013, Kate took
the helm of Alpha Corporation from her husband after his death to oversee the firm’s
strategic direction/growth and hold majority
ownership. Her active involvement in the management and operations of this ENR nationally ranked Top 100 Project Management/
Construction Management firm, draws upon
her vast 35-year experience and solid base in
corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions,
inclusive of commercial property assets and
nonprofit educational institutions.
Initially working at Morgan Stanley & Co. Inc.,
Kate attained her registered representative
credentialing by passing the NYSE/NASD
examination. Moving onto American Security Bank, NA Kate introduced and managed,
among other efforts, their $200M commercial paper portfolio and acted as lead bank
analyst for their presentation to Moody’s
and S&P that resulted in an A1P1 rating. Kate
then transitioned her career to serve as Chief
Financial Officer for Georgetown Day School,
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M The Hewitt School, and, presently, for Sidwell
Friends School for which she’s Assistant Head
of School. Each appointment has overseen
school budgets, averaging $30M per annum,
and master plan programs focused on ensuring that facilities and systems support the rigorous, state-of-the-art curriculum for which
these schools are all nationally recognized.
Kate has served on numerous industry association boards and been a thought leader/
speaker at select conferences. In 2005, she
received the “Ken White Distinguished Business Officer” award from NBOA. Professional
affiliations include: Association of Business
Officers Independent Schools (ABOIS); Association of Independent Schools of Greater
Washington (AISGW); Association of Independent Maryland Schools (AIMS); and STEMconnector/Million Women Mentors program.
Kate holds a Bachelor of Arts, History/Political
Science, from Rollins College in Florida and
is a recent participant in Harvard University’s
joint School of Design and School of Education LEFT (Learning Environments for Tomorrow) Graduate Program.
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Beyond standards, what are the first steps that we
should take to curb the STEM education crisis?
Critical to curbing current downward STEM proficiency
trends is early promotion of STEM concepts. High school
may be too late to have the first introduction to STEM. At
Alpha Corporation, our employees visit middle and elementary school classrooms to present an introduction to
engineering concepts. We have both male and female
presenters to demonstrate equal gender participation
in the field. Our structural engineering department has
made several of these presentations with hands-on
demonstrations. Usually, these are timed to coincide with
“career day” festivities and we commit mentor resources
to a full day of activities designed to engage students
into having a better understanding of STEM careers and
their infinite possibilities. We also provide an education
timeline required to become an engineer and necessary training. While presentations are mainly focused
on structural engineering and typical projects, there is
greater emphasis on the importance of team work and
having all members come together to produce a final
product. Students also gain a perspective on embracing failure and seeing it as a catalyst to make something
better rather than a wall that hinders progress. We do this
by designing a group activity that, by nature of physics
and gravity, will lend towards a minor structural collapse
of each team’s work product inspiring them to thinktank their way through to a better solution—one of the
key hallmarks for any STEM professional. Overall, we strive
to spark a student’s desire to pursue a STEM career and
have an appreciation for learning.
In addition to supporting active STEM mentorships,
we promote continued education and training for all
employees. We offer education reimbursement for those
wishing to pursue an advanced degree that furthers individual careers and increases our marketplace competitiveness. Additionally, we support flexible work schedules
to accommodate time needed for completing education goals. Plus, we invest in continuing education classes
and training to ensure that all licensees and registrants
are current in the latest technologies and practices
within their particular field of work/specialization.
We are most proud of our internship and summer work
programs that offer both short and long-term internships with exposure to one or all of our major divisions.
Wider exposure to the many facets of our industry
enables a better understanding of required skillsets
and one’s own interests; thus, allowing interns to focus
education goals towards their true passion and career
interests. We also pride ourselves in placing collegelevel interns in various positions by affording them successive internships throughout their college career like
one Virginia Tech student who has interned with us for
the past two summers. Their first summer had duties
focus on understanding and obtaining familiarity with
civil and structural engineering by attending progress
meetings, assisting in drawing production, performing
field investigations, and participating in construction
site visits in order to witness the physical culmination
of design effort. This year, they entered our inspector
trainee program with the Virginia Department of Transportation. As an inspector trainee, we provided the
classroom training and certifications required for safety
and basic material understanding. We then paired
them with a senior inspector at a bridge replacement
project where they assisted in the inspection and oversight processes of various construction activities.
What do we need in the US to continue to be at the
top of global innovation?
Beyond promoting critical thinking and fostering innovation, our education system should not lose focus on
teaching the fundamental principles of science and
engineering before enabling students to use technology for solving problems. Otherwise, we diminish the
art and creativity aspect of science and engineering, greatly hindering our ability to be innovators and
inventors. History demonstrates that technology should
follow innovation. In order to complete the examination for professional engineer licensure, examinees are
only allowed to use a traditional (non-graphing/programmable) calculator. However, classrooms today
encourage use of sophisticated graphing calculators
early on versus yesterday’s tradition of performing tasks
by hand. We appear to be teaching the use of technology before mastery of the art of calculation and its
manipulation. Teaching students how to learn and perform independent thought before using technology
gives a far greater understanding of the methodologies behind input and output of work product. Those
able to innovate understand these methodologies;
they understand how to begin work and the anticipated end result. Such innovation springs from their
ability to analyze and develop better tactics towards
achieving results. n
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nation’s competitiveness.
Physics defines energy as the capacity to do work. STEM
education, by its nature, promotes critical thinking and
fosters an environment conducive to new ideas, invention, and discovery. This leads to increasing numbers of
STEM professionals, diversity of thought, and, ultimately,
a nation’s capacity to do work by energizing a commercial marketplace with innovation that increases
competitiveness within all markets. We made a commitment to support STEMconnector and the Million Women
Mentors (MWM) program because appreciation of this
energy, when ignited early in formative years, empowers
us all to attain greater competition resulting in more innovation. Early on in becoming a STEMconnector/MWM
sponsor, our CEO met internally to discuss how our technical experts were inspired, and, in some rare instances,
turned away from what is collectively acknowledged
today as STEM education and careers. The ideas and
considerations borne from this open forum further
refined in-house practices to better support employees
as it relates to STEM education. It even affirmed that our
own mentoring in local schools through structured, fun
group activities in a classroom setting were helping to
shore up the very foundation of STEM education and its
building blocks of future competitiveness.
Maureen A.
Borkowski
Chairman, President and
Ameren Transmission Company
Ameren Corporation, a Fortune 500 energy company headquartered in St. Louis, powers the quality of life for 2.4 million
customers across 64,000 square miles in Missouri and Illinois.
The service territory includes a diverse base of residential,
commercial and large industrial customers in both urban and
rural areas. Fifty-five percent of Ameren’s 8,500 employees are
engineers, technicians and information technology specialists. These employees’ STEM skills are essential in maintaining
10,300 megawatts of net generation capacity, 86,000 electric circuit miles transmission and distribution lines, and 21,000
miles of natural gas transmission and distribution, as well as
providing safe, reliable and environmentally-responsible energy to Ameren customers.
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Maureen A. Borkowski is chairman, president
and chief executive officer of Ameren Transmission Company, a subsidiary of Ameren
Corporation dedicated to electric transmission infrastructure investment. In addition to
leading the development of new transmission, she is also responsible for the operations,
planning, construction and policymaking of
Ameren’s system of more than 7,500 circuit
miles of high-voltage transmission lines in Illinois and Missouri.
Borkowski Enterprises, Inc., an energy consulting firm.
Borkowski has led Ameren’s transmission function since 2005 when she became the first
female officer to direct an operational and
technical area in the company’s history. She
has more than 25 years of experience in the
utility industry, beginning her career in 1981
as an engineer at Union Electric Company,
now Ameren Missouri. During her years at the
company, her responsibilities included power
marketing; retail access policy and implementation; sales and demand forecasting;
and demand-side planning. Before re-joining
Ameren in 2005, Borkowski was president of
Borkowski graduated cum laude from the
University of Notre Dame with a bachelor of
science degree in mechanical engineering.
She was recognized by Diversity Journal as
one of its Women Worth Watching. She was
named as one of the Most Influential Business
Women by the St. Louis Business Journal and
a Woman of Distinction by the Girl Scouts of
Eastern Missouri. She has been involved as a
volunteer for various charitable organizations
and serves as a great role model for young
women interested in pursuing engineering or
any technical field.
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Borkowski is a member of the Edison Electric
Institute’s (EEI) CEO Business Continuity Task
Force, EEI Energy Delivery Public Policy Executive Advisory Committee (EAC) and the EEI
Reliability EAC. She recently served as chairman of the SERC Reliability Corporation’s
Board of Directors and as a board member
of the North American Transmission Forum.
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We must capture the interest of young students and
inspire them to pursue STEM education. Outreach
is most effective in grade school and middle school.
Teachers and parents need to encourage students to
take on STEM courses and build that confidence that
comes with learning. In many instances, a STEM education doesn’t just involve learning the subjects; it’s
also about developing problem-solving skills, logic and
critical thinking – training the mind in a broader sense
for careers not only in technical fields, but in any field.
Group lab exercises and science projects foster teamwork skills necessary for success in any work environment. And if a student is unsure of the career path to
take, beginning coursework in STEM can easily transfer
to another field.
Ameren and other companies in the St. Louis region are
participating in an educational initiative called STEMpact. The mission of STEMpact is to increase the number and diversity of students who are proficient in STEM
subjects and ready to explore STEM careers. The STEMpact initiative engages teachers to increase their STEM
know-how and to help them pass that knowledge onto
students through integrated STEM curriculum. With this
initiative, Ameren is helping to provide knowledge and
resources for teachers, parents and the community to
help STEM education in St. Louis thrive.
Personally, I frequently speak with students about STEM
education and careers. Recently, Ameren partici-
pated in a program with Cor Jesu Academy, a young
women’s college-preparatory high school. The students visited our generation and training facilities and
shadowed employees to help encourage them to pursue a career in STEM.
We also support Teach for America-St. Louis and Project
Lead the Way, where Ameren engineers visit local high
schools to share their stories about the importance of
a STEM education. We’ve collaborated with several
community colleges to develop training programs for
engineering and other skilled trades. We offer annual
scholarships in engineering through St. Louis Community College and the Ameren Diversity in Engineering
Scholarship at Missouri University of Science and Technology.
Where do you see the biggest area of opportunity
in advancing STEM jobs / careers?
Everywhere! Young people are interested in transforming the world. What better way to do it than with STEM.
A STEM education opens so many doors—there’s nothing you couldn’t do. It’s a great preparation and gives
limitless possibilities for career choices.
Engineers and scientists are developing clean water for
third world nations; making agriculture more productive; making advances in cleaner electricity, ensuring
we make the most of our resources on earth—keeping the world sustainable. There has been innovative
research in medicine to help us have longer and
healthier lives—research to better pinpoint diagnosis
and technological solutions to compensate for sight,
hearing, or limb loss. And computer science advancement has been amazing. Technology is all about being
able to create economic growth more efficiently while
improving the quality of life.
I would encourage them to have confidence in themselves to pursue a STEM career. Women and minorities can tend to belittle or diminish their own skills and
accomplishments. They may feel they aren’t smart
enough take the next step. I encourage them to
have confidence and seize the opportunity. Start with
the most challenging STEM courses available, even
if they’re not thinking of a future in a technical field.
Challenge yourself. Having inner confidence and realizing there’s nothing to lose is the best way to find your
future. n
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critical to the future of our Nation?
It’s disturbing when we see students from the United
States not comparing well to students from other
nations in STEM subjects. Science, Technology, Engineering and Math are increasingly important in an
ever-changing world and are critical to the economic
health and welfare of our nation. We need people
in STEM careers to continue to develop technological expertise and innovation and to meet the many
challenges facing the United States today. Energy
infrastructure, health care, environmental sustainability, global manufacturing competitiveness, information
technology and cybersecurity, and military defense
are all fields that require STEM-educated employees.
These are just a sampling. The list of STEM industries
goes on and on.
Cynthia M. Patton
Senior Vice President and
Chief Compliance Officer
Amgen
Amgen is committed to unlocking the potential of biology for
patients suffering from serious illnesses by discovering, developing, manufacturing and delivering innovative human therapeutics. This approach begins by using tools like advanced
human genetics to unravel the complexities of disease and
understand the fundamentals of human biology.
Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages its biologics manufacturing expertise to strive for solutions that improve health outcomes and dramatically improve
people’s lives. A biotechnology pioneer since 1980, Amgen
has grown to be the world’s largest independent biotechnology company, has reached millions of patients around the
world and is developing a pipeline of medicines with breakaway potential.
For more information, visit www.amgen.com and follow us on
www.twitter.com/amgen.
Cynthia M. Patton serves as senior vice president and chief compliance officer, responsible for Amgen’s worldwide compliance and
business ethics organization. Patton joined
Amgen in 2005, and most recently was a vice
president in the Amgen law department with
responsibility for commercial legal activities
in the United States. Prior to that position, she
served as the lead commercial lawyer for
both the oncology and inflammation business
units. Before joining Amgen, she spent seven
years as general counsel of SCAN Health
Plan, a California Health Maintenance Orga-
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M nization (HMO). Prior to SCAN, Patton served
as assistant general counsel of UniHealth. She
began her legal career at Atlanta-based
Alston & Bird in 1986 and has worked at Los
Angeles law firms specializing in healthcare
corporate and securities law. Patton serves
as secretary of the Watts Healthcare Corporation and is a board member of the Eisner
Pediatric and Family Medical Center. Patton
received her juris doctor from George Washington University and her bachelor’s degree
from Vassar College.
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Through a $34 million commitment, Amgen Scholars provides hundreds of undergraduates across the
U.S. and Europe with the opportunity to undertake
research at a top university. Many students have found
such opportunities to be transformative, and 85% of
our alumni who have completed their undergraduate
studies are now pursuing advanced scientific degrees
and careers. Through a $9 million commitment, the
Amgen Biotech Experience has brought biotechnology right into the classrooms of 360,000 students. This
innovative program, designed by Amgen scientists
and educators, allows teachers and their students to
utilize research-grade equipment to explore the methods scientists use to create biotechnology medicines.
Including other initiatives, since 1991 we’ve contributed over $80 million to advancing STEM education.
Smart investments are critical to our long-term strategy in STEM education. First, it’s important to articulate
clear goals and indicators of success for the short and
long-term with our investments. Amgen Scholars, for
instance, is an eight-year commitment designed not
only to track impact over time, but to allow our university partners to share data-based best practices across
institutions. Allowing for comparative performance
and continuous improvement is a hallmark of our STEM
initiatives.
Second, we strive to create meaningful impact through
our STEM investments, moving beyond measuring outputs or activities, and instead centering on real outcomes. Third, we recognize that the time and talent of
our staff members is just as important as the financial
resources we are privileged to provide, and our best
STEM initiatives harness this talent to strengthen our
overall impact. Lastly, smart STEM investments should
strongly align with the overall mission of your organization, which for Amgen is serving patients by transforming the promise of science and biotechnology into
actual therapies.
challenges in STEM?
STEM education is too large of an issue for any one
company or organization to solve alone. We recognize
this, and are committed to leading and joining larger
scale partnerships with academic institutions and nonprofits that are tackling these challenges in new and
unique ways.
Amgen is proud to be a partner of 100Kin10, a multisector network responding to the national imperative to train 100,000 excellent science, technology,
engineering, and math (STEM) teachers by 2021. We
joined 100Kin10 in 2012 with a $1 million commitment,
and have made grants to several 100Kin10 partners to
advance STEM education in a multitude of ways. Our
participation in 100Kin10, Change the Equation, and
other collaborative cross-sector partnerships are core
to our strategy and integral to achieving real change
towards the advancement of STEM education.
Amgen’s commitment to diversity is articulated in our
core values and reflected in every part of our organization. Affinity Groups at Amgen are associations of
staff members organized around a primary diversity
dimension that furthers both staff development and
Amgen’s business diversity goals. Activities offered
through Affinity Groups are designed to promote
professional growth and development, educate and
inspire staff, deepen leadership skills, encourage networking, support community involvement, advance
mentoring relationships, and offer resources for public
speaking/translations.
There are many active Affinity Groups throughout
Amgen and include: the Amgen Asian Association,
Amgen Black Employees Network, Ability Bettered
through Leadership and Education, Amgen International Network, Amgen Indian Subcontinent Network,
Amgen Latin Employees Network, Amgen Middle Eastern Employees Network, Amgen Network for Lesbian,
Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Employees, Amgen Veterans Employees Network, and Amgen Women’s Interactive Network.
STEM education?
Relevancy. How do we best connect and bring alive
the science students learn in classrooms with the science being utilized every day in universities, companies, government and across the globe to create,
innovate, and advance knowledge? How do we best
show the application of particular scientific concepts
and theories to enhance student interest and excitement in science and scientific careers?
With the Amgen Biotech Experience, for instance, students participate in hands-on labs that follow many of
the core steps used by Amgen scientists to develop
biologic medicines. Using research-grade equipment
and a curriculum that provides real-world context, students isolate DNA, clone genes, transform bacteria,
express the gene, and purify the protein. Our experience is that once students understand this connection
and participate in a hands-on manner, the excitement
is real and the interest in STEM is greatly magnified.
Creating more such connections—between the classroom and the world outside—can go a long way in
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What are the STEM initiatives that your company
has supported that you are most proud of?
Amgen and the Amgen Foundation have a deep
commitment to advancing STEM education. Our
approach is aimed at both developing young scientific talent globally through hands-on laboratory experiences and recognizing the critical role teachers and
mentors play in sparking a love of science. The two initiatives I take the most pride in are Amgen Scholars
at the undergraduate level and the Amgen Biotech
Experience at the secondary level.
ByronJones
Chief Financial Officer,
University of Phoenix
Apollo Education Group
In consultation with STEM-related industry organizations and
employers, University of Phoenix is identifying key STEM skills
gaps and developing a portfolio of education programs and
career services to help enhance our students’ workforce readiness and meet employers’ STEM talent needs. This includes degree, certificate and continuing education programs, along
with professional development courses, career management
tools and academic support services. University of Phoenix is
establishing formal education partnerships with major industry
associations to help connect its curriculum and capabilities to
industry-specific needs. The University has embarked on specific
initiatives with national workforce development leaders in the
energy, manufacturing, retail, hospitality, criminal justice, security,
healthcare and P-12 education sectors. The University recently
collaborated with STEMconnector® network and U.S. News &
World Report, to publish the report Growing a Strong STEM Workforce: Strategies to Meet Industry Talent Needs that identifies
the educational needs for current and future STEM careers.
Byron Jones was appointed Chief Financial
Officer of University of Phoenix in 2013, after
joining Apollo Education Group in 2012. Byron
leads the finance functions for the University,
working closely with Apollo Education Group
leaders to provide clear oversight of its financial operations, an area that is essential to the
University’s success. Byron has extensive experience in building and transforming teams during periods of change, and has been a strong
addition to the University Cabinet. Byron has
more than 20 years of experience in corporate and divisional finance in industries spanning from airlines to technology. Prior to joining
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Apollo, Byron served in various financial leadership roles across Fortune 500 companies in
a range of industries. He was the Chief Financial Officer at Coda Automotive, as well as
Vice President of Corporate Finance at HD
Supply, Inc. former wholesale distribution arm,
Home Depot, a department he built from the
ground up. Byron has held finance leadership
roles at Delta Airlines, Cendant Corporation
and Ryder Corporation.
He earned his MBA from the Darden School
at the University of Virginia and his bachelor’s
degree in accounting from Tuskegee University.
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How do you believe STEM education can improve
our nation’s competitiveness?
First of all we are aware of a great deal of evidence
to this fact. Other nations’ colleges and universities are
producing graduates in STEM-related fields at a rate
much faster than in the U.S. To be competitive our
nation’s workforce needs to be prepared to innovate
and address the complex issues of the global environment of business today. Our nation thrived in a laborbased era that was not as highly dependent on the
skills needed to compete today and in the future. As
an education company, we need to work with industry
leaders to help provide missing skills that support our
current workforce and maintain employability. Accomplishing this while investing in education for our workforce will help us begin to address the massive skills
shortage that has negatively impacted our ability to
compete. The solution is long-term and building the
competitive workforce of our future starts with addressing educational opportunities at all levels today.
What traits do corporate leaders need to effectively
support and advance STEM education today?
Senior executives need to be much more than concerned about the talent needed for their organizations to compete. They must have the ability to envision
their roles as critical to addressing the skills gap in their
own companies and throughout our nation. Corporations need the foresight and will to invest today in the
futures of their current workforce as well as investing in
the future work force in our nation. Socially responsible
companies like Apollo Education Group invest philanthropic grants in programs addressing helping our
nation’s youth gain access to educational resources,
and success. We’ve learned that in many economically
disadvantaged communities K-12 students are lacking
appropriate resources and tools for successful educational attainment in STEM fields. These investments along
with support from corporate employee volunteer mentorship programs are leading to increased high school
graduation rates and an upswing in youth pursuing college education in STEM related fields.
What STEM Initiative has your company supported
that you are most proud of?
Addressing the nation’s skills gap with an emphasis on
STEM education is a pivotal part of our business strategy. Additionally, Apollo Education Group has a comprehensive social responsibility strategy that supports a
variety of programs throughout the nation in the areas
of education and career readiness. I have a personal
passion for the extensive work we do with minority
youth who are working hard to overcome economic
disadvantages. While our company is a large supporter
of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, I personally volunteer
my time to serve on the local board of directors for the
Phoenix Boys & Girls Clubs, and mentor young adults
who need access to role models to help define their
path in life. Our company funds programs to provide
academic support to Club kids in a few academic
areas including STEM. For example, we are piloting a
math tutoring program for Club kids who don’t have
access to afterschool support in this academic area.
I believe that if we can help these youth achieve success in math; they are more likely to graduate high
school and pursue STEM degrees in college.
Also, University of Phoenix is actively developing partnerships with Historically Black College and Universities
(HBCU) to strengthen the success of science and engineering students. This collaboration is to develop key
“gateway” course offerings to students online to drive
greater competencies. The program design will provide 24/7 tutoring, math labs, and continuous access
to content to provide resources to students at HBCUs.
I believe that we all have the capacity to be future
leaders. Aspirations to succeed have always been
high in our community but the academic skills sets and
resources have lagged. As leaders, we must provide
solutions to address these issues both at the K12 and
Higher Ed levels. Not a day passes that I don’t generate
ideas to address the gaps in the education community. I have been involved in leveraging the asset base
of University of Phoenix to provide tools to strengthen
math competencies both with Boys & Girls Clubs and
HBCUs. This is just a start. Once you get involved it builds
your personal and professional confidence to succeed
and make a difference.
Our diverse workplaces provide us with great opportunities to learn from each other in many ways. It is
also important to recognize that are differences are
valued and provide for a dynamic work environment.
Those just getting started in the workplace should seek
out mentors and take all opportunities to learn along
the way. In turn, they need to develop the ability to
share their experiences and serve as leaders or mentors to others as well. Employees at all levels should be
encouraged to participate in affinity groups, leadership programs and enrichment programs. Throughout
our careers we find that even when we are serving as
a mentor, we are gaining much valued perspective
from others from within the organization. n
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Why is STEM Education/Workforce development
At Apollo Education Group, we work with leaders of
America’s Fortune 500 companies who recognize that
human capital is the equivalent of competitiveness in
today’s global economy. Our nation’s labor force represents a population that is short over 100 million years
of education and lacks the skills necessary to compete
in growing STEM fields. We face massive talent shortages
across many industries while jobs in science, technology,
engineering and math-related fields are growing faster
than U.S. Colleges and Universities are able to produce
graduates prepared in these fields. Higher education institutions are forming collaborative partnerships
with corporations and industry associations to begin
addressing skills gaps in areas like STEM and to scale
solutions to this “skills gap” problem that has developed
over decades. Without a skilled workforce, our nation
risks the possibility of economic advancement and the
ability to compete in a global marketplace. PricewaterhouseCoopers, “2014 US CEO Survey,” (2014).
Sharon Elliott
Vice President, Human Resources
AREVA
AREVA provides its customers with solutions for low-carbon
power generation in North America and all over the world.
As the leader in the nuclear energy sector, AREVA combines
U.S. and Canadian leadership, access to worldwide expertise
and a proven track record of performance. Its nearly 5,000 U.S.
and Canadian employees work every day to make AREVA a
responsible industrial player helping to supply ever cleaner,
safer and more economical energy to the greatest number
of people.
Our clean energy present and future depend on a robust
pipeline of highly skilled engineers, technicians and craft labor, and AREVA is an active partner in developing the next
generation of industry leaders. As a forward-looking energy
company, AREVA recognizes the importance of investing in
STEM education and supporting diversity as a driver of innovation and prosperity, critical to both our company and communities.
Sharon Elliott joined AREVA in July 2010 to
lead the Human Resources function with
responsibility for all related activities including employee compensation and benefits
programs, employee and leadership training
and development, HR communication, talent
management and workforce planning, EEO,
and employee and labor relations.
She has extensive experience in human
resources and has worked for several Fortune
500 companies during periods of accelerated change and growth including Bristol
Myers Squibb, Allied Signal/Honeywell, Ingersoll Rand, Eastman Kodak, and Starbucks Coffee Company.
Through a combination of vision and strategic insights coupled with execution and
hands-on leadership, Elliott has proven to
be an effective change agent. She has
launched world-class HR initiatives, best practices and change management programs
that changed the operating dynamics and
culture of each company.
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Elliott has consistently forged collaborative,
trust-based relationships with business leaders,
employees and other stakehoders. Through
the development and successful execution
of effective HR strategies driven by the businesses, she has been essential to building
world-class leadership teams and establishing
high-performance, progressive organizations.
Her business acumen enabled Starbuck’s to
earn numerous industry and market accolades including ranking as a Fortune “100 Best
Company to Work For” and “Best Company
for Women.”
Elliott holds both a bachelor’s and master’s
degree from Northwestern University. She also
has volunteered her time to various charitable endeavors, including the victims of Hurricane Katrina, and as a member of Jack &
Jill of America, Make-A-Wish Foundation and
Juvenile Diabetes.
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To secure our future, America’s investment in advancing the economic vitality of our communities must
reflect the increasing role of STEM disciplines as the
foundation for the technologies being developed to
address our country’s needs and the world’s most critical challenges. From our research and development, to
ongoing improvements in our operational efficiency, to
our clean energy and cyber-security solutions, AREVA
supports a strategic vision that links STEM education,
workforce development, and talent management,
leveraging the cross-sector, cross-industry collaboration upon which our nation’s continued growth and
security depends.
AREVA aligns our investment in STEM education and
workforce development in support of a sustainable
pipeline of technical talent. Lynchburg, Virginia is
home to more than 1,800 AREVA employees and the
company’s North American Operational Center of
Excellence for Nuclear Products and Services. AREVA’s
coordinated investment and partnership in support of
STEM education includes the Lynchburg STEM Academy, the Central Virginia Community College Nuclear
Technology Program, the PRODUCED in Virginia Program, and the Explore Engineering Program at Sweet
Briar College.
AREVA is a founding member of the PRODUCED in
Virginia Program, which started in 2007 and provides
Lynchburg students with the opportunity to complete
engineering degrees through CVCC and the University
of Virginia. While in school, sponsored students get on
the job experience through internships and receive a
full-time position upon graduating. The CVCC Nuclear Technology Program combines traditional academic courses, highly focused technology
courses, hands-on learning experience, and on-the-job
training. Technicians support field activities during outage seasons. During non-outage seasons, technicians
take CVCC courses and benefit from AREVA technical training. Technicians receive college credit for a
portion of their AREVA training. Technicians receive an
Associate’s Degree in Nuclear Support Technologies.
Sixty-six employees have graduated from the program.
Sweetbriar College’s Explore Engineering Program provides college immersion opportunities for high school
girls while introducing them to engineering design. In
addition to sponsoring the program, for the past two
years, AREVA has hosted participants at our Technical
Training Center, providing an introduction to nuclear
energy and helping the girls to better understand STEM
career opportunities in and beyond the energy industry.
In 2013, the XLR8 STEM Academy in Lynchburg became
Virginia’s 16th STEM Academy as the culmination of a
partnership between the state and regional governments, CVCC, regional economic development partners, school divisions, and area businesses. A sponsor of
the AREVA Technology Center, which houses the academy and a partner in the project since its inception,
AREVA proudly helped launch the inaugural mechatronics program in support of regional economic
development and to meet future regional workforce
needs. Through XLR8, students have the opportunity to
work toward a college degree and earn industry certifications to support job-readiness upon completion of
the program.
In addition to collaborating with local partners, AREVA
employees engage in STEM-related volunteerism and
outreach to elementary, middle school, and high
school students including activities and workshops
related to National Engineer’s Week and National
Nuclear Science Week.
When it comes to progress regarding the diversity of
individuals studying STEM subjects and pursuing STEM
careers, it’s important that beyond programs, we talk
about collectively and collaboratively shifting the culture in which women and underrepresented minorities
evolve in their academic and career interests. AREVA
collaborates with a variety of partners, as the magnitude of STEM workforce challenges in America is bigger than any company, sector, or city.
AREVA is a proud partner of the U.S. Department of
Energy Minorities in Energy initiative, and our CEO of
North America serves as one of the Ambassadors of
the initiative, which is focused on facilitating greater
participation from underrepresented minorities in all
aspects of the energy sector. We continue to work to
further diversify our workforce by partnering with university chapters of diverse engineering societies including the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, the
National Society of Black Engineers, and the Society of
Women Engineers.
We need to both encourage and support women and
underrepresented minorities by increasing awareness
of the application of STEM subjects, developing greater
understanding of career paths, and then ensuring that
there are parents, teachers, mentors, and other supporters to help them get there. We inspire students
when we show them how STEM can make a difference in their communities and support exciting career
opportunities. Our effectiveness depends not only on
robust curriculum, internships and apprenticeships,
but also ensuring that we work toward creating more
inclusive cultures when it comes to STEM classrooms
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STEM subjects are the foundation for 21st century
industries, and clean, safe, reliable energy is inextricably linked to the sustainable prosperity of the American economy. Advanced manufacturing, farming,
and transportation – from the water that sustains our
human and industrial existence, to the revitalization of
our physical and the growth of our digital infrastructures, energy is a critical ingredient and a STEM-educated workforce will increasingly drive the American
innovation engine.
Marian Croak
Senior Vice President – Domain 2.0
Architecture and Advanced
Services Department
AT&T
AT&T is a major driver of the global, mobile Internet revolution. The company has invested and executed aggressively,
and today has a best-in-class network – reaching hundreds
of millions of people and comes out on top in all sorts of thirdparty tests for speed and reliability. From 2008 to 2013, AT&T
has invested more than $140 billion, in capital and spectrum,
with more capital invested into the U.S. economy than any
other publicly traded company. In addition to investing in its
network, the company has also placed an emphasis on STEM
education. Since 1987, AT&T has given more than $97 million to
STEM programs, supporting STEM scholarships and camps for
at-risk youth to hands-on technology labs and robotics competitions, among others. AT&T sees firsthand the importance
of STEM education as it drives the future of telecommunications, weaving the network into customers’ work, life and play.
Marian Croak is AT&T’s Senior Vice PresidentDomain 2.0 Architecture and Advanced Services Development. Named to that role in
2013, she is responsible for overseeing the
design and implementation of AT&T’s nextgeneration network architecture (Domain 2.0).
She also oversees the Advanced Technologies
group and AT&T Foundry innovation centers.
She currently manages over 2,000 engineers,
developers, designers and other innovation
experts. Her responsibilities range from project
management and service and network planning to development and testing. She mentors
numerous staff members and is an executive
sponsor for organizations supporting Asian,
African American, and Hispanic employees.
In 1982, Marian joined AT&T Bell Laboratories and
continues to lead as an industry innovator. She
holds more than 180 patents, the most of any
woman at AT&T. Starting as a researcher, she’s
moved up within AT&T through her work designing, developing and launching integrated voice
and data services via Internet protocol.
groups to provide community and guidance.She
was elected to the board of NACME (National
Action Council for Minorities in Engineering) in
2013, and works with young female high school
students pursuing math and science careers.
Marian’s tremendous impact in telecommunications has not gone unnoticed. She has won
numerous honors, such as the “Outstanding Technical Contribution – Industry” award from the
Black Engineer of the Year Awards (BEYA) and the
2013 Edison Patent Award from the R&D Council
of New Jersey and World Technology Network
finalist for her creation of the Text-to-Donate patent. In June 2013, Marian was inducted into the
Women in Technology International (WITI) Hall of
Fame, which recognizes, honors, and promotes
the outstanding contributions women make in
STEM to improve and evolve society.
These recognitions highlight her leadership
in STEM, transforming the way AT&T integrates
communications technology into our lives.
However, more than anything else, her innovations flow from her genuine care for people.
To further help women advance, Marian sponsors several STEM-related employee resource
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One way I encourage young students to think about
science and technology is that with STEM, anyone can
change the world by solving one problem at a time.
There’s a stereotype that researchers and engineers
are isolated and always work alone. But throughout
my career at AT&T, I’ve learned the importance of surrounding myself with others sharing the same vision to
create something better than what I could have done
alone. Granted, committing to a career in STEM is a difficult path requiring discipline and hard work. However,
the payoff is extremely rewarding.
What principles do you apply to your professional
and personal life to advance STEM education?
In the early 90s, when Internet Protocol was still in its
infancy, I and a small group of coworkers championed
the platform because we believed it would enable a
plethora of new services and drive AT&T to become
the industry leader. I needed to become a “troublemaker” within the company and let people know it was
a strategic mistake not to invest in the Internet as the
future of the business. So, I found a few coworkers who
shared my belief to develop ideas and provide each
other support. From there, we gradually built a base of
other employees and managers who shared our vision.
It was a still a tough battle, but our core group was able
to gain support and ultimately convince the company.
As a naturally quiet and reserved person, I understand
the reluctance and shyness some women feel to
speaking up professionally. Women should be encouraged to be themselves and find their voices, which
enables them to contribute at their full potential. I’ve
always been an advocate for the development of
women within science, technology, engineering and
math careers and enjoy working with female colleagues to ensure they are comfortable contributing
and don’t feel pressured to change their personality
to fit their role in the organization.
Despite having a calm and quiet disposition, I know the
importance of speaking up when necessary and have
experienced it countless times in my career. About 20
years ago, I became an evangelist for Internet Protocol
because it was going to change the trajectory of the
company and disrupt the industry, and I was concerned
that senior management didn’t see that opportunity.
In addition to having the conviction to speak up, I also
believe in the power of failing fast. Some would argue
that in the corporate setting, entrepreneurial failure
can be more expensive and therefore, taking risks is
not encouraged. It’s important to fail fast, and find out
as fast as possible what works. Learn by failing, and by
failing you learn.
How do you translate your work into innovation?
In my 30-year career, I’ve focused on making voice
communications possible over the Internet, designing,
developing and launching integrated voice and data
services for the company. In the early 1990s, my team
and I began to build up the Internet telephony space
by populating it with new inventions. I would spend
free time creating patents, sometimes developing five
or six in a weekend following the problems encountered during the week.
The patents developed for Internet telephony have
impacted telecommunications, with most of the applications contained in the patents still being used in the field.
This work has helped to increase the reliability of linked
networks, leading to a reduction in service disruptions,
calls dropping, poor quality calls and major outages.
However, none of these ideas have been closer to
my heart than the “text-to-donate” capability. This
technology was a response to the tragedy I saw during Hurricane Katrina. I wanted to help, but it seemed
like things were very fragmented, without a clear-cut
method of quickly delivering aid to those in need. I was
just trying to think of ways that some leading charity
or organization could offer the opportunity for people
to donate quickly in a crisis situation without having
to use methods that are difficult, or that would cause
someone to hesitate to do it. And donating via text
made it easy and fast for the donor and organization.
This technology has really changed the world of disaster response; ensuring aid is delivered fastest to those
who need it most.
Amid the milestones in my career, I’m most proud of the
time I spend as a mentor and teacher in the industry.
There is real power in mentorship and my path to success is a living example, filled with support from family
and colleagues. Having experienced the benefits of
being a mentee motivates me to serve as a mentor
to AT&T employee and sponsor several STEM-related
organizations. I also participate in Girls Who Code, a
nonprofit organization educating and equipping girls
with computing skill, inspiring them to pursue careers
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Outside of mentoring AT&T employees, I mentor high
school girls preparing for college in Girls Who Code,
a nonprofit working to close the gender gap in the
technology and engineering sectors. With help from
leading educators, engineers, and entrepreneurs, Girls
Who Code has developed a new model for computer science education, pairing intensive instruction
in robotics, web design, and mobile development with
high-touch mentorship and exposure led by the industry’s top female engineers and entrepreneurs. Through
the organization, students are exposed to STEM in a
way that is very exciting and relevant to their daily
lives, which lessens the complexities of science and
technology. This realization breaks down the students’
apprehensions toward STEM fields, turning science,
math, engineering or programming into tools to solve
daily challenges.
Beth McMullen
Vice President, IT
Avnet, Inc.
As a Fortune 500 company with annual revenues of $27.5 billion, Avnet, Inc. is one of the largest distributors of electronic
components, computer products and embedded technology serving customers globally. Avnet accelerates its partners’
success by connecting the world’s leading technology suppliers with a broad base of customers and providing cost-effective, value-added services and solutions. Technology is at
the company’s core, from the services, products and solutions
it helps bring to market to the way the company engages
with customers, suppliers and employees. Additionally, Avnet
partners with colleges and universities to promote STEM initiatives and help students apply what they learn in school to the
real world. For example, Avnet has a competitive internship
program, and it also hosts the Avnet Tech Games, an annual
college technology competition that is entering its tenth year.
Beth McMullen is a vice president of IT at global
technology distributor Avnet, Inc. At Avnet,
the IT team functions in a similar capacity to
R&D, and Beth is responsible for leading the IT
strategy for the company’s logistics business
globally. Beth is also a member of the Avnet
Executive Women’s Forum leadership team.
This group provides mentoring, networking
opportunities and leadership development
for Avnet’s female executives. In addition to
her role at Avnet, Beth is a board member
for Arizona Women’s Education and Employment (AWEE), a work force development
organization. She is also a former member
of both the Information Technology Advisory
Board for the State of Arizona and the Workforce Development Committee at the Arizona
Technology Council, a trade association for
science and technology companies. Through
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M this work, Beth continues to see the importance of investing in STEM and 21st century
learning initiatives for the future of the U.S., as
well as the sustainability of global economies.
She has provided guidance to these organizations on programs that will enhance and
promote STEM activities. Beth has a passion
for technology and nearly 20 years working in
this area. She previously held global IT leadership positions with DP DHL and Arthur Andersen LLP. She is keenly aware of how her own
education and experience in finance and
technology have enhanced her career. In
addition to a master’s degree in international
management from the Thunderbird School of
Global Management, Beth holds a Bachelor
of Science degree in business management
from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
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As STEM-related skills are increasingly vital to the success of companies globally, corporate leaders first and
foremost must be willing to invest time and resources in
partnerships with governments, organizations and educational institutions to increase related programs. In
doing so, they must be willing to help create a vision for
a balanced, diverse workforce and actively engage in
turning those plans into a reality. From a more personal
perspective, corporate leaders can further interest in
STEM by providing a sense of flexibility and supportiveness to engage youth of all backgrounds. One of corporate leaders’ most important roles will be to serve
as role models and mentors. They will need to not only
demonstrate the importance STEM holds in their own
careers, but also embody the thought process inherent in STEM – critical thinking and problem solving;
communication; collaboration; and creativity and
innovation.
Avnet recognizes first-hand the continued growing
needs for a workforce that is trained in the academic
disciplines of STEM and 21st century skills. We understand the need for encouraging and giving hands-on
experience to those who desire to enter a STEM career.
Below are some highlights of Avnet’s investments:
• Internships. Avnet works closely with colleges and
universities to create programs that engage students with STEM and business readiness internships.
• Avnet Tech Games: The Avnet Tech Games has
inspired hundreds of college students to apply
what they learn in school to real-world scenarios.
Students compete in teams for scholarships, and
Avnet has distributed nearly $300,000 in prizes and
scholarship funds through this program. Additionally, it has led to curriculum changes at colleges to
align classroom instruction with the skills in demand
by employers. See video from this year’s event
here: http://youtu.be/DEy3SZlzvSk
• ASU STEM Club: As an Avnet executive, I have
worked with the Women in STEM club at Arizona
State University, enlisting technology leaders to
participate in panel discussions focused on Sheryl
Sandberg’s book Lean In. Throughout the 20132014 school year, ten female technology leaders
participated in facilitated dialogs on a variety of
topics, encouraging both female and male students to consider STEM careers.
• Avnet Executive Women’s Forum: Avnet invests
internally in the development needs of female
employees, through the Avnet Executive Women’s
Forum. I am proud to be a member of the leadership team for this organization, which provides networking opportunities, leadership development,
and support for Avnet women executives.
• Community Outreach. Avnet partners with technology firms in support of our community, such as
a joint event with Intel, in support of an Arizonabased charity committed to workforce development for women and veterans.
• Mentoring Program. Avnet has implemented a
mentoring program for its corporate teams, such
as communications, human resources, IT, and
finance, and I serve as the mentor for a director on
the legal team. Our discussions reinforce my belief
that technology crosses all areas within an organization, and the need to have educational systems
that reinforce 21st century skills.
In addition to these programs and initiatives, Avnet is
also helping bring technology and digital learning to
classrooms, which is a core element of the 21st century classroom. For example, one of our business units
introduced the 1:1 Learning System – Chromebook ™,
which targets the growing need among school districts
to more effectively make the connection between
technology in the classroom and learning efficacy.
STEM education?
STEM education should not be confined to science,
technology, engineering, and math. Leadership, managerial, critical and creative thinking, and communications skills are also important, and need to be nurtured
and cultivated. Also, it is vital that we encourage students to challenge the status quo, which will lead to
innovation and an increase in diversity.
It is important for everyone to be proud of those traits
that make them unique because they add valuable
perspective and insights that lead to innovation. It’s
critical to identify your strengths and leverage them.
For anyone considering a STEM-related career, they
need to have a commitment to hard work and resiliency. Also, they need to be able to master 21st century
thinking and transform an idea into an innovation. n
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The knowledge and skills acquired through STEM education will soon be viewed as a foundational – transferrable to any industry and required by all. This is being
driven by the ever-increasing importance technology
plays for every company, either as an external offering
or a valuable internal asset that helps the organization
operate and function efficiently. This is underscored
by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which predicts
that STEM-related jobs will grow to more than nine
million jobs between 2012 and 2022. Added to this,
STEM occupations are projected to grow faster than
average for all occupations and will provide greater
income opportunities. This forecasted growth not only
implies a shift in the labor market and a significant
increase in technical needs within organizations, but
the critical role STEM knowledge holds in helping the
U.S. remain competitive.
Paul E. Martin
Corporate Vice President and
Chief Information Officer
Baxter International Inc.
Baxter International Inc., through its subsidiaries, develops,
manufactures and markets products that save and sustain
the lives of people with hemophilia, immune disorders, infectious diseases, kidney disease, trauma, and other chronic and
acute medical conditions. As a global, diversified healthcare
company, Baxter applies a unique combination of expertise
in medical devices, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology
to create products that advance patient care worldwide.
As a science- and technology-based company, Baxter has
a responsibility to help ensure that current students—as well
as future generations—have increased opportunity to learn
and be inspired by math and science. Baxter embraces this
responsibility by participating in education initiatives around
the world.
Paul E. Martin is corporate vice president and
chief information officer at Baxter and has
global responsibility for the information technology strategy, operations, processes and
team supporting Baxter’s business worldwide.
Martin joined Baxter in January 2011 from
REXAM PLC, the U.K.-based packaging
manufacturer, where he held the position of
group chief information officer, responsible for
all information technology functions across
more than 20 countries. During his 11 years
with REXAM, Martin served in a variety of key
senior management positions including vice
president and CIO Beverage Can Americas and head of information technology for
American National Can (acquired by REXAM
PLC). Prior to Rexam, he worked for The CIT
Group, BNSF Railway and Frito Lay.
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Baxter’s African American Leadership Council business resource group for employees,
which provides a forum to enhance engagement, build on recruitment and retention
efforts, and increase the impact of business,
charitable, and volunteer initiatives in the African American community.
Martin is chairman of the Howard University
Information Systems Advisory Board, a member of the Information Technology Senior
Management Forum, the executive customer
advisory board of several global IT companies, and was recognized as a Business Leader
of Color by Chicago United in 2013.
Martin received his degree in management
information systems from Western Kentucky
University.
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As a healthcare company with more than 80 years of technological expertise and a commitment to scientific innovation and advancing patient care, we find that a focus
on science and mathematics – along with other development initiatives – is critical to ensuring a strong pipeline of
knowledge workers for our business and industry.
How do we encourage students to continue their study
of STEM subjects, particularly women and underrepresented minorities?
As business leaders, we need to proactively get involved
with schools to promote STEM careers. Baxter’s Science@
Work program, an unprecedented multi-year commitment to facilitate learning of math and science through
biotechnology education for Chicago Public School
teachers and students, aims to create a pipeline of students that include underrepresented groups who are
passionate about science. More than 600 Baxter volunteers have participated in more than 160 real-world
events for teachers and students since 2008, including
several opportunities for students to experience science
first-hand through interactions with Baxter professionals at
our facilities.
Another way to encourage students to pursue STEM studies is to provide opportunities to learn outside the classroom. Baxter sponsors organizations such as FIRST (For
Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology),
which engages students in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology
skills. FIRST has influenced hundreds of thousands of students throughout the world to pursue advanced education and careers in engineering and related scientific
fields, such as computer science.
STEM education?
Promoting STEM education requires collaborating with a
united community of stakeholders including companies,
STEM professionals, educators and advocacy organizations. Educators must be engaged, enthusiastic and willing
to create an exciting, hands-on, activity-based classroom
environment. We’ve experienced success encouraging
students to be innovators and leaders through the use of
fun, competitive mechanisms that promote STEM-related
educational innovation. For example, the Baxter-sponsored team “Bomb Squad,” which included Baxter mentors, spent countless hours over four months designing,
programming and building a robot to compete in the
“Rebound Rumble,” a basketball-inspired game in the
annual FIRST championship. The Baxter team won.
I also believe that we should all be looking for untapped
opportunities to engage students. Baxter employees
were volunteering at Muchin College Preparatory High
School and noticed that the library didn’t have magazines to keep the students up-to-date on thought-provoking topics and current events. Baxter’s African American
Leadership Council raised money to purchase magazine
subscriptions for eight publications at the library and
launched the Muchin Magazine Club to promote reading, critical thinking and discussion. About 40-60 students
attend each meeting, during which the Baxter volunteers
guide an hour-long conversation about hot topics or current events. Through its Science@Work program, the company also provided the school with funding to outfit all of
its science labs and to support students, many of whom
are the first in their household to go to college.
How is your company infusing diversity initiatives with
STEM initiatives? Is this a part of your comprehensive
strategy?
Baxter believes that an inclusive culture and a diverse
workforce can contribute to the company’s success and
sustainability by driving innovation. This thinking underpins
Baxter’s global inclusion and diversity strategy. Creating
a talent pipeline centered on building a globally-diverse
workforce and embracing business resource groups
(BRGs) are key components in building an inclusive culture. The eight Baxter BRGs actively support Baxter with
recruiting diverse engineering, technology and other professionals into the organization. These groups support Baxter’s business goals and aim to enhance personal growth
and multicultural understanding, while strengthening relationships among employees and with customers, business
partners and community partners. In addition, the BRGs
leverage their community outreach programs to educate students on careers at Baxter.
As part of my strategy, I launched a program to recruit
early talent professionals into the Baxter Information
Technology Development Program, where new hires can
acquire business knowledge and develop professionally
through three 12-month job rotations. We ensure that a
diverse pool of qualified candidates enroll in the program. In addition, I chair the Howard University School of
Business Information Systems Advisory Board, a partnership with faculty and member companies that aims to
increase student interest in the information technology
field and ensure that students are well-prepared for technology careers. Also, I sponsor non-profit, member-based
organizations in computer science and information technology that aim to support the professional development
of their underrepresented members.
What is your vision for the future of STEM careers,
through diversity?
I believe that we can increase the number of underrepresented minorities and women in STEM careers so that the
demographics of the employment pool reflect the U.S.
population.. I encourage students to find what they are
passionate about, and work in an industry that fuels that
passion. No matter where a person is in their education or
career trajectory, it’s important that they take advantage
of opportunities to continuously learn and improve. This
means being flexible and open to change. We can all
learn from having exposure to other people, cultures and
ways of working. Through diversity in the STEM workforce, I
believe that we will drive more innovation and creativity
for our nation. n
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Why is STEM Education/workforce development critical to the future of our Nation?
The U.S. has traditionally been an innovation leader in
the science and technology areas. However, in recent
years, more than half of U.S. patents were awarded to
non-U.S. companies, according to the U.S. Patent Office.
The decline in the number of students pursuing a STEM
education has led to a decrease in the pipeline of skilled
STEM labor. To keep innovation flowing and maintain our
nation’s competitive edge and global leadership position, we must increase the STEM education/workforce talent pipeline.
Sharyn Jones
Vice President, U.S. Head of Talent
Management
Bayer Corporation
Science is at the heart of everything Bayer does. As such, Bayer
recognizes its responsibility to help improve science education
and ensure that all individuals are scientifically literate. After all,
not only is a science literate citizenry important to Bayer’s three
businesses, it is critical to America’s future economic strength.
This belief is the impetus for Bayer’s nearly 20-year-old Presidential award-winning, companywide Making Science Make
Sense® (MSMS) program which advances science literacy
across the United States through the support of hands-on, inquiry-based science education, employee volunteerism and a
public advocacy/education campaign led by the nation’s first
African American female astronaut Dr. Mae C. Jemison. MSMS
also addresses STEM (science, technology, engineering and
math) diversity and underrepresentation. Specifically, Bayer examines these issues through public opinion surveys, forums and
reports, and by developing and implementing strategies for
diversifying the STEM pipeline beginning in elementary school
through high school to college and beyond.
Sharyn Jones joined Bayer Corporation in
August in 2013 as Vice President, U.S. Head of
Talent Management. This is a newly aligned
position within Bayer’s U.S. Human Resources
function.
The Talent Management position was created
to support the U.S. businesses in identifying,
attracting, developing and retaining the right
talent to meet their changing needs. Effective talent management positions Bayer as a
preferred employer and helps us to be a more
innovative, diverse and competitive organization. Sharyn brings a combination of strong
academic credentials and diverse corporate
experience to this role. In her position, Sharyn
leads a team of 12, who are responsible for Talent Management processes, Talent Acquisition,
Diversity & Inclusion and Learning/Training.
Prior to joining Bayer, Sharyn served as Director of Talent Management, Organizational
Development and Staffing at Novartis Phar-
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M maceutical Corporation. There she led a
cross-functional team that developed performance management and coaching systems,
created and delivered change management activities, and integrated diversity and
inclusion efforts into the company’s talent
management process. Prior to Novartis, she
held several senior positions at Bank of America in the areas of leadership development,
talent planning and organizational effectiveness among others. Earlier in her career, she
worked as a consultant to the New Haven
Board of Education and as a psychiatric
social worker and diversity trainer.
Sharyn earned bachelor’s and master’s
degrees from the University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill and an additional master’s as
well as her Ed.D. in Education from Bowling
Green State University. She also held a post
graduate clinical fellowship at Yale University.
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The most recent example of Bayer coordinating investments in education to develop its future STEM workforce is happening in Baytown, Texas, which is home to
our largest manufacturing facility in the United States.
In the last few years, there has been difficulty in filling
open positions for both process operators and engineers. Bayer’s response was to create an innovative
cradle-to-career STEM program. In Baytown, it begins
in elementary school with the Making Science Make
Sense program, exposing 1,700 fifth grade students
annually to hands-on science and scientist-volunteers.
It continues in junior and high schools thanks to a new
Bayer USA Foundation grant that supports the implementation of the National Math and Science Initiative’s College Readiness program, providing training to
116 sixth through 12th grade teachers and impacting
22,000 students annually. Finally, at the college and university levels, Bayer spearheaded community college
process technology partnerships and four-year engineering programs and internships to advance successful students into our workplace. Since its launch in
2011, Bayer has had 54 production technician interns
and a 90 percent intern to hire rate at Baytown.
What is your advice on using public-private partnerships to tackle our most pressing education
challenges in STEM?
Our experience has shown that public-private partnerships are one of the best ways to improve STEM
education in this country. At Bayer, we always say we
are not in the education business. Instead, we need
to partner with STEM education organizations with
proven track records in providing quality teacher professional development resulting in increased student
performance, particularly among girls and African
Americans, Hispanics and American Indians. After all,
why re-invent the wheel when we know there are successful programs out there that with additional financial and human resources can scale-up and/or be
replicated in other communities. Over the last decade,
Bayer has been active in galvanizing industry support
for education, including national STEM diversity education forums to bring business and education program
leaders together, as well as offering free resources,
including a business education partnership guide, a
compendium of best practice K-12 STEM education
programs and a white paper analyzing 16 years worth
of Bayer Facts surveys.
How can we advance mentorships and apprenticeships in the STEM pipeline?
It is not a matter of how can we advance mentorships and apprenticeships in the STEM pipeline. It is
that we must. From Bayer’s experience, these types
of experiential opportunities are one of our most successful approaches to recruiting and retaining STEM
employees from entry-level technicians to engineers
to research scientists. For example, Bayer HealthCare
partnered with the City of Berkeley to establish the
Biotech Partners (BP) program in the San Francisco
Bay Area which takes underserved high school students—mostly women and students of color—and
through classroom education, mentoring relationships
and workforce experience trains them for careers in
the biosciences. Since the program’s inception, Bayer
has provided 305 summer high school internships (out
of 764), 153 year-round community college internships
(out of 287) and has hired some 50 BP graduates. Our
Bayer Engineer Pipeline Program, which is companywide throughout all the businesses, provides summer
internships and full-time positions to students studying
chemical, mechanical and electrical engineering with
the goal of hiring them permanently. Approximately 30
trainees have entered the pipeline since June 2011
and they are at various stages in their trainee rotations. In addition, through Bayer USA Foundation funding, we support programs like the American Chemical
Society’s Project SEED that provide mentorship and
apprenticeship experiences.
What employee resource groups does your company have in place?
Bayer’s Global and U.S.-based Diversity and Inclusion
Councils direct the company’s diversity and inclusion objectives. Its members serve as advisors and
advocates for a variety of initiatives, programming,
employee resource groups and cultural celebrations.
Bayer has a number of employee groups in place representing Women, African Americans, Hispanics, Asians,
Gays/Lesbians, Armed Forces/Veterans and Millennials,
among others. These employee resource groups have
executive sponsors and are critical partners in Bayer’s
companywide efforts to create a culture of inclusion
and opportunity for all. They help facilitate cultural
awareness programs, professional development seminars, networking opportunities, recruiting activities and
peer mentoring initiatives to name a few. n
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How is your company connecting diversity initiatives with STEM initiatives? Is it part of your comprehensive strategy?
Connecting STEM and diversity initiatives is one of Bayer’s comprehensive strategies for helping to ensure that
we have a highly diverse, skilled and trained workforce
– from entry level technical workers to Ph.D. scientists
and everyone in between. This is critical for Bayer as an
innovator company, working towards its mission of “Science for a Better Life.” Through Making Science Make
Sense, Bayer USA Foundation giving and a number of
human resource/diversity initiatives, Bayer is working
strategically to create a strong STEM workforce pipeline beginning in elementary school right through to
the workplace. This includes changing the way science is taught at the K-12 level with a focus on experiential, hands-on learning that engages all students,
particularly girls and underrepresented minorities; providing scholarships, internships and networking opportunities to high school and college students opening
their eyes to the myriad career opportunities available
to them in STEM; and, once hired, Bayer encourages
its employees to serve as Making Science Make Sense
volunteers, supporting teachers and mentoring students as they begin their STEM education journey.
Jo-ann M. Olsovsky
Vice President and
BNSF Railway
BNSF Railway is one of North America’s leading freight transportation companies operating on 32,500 route miles of track
in 28 states and two Canadian provinces. BNSF is one of the
top transporters of consumer goods, grain and agricultural
products, low-sulfur coal, and industrial goods such as petroleum, chemicals, housing materials, food and beverages.
BNSF’s shipments help feed, clothe, supply, and power American homes and businesses every day. BNSF and its employees
have developed one of the most technologically advanced
and efficient railroads in the industry. We work continuously to
improve the value of the safety, service, energy, and environmental benefits we provide to our customers and the communities we serve.
Jo-ann Olsovsky (Ol-sof-ski), vice president and
chief information officer, is responsible for delivery
of BNSF’s telecommunications services, data center
infrastructure, application development, Web presence and all other information technology services.
She reports to Carl R. Ice, BNSF’s president and chief
executive officer.
Under her leadership, the BNSF technology team
supports more than 40,000 people in 28 states
at more than 2,000 locations. The data center
systems, communications and application infrastructure support core business applications for
railroad operations including transportation, engineering, mechanical, intermodal, safety, and business applications such as ERP and CRM systems.
In addition to maintaining an extensive computing infrastructure, Technology Services installs and
maintains an expansive telecommunication infrastructure including voice, data, video and wireless
networks critical to rail operations.
Before being named to her present position in
March 2008, Olsovsky served as assistant vice
president, Telecommunications. Prior to joining
BNSF Railway in 2006, Olsovsky was director, Enterprise Network Services and Technology Support
Services, at Verizon Communications and pre-
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maintenance of their extensive network supporting 200,000 internal customers and commercial
contract customers.
Olsovsky joined GTE in 1997 as LAN operations
group manager and was named director, Technology Support Services, in 1999, with her performance and results being recognized with
the prestigious Chairman’s Award. Prior to GTE,
Olsovsky spent 13 years at AT&T where she led
technology planning, engineering and operations teams.
Olsovsky has served and continues to serve on several corporate and community boards including
Railinc, AT&T and IBM’s Customer Advisory Councils and TCU’s Neeley School of Business Advisory
Council. She has received a host of honors from
organizations such as Computerworld, Dallas Business Journal, National Women of Color Science,
Technology, Engineering & Math (STEM), etc.
Olsovsky is a native of Kingston, Jamaica, West
Indies, and is of Cuban-Jamaican descent. She
resides in Fort Worth, Texas, with her husband and
four sons.
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While STEM jobs make up less than 10 percent of the
nation’s jobs, the real challenge occurs when STEM
contributors move into management – often by the
time they are 35 years old. As a consequence, the
demand for STEM skills continues as the existing pool
advances their careers precisely because of their
STEM education and the advantages the mastery of
science, technology, engineering and math give in
solving complex problems and innovating for solutions
and new and better ways of doing things.
STEM careers are foundational to our country as
they produce our innovators, technologists, chemists,
researchers, engineers and a host of other vital contributors,. In order for the United States to continue
to be the leading economy of world, we must build
a foundation that helps create a love of STEM at a
young age. But we must also accept that STEM is not
for everyone.
due to the economic cycles and technology advances
in automation, we have more recently added focus on
STEM, particularly over for the past five to seven years.
Today, there seems to be a collective recognition in
our country that a shortage is occurring and that a
change in perception of STEM is needed.
While our high school system has a healthy dose of
math and science advanced placement courses, our
primary education system must invest in preparing
youngsters for the high school demands. We must also
improve the practice of math and science teaching
and the methods preparing teachers. We must invest
in our teachers and the tools needed to teach STEM
fields. For example, to train a chemist, you incur incremental cost to teach, such as a lab. Educational progress requires focused investment from K-12 and college
age learning institutions to ensure we have the proper
tools, materials, and investment in our teachers in order
to ensure an ongoing supply of STEM grads.
At BNSF, we host an annual event at our headquarters
called Technology Awareness Day. It is an all-day event
held on a Saturday where we invite inner city high
school students who typically come from throughout
Texas and neighboring Oklahoma. We use the event
to offer insight into the world of technology with the
hope that we can influence students to be interested
in the field and help them understand that that no
matter their financial circumstance, they can pursue
a career in technology. We partner with Fortune 500
technology companies who showcase how their own
products are used in a real-world setting. We invite colleges and universities to speak to the students about
their curriculum, the attributes of their schools and
financial aid offerings. The day culminates with a competition where we invite students to create a web site.
Their creations arejudged and the winner receives a
new computer. We’ve had more than 4,000 students
attend our events and several that have returned to
tell us that they chose a STEM career because of this
event. In fact, we recently hired a college graduate
who attended one of our Technology Awareness Day
events, which inspired him to pursue a STEM education
and career field. n
Fueled in the late 80s and early 90s when many jobs
were being outsourced, off-shored, and/or eliminated
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Innovation begins with a vision and is enabled by science, technology, engineering, and math. In order to
progress our companies and our nation, we must constantly innovate. We must think differently each day
with new approaches. People, processes, and technology determine the efficiency of any organization.
At BNSF, when we hire STEM educated individuals, we
not only leverage their background but we also continue to invest in their development to maximize their
long term contribution. If we reflect on technology
advancements made over the past 20 years, we discover that today’s computers and smartphones have
more processing power than mainframe computers
did in the 80s and 90s. The data being processed by
our computers today and resulting analytics have
transformed what we learn and how fast we learn it,
which translates into improved decision making that
benefits business, nations and our economies. Whether
it is an engineer designing a highway or bridge or a
researcher seeking a cure for cancer or a technologist
inventing wear-able technology, STEM careers are the
enabler. STEM careers build communities, companies
and transform nations.
Ted Colbert
Boeing
Boeing is the world’s largest aerospace company and leading manufacturer of commercial jetliners and defense, space
and security systems. A top U.S. exporter, the company supports airlines and U.S. and allied government customers in 150
countries. Boeing products and tailored services include commercial and military aircraft, satellites, weapons, electronic
and defense systems, launch systems, advanced information
and communication systems, and performance-based logistics and training.
With corporate offices in Chicago, Boeing employs more than
169,000 people across the United States and in more than 65
countries. This represents one of the most diverse, talented
and innovative workforces anywhere.
Boeing is organized into two business units: Boeing Commercial Airplanes and Boeing Defense, Space & Security. Boeing
Engineering, Operations & Technology, which helps develop,
acquire, apply and protect innovative technologies and processes, provides support across the entire enterprise.
Ted Colbert is Chief Information Officer of The
Boeing Company and vice president of Information Technology. Colbert, who was named
to this role in November 2013, is responsible
for the IT strategy, operations, processes and
more than 7,300 IT people of the world’s largest
aerospace company. He has responsibility for
supporting the growth of Boeing’s business by
partnering with the company’s business units
on IT-related revenue generating programs and
for overseeing all aspects of information security across the global reach of the company.
In his previous role as vice president of Information Technology Infrastructure, Colbert was
responsible for developing and maintaining
IT solutions inclusive of network, computing,
server, storage, collaboration and infrastructure across the entire Boeing enterprise. He
was named to this position in December 2011.
Previously, Ted was vice president of IT Business Systems, where he was responsible for
developing and maintaining the computing application systems that support Boeing
Finance, Human Resources, Corporate, Com-
mercial Capital Business Units as well as the
company’s internal systems. He was named
to this position in September 2010.
Colbert started with Boeing in 2009 as director of
Enterprise Network Services after having spent
2.5 years at Citigroup as a senior vice president
of Enterprise Architecture. At Citigroup, he held
positions focused on Enterprise Architecture
and Strategy & Planning in the Global Architecture & Engineering organization.
Prior to joining Citigroup, Colbert spent 11
years with Ford Motor Company’s Information
Technology organization. During his tenure
with Ford, he held several positions, including
manager of Global Deskside Services, and
led several campus recruiting, career development, and community service projects.
Colbert completed the Dual Degree Engineering Program at the Georgia Institute
of Technology and Morehouse College in
Atlanta, Georgia with degrees in Industrial
and Systems Engineering and Interdisciplinary Science.
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The US Department of Labor projected that only 16%
of bachelor’s degrees in 2020 will specialize in STEM,
while 80% of the jobs in the next decade will require
technical skills. Unless we can close this gap, there will
be grave consequences for our nation’s competitiveness, security and ability to innovate.
How is your company infusing diversity with STEM
initiatives? Is this a part of your comprehensive
strategy?
The way Boeing stays competitive is to attract the best
people from the widest possible pool, and having a
diverse, inclusive workplace is absolutely part of our
strategy for STEM and all other aspects of our business. We have a dedicated IT STEM outreach program
where our employees share experiences and engage
with students to help them understand, appreciate
and develop a passion for STEM and Boeing IT careers.
Our university recruiting effort focuses on several Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), where
we fund extracurricular STEM activities such as the
SpelBOTS Robotics Program at Spelman College.
Lay the groundwork from Day One to step up when
there’s an opportunity. I had my first management
assignment at the Ford Motor Company when I was 26
years old, and when my mentor recommended me for
a high-profile position, my work history was thoroughly
vetted to make sure I was ready. After all, their reputa-
tions were riding on my ability to produce, so the people I had worked with at each level of my career were
asked to weigh in on whether I was right for the job. If
even one person had had a poor experience with me
or my work, it wouldn’t have happened.
Boeing is a big believer in creating communities where
employees can gain access to networking, professional
development and social resources around a topic of
their choice. We call these communities Affinity Groups,
and have a dedicated Global Diversity and Employee
Rights department in place to support them. Currently,
there are hundreds of affinity groups registered in the
U.S. alone, including the Boeing Asian-American Professional Association, Boeing Black Employees Association, Boeing Employees Association of Gay, Lesbian, Bi
and Transgender Employees & Friends (BEAGLES), Boeing Employees Veterans Association, Boeing Hispanic
Employees Network and Boeing Women in Leadership,
to name just a few. We also have our own IT Diversity
and Inclusion Council, working alongside other Councils in the enterprise and sponsoring education, events
and mentoring opportunities to people interested in
pursuing STEM career paths.
I am a mentor and strongly believe that mentorship is
the key to developing the kind of diverse, connected
STEM workforce that we’ll need to compete in the
future. Right now the Department of Labor statistics
are sobering, to say the least: of the 4 million students
who enter kindergarten each year, only 1.7 percent
will earn a four-year degree in engineering. The percent of women and minorities included in that figure
is an even slimmer slice. Add that to the 1.3 million
won’t finish high school, and the opportunity cost is
staggering. At Boeing, our work extends beyond creating a strong pipeline of aerospace engineers; we’re
committed to building a skilled workforce capable of
doing great things across the full spectrum of careers.
Making a personal investment in others and mentoring the next generation of leaders will help secure the
future of innovation. n
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As a leader in the aerospace industry, Boeing is particularly concerned with the ability of the United States
to sustain a leadership role in technology and innovation. We are committed to working with students even
before they enter kindergarten to acquire what we’re
calling 21st century skills - to think critically and solve
problems, collaborate well, be creative and communicate effectively. Problems and challenges faced in
STEM are well-suited to the development of these skills,
something that our future workforce will need regardless of their chosen professions.
HoracioRozanski
President and Chief Operating Officer
Booz Allen Hamilton
Booz Allen Hamilton has been at the forefront of strategy
and technology consulting for 100 years. Today, the firm provides services primarily to the US government in defense, intelligence, and civil markets, and to major corporations and
not-for-profit organizations. Booz Allen helps clients achieve
success today and address future needs by applying functional expertise spanning consulting, analytics, mission operations, technology, systems development, cybersecurity,
engineering, and innovation to design, develop, and implement solutions.
Booz Allen is headquartered in McLean, Virginia, employs
more than 22,000 people, and had revenue of $5.48 billion for
the 12 months that ended March 31, 2014. In 2014, Booz Allen
celebrates its 100th anniversary year. To learn more, visit www.
boozallen.com. (NYSE: BAH)
Horacio Rozanski is the President and Chief
Operating Officer of Booz Allen Hamilton, and
will become the firm’s CEO on January 1, 2015.
Mr. Rozanski is responsible for enterprise-wide
strategies for the firm’s top business goals and
leads an operating model designed to identify and respond to emerging trends across
the firm’s markets. He is responsible for operational excellence and efficiency, and is integrally involved in all aspects of managing the
firm’s national and international operations
and workforce of 22,000 people.
Throughout his 22-year career at Booz Allen,
Mr. Rozanski has played a key role in the firm’s
most important strategic initiatives. Most
recently, these efforts have included the 2008
separation of Booz Allen’s core government
and commercial businesses into two distinct
firms; Booz Allen’s 2010 IPO; its 2011 expansion
into international and commercial markets;
and Vision 2020, a multi-year business strategy
designed to chart the firm’s long-term future,
which he personally led.
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Mr. Rozanski joined the firm in 1992 to focus
on marketing and channel strategy across
a range of industries. During his tenure, Booz
Allen has experienced substantial staff and
revenue growth, and has garnered significant
worldwide recognition, including FORTUNE’s
list of the “World’s Most Admired Companies.”
In 2012, Hispanic Business Magazine named
him to its list of the Most Influential Leaders in
the United States.
He holds a B.B.A. degree (summa cum laude)
from the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire
and an M.B.A. degree with high honors from
the University of Chicago. He sits on the board
of advisors for the Wolf Trap Foundation for
the Performing Arts.
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It’s especially important for girls and underrepresented
minorities to see professionals in these fields who look like
them—to have mentors to whom they can relate. Booz
Allen supports a number of non-profit organizations that
are invested in getting women and minority STEM professionals out in front of youth of all ages, bringing these
disciplines to life, and inspiring career aspirations. Back in
2006, the Girl Scout Council of the Nation’s Capital and
Booz Allen joined forces to create Make the Connection, an innovative mentorship program that connects
our employees with local teen Girl Scouts in a series of
workshops where girls are able to explore their skills, aptitudes, and interests with some of the region’s brightest
and best corporate leaders. Since the program’s inception it has been an enormous success, with over 450 Booz
Allen employees mentoring 1,850 girls in grades 6-12 in
the Washington, DC metro area. This is just one example
of the kinds of activities that happen all the time in our
offices around the US.
At Booz Allen, we’re dedicated to strengthening the
STEM pipeline by building mentorships and apprenticeships between students and our employees. Many of our
employees donate their free time in support of these
efforts, volunteering to get young people engaged in the
STEM disciplines through our partnerships with organizations such as FIRST, Girls Inc., the Girl Scouts, and many
others. Our employees are passionate about their careers
and know that they have a personal stake in helping to
develop a strong pipeline of future employees who study
the sciences, technology and engineering fields, and
math in college.
One example of a formal mentoring program of which I
am particularly proud is Booz Allen’s new University Scholars Program. The University Scholars program offers a
select group of college students who have an interest in
technology and an entrepreneurial spirit, opportunities to
build personal relationships with technology experts and
senior leaders. College students who are accepted into
the program become “Booz Allen Scholars” and benefit
from a unique, inside-look at life at the firm. The Scholars
participate in collaborative, invitation-only networking,
leadership, and technical events, and participate in professional development sessions dedicated to strategic
thinking and technical development. They also engage in
problem-solving scenarios that will provide them opportunity to showcase solutions and innovative ideas.
We firmly believe that the best ideas don’t only come
from people who are advanced in their careers—we
value the innovative ideas and fresh perspective of talented students, as well.
through diversity?
I want to ensure that Booz Allen continues to be a top
employer for STEM professionals who represent diverse
backgrounds, ways of thinking, and areas of expertise. We
employ a diverse staff of engineers, cyber security experts,
data analysts, and technologists, and we’re proud that
they are regularly among the recipients of prestigious,
diversity-based awards that recognize expertise in their
disciplines, such as the Black Engineer of the Year and
Women of Color in STEM awards.
My hope is that, in the future, we won’t even be talking
about diversity in STEM because it’s naturally there. But
today’s statistics reveal we have a lot of work to do to
ensure diversity in these disciplines is the norm. Two statistics to illustrate this point: (1) only 18 percent of graduates
in these fields are women, and (2) historically under-represented racial and ethnic groups, including African Americans and Hispanics, account for only 10 percent of the
country’s workers in science and engineering. We need
to understand the forces and factors that drive these disparities, so we can make changes within our institutions
and industries to get more people of color and more
women into STEM studies and jobs. The latter is the side of
the equation that we can absolutely address.
One of the ways we work to address these diversity disparities at Booz Allen is through the work of our Women’s
Agenda, African American Agenda, Hispanic Agenda,
and Asian American Pacific Islander Agenda. All of these
diversity groups are led by senior leaders across the firm
and focus on developing diverse staff so that they can
build exceptional careers. The firm is invested in attracting
and developing diverse talent in all areas of our business,
but particularly in the STEM fields.
Over the years, as competition in the knowledge industry grows fiercer, it has become increasingly imperative
to embrace and grow STEM talent throughout our staff.
It’s clear to us that companies that don’t won’t be successful.
How does STEM leadership and with its Diversity focus
At Booz Allen, a focus on STEM is at the root of everything
we do. From our commitment to hire and retain innovators and technology experts, to our daily work with clients
to solve their toughest challenges, to our employees’ volunteer efforts with non-profit groups like FIRST, we demonstrate our belief in the importance of STEM education.
We know that it takes the best people from all walks of
life to solve problems, so we embed diversity and inclusion practices throughout our employee life-cycle and
people programs. We also set explicit diversity and inclusion objectives in our annual business planning process.
And year after year, representation of women and minorities at the firm has increased. Our Diversity and Inclusion
programs consistently earn accolades of distinction, such
as recurring spots on the 100 Best Companies lists of FORTUNE and Working Mother, which named Booz Allen to its
Hall of Fame in 2013.
As we begin our second century in business, it’s clear to us
that the combination of a commitment to STEM and an
equally strong commitment to diversity has served as well,
and that the combination will only become increasingly
essential for companies to compete in the future. n
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As most corporate leaders will tell you, our businesses success rests on having access to a strong, stable pipeline of
employees who are not only competent in the STEM disciplines, but passionate about applying their knowledge in
related careers. It’s in our self-interest to make sure young
people get interested in STEM and stick with it, because
they will be the future of successful businesses—but STEM
studies can be very challenging. And to someone young,
the rewards of sticking with such an arduous curriculum
now may seem very far off into the future. That makes
strong mentoring especially important. When I moved to
the US from Argentina and enrolled in college, I benefitted from mentors who gave me the support I needed
to succeed. It’s important to pay that forward, and help
connect kids who are interested in the STEM disciplines
with mentors who can help them persevere.
Mona Patel
Vice President, Clinical Training
and Fellowship Education
Boston Scientific Corporation
Boston Scientific Corporation (BSC) produces innovative
medical solutions that improve the health of patients around
the world. The company employs approximately 23,000 worldwide, with presence in nearly 100 countries, generating revenue of $7.14 billion in 2013. BSC advances the science of
less-invasive medicine through a portfolio of products and
technologies designed to reduce risk, trauma, cost, procedure time and the need for aftercare.
We hire top talent in the fields of science, technology, engineering and bio-medicine, while supporting STEM education
programs that inspire young people, women and minorities to
pursue technical studies, expanding the diverse talent pipeline. Our efforts include an internal STEM Council which sends
employee volunteers into schools to mentor and provide classroom instruction while partnering with organizations such as
Girls Inc. and Minnesota Compass to support the STEM Cradle
to Career Continuum. These efforts motivate young people to
pursue secondary education in STEM-related fields of study.
Mona Patel is the Vice President for Clinical
Training and Fellowship Education for the
Neuromodulation Division at Boston Scientific.
In her role, she is responsible for the training
and education of clinicians in the use of Boston Scientific Spinal Cord Stimulator products.
Prior to her current role, Mona was the Vice
President of Marketing for the Neuromodulation Division. She helped launch the first
rechargeable Spinal Cord Stimulator into the
marketplace, the Precision™ SCS System and
established a presence for Boston Scientific in
the Neuromodulation space.
She first joined as a member of the business
development team, then transitioned into
a marketing career in their Cardiac Surgery
Division. Mona led efforts for development
and approval of an endoscopic vessel harvesting product that revolutionized the way in
which physicians retrieve veins used for treating life-threatening blockages. She began
her career as an engineer for Abbott Labs.
Mona earned a BSE in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan and an
M.B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania,
Wharton School of Business.
Prior to joining Boston Scientific, Mona spent 8
years working in various positions at Guidant.
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As a team, we get to a better place when we take
the journey together. I have worked with engineers of
multiple disciplines, male and female, entry level and
seasoned, in locations worldwide, and I have observed
that we are collaborative and supportive when pursuing common goals. We value the importance of our
different roles as scientists, inventors, problem solvers,
teachers and idealists. And, we love to spread knowledge and motivate those who share our interests and
passions. Bringing top talent up through the career
pipeline is the objective of our STEM development initiatives.
I had the opportunity to shadow a surgeon while in
high school. That experience along with growing up
in a family of physicians set me on career path in
medicine. My journey proved different in that I was
constantly fascinated with the technologies used by
doctors. I realized that technology is essential to the
success of medicine and positive patient outcomes.
My goal entering college was to become a bio-medical engineer. However, the school I attended did not
have an accredited bio-medical engineering program, so I opted for mechanical engineering. Ninety
percent of my classmates were male and most were
destined for the automobile industry since we were in
Michigan. I went against the norm and secured internships with medical device companies.
With few female engineers as is, I found even fewer in
the medical science industries. Female mentors and
role models were scarce for me. The female engineering students at the University of Michigan banded
together to help keep us on a successful career trajectory. These experiences influenced my decision to
become a mentor knowing how challenging it can be
without having guidance. I am very happy to work for
a company that is active in STEM programs.
Today, BSC’s STEM focus is on improving educational
opportunities and skill development for underserved
populations. We have innovative programs and services that increase learning for STEM disciplines with
K-12 students. My team and I volunteer in classrooms
to reinforce and promote STEM interests. We fuel the
aspirations and goals of STEM participants with real life
experiences. The students with whom we interact see
accomplished professionals who look like them doing
phenomenal things.
BSC also supports college level STEM initiatives through
scholarships. The recipients are mentored by employees, have had summer jobs at BSC, and will likely intern
with the company when eligible. BSC has funded
a pilot program at the University of Minnesota that
teaches students how to prepare for and secure internships and employment upon graduation. By positively
influencing the talent pipeline, we are grooming those
who we hope will be future employees of BSC.
Two efforts I champion are Bridge to The Future (B2F)
and the Preceptorship programs. B2F reaches out to
diverse students, who often think that college is not an
option, and exposes them to internships working in the
medical device industry. Throughout the experience,
mentors encourage participants to excel in a technical environment while accompanying them on the
journey. B2F students are typically excited about the
guidance we provide. The program boosts students
who otherwise might not consider the types of professions offered by BSC. This long-term investment focuses
on the underrepresented and underserved communities in the Santa Clarita Valley in California where the
Neuromodulation division is headquartered.
The Preceptorship program focuses on interns and
employees. BSC recognizes that all employees impact
our patients. The best way to demonstrate this principle is to allow employees into the operating room to
interact with physicians, products and patients. Witnessing a patient’s reduction of pain or proclamation
that they’ve finally enjoyed a full night of rest is powerful. Participants in the program gain an appreciation
for the impact of the work we do for patients and clinicians. It is wonderful to see Preceptorship interns return
to BSC as employees. The Neuromodulation division
has a high retention rate among Preceptorship alumni.
We have to invest in people early. The most promising
careers of the future will require a high level of STEM
proficiency. Technology is woven into everything we do
and that trend will only continue to grow. n
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What counsel would you provide around “collaboration to achieve success” in STEM Education and
workforce?
Boston Scientific (BSC) has made great strides in
attracting and retaining women and diverse talent in
STEM positions. One benefit of an inclusive workplace
is its multi-dimensional perspective. The complexity of
the medical conditions we work on in medical devices
is best addressed with multiple vantage points and
collaboration that will help us get to concepts faster.
Ray Dempsey, Jr.
Vice President & Head of External
Affairs / President, BP Foundation
BP America
BP is a leading producer of oil and gas and provides enough
energy annually to light nearly the entire country for a year.
Over the past five years, BP has invested nearly $50 billion in
the US—more than any other energy company. Employing
approximately 20,000 people in all 50 states, BP supports more
than 260,000 total jobs throughout the U.S. BP’s commitment
to America includes doing our part to make sure that America has a secure energy future. We recognize that tomorrow’s
energy innovations will come from today’s students. From engineers and geologists to computer scientists and offshore
drillers, BP is committed to fueling the next generation of innovators. That is why BP has invested more than $45 million over
the last two years to support science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) across the United States. BP has
supported STEM education in the U.S. for 40 years and is proud
to continue that commitment today.
Ray Dempsey, Jr. is Vice President & Head of
External Affairs for BP America and President
of the BP Foundation.
Since joining the company in 1990, Dempsey
has held a variety of management and operational roles in engineering, environmental,
strategy, finance, and external affairs in the US
and abroad.
Dempsey speaks often on STEM and related
issues, and is a tireless advocate for increasing
participating of under-represented minorities
in STEM disciplines. As part of his current role,
Dempsey is responsible for stewarding BP’s
support for STEM education programs and
activities across the US.
Dempsey is a member of the Dean’s Advisory
Council for the College of Engineering at Kansas State University, where he was also named
a 2012 Alumni Fellow. He is also a member of
the Board of Directors for the National Action
Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME)
and the Congressional Hispanic Leadership
Institute (CHLI). As well, he is a Trustee for the
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M African American Experience Fund, which
provides support to the National Park Foundation, and he is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus Institute’s 21st Century
Council and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s Corporate Advisory Board.
Dempsey was named a 2012 “Game
Changer” by Politic365, and received the
2013 “Best of Black Business” Award for Visionary Leadership in Energy from the American
Academy of Business and Commerce. A longtime member of the National Society of Black
Engineers (NSBE), Dempsey is the Executive
Sponsor of the BP NSBE Advisory Board.
Dempsey holds a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Kansas State University
in Manhattan, Kansas, and a Master’s degree
in Business Administration from Northwestern
University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management in Evanston, Illinois.
Dempsey and his wife Alysia have four daughters and reside in Vienna, Virginia.
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an engineering workforce that looks like America. The
challenge is not new, yet the gaps in STEM participation persist, especially for young women and underrepresented minorities. We have to ensure that our efforts
now are targeted and effective. Therein lies the key
to smart investment: We have to be disciplined about
measuring performance and impact—we have to
invest in those things that work. And when we find programs and initiatives that work, we have to encourage
cooperation and collaboration that will allow those
approaches to be applied at scale.
The energy industry depends heavily on STEM disciplines in our workforce. Engineers, geologists, and computer scientists, are among the core disciplines driving
the cutting edge technology in our business. Over
the past 2 years, BP America has invested over $45
million in STEM programs and initiatives across the US.
Additionally, we invest nearly $100M million each year
with universities across the US, in areas ranging from
research and development, to programs that support
new energy technology. All of these efforts are linked
to ensuring that there is a future workforce with the skill
sets we need to continue to meet the world’s energy
challenges.
the workforce?
Given the growing awareness of the challenge to
increase participation in STEM disciplines, there has
been a proliferation of programs and organizations
that are focused in this area. It is terrific that there is
so much activity and so many programs aimed at
increasing participation and closing achievement
gaps. However, there is the reality that many of these
programs and organizations are competing for the
funding and talent they need to pursue their mission.
Their ability to grow and to serve more young people
is limited by their organization’s capacity, whether a
function of geography, staff, or money. No doubt, there
are regional and other differences in the approaches
that yield the best successes for students. That said, I
believe that there is an opportunity to better apply the
concept of partnerships and “joint ventures” among
the organizations that exist to bring successful programs to more students, in more places. n
I’ve been involved in efforts to increase participation
in STEM fields for more than 25 years. My company has
worked with many organizations—like the National
Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME)—
for as long as 40 years, supporting their efforts to create
strategy?
At BP, we are deeply committed to building a workforce that reflects the communities in which we are
present. Given the changing demographics across
the US, and especially in many of the cities in which
our business operations are located, this means that
helping close the gap in STEM participation by women
and underrepresented minorities is central to our
workforce development plan. Through BP America’s
corporate support in communities, as well as grants
through the BP Foundation, our investments in STEM
programs and initiatives include significant support for
organizations with a focus on women and underrepresented minorities.
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Closing the gap that exists for women and underrepresented minorities in STEM fields is an urgent national
challenge. We have to start early on, by first making
sure that parents and teachers of young girls and children from communities of color are well prepared to
expose their kids to STEM subjects. We can encourage them to continue their study as they get older by
helping them to see the kinds of career choices that
can be enabled by STEM disciplines. Today’s technology world presents a terrific opportunity to connect
the “gadgets” kids use to the science and engineering that make them work. From there, broadening
their awareness of the everyday application of STEM
disciplines can create fun possibilities. Young women
and underrepresented minorities need to see successful people in STEM careers that look like them,
that can relate to their life experiences, and can let
them know that they can be scientists and engineers.
In high school, we have to challenge young people to
take the courses that will best prepare them for STEM
disciplines in university. Finally, we can continue to support programs on campuses that provide the support
needed to successfully navigate through STEM studies.
We have to encourage—and challenge—our young
people at every step of the way.
Carlos J. Barroso
Senior Vice President,
Global Research & Development
Campbell
Campbell makes real food that matters for life’s moments,
from high-quality soups and simple meals to snacks and
healthy beverages. For generations, people have trusted
Campbell to provide authentic, flavorful and readily available foods and beverages that connect them to each other,
to warm memories and to what’s important today. Led by its
iconic Campbell’s brand, the company’s portfolio includes
Pepperidge Farm, Goldfish, Bolthouse Farms, V8, Swanson,
Prego, Pace, Plum Organics, Arnott’s, Tim Tam, Royal Dansk
and Kjeldsens. Founded in 1869, Campbell has a heritage of
giving back and acting as a good steward of the planet’s
natural resources. The company is a member of the Standard & Poor’s 500 and the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes.
For more information, visit www.campbellsoupcompany.com
and @CampbellSoupCo.
Carlos J. Barroso joined Campbell as Senior
Vice President-Global Research & Development in July 2013. He is responsible for leading
Campbell’s 500 R&D employees worldwide,
focusing on accelerating innovation and
new product development to strengthen the
company’s core businesses and expand into
higher growth spaces.
Carlos brings more than 20 years of global
R&D expertise in food and consumer packaged goods to Campbell. Most recently, he
was President of CJB and Associates, his own
R&D consulting practice in Dallas, where he
worked with many Fortune 100 clients to help
solve a broad range of product and innovation challenges.
Before that, Carlos was Senior Vice President
of R&D at PepsiCo, where he oversaw all R&D
efforts for PepsiCo Foods, including Frito-Lay
North America and Quaker Foods and Snacks.
He also directed major long-term innovation
plans including crafting a blueprint for leveraging Open Innovation, led quality improve-
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a leadership training program to build the
pipeline for future managers and to foster
international cross-training.
Carlos previously worked in R&D at Procter &
Gamble (P&G), where he held roles of increasing responsibility in the company’s paper and
coffee divisions in the US, Italy and France.
An inductee of Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor
Society, Carlos is a member of American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) and the
American Chemists Society (ACE). He has
published articles and presented at conferences worldwide on topics including Open
Innovation and Globalization. In addition,
his significant expertise in flavor science has
resulted in two patents.
Carlos earned his bachelor’s of science
degree in Chemical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology, where he currently
serves as Chair of the External Advisory Board
for the School of Chemical and Biomolecular
Engineering.
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This approach also is valuable as we engage with
external partners, whether they’re universities, suppliers or consultants. Today’s scientist is not the scientist of 20 or even 10 years ago. Today’s scientists and
technologists will need to be comfortable accessing
experts from different areas and skill sets. They need to
be technical enough to identify which experts to bring
in and when to bring them in. It’s increasingly about
relationships.
This is a topic that I’m passionate about. I think one
of the gaps in the typical STEM curriculum is the lack
of time devoted to leadership skills development. At
Campbell Soup Company, we believe it’s important to
offer training to our STEM associates that not only help
them be great technologists, but also great technical
leaders and people leaders. Our leadership training
programs are geared toward a cross section of leaders, from those who are fairly new to the management
ranks to those who are more experienced.
That doesn’t mean technical training isn’t important.
All of our STEM associates have strong technical educations, but they may not have learned about things
that are important to our business like soup thermal
processing or flavor technology. We have offered that
training for many years. Today, we are focused on
keeping the training fresh and relevant, particularly to
our younger associates.
As a food and beverage company, Campbell Soup
Company has the exciting challenge of translating
culinary inspiration into consumer products. How does
an engineer or scientist take a chef’s artistic creation
and translate it into something that can be manufactured? Our approach is not to undo the art, but to
capture it. Some of our methods for doing that are well
practiced, and to others we’re adding our own twist.
The first step in developing a new product is to identify
a culinary target. That’s where the art comes in. Technologists deconstruct the culinary target, and then
reconstruct it in a way so that it can be made into
a consumer product that still captures the essence
of our chefs’ creation. Our work becomes innovation
because most consumers aren’t expecting a consumer product that comes close to culinary art. Campbell is very focused on closing the gap between the
chef’s kitchen and the plant floor. To me, great innovation is when you can hit an unarticulated consumer
need. Something that consumers want but don’t even
know it because they don’t think it’s possible.
STEM education?
The talent I’m seeing in our next generation of technical leaders is truly remarkable. And that’s a good
thing; today’s STEM graduates must be prepared to
meet the needs of our business tomorrow. A big opportunity I see is helping students understand how to tap
into the network of experts and solution providers from
around the globe. In my work with Georgia Tech and
other universities, I encourage educators to be very
cognizant of the changing world around them. In
practice, this means exposing students to more international experiences so that they learn how to access
and collaborate with external partners. In the workplace, STEM professionals who have had the experience of living, working, or studying with people from
different cultures will have a big advantage over those
who have not. We have recently launched an international employee exchange program in Campbell R&D,
where nominated chefs and technologists spend up to
six months learning and working in another Campbell
location, either across the country or halfway around
the world.
What counsel would you provide around “collaboration to achieve success” in STEM Education and
work force?
As companies leverage open innovation more and
more, they are finding themselves managing people
in different time zones, who speak different native languages, and are working with different motivations.
This is new. My advice to educators and corporations
is to arm their technologists with the skills to effectively
collaborate with experts from inside and outside their
sphere. Innovation does not happen without collaboration. Second, I’d advise corporations to treat their
external experts as part of the team. That means motivating them around a common purpose and helping them interact with one another. Let’s say you’ve
brought in a person to solve a specific problem. If this
individual understands the purpose and forms good
relationships with the rest of the team, they get very
motivated and often end up going above and beyond
in their contributions to the project.
For universities, I believe there’s value in being flexible
about how intellectual property is managed. Publishing is important, but be flexible about the gap of time
between when the work is done and when the publication happens. There are ways to protect the confidential nature of the work while still getting the bang
for the buck from the publication. n
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How can we can we do a better job to strategically
coordinate all those engaged in STEM across the
company? (Across different departments)
We have many science, technology and engineering experts in the organization who don’t necessarily
report to the same group. One approach we’re using
to help these individuals network with one another
and create a stronger sense of team are Communities
of Practice. Community of Practice leaders facilitate
the connections, and members engage in events and
learning opportunities together. Communities of Practice are critical to our overall strategy because they
promote talent development, problem solving and the
sharing of best practices.
Sarena Lin
Corporate Vice President
Strategy and Business Development
Cargill
Cargill is a privately held, family-owned company providing food,
agricultural, financial and industrial products and services to the
world. Its 143,000 global employees are committed to feeding
people in a responsible way, and helping its customers thrive.
Innovation and STEM talent play a big part in in this. Whether
it is developing healthier and better-for-you ingredients, tailoring foods for local tastes, using starches and other foodstuffs
as petrochemical replacements in packaging and industrial
materials, using data to better understand crop management
and markets, managing its worldwide supply chains responsibly and sustainably, or developing processes that reduce
costs and create value, talented science, IT and engineering
professionals are essential to Cargill’s success.
Cargill is committed to operating responsibly as it pursues its
goal of being the global leader in nourishing people, and in
2013 contributed $69 million to combat world hunger, promote
sustainable agricultural practices, and support STEM education.
Sarena Lin serves as Corporate Vice President of Strategy and Business Development
at Cargill. She leads a group of professionals
providing global strategy and mergers and
acquisitions support throughout Cargill, and
works closely with senior management on
a broad range of corporate-level strategic
initiatives. Sarena is a member of the Cargill
Corporate Center and is the executive sponsor of Cargill Women’s Network.
Prior to joining Cargill, Sarena was a partner
at McKinsey & Company in New York. Sarena
joined McKinsey in 1998 and held several roles
during her nearly 14 years with the company,
including managing partner of the McKinsey Taipei office and co-leader of McKinsey’s
China Sourcing Center. Earlier in her career,
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Sarena worked at Proctor & Gamble. Currently Sarena is on the Board of Directors of
Patterson Companies, Inc.
She is active in several community non-profit
organizations in Minneapolis and currently
serves on the Boards of Directors of the Great
Twin Cities United Way and Perspectives Inc.
Sarena is also a member of the Minnesota
Women’s Economic Roundtable. Sarena was
named 10 Top Corporate Women in Minnesota in 2014.
Sarena holds an M.B.A. in strategy from Yale
School of Management, an M.A. in international relations from Yale University, and a B.A.
in computer science from Harvard University.
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To achieve that aim, we have some ways to go. The
2013 ACT The Condition College & Career Readiness
report showed that of all ACT-tested high school graduates only 44% showed readiness for mathematics at
the college level and only 36% showed readiness for
science.
That is why Cargill is committing resources to improve
math and science readiness, and working with universities to make sure their STEM graduates are world class.
With the aim of feeding 9 billion people by 2050 with
accessible, affordable and nutritious food and doing
so responsibly with as little impact on the environment
as possible, we need people with technical skills who
think creatively and are exceptional problem solvers.
Cargill is actively involved in efforts with university systems to better align their programming with future workforce needs and that encourage talented students to
enter these fields. Cargill has invested significantly in
STEM education through its philanthropic agenda. The
idea is to build a better workforce pipeline, rather than
simply compete for a diminishing pool of candidates.
What is clear to us is that we need people with superior technical talent—IT professionals, engineers and
research scientists—to help our customers thrive.
How does STEM leadership and with it Diversity
focus help your company compete?
We believe inclusion and diversity are a source of
great strength for our company and the global community. Given our operations in 67 countries and given
people’s changing tastes across many countries and
cultures, inclusion and diversity are absolutely essential to our business success. We need employees who
are sensitive to the world of our customer’s consumers
and we need people who think in different ways and
can easily share different perspectives. Ultimately this
makes us more innovative and more nimble in adapting to changes in the marketplace.
What is the STEM initiative that your company has
supported that you are most proud?
Cargill has supported many programs in the K-12
grades to help create the pipeline of students and
workforce in STEM fields. I am most proud of Cargill’s
multiple partnerships to roll out STEM curricula in those
grades. Starting early is important if we are to inspire
and motivate young people to pursue future study
and careers in STEM.
For example, we support of the Engineering is Elementary (EiE) program created by the Museum of Science
in Boston to introduce engineering and technological concepts and career paths to children in grades
1 through 5. The story book based curriculum covers
all facets of engineering—environmental, mechanical,
civil, industrial, acoustical, agricultural bioengineering,
electrical, chemical, geotechnical aerospace and
oceanic—and the stories are begin with a child faced
with an engineering dilemma. Cargill has contributed
millions to the EiE initiative, which is currently used in all
50 states and nearly 3,000 schools. A 2010 study of program showed that EIE students were significantly more
likely to want to be engineers and significantly more
likely to say science and engineering make “people’s
lives better.”
In addition, Cargill partners with Project Lead the Way
(PLTW), which is focused on bringing STEM education
to middle and high school students. Cargill supports
PLTW’s Gateway to Technology© program, which provides an engineering-focused curriculum to middle
school students, and the Pathway to Engineering© program, a four-year high school program taught in conjunction with college preparatory mathematics and
science courses that gives students hands-on knowledge of engineering concepts, design and problemsolving. A study of its program shows that PLTW alumni
are: five times more likely to graduate from college with
a STEM degree than students who do not participate
in the program, have higher GPAs than their peers in
their freshman year of college, and have higher college retention rates.
Cargill and the National 4-H Council have co-created
4-H Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) Clubs,
a comprehensive science program engaging more
than 600 local youth and Cargill employees in Indiana,
Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. In the first year
of the partnership, 22 4-H SET clubs were implemented
in the five grantee states. From summer food science
camps in Kansas to robotics clubs in Missouri and Iowa,
these new initiatives have reached more than 628
youth and 118 volunteers. Other types of activities in
the 4-H SET Clubs include experiments, hands-on activities, problem-solving and demonstrations.
These programs and others like them, which bring the
excitement of STEM learning alive and introduce STEM
career possibilities to America’s school children, are
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Some years ago, there was a campaign to support
manufacturing and it had the tagline: “America won’t
make it without manufacturing.” The reality is that in
today’s world we will not make it without innovation
and that innovation is dependent on increasing the
number of highly qualified STEM graduates.
Gwenne Henricks
Vice President, Product Development
& Global Technology /
Chief Technology Officer
Caterpillar Inc.
For nearly 90 years, Caterpillar Inc. has been making sustainable progress possible and driving positive change on every
continent. Customers turn to Caterpillar to help them develop
infrastructure, energy and natural resource assets. With 2013
sales and revenues of $55.656 billion, Caterpillar is the world’s
leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment,
diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and
diesel-electric locomotives. The company principally operates through its three product segments—Resource Industries,
Construction Industries and Energy & Transportation—and
also provides financing and related services through its Financial Products segment.
Gwenne Henricks is Vice President of Product Development & Global Technology and
Chief Technology Officer for Caterpillar Inc.
Since joining Caterpillar in 1981, she has held
numerous positions in the engineering and
management functions. Previously, she served
as Division Manager of Systems and Controls
Research; Undercarriage Product Manager;
General Manager of the Specialty Products
Business Unit; General Manager of the Electronic & Electrical Systems Business Unit; Vice
President of the Electronics & Connected
Worksite Division; and Vice President of the
Industrial Power Systems Division, among other
roles. Most recently, she was named Vice President of Product Development & Global Technology and Chief Technology Officer in 2012.
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AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Henricks, a native of Illinois, graduated from
Bradley University in 1979 with a bachelor’s
degree in physics and in 1981 with a master’s
degree in electrical engineering. She completed the Managing Engineering Design
and Development Program at the Carnegie
Bosch Institute at Carnegie Mellon University
in 1996 and received an MBA from the University of Illinois in 2003. She is a member of
the Society of Automotive Engineers, Society of Women Engineers, Bradley University
Engineering Advisory Committee and board
president of CASA (Court Appointed Special
Advocates) of Peoria County.
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For women and underrepresented minorities, we need
to provide an inclusive environment where they can
contribute while still being authentic to themselves.
We also need to provide role models and mentors so
these individuals can see that they can be successful
in STEM professions. At Caterpillar, we engage with our
Employee Resource Groups and leverage our relationships with professional organizations, such as the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), to aid in this area.
supported are you most proud?
We’re proud of all of our STEM initiatives, and we have
a particularly great story around our involvement with
For Inspiration and Recognition in Science and Technology (FIRST). FIRST is an organization that provides
global, mentor-based programs to help students of all
ages develop STEM skills. Participants in FIRST programs
build working robots that compete against other
teams in a variety of challenges.
Caterpillar began working with FIRST in 2005, with the
company’s initial sponsorship of 10 teams. Nine years
later, the company now sponsors nearly 200 teams in
nine countries. Our engineering and technical community is passionate about inspiring the next generation
of STEM talent, as evidenced by the 800+ Caterpillar
employees serving as mentors and chaperones for
FIRST programs this year.
I’m proud not only of what these students and employees accomplish during FIRST competitions, but also of
their commitment to their communities. For example,
one FIRST team mentored by our employees worked
with a local university to develop technology to
improve the quality of life for individuals with Autism
Spectrum Disorder. They applied skills learned from
FIRST to a real world challenge and made a difference
in the process.
Many students that participate in FIRST go on to pursue
STEM degrees. We have a number of them that come
to work for Caterpillar following their graduation—and
they continue their involvement with FIRST as mentors
once they get here. It’s inspiring to see.
As a company that champions diversity and inclusion, Caterpillar has 12 established Employee Resource
Groups (ERGs). These are independent, voluntary,
nonprofit groups of employees who share common
interests and bring value to our business by providing
personal and professional development opportunities.
All of our ERGs are founded by employees and are
open to anyone who wishes to join. We encourage
employees to participate in ERG activities that may be
outside their realm of personal experience to broaden
their horizons and enhance cultural awareness. Our 12
ERGs are:
• Abled and Disabled Employees Partnering
Together (ADEPT)
• Caterpillar African American Network
• Caterpillar Armed Forces Support Network
• Caterpillar Asian Indian Community
• Caterpillar Chinese Resource Group
• Caterpillar Experienced Professional Direct Hire
• Caterpillar Korean Resource Group
• Caterpillar Lambda Network
• Caterpillar Latino Connection
• Caterpillar Middle Eastern Resource Group
• Women’s Initiatives Network
• Young Professionals of Caterpillar
Driving a diverse and inclusive culture is a key part of
Caterpillar’s enterprise strategy. And in many cases,
our diversity and STEM initiatives go hand-in-hand.
For example, Caterpillar has longstanding relationships with organizations that demonstrate the value of
diversity in STEM, such as the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)
and Society of Professional Hispanic Engineers (SHPE),
among others. In fact, one of our leaders just wrapped
up a year-long term as President of SWE. At the university
level, we offer Excellence in Engineering Scholarships
to interns from partner universities who are committed
to diversity and inclusion. We also have an on-site presence at many of our global partner universities, which
enables us to connect with the best diverse talent from
around the world. Finally, we provide support globally
to various college and pre-college STEM programs,
such as the NASA Robotic Mining Competition, Society
of Automotive Engineers collegiate design series and
FIRST Lego League, Tech Challenge and Robotics.
Innovation is critical to Caterpillar’s continued success
and global leadership. We have to innovate in order to
differentiate our products, meet our customers’ needs
and remain competitive in the global marketplace—
and we rely on our engineering and technical community to do that. To truly deliver the best products
and solutions, it is crucial that we have a diverse and
inclusive team of STEM talent. Why is this so important
to Caterpillar? Because we know that diverse teams
outperform others. We’ve seen the results firsthand.
Diversity of thought paired with an inclusive environment helps spur innovation and drives the success of
our business. n
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We need to help students understand how STEM professionals change the world for the better. Instead of
focusing on how difficult STEM schooling can be, we
should show students how they can make a difference
after finishing their education. We need to encourage
them to take a long-term view of their careers and
emphasize the availability of well-paying jobs in STEM
fields, the upward mobility and the opportunity to do
important and interesting work.
Jacqueline Hinman
President and Chief Executive Officer
CH2M HILL
Employee-owned CH2M HILL is a global leader in full-service
consulting, design, design-build, operations and program
management services. With US$7 billion in revenue and 26,000
employees worldwide, the firm delivers innovative, practical,
sustainable solutions—helping clients develop and manage
infrastructure and facilities that improve efficiency, safety and
quality of life.
As one of the world’s largest engineering firms, CH2M HILL is
committed to developing and fostering a diverse talent pipeline that will help solve the environmental and engineering challenges of tomorrow. CH2M HILL supports a wide range of STEM
programs, including introducing elementary students to basic
science and math concepts, sponsoring secondary student
science and engineering competitions and providing financial support and hands-on engineering experiences to keep
university students engaged. CH2M HILL believes in investing
professional expertise, volunteer time and financial resources to
support organizations promoting STEM education. Learn more
at www.ch2mhill.com and www.ch2mhillfoundation.org.
With more than 30 years of experience in the
engineering and construction industry, Jacqueline Hinman serves as President and Chief
Executive Officer of CH2M HILL, a Fortune 500
company recognized as a global leader in
consulting, full-service engineering, construction, procurement, program management
and operations for public and private clients.
Ms. Hinman’s goals for the firm are market
leadership, balanced growth and client stewardship. To achieve these goals, she has prioritized safety, quality, sustainability, technology,
diversity, positive employee engagement and
the highest standards of ethical behavior as
drivers for CH2M HILL’s success.
Prior to assuming the role of CEO, Ms. Hinman
led the firm’s international division and major
programs group, which included the delivery
of large engineering, construction and operations programs worldwide, including the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games,
the Panama Canal Expansion and the MASDAR sustainable city in Abu Dhabi. During this
time, Ms. Hinman was also responsible for over-
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worldwide and for completing the acquisition of Halcrow Group, a UK-headquartered
engineering firm with US$1 billion in annual
revenue.
Ms. Hinman has lent her expertise to the Advisory Board of Catalyst Europe and the Metro
Denver Sports Commission. She is an active
member of the World Economic Forum Global
Advisory Council on Infrastructure.
She was the first recipient of the Women Leading Change award from WorldDenver and in
2014 participated in a Clinton Global Initiative
panel discussion on America’s competiveness. She is a strong advocate for advancing
the STEM pipeline and infrastructure development.
Ms. Hinman has a bachelor’s degree in civil
engineering from Pennsylvania State University. She is a registered professional engineer
and is accredited under the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program.
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Increasingly we are seeing holistic support programs
that not only provide financial aid to stay in college
but also ensure that students have mentors, tutoring
support and a cohort of peers facing the same challenges to lean on as they go through the experience
together. Professional associations can provide a community of support and resources. It is also important for
students to foster mentoring relationships with working
professionals. Seeing examples of people who have
overcome similar challenges and are in successful,
rewarding careers is a motivator in and of itself.
What advice do you have for minorities and women
coming “up” the system?
Know what you want and consider what excites and
energizes you. That allows you to drive your career and
mentoring conversations. Network with and enlist others to help you achieve your goals. Look forward and
backward, there is something to learn not only from
those who are in your desired roles but also from peers
and those you support—they can help you identify
strengths and weaknesses. Reach back, nurture someone to step into your role. Finally, remember to pay it
forward. Help others to climb the ladder and don’t
push the ladder away once you’ve progressed.
Don’t be afraid to ask. Ask for what you want, for
opportunities, to be part of something, to be included,
to help. People are rarely 100% qualified or ready for
stretch positions that they take on, so take a risk in
order to succeed. If you are open and self-aware, and
have support from others, you will succeed. Realize
there is no such thing as perfect work-life balance, you
just learn to prioritize different things at different phases
of your life. Some days your family wins, some days it
is your career and someday it may be the DMV. But
remember to take care of yourself.
Understanding the true challenges with respect to filling the engineering pipeline and being able to address
these with targeted programs and the right partners is
the foundation for success. CH2M HILL looks for partners with a proven track record of measurable impact
with programs that are scalable and replicable in other
markets. Examples are our partnerships with Camp
Invention and the Future City design-build competition.
We desire long-term partnerships with organizations
that share our values and are collaboratively foster-
ing meaningful, deep relationships with students, parents, teachers and their communities for the long-haul.
We’ve found that organizations who provide strong role
models and near peer mentoring, like the SEEK and
DREAM programs, and then engage students in handson, real-life challenges yield strong influence particularly for kids who don’t often see themselves mirrored
in traditional mentors. Much like industry, the partnerships that have found the right mix of support from the
public, professional and academic sectors are able to
draw on strengths to create real and systemic impact.
Investment in diversity and STEM is an investment in our
future workforce and business success, and we feel
strongly that we have a role to play in creating and
nurturing that workforce from an early age. As part of
our diversity recruitment strategy, we support National
Diversity Organizations that support STEM initiatives via
conference participation, providing internships and supporting their outreach programs.
Our CH2M HILL Foundation partners with organizations
targeting under-represented populations at all stages
of the pipeline. We’ve teamed with NSBE to bring the
SEEK program to 300 Denver elementary students. We
get a double benefit of inspiring young students to
consider engineering while networking with the college mentors who are some of the brightest minority
engineering students.
In the UK, we’ve teamed with Social Mobility Foundation to offer an engineering residential program, bringing 25 high school students to our London office for a
week of mentoring, project site visits, hands-on activities and skills workshops. With a third of the students
being young women and many participants from lowincome or immigrant families, we’re able to introduce a
diverse and often under-represented pool of talent to
the breadth of career opportunities available in STEM.
We consider diversity in our workforce an essential business imperative to achieving success. Our eight global
Employee Network Groups reflect our employees’
diversity in terms of ethnicities, gender, sexual orientation, physical abilities or disabilities, and military service.
By drawing on the variety of our employees’ life experiences, personalities and backgrounds, CH2M HILL
further drives creativity and innovation for our clients.
It stimulates the emergence of leaders whose thinking
bridges varying cultures, issues and ideas while focusing
our entire talent pool on a common business purpose.
We recently hosted our first joint summit of all eight
groups. Focused on the theme “All In: Inspiring Success through Diversity,” our objective was to empower
attendees to make a positive difference in their networks, at their office or project site and in the group in
which they work. At this event the CH2M HILL Foundation
also unveiled a new grant program targeted at our network groups to encourage them to partner with NGO’s
who are focused on building the STEM pipeline. n
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Hands-on experiences demonstrating the relevance
and importance of STEM allow students to focus on the
greater good when coursework becomes too much.
CH2M HILL proudly support organizations like Engineers Without Borders giving students hands-on design
experience to deliver infrastructure improvements to
developing communities. Programs like Rice University’s DREAM program or the National Society of Black
Engineers’ (NSBE) Summer Engineering Experience for
Kids (SEEK), give university students opportunities to
pay it forward and encourage their younger peers to
consider STEM careers.
Shirley Cunningham
Executive Vice President and
Chief Operating Officer, Ag Business
and Enterprise Strategy
CHS Inc.
CHS Inc. (www.chsinc.com) is a leading global agribusiness
owned by farmers, ranchers and cooperatives across the
United States. Diversified in energy, grains and foods, CHS is
committed to helping its customers, farmer-owners and other
stakeholders grow their businesses through its domestic and
global operations. CHS, a Fortune 100 company, supplies energy, crop nutrients, grain marketing services, animal feed,
food and food ingredients, along with business solutions including insurance, financial and risk management services.
The company operates petroleum refineries/pipelines and
manufactures, markets and distributes Cenex® brand refined
fuels, lubricants, propane and renewable energy products.
As a part of the CHS stewardship focus, the CHS Foundation
and Corporate Citizenship are committed to investing in the
future of rural America, agriculture and cooperative business
through education and leadership development.
Shirley Cunningham is executive vice president and chief operating officer, Ag Business
and Enterprise Strategy, for CHS. Cunningham
was named to her current position in August
2014 and leads the company’s newly aligned
Ag Business platform which includes International, North America and Agronomy, along
with CHS enterprise strategy functions including information technology, human resources,
planning and enterprise strategy, and enterprise marketing and communications.
Cunningham was the chief information officer
for Monsanto Company and has more than
25 years of experience in information technology and business management including
leading global IT operations, acquisitions, IT
research and development, strategic plan-
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responsible for developing and executing
Monsanto’s quality oils strategy. In addition
to broad business expertise, Cunningham
has extensive global experience, having led
Europe, Middle East and Africa IT operations
for Monsanto. She also held leadership positions with several companies in the United
Kingdom.
She holds a master’s of business administration degree from Washington University, St.
Louis, Mo., and previously served on several boards including Washington University
School of Engineering, the AT & T advisory
board and the St. Louis children’s museum,
The Magic House.
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That’s why having a mentor is critically important. A
mentor can help create work-life balance. Having a
mentor can help you better understand what’s important not only to your career, but also to you and your
family. A mentor can help you focus on the things that
really matter.
Women need to know it’s okay to leave at 5 p.m. to
handle family duties and still compete in terms of your
career. But you have to think differently about how
the work gets done — and have mentors and leaders
who are okay with that thinking. For instance, you may
leave at 5, but then be on email at 10 p.m. Your supervisor knows you’ll get quality work done without being
at your desk 60 hours a week. It’s an interesting shift in
expectations, but perfectly doable.
What role should companies play in STEM education/workforce development?
Companies and corporate leaders need to continue
to support STEM education. We need that pool of
skilled, innovative people to help us capture business
opportunities and launch social and environmental
initiatives. A strong education system will continue to
make the U.S. great. Regarding technology, it starts
with having the best curriculum, encouraging students,
helping them recognize technology career opportunities, and conveying excitement about the field.
These individuals don’t necessarily have to come to
work for us—they can use their knowledge of technology on their farms and ranches. Our owners continue
leveraging technology on farms, from auto-steer on
equipment to precision planting for greater yields and
income for their operations.
We also need to address STEM development within our
own organizations. We know that 70% of learning is on
the job. At CHS, we’ve recently hired a learning director, which is very exciting. We’re exploring how we can
move people into roles to give them more breadth
of experience. For instance, one of our grain traders
recently was assigned to a European post. He’ll come
back with a whole different set of experiences that will
support our global business and his career growth.
We are also supporting mentoring and helping others learn from our own career experiences—both the
pitfalls and what has helped. These approaches augment the more traditional learning tools such as training and workshops on presentation skills or negotiating.
Where will we get the talent CHS needs going forward?
I think we need to look at talent pools both traditionally
and nontraditionally. For example, if we know there’s
going to be a shortage of engineers, then we target
universities with excellent engineering programs and
draw talent from them.
A strong internship program also is key to finding and
attracting talent. In one program I had about 90 student interns interested in IT careers. Not only do I look
at those interns as a pool to hire from when they graduate, but I’ve also had the benefit of watching them
for six months, getting an understanding of their skills
and where they would best fit in the company.
I also think we need to be looking at high school students. At that age, we can show them technology
career options and give them work experience that
can help them pursue a STEM path in college.
We also have to pay attention to the talent pool in rural
areas. One way we can reach them is through social
media to show them what’s available to them in a technology-related career, whether it’s with CHS at our headquarters, a local cooperative or their own operation.
How is CHS involved in STEM education now?
The CHS Foundation and CHS Corporate Citizenship
are focused on the next generation of agriculturists.
We support a wide range of colleges and universities through scholarships, grants and sponsorships to
help ensure a vibrant workforce in agriculture. CHS is
the lead sponsor of the National Teach Ag Campaign,
which is designed to strengthen the nation’s agricultural education resources.
A new project we’re funding is A3 for Agricultural Science (Aspire, Accelerate and Advance). This is a partnership with Inver Hills Community College in Inver
Grove Heights, Minn., to establish a new statewide
educational and career path initiative for middle, high
school and college students.
A3 will introduce thousands of Minnesota students to
the many exciting career opportunities in the science
of agriculture. This program will start students on an educational pathway to complete an associate of science
degree at Inver Hills Community College, allowing them
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women coming up in the system?
We all face challenges, but from a woman’s perspective, you’re often juggling family, as well as career. That
can make it difficult to attract women to the information technology (IT) field. IT is largely project work,
and you have huge workload peaks that can require
weekend work. It takes “all hands on deck” to get it
done. So women often look at IT and say, “Where’s my
work-life balance?”
Padmasree Warrior
Chief Technology & Strategy Officer
Cisco
Cisco is the worldwide leader in IT that helps companies seize
opportunities by proving that amazing things can happen
when you connect the unconnected. As more people, processes,data,and things connect to the Internet,we are building
a future workforce that can harness these connections—
to benefit businesses, society, and the planet. STEM education is a business imperative for Cisco. Our Cisco Networking
Academy® program has helped 1.2 million people worldwide
obtain jobs in information and communication technology.
Twenty percent of our students are female and over 51,000
military personnel have completed our courses to prepare
for civilian careers once their service is over. We use our expertise, product donations, and cash grants to help nonprofits
engage students and deliver STEM education effectively. As
part of US2020, we’ve committed to having 20 percent of our
workforce volunteering 20 hours per year as STEM mentors by
2020. Learn more: csr.cisco.com.
Padmasree Warrior is charged with aligning
technology development and corporate
strategy to enable Cisco to anticipate, shape,
and lead major market transitions. She helps
direct technology and operational innovation across the company and oversees strategic partnerships, mergers and acquisitions,
the integration of new business models, the
incubation of new technologies, and the cultivation of world-class technical talent.
Warrior previously served as Chief Technology
Officer (CTO) and also co-led Cisco’s worldwide engineering organization. Prior to joining Cisco in 2008, Warrior was executive vice
president and CTO at Motorola. Under her
leadership, Motorola was awarded the 2004
National Medal of Technology.
Warrior has been widely recognized for her
creative, visionary leadership. Forbes has
named her one of “The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women” for two years running. In 2013,
The International Alliance for Women gave
her the World of Difference Award, Silicon Valley’s SVForum honored her with the Visionary
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of Indian Origin gave her the Excellence in
Engineering, Science and Technology Award,
and the International Museum of Women
presented her with the Innovator Award for
Women in Technology. The Wall Street Journal has called Warrior one of “50 Women to
Watch,” Fast Company included her among
the “100 Most Creative People in Business,”
and The Economic Times listed her as “the
11th Most Influential Global Indian.”
In 2007 Warrior was inducted into the Women
in Information Technology International Hall
of Fame. She is a member of the Board of
Trustees for Cornell University and serves on
the Gap Inc. Board of Directors. She also sits
on the Board of Directors for Thorn (formerly
DNA Foundation).
Warrior holds a bachelor of science degree
in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi and a master
of science degree in chemical engineering
from Cornell University.
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The simple truth is that the 21st Century workforce
needs develop a new set of skills to meet the challenges before our nation. Other nations have already
embraced the challenge and are moving toward
building a digital workforce. The World Economic
Forum ranks the United States 52nd in the quality of
mathematics and science education and 27th among
developed nations in the proportion of college students receiving undergraduate degrees in science or
engineering.
For nearly two-decades, Cisco has made it a top priority to build a talent pipeline prepared to meet these
challenges. Cisco invests in programs from Kindergarten to College and beyond that are preparing a
diverse generation of talent for careers in STEM.
Cisco believes that it is critical to take steps to encourage women and girls to enter STEM fields. One of many
programs that Cisco supports to meet this goal is Girls
in ICT. The Girls in ICT initiative of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is a global effort to raise
awareness on empowering and encouraging girls and
young women to consider studies and careers in ICTs.
The initiative is committed to celebrate and commemorate the International Girls in ICT Day on the fourth
Thursday of every April.
Cisco also partners with non-profit organizations to
expand STEM education opportunities to underserved
communities. Mind Research’s program, for instance,
helps students of all backgrounds achieve proficiency
in math. Currently available in the U.S., the platform is
mapped to all 50 state standards, and has served over
600,000 students so far. In three Cisco-funded pilot sites
in underserved schools in California, Virginia, and Arizona, the program has helped students to double to
triple the increase Math proficiency over two years —
and we are supporting expansion of the program to
Boston, New York, and other cities in the country during
the coming year.
Cisco has joined over 75 corporations to address the
need for military personnel returning from war zones
to secure jobs as they transition back into civilian life.
Although many veterans have acquired substantial
job skills during their time in the military, this often does
not directly translate to the civilian job market. Cisco’s
veterans programs include Futures, Inc., the IT Training
and Certification Program and a Networking Academy program for active-duty military personnel, veterans and their families.
Cisco is a founding partner of US2020, an initiative
that connects STEM professionals with girls, underrepresented minorities and low-income students from
Kindergarten through College. By 2020, Cisco has committed that 20% of our US employees will provide at
least 20 hours of STEM mentoring per year. To meet this
goal, we host events, like Girls in ICT Day, and partner
a range of nonprofit organizations, including the Girl
Scouts, FIRST Robotics, Million Women Mentors and
CyberPatriots, to help our employees meet this goal.
Through our work with K-12 schools across the nation,
Cisco is helping to connect all classrooms in America
to high speed wireless broadband within the next five
years. In doing so, we will put the world’s libraries, science experiments and cutting-edge education applications at students’ fingertips and help our young
people to develop interest in STEM at an earlier age.
Additionally, the Cisco Foundation and Cisco partner
with nonprofit and non-governmental organizations
around the world to support innovative classroom
models and after-school programs to scale. Such
organizations include MIND Research Institute, CyberPatriot, and Citizen Schools
Cisco and the New York Academy of Sciences
recently established The Global STEM Alliance to bring
curriculum resources, inter-generational mentorship,
and access to cutting-edge science and technology
research to students around the world. n
...We will put the world’s libraries, science
experiments and cutting-edge education
applications at students’ fingertips and help
our young people to develop interest in STEM
at an earlier age.
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By 2018, there will be 1.2 million job openings in the
United States in the fields that make up STEM—Science,
Technology, Engineering, and Math. However, without
a major influx of talent, there will be an acute shortage
of qualified applicants to fill these jobs.
Alexander Cummings
Chief Administrative Officer
The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is the world’s largest
beverage company, refreshing consumers with more than 500
sparkling and still brands. Led by Coca-Cola, one of the world’s
most valuable and recognizable brands, our Coca-Cola’s
portfolio features 17 billion-dollar brands including Diet Coke,
Fanta, Sprite, Coca-Cola Zero, vitaminwater, Powerade,Minute
Maid, Simply, Georgia and Del Valle. With an enduring commitment to building sustainable communities, our company is
focused on initiatives that reduce our environmental footprint,
support active, healthy living, create a safe, inclusive work environment for our associates, and enhance the economic development of the communities where we operate. Together
with our bottling partners, we rank among the world’s top 10
private employers with more than 700,000 system associates,
including thousands who are employed in STEM-related fields.
Mr. Alexander B. Cummings is Executive Vice
President and Chief Administrative Officer
(CAO) of The Coca-Cola Company. The CAO
structure consolidates key global corporate
functions in a purposeful approach to effectively support the business operations of The
Coca-Cola Company. These functions support our five operating groups with presence
in over 200 countries. Key global corporate
functions reporting to the CAO include:
Strategic Planning; Legal; Human Resources;
Information Technology; Sustainability; Global
Community Relations, including The CocaCola Foundation; Strategic Security and Aviation; Technical and Innovation organization
comprising of: Research & Development; Science & Regulatory, Global Quality & Safety;
Procurement Supply Chain; Technical Operations; and Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Born in Liberia, West Africa, Mr. Cummings joined
The Coca-Cola Company in 1997 as Region
Manager, Nigeria. In 2000, he was named President of the Company’s North & West Africa Divi-
sion. In March 2001, he became President and
Chief Operating Officer of the Africa Group,
responsible for the Company’s operations in
Africa, encompassing a total of 56 countries
and territories across the continent.
Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Cummings
held several positions with The Pillsbury Company in the U.S. In his last role as Vice President
of Finance for Pillsbury International, he had
financial responsibility for a growing $1.2 billion international branded food business with
operating companies in 16 countries.
Mr. Cummings currently serves on the boards
of S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc; C.A.R.E. and Clark
Atlanta University (CAU). He is currently the
Chairman of the Board for CAU. He also is a
board member of Coca-Cola Bottling Company Consolidated. He is a member of the
Executive Leadership Council (ELC).
Mr. Cummings holds a B.S. degree in Finance
and Economics from Northern Illinois University
and an MBA in Finance from Atlanta University.
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The scale and acceleration of technological change
threatens to create a binary world: those on the leading edge of technology; and those who are following
further and further behind. No country can grow and
prosper over time if progress is assigned to a technological elite. STEM capability must define the entire
workforce. It’s how work is done. It’s how processes
improve. It’s how discoveries are made and applied.
It’s how countries compete.
It’s also the source of jobs that strengthen economies.
Companies across economies say they have those
jobs, but they can’t find people with the technical skills
to fill them. That is a gap we have to close.
I don’t believe that creating STEM careers is the issue.
The career paths are open because skills in science,
technology engineering and math are so valuable.
The rigor and problem solving that are the heart of
STEM are not just of value in the labs and on the production lines. They impact us across the business. From
an employee development standpoint, the keys are to
attract people with STEM proficiencies, channel them
to the positions where those proficiencies create value
for the company, and continuously challenge and
develop them.
What is the key to smart STEM investment?
It starts with accepting that no single factor defines
smart. It takes a new kind of partnership we call a
Golden Triangle. Business, government and civil society
must come together in a collaboration that invests in
ways that erase any distinction between societal value
and business value. One can’t exist in today’s world
without the other.
Business, government and education must work cooperatively to find ways to make science, math and technology fun. We have to convince students that they
can do it – especially important for young women who,
according to studies, tend to shy away from STEM disciplines. We must prove that the extra work STEM studies take is worth it. We have to maintain a focus that
steps up to the fact that 60 percent of students who
start high school with an interest in STEM are no longer
interested by the time they graduate.
Being at the output end of the talent pipeline, business has an obvious stake in supporting programs that
attract and support both students and teachers. We
support STEM-related programs from grade school
through college and professional schools.
We have to accept that innovation leadership is no
longer an American birthright. We have challengers.
When we have experienced challenges in the past,
we responded, and we solidified our hold on global
innovation leadership. Today’s challenge is different –
because it is coming from so many more places and
enabled by so many new technologies.
We must think and invest with a sense of urgency. That
urgency covers everything from education to discovery to commercialization. It means embracing that we
are all points in an innovation ecosystem. The leaders
will be those who find the most productive ways to tie
those points together.
What leadership advice do you have for women
and minorities coming up in the system?
My advice comes from two perspectives. One is being
on the leadership team of a major corporation. The
other is my career journey as a minority. Much has
changed from where I started to where I am. But my
core advice is the same. Enjoy and be very good at
what you do. That is how you stand out. That is how you
are measured.
I would also encourage you to use all the resources
available to you. There will be a time when that support won’t be necessary. But we’re not yet there.
All companies realize that diverse markets require
diverse employees. We know that the best ideas come
from the synergies of different backgrounds. At CocaCola, we have more than 50 nationalities in our Atlanta
offices alone. Women have made tremendous progress. Yet over more than a century, patterns become
deeply ingrained. It takes organization, persistence
and constant measurement to create new patterns.
So I tell women and minorities to use the tools and
organizations we have in place. We’re serious about
them. They’re not window dressing. For example, we
launched a Global Women’s Initiative to accelerate
the development of female talent throughout our
system. The cornerstone is the Women’s Leadership
Council. Our CEO Muhtar Kent is the Council’s advisor.
But these measures are only as effective as the degree
of individual involvement.
Beyond that, my advice is be comfortable with who
you are. You can’t pass the prime leadership test of
authenticity unless you fit easily in your own skin. Don’t
over-think the differences. Focus on the commonalities.
As I would say to any prospective leaders: Be confident, but humble. Be ambitious, but team-centered. Be
proud of what you achieve, but constructively discontent with where you stand. Focus on your responsibilities, but see those responsibilities—and yourself—in the
context of a diverse and changing world. n
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 97 The Coca-Cola Company
Why is STEM education/workforce development
critical to the future of the nation?
We are witnessing historic technological disruption—in
every business, in every industry, in every society.
Michele Kang
Founder, Chief Executive Officer and
Co-Chairman
Cognosante
At Cognosante, we fundamentally believe we can create a
better healthcare environment where everyone benefits. We
are dedicated to applying our knowledge and innovation to
help produce a healthier population.
As a trusted partner to public and private organizations, we
help our customers understand complex healthcare reform
requirements and transform their enterprise to meet the
healthcare needs of millions of people across the country.
From integrated eligibility, to ICD-10 to Health Insurance Exchange, we help our customers master the big picture. We
provide industry-leading expertise in modular architecture to
meet CMS’ Seven Conditions and Standards—all while maximizing efficiency, quality and tight budgets.
Michele Kang is the founder, Chief Executive
Officer and Co-Chairman of Cognosante.
Prior to founding Cognosante in 2008, Ms.
Kang served as Vice President and General
Manager of Northrop Grumman’s Health Solutions, where she oversaw Northrop Grumman’s
Health IT business. Taking over the operating
unit in 2003, she built a health business that now
spans the major components of the health
industry - clinical systems, life sciences, public
health, and healthcare financing and benefits
management.
Under Ms. Kang, Northrop Grumman supported
the largest deployed electronic health record
system worldwide, and was the largest contractor to CDC. In November 2005, her team
was selected by HHS to develop a prototype
for the Nationwide Health Information Network
architecture, a critical component for advancing the national healthcare agenda set out by
President Bush.
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worked with CEOs, CFOs, and senior management teams of Fortune 500 and global 100
companies as a management consultant
to turn around under-performing businesses,
improve operational efficiencies, execute
profitable growth strategies, and implement
global marketing and branding strategies. She
is one of the Inaugural Members of 100 Women
Leaders in Science, Technology, Engineering,
and Math (STEM), elected in 2012 along with
U.S. senators, high ranking government officials,
and top executives of Fortune 500 companies.
She is also the recipient of the 2012 Mosaic
Woman Trailblazer Award by Diversity Woman
in recognition of her outstanding accomplishments and leadership in business.
She received a BA in Economics from the University of Chicago and a MBA from the Yale
School of Management. In addition, she completed executive management programs at
Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan School of
Management, and the Brookings Institute.
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One of my most important roles as CEO is to motivate employees and to provide opportunities to help
them find new and exciting ways to contribute to the
business. I work to ensure everyone knows the unique
work and life experiences they bring to the company
are valued and are making a difference. I believe
it is critical for employees to know they are accomplishing something exciting and meaningful and to
understand the important role they play every day
in helping our customers overcome their challenges,
solve their problems and fulfill their missions.
the workforce?
As the founder and CEO of Cognosante, a dynamic
and growing health IT company headquartered
in McLean, VA, I am passionate about technology
and am grateful for the opportunities I have been
afforded by pursuing a career in a STEM field. In order
for Cognosante and other companies in the health
IT field to grow and be successful, we need more
‘minds on health’ and more students to pursue a
STEM education to help address some of the major
challenges facing the health services industry. n
I am passionate about technology and am
grateful for the opportunities I have been
afforded by pursuing a career in a STEM field.
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While young girls and boys use technology every day
to communicate, play video games, download and
listen to music, their interest in majoring in STEM—science, technology, engineering and mathematics—
has steadily declined over the past decade. Fewer
students are enrolling in computer science and graduating with computer science degrees. If this trend
continues, the technology industry will only be able
to fill half its available jobs with candidates with computer science bachelor’s degrees from U.S. universities,
according to the National Center for Women in Technology.
Theresa Hennesy
Senior Vice President, Group
Technical Advisor for Engineering &
Platform Services
Comcast Corporation
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) is a global
media and technology company with two primary businesses,
Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is the nation’s largest video, high-speed Internet and phone provider
to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses. NBCUniversal operates 30
news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and
Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal
Parks and ResResorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for
more information.
Theresa Hennesy is Senior Vice President
and Group Technical Advisor for Engineering & Platform Services (EPS) at Comcast
Cable. In this role, she is responsible for leading the EPS organization in its continuing mission of improving the customer experience,
sustaining rapid growth economically, driving innovation everywhere, and maximizing
efficiencies. In addition, Theresa leads Comcast’s Sourcing Management & Governance
(SM&G) function, leveraging best practices
and defined policies, and ensuring predictability and delivery from sourcing vendors.
Theresa is a 30-year veteran of the communications industry. Prior to joining Comcast, she
served as SVP for Vonage Network Operations where she was responsible for all facets
of the company’s network operations, busi-
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of Technical Operations at Verisign, SVP of
Global Internet Operations at Cable & Wireless USA, and held various positions for over
20 years at MCI. She is an active member of
the Society of Telecommunications Engineers
(SCTE), Women in Cable Telecommunications
(WICT) and Women in Technology (WIT) and
is on the board of the WIT Philadelphia chapter. Theresa also serves as a mentor and sponsor for the First Robotics program.
Theresa lives in the Phila a area with her husband. She is originally from the Washington
Metro Area and studied at George Mason
University. She is a supporter of breast cancer
awareness and participates and sponsors a
fund through the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer.
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need to show them that a STEM education can be a
stepping stone that can lead to greater opportunities
further down the road, as many young technologists
move into more senior, management positions later in
life. This is why many people in these roles at Comcast
devote time to inspiring young people to pursue STEM
careers through mentoring, through support for the
US FIRST Robotics program, and Girls Who Code and
by participating in Women in Cable Telecommunications, among others. We also sponsor various technical
co-op programs in which students spend six months on
the job with us putting their learning to practical use,
and six months in school continuing their studies.
Economic factors are also important. It’s estimated
that by the year 2020 there will be more than 1 million
more computer science jobs than there are students
to fill them. Training students to prepare for those jobs
could create much better job and career prospects
for young people. STEM jobs offer salaries an average
of 26% higher and have lower rates of unemployment
than other fields. Higher wages and lower unemployment mean better average standards of living, which
clearly is good for any country.
I am fortunate to work for a company that supports
many STEM initiatives. My favorite is Comcast’s sponsorship of the US FIRST Robotics program, which gives students the opportunity to learn and apply skills in areas
such as problem solving, collaborative teamwork and
creating solutions to specific technical challenges.
Beyond Standards, what are the first steps we
Businesses can do a better job of marketing STEM skills
and demonstrating how these talents can be applied
through real-world examples. Comcast emphasizes
hands-on projects and mentoring programs that encourage students to put STEM skills to practical use and learn
from people who use these skills in their jobs. Plus, the
young people who participate in these projects see
how much fun STEM work can be!
Companies can also promote STEM education at an
earlier age—especially among girls, as society does
not always provide the support and encouragement
girls need to pursue STEM fields. The same can be said
for promoting STEM in communities in which economics
may create additional challenges. This is why Comcast
also supports STEM education in those areas, specifically through initiatives such as Internet Essentials, our
support of Cristo Rey and digital literacy programs
through the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Through our
participation in US FIRST Robotics, we engage students
from the time they are in high school—and we specifically seek to sponsor teams of young women and
minorities.
Students must find the subject interesting—but also
find it relevant. Fewer than 40% of US students who
enter college intending to study a STEM subject complete their degrees. This is a real problem for companies looking for a steady pipeline of talent, and for the
country as it impacts our global competitive edge.
STEM-focused internships are a great way to show
students how what they are learning can become a
career. Women and minorities, in particular can see
people just like them working in these fields. We also
When we started out in 2008, we sponsored six teams.
Last season we sponsored 54 teams across the country. So far, we’ve reached a total of more than 1,300
aspiring young technologists. I had the privilege to be
a mentor for an all-girls team—their inventiveness and
creativity was amazing to watch. This sponsorship helps
keep them engaged and could spawn young technologists and engineers to fuel our future workforce.
Giving students practical and fun situations to exercise
and demonstrate expertise in a team environment
emulates the atmosphere of a small business. Teams
learn the valuable aspects of dealing with realities and
unforeseen issues. Plus, the atmosphere of the competitions that are part of the program is collaborative,
supportive and educational.
STEM education?
The most important thing is to invest in STEM education.
Create a well thought-out talent pipeline conversion
strategy with specific headcount targets and financing across a variety of functions. It should include a
focused talent management plan from high school to
university to ultimately working for the company. This
way, there is a solid business case for the program that
will ensure its long-term success.
I am a mentor and I have a mentor. Mentorship is not
just a way to give back, it is a responsibility for anyone
in a management position to groom the next generation of workers and accelerate their educational
development. As a mentor, I believe it is important to
take an active involvement, and where appropriate
be a sponsor to open doors and provide opportunities.
I was fortunate in my career to have several mentors
and sponsors, and now am delighted to be able to
support others as they develop their careers in STEM
fields. n
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To be a global innovator, countries must have a steady
flow of graduates trained in STEM disciplines. The Industrial Age was marked by great inventions and laborsaving machines. This amazing shift gave people time
to develop new ideas and theories about how the universe works. This propelled us into the Information Age.
To continue our evolution into the Application Age, we
must have strong STEM capabilities to maintain the fire
of human curiosity and inventiveness. This way, we can
use the information we all now have now and create
new ways to improve people’s lives, standards of living,
health and education.
Avis Braggs
Manager, Information Technology
ConocoPhillips
As one of the world’s largest independent exploration and production companies, we are proud to support the well-being
of the communities in which we operate – through charitable
giving, volunteerism and civic leadership. Our global giving is
focused primarily on education, health and safety and natural resources. A key area of our social investment strategy
is education. We believe an educated workforce drives our
global economic future. Through our social investments, we
strive to improve skills and advance research in secondary
and technical education; support diversity of the talent pool
in math, science and engineering disciplines; and improve
the effectiveness of primary education. ConocoPhillips works
with a number of partners globally in the promotion of STEM
subjects to school children. These partnerships are critical to
ensuring our ability to equip our future workforce with the skills
necessary to meet the world’s growing energy demands.
Avis Braggs is manager, Information Technology (IT) and is a member of the IT leadership
team and the senior manager leadership
forum for ConocoPhillips. Braggs’ areas of
responsibility include Global SAP Services, Data
Base Services, Enterprise Application Integration, Business Intelligence, Business Partner for
Corporate HR and Finance, and all campus
recruiting for the U.S. Braggs has held various
management positions at ConocoPhillips,
including HR Shared Services, IT Strategy Enterprise Architecture and Enterprise Applications.
From 2005 to early 2008, she was chief information officer and vice president for DCP
Midstream, a ConocoPhillips joint venture in
Denver, Colo. Prior to that, she managed IT for
U.S. Marketing. From 2001-2004, Braggs had
functional responsibility in Global Procurement Services for Downstream and Upstream
Americas’ businesses.
Braggs has long championed diversity in the
workplace. She and a team established the first
five diversity networks for ConocoPhillips’ Bartlesville location, including the Black Employee Network, Hispanic Network and Women’s Network.
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for each group. For those efforts, Braggs and
team were honored with ConocoPhillips’ SPIRIT
of Performance Award in the category of People & Safety. The award recognizes cross-functional teams that work collaboratively to solve
a business challenge or achieve a high-impact
goal for the company.
Braggs also actively mentors African American employees across the company – many
of whom connect with her through the
employee networks. She furthers this investment in people by regularly sponsoring
employees for select professional development opportunities via her involvement with
the Executive Leadership Council.
Born in Trinidad, Braggs moved to the United
States after completing high school. She
has a bachelor’s degree with dual majors
in accounting and business administration.
She is a member of the Executive Leadership
Council and serves on the Board of Directors
for Truity Credit Union.
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Although most of the students had no previous experience with their assigned technology, the participants
immersed themselves in their subjects. Feedback on
the event from both students and employees was
overwhelmingly positive.
Introducing young students to new and innovative
technologies and engaging their minds in problemsolving is something I find very exciting. Seeing students
grow their skill sets, gain confidence and become
inspired by the application of technological innovation is gratifying, and it inspires me to continue to challenge my team to push our own limits and work outside
of our established comfort zones.
There are four nuggets of advice I have gleaned during my career:
• One, build a portfolio of excellent performance.
While it’s not the only thing needed, it will be key to
opening the door to future opportunities. It also sets
you up as a valuable asset and gives you leverage.
• Two, nurture your relationships with decision-makers in your organization. In addition to excelling at
assignments, you will need visible, vocal support
from leaders who are willing to stand up on your
behalf, especially when you are competing for
assignments. You will need to earn this support.
• Three, take on roles that you may not want, and
excel at them. This demonstrates resilience, versatility and a mature outlook on career progression.
Most people can perform well in assignments they
like. Over a career, there will always be roles that
aren’t exactly what you want to do. Prove that you
can make the best of these and learn as much as
you can.
• And finally, continually balance your life’s priorities. This is important to your well-being as a person. Take time to enjoy your family, friends and time
away from work.
Information Technology is evolving at a breakneck
pace, so an aptitude and commitment to continuous
learning must be adopted. New and emerging technologies are not valuable on their own; it is the appli-
cation of these technologies that brings value. Success
through innovation in our field comes from understanding the business issues we face, being aware of
what our competition is doing to address those issues,
and applying technologies to stay ahead of the pack.
Innovation will come with mistakes, and those should
be viewed as investments in success.
Mentorship is a key vehicle for gaining access to unfiltered feedback, guidance and support. I also believe
being a mentor is an obligation leaders have. Mentoring others increases our ability to expand the impact
of the experience we’ve gained, and it extends the
value of the investments that have been made in our
professional growth.
While I serve as a mentor for several employees, I
believe I have the most impact when I know the
employees’ abilities and aspirations, I’m familiar with
the organizations they’re trying to navigate, and there
is a mutual trust. This relationship must provide safety
for brutally honest conversations, where an employee
can reveal mistakes they’ve made and the mentor
can share with the employee when they may have
made errors in judgment.
There are times an employee will need more than one
mentor at a time to cover the areas where guidance
is needed.
Lastly, I encourage employees to consider a mentor
who has a very different working or personality style,
as they can provide a perspective that is not obvious.
That input can be invaluable.
What Employee Resource Groups does your company have in place? How can we can we do a
better job to strategically coordinate all those
engaged in STEM across companies and cross different departments?
ConocoPhillips supports a variety of employee networks that align with our corporate objective of fostering a diverse workforce. The networks focus primarily
on professional development, networking, community
involvement and supporting ConocoPhillips’ recruiting
activities.
The groups represent a variety of constituencies –
numerous ethnic groups, new hires, women, administrative assistants, parents and even patriots. Each of
these groups has an executive sponsor who provides
them visibility and guidance. Leaders of these networks
meet periodically to coordinate their activities, share
learnings and leverage resources. The groups provide
valuable communities of support for their membership, leadership opportunities and relationship-building across work areas that would not have otherwise
existed.
I am passionate about all of our employee networks
and am especially proud to co-sponsor the Black
Employee Network. I am also proud to work for a company that believes, as I do, that diverse opinions, ideas
and perspectives are what fuels innovation throughout our company. n
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In April of this year, our IT organization conducted an
Innovation Challenge where we selected 16 students
from nine universities across the country to compete in
a two-day event at ConocoPhillips’ offices in Bartlesville. The students were able to select from four emerging IT technologies. Four teams were given a real
business problem and one day to solve it using their
assigned technology. At the end, each team delivered
a presentation describing their solution. An employeementor supported each team throughout the process.
Employees also served as judges and awarded monetary prizes to each of the teams based on creativity,
complexity and presentation.
Christine M.
Pambianchi
Senior Vice President, Human Resources
Corning
Corning is the world leader in specialty glass and ceramics.
Corning invents, manufactures, and sells keystone components that enable high-technology systems for consumer electronics, telecommunications, mobile emissions control, and
life sciences. Although Corning’s products and markets have
changed many times during its 162-year history, highly engineered specialty glass is the common denominator. Corning
engages in private-public partnerships to advance STEM education. Accordingly, we collaborate with K-12 administrators
and invest in programs that enrich classroom and extra-curricular learning opportunities. For example, the MST Connect
Regional STEM program Corning supports shifts science education to an inquiry-based paradigm, thereby increasing STEM
capability for all students. In the 2013-2014 school year alone,
the program reached 16,000+ students and provided extensive professional development to 600+ teachers in 14 districts.
Home to one of the earliest R&D labs in the U.S., Corning is a
four-time winner of the National Medal of Technology. Learn
more at www.corning.com.
Christine M. Pambianchi is senior vice president, Human Resources for Corning Incorporated. Appointed to this role in December
2010, Pambianchi is responsible for leading
Corning’s global human resource function.
She has led the HR function since January
2008 when she was named vice president,
Human Resources.
Pambianchi was named division vice president, Business Human Resources in July 2004.
Prior to that appointment, Pambianchi was
director, Business Human Resources, where
she supported many of Corning’s Operating
Divisions. Pambianchi started with Corning in
2000 as division human resource manager,
Corning Optical Fiber, and went on to be
director, Human Resources, Corning Optical Communications before moving into her
recent assignments.
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Pambianchi worked at PepsiCo, Incorporated for 10 years. While at PepsiCo, Pambianchi held human resource manager positions
in plant and regional distribution locations
and worked as the organization capability
manager for the field sales organizations. Her
last position at PepsiCo was director, Human
Resources for Information Technology.
Pambianchi holds a bachelor’s degree from
Cornell University’s School of Industrial and
Labor Relations. She serves as president of the
board of directors at the Alternative School for
Math and Science; is a member of the board
of trustees of the Corning Foundation; and a
member of the advisory board of the Cornell
Center for Advanced Human Resource Studies (CAHRS).
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Corning is renowned as an innovation leader – for more
than 160 years, we have literally changed the world
with our breakthrough discoveries. We’ve been successful because our approach to innovation extends
beyond our technical prowess into every aspect of
our company. We have continually reinvented ourselves in response to market and societal changes,
and through it all, our people continue to provide our
competitive advantage. My primary work as Senior
Vice President of Human Resources is to establish and
drive our global Talent Management mission, which is
grounded in a strategic imperative to attract, develop,
and retain diverse talent with deep technical and
commercial knowledge. As part of that, we use innovative ways to a present a competitive value proposition for why Corning should be the employer of choice
for the world’s top technical talent. We seek to do
that through our strong values, our approach to inclusion, and a robust portfolio of employee development
offerings. In concert with that mission, we are focused
on developing our best diverse talent into tomorrow’s
global innovation leaders.
What is your view of mentorship?
Effective mentoring relationships can be personally
and professionally rewarding for mentors and mentees,
and I have benefitted from being in both roles throughout my career. I believe so strongly in the importance
of mentoring, especially for women, that I called upon
the top women leaders at Corning to help me form
an initiative specifically to facilitate and support these
relationships. Our purpose is to help increase the number of women in leadership positions by sharing lessons
learned with our colleagues who want to advance
their careers. We named it the “UP2 Initiative” because
it is “up to” us, Corning’s women leaders, to do our part
to create opportunities for other women to join us in
the top ranks of the company. Throughout Corning’s
160-year history, women have played a significant role
in helping to develop the life-changing innovations
that are the hallmarks our company’s legacy. UP2 is a
catalyst to help us build on that legacy and develop
the next generation of women leaders at Corning.
Corning proudly sponsors approximately 15 Affinity
Groups that represent the interests of various employee
segments. These include women, African Americans,
those with disabilities, the LGBT community, Asians, Latinos, and Native Americans, among others. Most of our
Affinity Groups have a sponsor or champion, typically
one of Corning’s senior leaders or mid-level managers.
Together, our Affinity Groups form our Diversity Network.
Through their efforts, these groups help contribute to
Corning’s success by fostering a diverse and inclusive
environment. They do this by raising awareness around
important issues that often stimulate the company to
respond with new policies, services, and professional
development opportunities. Also, these groups draw
employees into cultural activities, thereby increasing cultural understanding among colleagues that
enhances working relationships. Affinity Groups provide additional benefits to Corning, such as enabling
the sharing of ideas and helping Corning attract and
retain diverse talent.
Successful global innovation at Corning depends on
diversity of thought, experience, background, and the
unique traits of individuals working in a collaborative,
inclusive culture. In this respect, diversity is integral to
our competitive advantage. As a result, our Talent Management strategy is focused on hiring the brightest and
the best from around the world into our STEM positions
– more than 65% of Corning’s professional employees
are engineers or scientists. Once they are on board, we
welcome them into our unique collaborative culture
in which all employees can thrive as they contribute
to Corning’s success. The contributions of our diverse
employees have been significant. For example, more
than 140 patents are held by African Americans and
more than 130 are held by women. Our Talent Management strategy also ensures that the most highly talented
diverse employees are provided leadership opportunities across our businesses and operations. In these roles,
their diverse perspectives expand our global mindset
and help guide our company in ways that keep us at
the forefront of our chosen markets. n
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The best leaders in any field understand they have a
responsibility to “pay it forward” by creating opportunities for others and that they are role models for
those who follow in their footsteps. Therefore, it’s vital
for anyone who aspires to hold a leadership position
to behave accordingly from the outset, as promotions
come to those who demonstrate leadership capabilities at every stage of their careers. My advice to
minorities and women seeking career advancement
is to be especially mindful of this reality on their way
up, as they often have to work harder to prove their
worth. Likewise, they need to understand their organization’s culture and learn how to be successful within it
by knowing the written and unwritten rules. This usually
involves networking with more seasoned colleagues
and taking advantage of mentors who are willing to
lend a hand. Ultimately, minorities and women have to
demonstrate an ability to tackle tough challenges, a
willingness to take on increasing levels of responsibility,
and the capacity to consistently deliver measurable
results.
Greg Morrison
Cox Enterprises
With revenues of nearly $16 billion, Cox Enterprises is a leading
communications, media and automotive services company.
Cox’s major divisions include Cox Communications (cable
television distribution, high-speed Internet access, telephone,
commercial telecommunications and advertising solutions);
Cox Media Group (television and radio stations, digital media,
newspapers and advertising sales rep firms); and Cox Automotive (automotive-related auctions, financial services, media
and software solutions). The company’s major national brands
include AutoTrader.com, Kelley Blue Book, Manheim, Savings.
com and Valpak. Earlier this year, the James M. Cox Foundation
announced a $1.5 million grant to the USS Midway Museum. This
funding is being used toward hands-on STEM classes for more
than 50,000 students onboard the USS Midway. Cox Communications just pledged $15 million in support of Connect2Compete, a broadband adoption program that offers discounted
high speed internet service to low-income families with children
who qualify for the National School Lunch Program. To date,
more than 15,000 families have enrolled in Cox’s program.
Greg Morrison is senior vice president and
chief information officer for Cox Enterprises,
a leading communications, media and automotive services company. He is responsible
for technology service and strategy development for all corporate systems. In addition,
he is responsible for enhancing the IT infrastructure to support business expansion and
ensure consistent service levels and operational reliability across the enterprise.
Morrison was named vice president and
chief information officer of Cox Enterprises in
February 2002.He previously served as vice
president of information systems at Prudential
Financial, Inc., where he progressed through
the ranks from 1989 to 2000. He briefly left Prudential to become chief operating officer
and chief information officer for RealEstate.
com in 2000, and then rejoined the company
later that year as vice president of information systems.
Prior to joining Prudential, Morrison served in
the United States Army Signal Corps for seven
years.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M He serves on the board of trustees for Clark
Atlanta University and on the board of directors for Piedmont Healthcare Systems, Gwinnett Technical College and Presbyterian
Homes of Georgia. He was named one of US
Black Engineer Magazine’s Most Important
Blacks in Technology for nine consecutive
years (2005-2013), as well as one of Computerworld Magazine’s Premier 100 IT Leaders.
Morrison also received the Epsilon Award for
Career Achievement from the National Black
Data Processing Associates (BDPA) organization. Business to Business Magazine named
him an IMPACT Leader for his commitment to
the community, and he also was inducted into
the Public Education Foundation of Moore
County’s Hall of Fame.
Morrison earned a bachelor’s degree in science from South Carolina State University
and a master’s degree in science from Northwestern University.
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believe that we, particularly women and individuals of
color, need to serve as role models that tomorrow’s
work force can emulate and draw inspiration. The inspiration will help create a pipeline of tomorrow’s STEM
work force by providing exposure and shared experiences of achievement. Moreover we need to actively
encourage colleagues and students from underrepresented groups to seek opportunities.
STEM careers are increasingly affecting all industries
and will continue to grow and become more important to the business world. There are many examples of
why this true. Improvements in machine learning and
natural language understanding will drive the rapid
improvements in weareable computers to connected
cars. And advances in Biotech will create customized
drugs tailored to an individuals DNA.
Mentoring is one approach to help in this regard. The
right mentoring programs can help to develop more
diverse bench strength; maximize employee potential;
enhance leadership competency; and help maintain
a diverse slate of talented people ready to take on
more responsibilities or a new role.
It is no secret that people of color are underrepresented in STEM professions. Graduating an increasing
number of students from underrepresented communities with STEM skills is a top priority. According to a study
completed by the Higher Education Research Institute
at UCLA only 18.5 percent of Black college students
and 17.3 percent of Hispanic college students plan on
pursuing a STEM major. Moreover only 25 percent of
underrepresented students who declare a STEM major
earn undergraduate degrees in STEM, compared to 50
percent for all undergraduate students. Black and Hispanic students are more than twice as likely to switch
to other majors as Caucasian and Asian students are.
It is clear we need to focus resources toward these
underrepresented communities to support and inspire
a population of students who may otherwise never
consider a STEM field.
The problem isn’t solved once STEM degrees are
awarded. Forty per percent of underrepresented STEM
professionals report that they have been subjected to
discouragement throughout their STEM career. I strongly
The private sector can help by combining financial,
experiential and directional support in the form of
paid internships and mentorships to promising STEM
scholars. What’s often missing from discussions about
STEM is a focused involvement by the private sector
in STEM to develop robust mechanisms that support
scalable and sustainable high quality education programs. I serve on a University and Technical College
board of trustees. This is an area of focus at the collegiate level that we have identified for the future. But
public school districts need to do some things different
too. They need to train teachers who can reach school
serving predominantly minority and low-income students. Invest in better equipped high school biology
labs. Solicit private industry mentors to pair with students to work on independent research projects. And
actively engage young students—especially from
underrepresented groups—in topics such as robotics,
electronics, mobile app development and 3D design
through a series of increasingly difficult contests and
challenges. These challenges, in turn, foster important
new century skills, including persistence and creative
problem solving. n
I strongly believe that we, particularly women
and individuals of color, need to serve as
role models that tomorrow’s work force can
emulate and draw inspiration.
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Out of the fastest growing occupations in the United
States, 80% of them depend on skills based upon science, technology, engineering and math. Information
Technology, along with other STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) occupations, are big job
creators. STEM jobs are the fastest-growing category of
jobs in the United States and 70% of those jobs involve
computing.
Deborah Dean
Vice President, General Counsel
Dassault Systèmes Americas
Dassault Systèmes, the 3DEXPERIENCE Company, provides
businesses and people with virtual universes to imagine sustainable innovations. Its world-leading solutions transform the
way products are designed, produced and supported. Dassault Systèmes’ collaborative solutions foster social innovation,
expanding possibilities for the virtual world to improve the real
world. The 3DEXPERIENCE Platform is a business experience
platform. It provides software solutions for every organization
in a company—from engineering to marketing to sales – that
help companies, in their value creation process, to create differentiating consumer experiences.
Dassault Systèmes brings value to 190,000 customers of all
sizes, in all industries, in more than 140 countries. The company
has more than 12,000 employees globally, with approximately
3,000 located in North America. Among the company’s STEM
initiatives in North America are Teachers at Dassault Systemes
(TADS), a summer internship program. The company is also
partnered with Georgia Tech to establish an ambitious STEM
education program unique in academia including a STEMoriented summer camp for high school students.
Deborah Dean is currently Vice President,
General Counsel-Americas for Dassault Systèmes. Ms. Dean joined Dassault Systèmes in
2006 through the acquisition of MatrixOne,
Inc., where she served as General Counsel
for several years. Prior to joining MatrixOne,
she served as counsel to several technology
companies, including, among others, Lucent
Technologies, Kenan Systems Corporation,
Vertigo Development Group, and VERSYSS
Incorporated, where she also served as Vice
President-Legal for 4 years. She started her
legal career as an attorney in the corporate
department at the Boston law firm Haussermann, Davison & Shattuck. Ms. Dean received
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Ms. Dean leads Dassault Systemes’ WIN (Women’s Initiative) in the Americas whose mission
is to provide career support and growth for
female employees of the company, as well as
to support the education of girls in Rwanda.
She also serves as a director on the Board of
WEST (Women Entrepreneurs in Science and
Technology), a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing women in STEM. In 2014,
Ms. Dean was named In-House Lawyer of the
Year/Mentoring by Chambers USA. In 2013,
she was named a Leader in the Law by Lawyers Weekly.
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through diversity?
First, I think it starts with making sure that those in
power appreciate the benefits to fully understanding
and leveraging the strengths of both genders. It is not
something that people should feel threatened by, but
they should be embracing diversity goals as an opportunity. There is growing evidence to show that a true
commitment to diversity can impact profitability and
the overall economy in a positive way. But we have
to go further to figure out what it is about careers in
STEM that seems to attract men more so than women.
Our advantage at Dassault Systèmes is that we work
on a lot of really cool, exciting stuff. In recent years,
we’ve added more customers in retail and the fashion
industry because our 3DEXPERIENCE is touching those
industries in ways that it never has before. But to really
make the best of this, we have to align who we are as
a company and who we are selling to. As we grow the
diversity of our leadership, we will find ourselves able to
better represent the customers we serve.
I know I have always benefitted from mentoring, particularly from more senior managers early in my career.
My avenue for mentoring has come through the
Women’s Initiative or WIN program and through my
participation as a Board member for WEST, the Women
Entrepreneurs in Science and Technology organization. One of the key activities of WIN is to invite speakers with concrete advice on how to thrive in a male
dominated industry. Through WIN and WEST, we reach
a large number of women and provide them with a
platform to help them grow individually. We have been
able to invite speakers that really help people articulate and contextualize their challenges and give them
actionable steps they can take to solve those challenges. One speaker we have hosted with a hugely
transformational message is Barbara Annis. Barbara is a
true leader in the field of gender intelligence. She has a
unique approach that uses brain science to help men
and women understand why they think so differently.
The basic idea is that if we can learn to understand
and leverage each other’s strengths, then ultimately
we will be a better team with more satisfied employees, better productivity, a clearer understanding of our
customers, and ultimately, a more profitable company.
I know that Barbara’s guidance and mentorship has
helped WIN participants as well as executives at Dassault Systèmes. Understanding how to become a gender intelligent organization will be a catapult to both
short term and long term success.
I am responsible for leading Dassault Systèmes’ Women’s Initiative in the Americas which focuses on providing support for female employees of the company.
When the software company I was working for was
acquired by Dassault Systèmes 8 years ago, I remember one of my colleagues pointed out that from the 18
member leadership group that was being convened, I
was the only woman. I took that as a challenge, to find
a way to better reflect the society and customers that
we serve. Well, fast forward and now we are looking at
more than 50% gender diversity in our North America
leadership team. I think that’s a tremendous accomplishment for our company, one that has certainly
been helped along because of our CEO’s support. He
is the father of five daughters, so there has never been
a need to convince him of why this is such a valuable
effort. My goal in the future is to make this a more inclusive effort that men feel like they can also be a part of,
so we’re thinking about ways that we might want to
refocus a bit to adopt a more inclusive approach.
For companies that are able to take a long term view
of business, ensuring there is a talent pipeline for our
industry is critical to the growth of our business, and
key to our ability to continually innovate. It’s a business
imperative for us to seek out the best talent, and make
this a place that the most talented diverse candidates would want to work. The long anticipated shortage of skilled workers has been well documented. By
2030, McKinsey projects shortages of about 40 million
college-educated workers (half in industrial countries),
equivalent to an eighth of the 300 million college-educated workers expected in the global labor force. This
labor shortfall is a real challenge for companies like
Dassault Systèmes in North America, but it shouldn’t
require us to go elsewhere in the search for the right
talent. The potential to tackle this shortfall exists on our
own shores. Simply by getting more women interested
in STEM careers, and focusing on the talent that exists
here, we can solve this issue and create a solid pipeline of talent. n
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in advancing STEM jobs careers?
As a legal professional working at a high tech firm, I’m
keen to show all of the possibilities within STEM careers
so that we can illustrate how there are unexpected
opportunities in industries that many young people may
not have thought of. Twenty years ago, 37% of those
enrolled in computer science in college were women,
but as recently as 2012, that number had fallen to just
18%. In recent years, we have seen stagnant progress,
with fewer and fewer women following that path. There
is a great opportunity to achieve meaningful impact
advancing STEM careers, through programs that present the broad range of opportunities that exist. That’s
where I think companies like Dassault Systèmes can
provide truly inspirational examples, simply because of
the range of industries we serve.
Larry Quinlan
Global Chief Information Officer
Deloitte
Deloitte provides audit, tax, consulting, and financial advisory
services to public and private clients spanning multiple industries. With a globally connected network of member firms in
more than 150 countries and territories, Deloitte brings worldclass capabilities and high-quality service to clients, delivering
the insights they need to address their most complex business
challenges. Deloitte’s more than 200,000 professionals are
committed to becoming the standard of excellence. Within
Deloitte’s talent competency model, STEM skills are emphasized as critical to serving clients.
Larry Quinlan is a principal at Deloitte—one
of the world’s largest professional services
organizations, with over 200,000 people in
more than 150 countries around the world. He
serves as the Global Chief Information Officer
and chairs the Global CIO Council.
As CIO, Larry has responsibility for all facets of
technology including strategy, applications,
infrastructure, support, and execution. In this
role, he also leads the worldwide technology
organization.
Larry has been with Deloitte since 1988 and
has served in a variety of leadership roles,
including Global CIO for Deloitte Consulting
LLP and National Managing Principal for Process Excellence. As Process Excellence leader,
Larry led the U.S. enterprise-wide effort to
increase margins and effectiveness through
continuous process improvement using the
Lean Six Sigma methodology.
Larry holds an MBA from Baruch College, City
University of New York and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of the West
Indies.
Larry has been widely quoted in major publications including The Wall Street Journal and
InformationWeek and has spoken at major
events. He has been honored by institutions
and publications including the Nashville Business Journal (2014 CIO Award), American
Foundation for the University of The West Indies
(Vice Chancellor’s Award), CARAH (Outstanding Corporate Contribution to Corporate America), CIO Magazine (2012 CIO 100
Award), Computerworld (2007 Premier 100 IT
Leader), and Black MBA Magazine (2005 Top
50 Under 50).
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What do corporations need to do to create more STEM
careers and fill existing jobs?
STEM careers are already in demand by businesses globally, yet there’s a consistent shortage in the talent pipeline.
The challenge for businesses is attracting and retaining the
talent needed to fill the jobs—in fact, as early as 2018, the
nation will face a skills shortage of 230,000 STEM professionals. Deloitte is aware of the importance of investing in STEM
education and talent development in order to help businesses thrive in a fast-changing technology landscape. We
are investing in developing the next generation of STEM talent because we believe that businesses ignore it at their
own peril. Businesses should make STEM skills a focus of their
recruitment efforts. STEM-related positions are significant
components of Deloitte’s talent acquisition strategy—in
FY13, STEM hiring was up 15% over FY12, and we saw that
growth trend continue into FY14. Corporations also need to
develop programs and initiatives to increase the number
of women and minorities within STEM careers. Women and
minorities comprise 70% of U.S. college students, but only
45% receive undergraduate degrees in STEM disciplines.
Mentoring and support programs can help. Retaining existing STEM talent is also key for corporations. Deloitte has a
vested interest in both hiring from the outside and growing
our own talent in order to meet the demands of fast-changing technology landscape. A key component of our talent
acquisition and retention strategy is our large-scale, robust
mentoring program that advances the STEM skillsets of our
professionals via a combination of experienced leadership
and the latest technology. And within Deloitte’s talent competency model, STEM training is emphasized as critical to
serving clients.
How has your corporation coordinated investments in
education with future workforce needs?
Deloitte invests significantly in education and future workforce needs.
•
College Summit—helps high schools develop college-going cultures in underrepresented areas.
50,000 students per year assisted via Deloitte’s work
with College Summit.
-- Education stats demonstrating a commitment to
helping students succeed through high school,
to/through college, and to a successful career:
200,000+ students per year assisted via Deloitte’s
education support; 200+ Deloitte Partners/Directors serve on Education non-profit boards; 2,400+
Deloitte volunteers lend their skills year-round to
education efforts via mentoring and skills-based
volunteerism; over 200 education-related projects
on IMPACT Day, Deloitte’s Day of Service
•
LEAD (Leadership and Education Development Program for Business)
• Change the Equation to inspire youth involvement in
STEM fields
College-level efforts: Intern program - Deloitte’s national
summer internship program. Within technology, we are
devoted to advancing STEM skills in college students. In
New York and Dallas, we partner with NPower which offers
a 22 week intensive training program that builds brighter
futures for underserved young adults and veterans helping
them pursue STEM related careers by providing free professional training and job placement services.; Hosted at
24 targeted schools: What is Technology Consulting series
and “Women in Technology”; University programming
competitions (5 universities) targeting STEM undergrads;
“Women in Technology” seminars at National Association
of Women MBAs (NAWMBA) conference; Actively participate in NACME (National Action Council for Minorities
in Engineering) conferences and workshops; INROADS—
training, development, & placement for minority students; Deloitte sponsors their Leadership development
program for interns; Deloitte has been a main sponsor
of the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition
(NCCDC) for three years; also successful at recruiting at
both the regional and national competitions.
What is your advice on using private-public partnerships to tackle our most pressing education challenges in STEM?
Business, government, and education leaders absolutely
need to work together to address the STEM talent shortage. It’s common knowledge that students today are
being educated to take on jobs that don’t yet exist, reinforcing the need for collaboration between academia
and organizations. Organizations should work with universities to shape the curriculum to facilitate a much closer
alignment between business and academics. Specifically, two areas where organizations will need to invest in
talent are big data and analytics—these skill sets are and
will continue to be in demand, and businesses need to
partner with academia to stay ahead of the curve.
Leaders are in great demand as business builders
and role models. What advice do you have for minorities and women coming “up” in the system?
I frequently have the opportunity to meet with students
and young professionals, and I always take advantage
of that face time to explain the tremendous, fast-growing career opportunities in STEM fields available to them.
STEM is a game-changer for all of us; businesses should
take the lead in showing students how their education
can be applied to real-life STEM career opportunities—
especially for women and minorities, who are frequently
underrepresented in STEM fields.
Additionally, I always encourage young professionals
and students to seek out mentors. Mentorship programs
can play a significant role in attracting students to STEM
careers and offer tremendous value to those “coming up”
in the system. Businesses should take the opportunity to
provide the next generation of talent with real-life examples and role models is key to nurturing an interest in STEM
fields—it’s a mutually beneficial investment for businesses,
who can give back to their communities as well as create
a natural pipeline of future workers. n
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Why is STEM Education/workforce development critical to the future of our nation?
Simply put, STEM is a game changer—technology and
innovation are and will continue to be key drivers for economic growth and jobs. Today’s fast-changing technology landscape underscores the importance of having
a skilled, adaptable, and agile workforce that can help
organizations not only stay one step ahead, but also to
thrive and evolve. Investing in STEM education for students as well as existing workforce talent will create and
sustain important and lucrative educational and careers
that are critical to U.S. innovation and competitiveness.
RodneyO’Neal
Chief Executive Officer & President
Delphi Automotive PLC
Delphi Automotive PLC (NYSE: DLPH) is a leading global supplier of technologies for the automotive and commercial
vehicle markets. Headquartered in Gillingham, England, Delphi operates major technical centers, manufacturing sites
and customer support services in 32 countries, with regional
headquarters in Bascharage, Luxembourg; Sao Paulo, Brazil;
Shanghai, China and Troy, Michigan, U.S. Delphi delivers innovation for the real world with technologies that make cars
and trucks safer as well as more powerful, efficient and connected. Through its Foundation, Delphi supports many STEM
activities including First Robotics, Society of Women Engineers,
Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, Society of Black Engineers, Michigan Science Center, National Council for Minorities in Engineering, and the Society of Automotive Engineers
(SAE). Additionally, the company partners with several academic institutions on new technology and donates to provide
scholarships and equipment in support of technical degrees.
Rodney O’Neal serves as chief executive officer and president of Delphi Automotive PLC,
a premier global automotive supplier, with
manufacturing sites and technical centers in
32 countries.
A veteran of the automotive industry,Mr.O’Neal
began his career with General Motors while
attending college at General Motors Institute
(now Kettering University). After graduation, he
held a number of engineering, production and
manufacturing supervisory positions with the
company in locations throughout the United
States, Portugal and Canada.
Mr. O’Neal became president of Delphi’s Interior
Systems Division in 1997 and later held executive
level appointments in several Delphi divisions
before becoming the company’s president and
chief operating officer in 2005. Two years later, he
was named the chief executive officer.
During his tenure as CEO, Mr. O’Neal led Delphi through a historic reorganization that
transformed the company into an entity with
fewer, but more competitive and profitable
product lines, as well as more diversified mar-
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Today, Delphi has over $16 billion in revenue,
is considered a technological leader and was
recently added to the S&P 500.
A longtime resident of Michigan, Mr. O’Neal
has remained an active member of the community, often dedicating his efforts to mentor
underserved youth. He serves on the honorary
board of directors for Real Life 101, a scholarship and mentoring program for at-risk African American males. He is a former member
of the board of directors for INROADS Inc.,
an organization that helps to prepare underserved youth for corporate careers. In 2014,
Mr. O’Neal received the prestigious Albert
Schweitzer Leadership Award from the Hugh
O’Brien Youth Leadership (HOBY) organization.
Mr. O’Neal has a bachelor’s degree from
General Motors Institute and a master’s
degree from Stanford University. He serves on
the board of directors for Delphi and is a former member of the board of directors for the
Sprint Nextel Corporation and the Goodyear
Tire & Rubber Company.
**Will retire in March, 2015
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Today, at Delphi, I am fortunate to lead a global team
of exceptional engineers and technical professionals
who spend each day creating innovations and technologies that solve “real world” problems. Each student who graduates from a STEM education has that
same capacity to change lives in our country, and in
the world. STEM education helps prepare individuals to
seize the opportunities that are presented to them.
Innovation is the key to success in this rapidly changing world—my generation has seen the invention of
computers, smart phones and now driverless vehicles.
It takes individuals and group of individuals with the
curiosity, technical skill and tenacious drive to see
these “ideas” come to market. Delphi encourages
“open innovation” and collaborates extensively with
peers in the industry, government agencies around
the world and academic institutions. Delphi’s technology competencies are recognized by customers and
suppliers as well as government agencies, who have
co-invested approximately $400 million in new product
development.
The potential of individuals, who may be our next generation of innovators, may not be realized if elementary or high school students are not exposed to the
opportunities a STEM education can provide. These
students, in turn, need to seize the opportunities presented to them. I believe there are three ways each of
us, fortunate enough to have succeeded in the STEM
profession, can support the next generation:
• Personally support organizations that support
the professional development of young people.
I serve on the honorary board of Real Life 101, a
scholarship and mentoring program for at-risk African American young men and have served on the
board of INROADS, an organization that prepares
underserved youth for corporate careers. Del-
phi’s engineers have lent their time and expertise
to many FIRST Robotics team competitions since
the beginning. It is something to see the pure joy
of a young person experiencing that science and
math can be fun.
• Provide company support through donations,
partnerships and collaboration with University
programs. Delphi, through its Foundation, supports
the efforts of the national organizations of Women,
Hispanic and Black Engineers. We have provided
Engineering scholarships and donated equipment
and tooling to support the engineering programs
at many US schools. These educational programs
are the foundation of learning which creates the
future engineers and scientists of tomorrow.
• Provide “real world” working experiences for
these students through internships and coops. Delphi has almost 200 co-ops interns working
at our US locations this year. We have more than
600 working in locations around the world. These
experiences provide the opportunity for students
to apply what they are learning in the classroom.
While there is intrinsic value in having a STEM education, the true value of that education is realized
when it is applied in real world settings.
I am proud to lead a company that employs more
than 19,000 engineers, scientists and technicians who
work in 15 engineering centers around the globe. Each
day these 19,000 employees go into work to design
and produce products that create Safer, Greener and
More Connected vehicles. It would not be possible if
each of these employees had not been adequately
prepared by a solid STEM education.
My father instilled in me to dream bigger than I thought
possible. To seize the opportunities presented to me.
My professional dreams were realized in the automotive industry where we are making a difference in the
world with products that enhance the safety, environmental impact and connectivity of the driver. When I
graduated, the possibility for some of our products only
existed in science fiction movies and TV shows. These
innovations will be the next generation’s reality……
which hopefully will encourage them to dream bigger…..to make a positive difference in the world
through technology. n
It takes individuals and group of individuals
with the curiosity, technical skill and tenacious
drive to see these “ideas” come to market.
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I know firsthand that obtaining a STEM education can
change lives. When I was a teenager in Dayton, Ohio, I
imagined success as having a job that would provide
me a few dollars in my pocket, a nice car and a good
place to live. My father told me I wasn’t thinking big
enough. He impressed upon me at an early age that
education would open doors for me. He stressed the
importance of getting ready for opportunities that
would come and to be prepared to seize them. He
was absolutely right.
Lloyd H. Dean
President & Chief Executive Officer
Dignity Health
Dignity Health, one of the nation’s largest health care systems,
is a 20-state network of nearly 11,000 physicians, 56,000 employees, and more than 380 care centers, including hospitals, urgent and occupational care, imaging centers, home
health, and primary care clinics.
Dignity Health offers a variety of career opportunities for talented individuals. Annually, we hire approximately 10,000 individuals with the vast majority of these hires in clinical roles
where skills in the science and technology fields are crucial.
We offer an array of skilled nursing positions (i.e., Registered
Nurses) as well as Respiratory Therapist, Registered Dietitian,
and Occupational Therapist careers. At Dignity Health, we
hire the highest caliber professional.
Headquartered in San Francisco, Dignity Health is dedicated
to providing compassionate, high-quality and affordable patient-centered care with special attention to the poor and
underserved. In 2013, Dignity Health provided nearly $1.7 billion in charitable care and services.
Lloyd H. Dean is a nationally recognized leader
within and beyond the field of health care.
He is President/CEO of Dignity Health, one of
the nation’s five largest health care systems
with a 21-state network of nearly 11,000 physicians, 56,000 employees, and more than 300
care centers, including hospitals, urgent and
occupational care, imaging centers, home
health, and primary care clinics. He is responsible for the organization’s nearly $14 billion in
assets, overall management, governance,
strategy, and direction. He has led Dignity
Health through significant strategic, operational, and financial transformations and has
brought the organization to its current status
as a leading health care organization recognized for high quality, compassionate care,
operational excellence, and strong financial
results.
A strong advocate for health care reform, Mr.
Dean has been actively engaged with the
White House and Congressional leaders on
health care issues. He directly participated in
health care reform discussions with President
Barack Obama and has been appointed to
the California State Healthcare Cost Commission charged with developing practical
state policies to contain health care costs in
the nation.
Mr. Dean holds degrees in sociology and education from Western Michigan University, and
received an honorary doctorate of humane
letters from the University of San Francisco. In
2014 he was ranked number 21 in Modern
Healthcare’s “100 Most Influential People in
Healthcare” and is also consistently named
one of the “Top 25 Minority Leaders in Healthcare.”
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What STEM initiative that your company has supported
are you most proud of?
Dignity Health has built several strategic and innovative
partnerships that are improving the connection between
doctors and patients. It’s most recent entry into this arena
is a partnership with Augmedix and Google Glass that
has doubled the amount of time physicians can spend
with their patients daily, rather than filling out charts.
Dignity Health has also joined the effort to bring more
transparency to the industry. A current partnership called
Shared Clarity brings together UnitedHealthcare and other
leading health providers to analyze the performance of
medical devices. Shared Clarity combines data from the
insurer and providers to help inform health care organizations about the most effective medical devices through
comparative effectiveness studies, which saves patients
and providers health care dollars.
Dignity Health has also launched a Telehealth Network
that brings together highly specialized physicians and
state-of-the-art technology to offer rural patients immediate access to life-saving medical care. The health system is also leading the industry in listening to consumer
needs and offering services that help make the health system more navigable. For example, the system now offers
online self-scheduling for estimated treatment times in
emergency rooms, urgent care clinics, and some doctor’s
offices to help patients avoid long waits.
How is your company infusing diversity with STEM initiatives? Is this a part of your comprehensive strategy?
Dignity Health recognizes the importance and value of
building and maintaining a diverse workforce in sustaining its mission and core values. Primarily, the organization
understands the importance of being representatives
of the communities served by the health system. Dignity
Health has established programs that identify diverse candidates for internal positions, both currently available and
for future placement. Additionally, Dignity Health employs
an array of recruitment and sourcing methodologies to
ensure that the organization attracts diverse candidates
for all open positions. On an annual basis, Dignity Health
sponsors the Dignity Health Fellowship program to expose
high potential students to work experiences in the health
care field, building a diverse pipeline of future Dignity
Health leaders.
As of 2013, at Dignity Health 76.1 percent of employees
were women and 46 percent of its employees are racially
and/or ethnically diverse. Nearly two-thirds of all managers
at Dignity Health were women, and of managers, 19.7 percent were racially and/or ethnically diverse.
Dignity Health has been at the nexus of many innovative
projects designed to increase access to care, improve
the quality of care, and deliver an excellent experience
to every patient who enters its doors. From using telepresence robots to expand access to medical specialists in its
hospitals to sponsoring developer challenges with leading
technology companies like Box, Dignity Health is working
to transform the way care is delivered and information is
shared between patient and physician.
Dignity Health fosters innovation by developing and promoting inventions and methodologies that are of value
to the local or the global community. Its Strategic Innovation function works with and invests in entrepreneurs and
companies developing emerging technologies to accelerate organizational performance, improve quality, and
reduce the cost of care.
Experience is a key aspect of securing a career in a STEM
related field. Gaining experience which allows a new
graduate to compete in the job market can often be difficult; therefore, it is important for employers to offer STEM
education programs so students can obtain as much
practical experience as possible. For example, establishing an “experience bridge” and allowing experienced
professionals to teach skills and techniques in the class
room not only provides students an advantage early on in
their career, but employers ultimately benefit from a more
experience graduate pool. This also is an opportunity to
compensate and encourage selected employees to
provide classroom instruction with pay. This support, along
with on-the-job experience with internships and fellowships such as the Dignity Health Fellowship Program, offers
a way to encourage and excite students to see hands-on
application and rewarding opportunities in science, technology, engineering and math.
through diversity?
Career fields are becoming increasingly more technical. An
emphasis on STEM tools and skills has become prevalent in
the workplace and everyday life. The competition for individuals that have these skills continues to grow, often creating a shortage of talent; therefore, employers must support
education and career development centers that are working to grow this capability (particularly where they have
a proven track record of success). The support, however,
must begin at the earliest educational levels and employers must participate and contribute to their success. At
Dignity Health our population is composed of nearly 50%
“people of color,” therefore working with STEM programs
that have a strong diversity reputation is very important.
STEM leadership that has a focus on diversity is a tremendous help to Dignity Health. Our employee population is
composed of 75% female, 47% people of color, and our
Gen X & Y makes up 60% of our organization. Having a
partner that understands the importance of supporting a
diverse culture is critical. n
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The key to smart STEM investments is to embrace and
promote change. Between the sweeping policy reforms,
the influx of technology, and the care model innovations,
health care doesn’t resemble the industry it was even
five years ago. In 2013 alone, physician and hospital use
of health IT more than doubled. Embracing innovative
approaches and entrepreneurial endeavors that improve
care delivery, system infrastructure, and patient engagement in the near-term are now business strategies critical to the long-term success and viability of health care
organizations. Today’s decisions will determine which
health care companies and systems will thrive tomorrow.
Dexter Cole
Vice President of Programming,
Science Channel
Discovery Communications
Discovery Communications is the world’s #1 independent programmer reaching 2.7 billion cumulative subscribers in more
than 220 countries and territories. Discovery is dedicated to
satisfying curiosity, engaging and entertaining viewers with
high-quality content on worldwide television networks, led by
Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Investigation Discovery and Science, as well as U.S. joint venture network OWN:
Oprah Winfrey Network. Discovery also is a leading provider
of educational products and services to schools, through Discovery Education, and a digital leader with a diversified online portfolio, including Discovery Digital Networks.
Science Channel, a division of Discovery Communications,
Inc., is home for the thought provocateur, the individual who is
unafraid to ask the killer questions of “how” and “why not.” Science Channel looks for innovation in mysterious new worlds as
well as in its own backyard. Science Channel reaches nearly
80 million U.S. households.
In his current role as VP of Programming for
the Science Channel, Dexter oversees the
programming strategy for the network and is
responsible for identifying new programming
genres to grow the network’s audience. Since
his arrival at Science Channel, he has helped
introduce hit series such as Through the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman, An Idiot Abroad
and Firefly to primetime. As a result, the network has experienced its most-watched year
for three consecutive years in primetime.
Dexter returned to Discovery in 2010 after a
two-year term as Vice President of Research
for TV One, where he was responsible for leading the network in the areas of programming
and consumer research. Dexter joined TV One
in March 2008 and was instrumental in growing the prime time ratings for the network.
Prior to working for TV One, Dexter was
employed at Discovery Communications, LLC
for ten years and during his tenure managed
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Planet, Travel Channel and Discovery Health
Channel.
Having spent the majority of his time at Discovery supporting the TLC network, Dexter last
served as Vice President, TLC Research and
was instrumental in the launch of successful TLC series such as Little People, Big World,
Miami Ink, Trading Spaces and What Not to
Wear. He and his team were also responsible
for the management of both the qualitative
and quantitative research initiatives in the
creation of TLC’s award-winning “Life Lessons”
brand campaign.
He received both his undergraduate and
graduate degrees from Howard University
in Washington, D.C., with a Bachelor of Arts,
Magna Cum Laude, in Journalism and an MBA.
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To that end, there are many steps that we can take to
guide our youth in that direction. We should encourage students to pursue work that is not only interesting and stimulating, but that also allows them to make
a difference in the world. Reinforcing this message will
be key to any successful STEM workforce strategy, and
our education system must be refocused so that STEM
subjects are introduced and emphasized early as a
foundational component of career preparation.
That said, our job does not end there. We must stick
with our students as they advance through the educational pipeline. Experts say that one of the most effective ways to encourage students’ persistence in STEM
is to give them a sense of what college-level STEM
courses involve at middle and high school levels. The
coursework that students do must therefore be rigorous, relevant to workforce skills, and stimulating.
Mentorships are also very important in retaining students’ interest in STEM. Never underestimate the impact
of a face-to-face conversation between a student and
an inspiring STEM leader; these interactions can be the
spark for a lifetime’s worth of interest. Here at Discovery, I work to encourage just those kinds of interactions
by leveraging our community of STEM professionals to
spread the ‘gospel of STEM’ through formal mentorship
programs and role modeling. We enlist our colleagues
who have engaged in mentorships to encourage students, especially first-generation college students, to
include STEM fields among their career options.
Encouraging first-generation college students is just
one front in our effort to promote diversity in STEM, an
area where we as a country need to focus more attention and support. Specifically, there is a glaring lack of
women and minorities in STEM jobs. By using incentives
such as scholarships, internships and mentorships, we
can work to correct that imbalance and give everyone access to opportunities that some might not otherwise be exposed to.
One of the initiatives that I am most proud of from
my tenure here at Discovery Communications was in
this vein. Earlier this year at the White House Science
Fair, we launched a new effort to encourage girls to
become engaged in STEM with a cross-channel public
service announcement (PSA) on our 14 U.S. networks.
The content of the message focused on the importance of STEM education and the need to recruit STEM
mentors to help encourage students and especially
girls at a young age to get involved in STEM subjects.
I personally have served as a mentor for many years,
both in the corporate world and on a personal level,
and have enjoyed tremendously the time that I’ve
invested in helping to guide and inspire the next generation. My hope is that young people know that there
are executives that are willing to help and counsel
them, whether in STEM or in another career of their
dreams. I would encourage them to have the confidence to seek out those with experience, and ask
them for guidance.
In conclusion, the future is clear: STEM jobs are expected
to grow by 17% between 2008 and 2018, and to meet
the growing demand, we must emphasize STEM skills in
early childhood, K-12 and higher education. We must
actively recruit women and minorities into STEM majors,
using Title IX to improve school climates for females at
every age. We need to do more than just tell young
women and minorities that they can be scientists and
medical professionals, we must act to make these possibilities real. If the U.S. is to remain at the forefront of global
innovation, it is essential that we follow through in making STEM education a top national priority. Our country’s
economic stability, security, and welfare depend on it.
I am so privileged to work in an organization such as
Discovery Communications, and with the Science
Channel specifically, where we are on the front lines
of trying to make a difference in this effort. I can only
hope that the type of programming that we create and promote will drive the next generation into
STEM fields so that they can pave the way for those to
come. n
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STEM education is such a major focus because it
affects our most precious commodities, our children.
STEM is their future and will pervade every aspect of
their lives, including the fastest-growing occupations,
such as engineering, system analytics, accounting,
and finance. It is clear that STEM will be the future of
the working world, and therefore represents a critical
knowledge base for both boys and girls who hope
to have a chance at sustaining a fruitful career. New
technology, from robotics to 3D printing, continues to
transform job roles in a multitude of industries and if the
U.S. is to maintain its competitive position as a global
economic superpower, then we must motivate students to enter STEM fields.
Nikki Katz
Vice President, Product
Management & Mobile Network
Disney Interactive
Disney Interactive is the digital entertainment part of The Walt
Disney Company. As one of the world’s largest creators of
high-quality digital experiences, Disney Interactive produces
interactive entertainment for the whole family including multiplatform video games, online short form video, mobile and
social games and digital destinations across all current and
emerging media platforms. Entertaining Guests of all ages,
Disney Interactive’s key products include the video game
platform Disney Infinity, top virtual world for kids Club Penguin,
popular online destinations for kids, parents and fans including Disney.com, Oh My Disney, and Babble.com and the Disney social network reaching more than 1 billion guests on
Facebook. To encourage and foster STEM education in its
workforce and the community, Disney Interactive offers regular enrichment programs including monthly Tech Talks, leadership symposiums and volunteer opportunities to inspire local
children to learn computer science through its partnership
with Code.org and other non-profits.
As Vice President of Product Management
and the Mobile Network at Disney Interactive, Disney’s mobile, gaming, and interactive
media division, Nikki is responsible for designing, developing, and operating the technology that powers Disney Digital experiences.
Since she joined the company in 2011, she has
led and shaped the platform services organization at Disney Interactive and delivered largescale technology solutions that are leveraged
across The Walt Disney Company, including:
the mobile ad network, social network, open
graph service, kids’ safe chat, personalization,
and content management systems.
where she led product strategy and development of Apollo’s global proprietary online
education platform.
She launched her corporate career at Yahoo
as a software engineer and progressed
through multiple technology roles across
engineering, operations, product management, and engineering management.
Nikki is a graduate of Stanford University
where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in
Symbolic Systems with a concentration in
Human-Computer Interaction.
She currently resides in Los Altos with her family.
Prior to Disney Interactive, Nikki served as VP
of Product Management at the Apollo Group
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My advice to anyone “coming up” in the system is to
take ownership of and accountability for your own
career. There are many ways to attain professional
goals, but failure to set them for yourself or to gauge
progress towards them is a sure fire way to miss. This
needs to be an active and ongoing process. Know
where you want to be and assess opportunities in terms
of whether they get you closer to that target. Seek out
projects that will expand your skill sets and fill gaps
in your organization that highlight your strengths. Be
appropriately and constructively critical of yourself –
essentially apply the principles of continuous improvement to your own skill sets and knowledge base. Good
leaders exhibit both confidence and humility – the
confidence to trust themselves and to take risks and
the humility to always push to be better and evolve.
Although innovation is defined simply as the act of
introducing new ideas into a system, in an applied
business setting I interpret it as the ability to predict
where you need to be and adjust to be there before
the customer realizes they needed you there. Innovation can be revolutionary and take industries forward
in huge leaps, or it can also be more subtle and evolutionary. My organization enables innovation by providing common platforms that serve as building blocks
and allow teams across Disney to more quickly deliver
new products and experiences to market. We focus on
efficiently prototyping new concepts and technologies and then rapidly iterating to production-grade
quality and scale.
Whether through formal corporate programs or informal relationships, I have consistently been a mentor
throughout my career. I believe that mentorship is a
crucial part of workforce and leadership development
and benefits both individuals in the relationship. For the
mentee, a mentor is a needed ally who’s invested in
their career and can open doors and identify opportunities that could have otherwise been missed. A
good mentor can also give candid and constructive
feedback without bias or the added weight of formal performance management. For the mentor, the
mentorship process is not only personally rewarding,
but can help maintain a good grip on the day-to-day
operations of an organization and create a channel
for identifying and developing star performers at all
levels. Additionally, the process of teaching and mentoring help the mentor solidify their own frameworks
and thinking around the nuances of being successful
in the organization. In my own experience, I have not
only learned from my mentees directly but I’ve also
evolved and matured my own thinking on product
strategy, technology trends, peer relationships, effective communication, and much more thanks to our
conversations.
Staying competitive means identifying and investing in good ideas and top talent. Good ideas are not
hampered by arbitrary boundaries like position, title,
socioeconomic status, race, etc and can come from
anywhere in the organization. In fact, research has
clearly proven over the years that the best ideas are
more likely to emerge from diverse groups. Disney’s
investment in technology leadership with a focus on
diversity increases the chances that good ideas will
bubble up and be heard. Additionally, our focus on
diversity means that we increase our candidate pool
and are therefore better able to attract and retain top
talent.
the workforce?
The world of technology changes rapidly and new
technologies and methods appear and disappear
at lightning speeds. Training specialized skill sets in
STEM education is therefore not as useful as teaching
broadly applicable and reusable skills like problem
solving, critical thinking, professional communication,
collaboration, and more that will allow individuals
entering the workforce to adapt to changing environments and tools. Corporations’ role in the collaboration
is to not only provide feedback to universities so that
education can continue to evolve, but also to provide
real-world examples and training through internships,
apprenticeships, and co-ops. Additionally, in terms of
promoting diversity in education and the workforce,
collaboration between educational institutions and
corporations is crucial since without professional role
models and career goals, women and minorities will
attrite from STEM fields during the span of their education, and without a diverse pipeline of candidates
coming out of educational programs, corporations
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I fell in love with programming as an 11 year old toying
with DOS and QBasic. I wrote command line games,
signed up for every Computer Science class I could
find, and begged my parents for a Borland Pascal compiler for my Bat Mitzvah. I declared as a Computer Science major within weeks of starting my freshman year
of college but by the end of that first year I changed
majors. I had learned that software engineers didn’t
look like me, that I didn’t fit the stereotype – I mean,
I didn’t even play video games. The stereotype has
evolved and changed over time, but stereotypes of
who STEM professionals are remain a big deterrent for
women and minorities as they progress in their career.
To encourage diversity in STEM fields, we have to highlight the diversity that already exists in those fields. We
have to help women and minorities see themselves in
STEM role models and find challenges to tackle with
their STEM education that matter to them.
Kim Ann Mink
President for Elastomers, Electrical
and Telecommunications
The Dow Chemical Company
Dow combines the power of science and technology to passionately innovate what is essential to human progress. The
Company is driving innovations that extract value from the
intersection of chemical, physical and biological sciences to
help address many of the world’s most challenging problems
such as the need for clean water, clean energy generation
and conservation, and increasing agricultural productivity.
Dow’s integrated, market-driven, industry-leading portfolio of
specialty chemical, advanced materials, agrosciences and
plastics businesses delivers a broad range of technologybased products and solutions to customers in approximately
180 countries and in high growth sectors such as packaging,
electronics, water, coatings and agriculture. In 2013, Dow had
annual sales of more than $57 billion and employed approximately 53,000 people worldwide. The Company’s more than
6,000 products are manufactured at 201 sites in 36 countries
across the globe.
Kim Ann Mink is the president for Elastomers,
Electrical and Telecommunications for The
Dow Chemical Company.
Mink joined Dow in April 2009 following more
than 20 years with the Rohm and Haas Company, now a fully owned subsidiary of Dow.
Prior to assuming her current role, she served
as the global general manager of Dow Elastomers, a global business unit in Dow’s Performance Plastics Division. Additionally, she has
held the position of global business director
for Amines and Chelants, a global business
unit in Dow’s Performance Materials Division,
as well as chief executive officer of ANGUS, a
wholly owned subsidiary of Dow, and global
general manager of Dow Performance Additives, a global business unit in Dow’s Advanced
Materials Division.
Mink is a member of the Catalyst Board of
Advisors. Catalyst is the leading nonprofit
membership organization working globally
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and expand opportunities for women and
business. Mink is also a member of the STEM
Executive Council, an internal organization
focused on developing and directing Dow’s
global STEM education strategy.
She is also a member of the ALS Association’s
National Board of Trustees. The ALS Association is a national non-profit organization fighting Lou Gehrig’s Disease by leading the way in
global research, providing assistance for people with ALS through a nationwide network of
chapters, coordinating multidisciplinary care
through certified clinical care centers, and
fostering government partnerships.
Mink earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Hamilton College and a Ph.D. in
Analytical Chemistry from Duke University. In
addition, she is a graduate of the Wharton
School of Business Management Program.
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I am especially proud when I see Dow employees
devote their time, energy and expertise to preparing
the leaders of the future. One great example is You
Be The Chemist®, a nationwide competition for middle
school-aged students. YBTC not only recognizes excellence and provides students incentive to improve their
understanding of chemistry, the program offers them
preparation materials and hands-on activities. Dow is
the top national sponsor of YBTC, and our employees
volunteer to run local competitions at several sites, as
well as offering science demonstrations and similar
contributions. We also have employees who are volunteer mentors for high schools involved in FIRST Robotics®, in which students design, build and pilot complex
robots in a demanding and inspiring series of competitions. Harnessing the power of our people—what we
call The Human Element—is the key to our greatest
successes.
Innovation was the seed of Dow’s birth and remains
the heart of our success, so we are acutely aware of its
importance in the modern economy. The only way to
remain an innovation leader is to have the right people with the right skills, and more and more that means
STEM skills. Over a 10-year period, the number of STEM
jobs has risen three times faster than non-STEM jobs,
according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. So
we must take strategic action now to engage today’s
students in STEM subjects so they can be tomorrow’s
innovators. The case is so compelling that Dow recently
created the STEM Executive Council, made up of nine
senior leaders from across the organization, dedicated
to crafting a corporate STEM strategy and ensuring
its implementation. As a member of the Council, I see
again and again how a coordinated strategy of investing in STEM education pays off. For instance, scientists in
Dow’s Electrical & Telecommunications business have
developed materials that are literally groundbreaking: they allow electrical transmission lines to be buried underground without sacrificing reliability. The result
is better operations for utilities and prettier skylines for
everyone. That’s the kind of payoff that comes from a
strategic investment in STEM skills.
I have been blessed with several wonderful mentors in
my career, so I am glad to offer that support to people
who are trying to make an impact. The world is a big
place, with both opportunities and challenges, so it’s
invaluable to have people who believe in you. When
I was beginning my career, there weren’t many female
role models in the science field, but I was fortunate to
meet the right people to help me. Now, I can be that
person for others. More importantly, I can help establish a culture of support and guidance for everyone. As
Dow’s representative on the Catalyst Board of Advisors,
a partnership of companies dedicated to promoting
workplace diversity and expanding opportunities for
women in business, I bring ideas from around the world
to Dow, and share our company’s successes with others.
Dow values the differing experiences, backgrounds
and perspectives our employees bring, and we are
committed to building a vibrant, diverse and talented employee base. We have established several
employee resource groups that support those values, including the African-American Network; Asian
Diversity Network; Disability Employee Network; Gay,
Lesbians and Allies at Dow; Hispanic Latin Network;
Middle East Intercultural Network and the Women’s
Innovation Network. Company leaders are actively
involved in these groups as a way to both support
their efforts and to help bring about real change in
the organization. For example, I serve as the North
American co-chair for the Women’s Innovation Network, which played a role in the company signing the
Women’s Empowerment Principles, a United Nations
initiative that joins 167 companies and organizations
from around the world in a mission to promote gender
equality and women’s empowerment. n
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Teachers have a wonderful ability to inspire students
and help them overcome the challenges we all face
at one time or another. I remember my second-grade
teacher, Mrs. Verity. For one project, she gave each of
us a small cardboard milk carton and told us to make
a three-dimensional model of what we wanted to
be when we grew up. Mine was a scientist, wearing
a white lab coat and holding a test tube. One of the
boys in class saw it and said to me,“Girls can’t be scientists.” But Mrs. Verity was there to support me. She said,
“You can be anything you want to be.” And she was
right! Every day, in schools across the country, teachers
change the lives of their students. That’s why Dow has
put such an emphasis on supporting teachers, working with national and local organizations to provide
professional development, networking and funding.
This year, we launched the STEMtheGAP™ Teacher
Challenge, an opportunity for teachers to discuss the
challenges they face and share ideas about potential
solutions that can make a real difference in the classroom. Outstanding contributions earn a $1,000 grant
that the teacher can use in any way. By empowering
teachers, we open doors for millions of students.
Hilda Pinnix-Ragland
Vice President, Corporate Public Affairs
Duke Energy
Duke Energy is the largest electric power holding company in
the United States with approximately $115 billion in total assets.
Its regulated utility operations serve approximately 7.2 million
electric customers located in six states in the Southeast and
Midwest. Its commercial power and international energy business segments own and operate diverse power generation
assets in North America and Latin America, including a growing portfolio of renewable energy assets in the United States.
Supporting effective education programs and initiatives that
emphasize STEM is a critical focus for Duke Energy. Aspiring
engineers and scientists require critical reading skills, which is
also an important predictor of school success and high school
graduation. We strongly believe that bright futures begin in
the classroom — and that every child should have the opportunity to reach his or her full potential.
Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Duke Energy is a Fortune
250 company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under
the symbol DUK.
Hilda Pinnix-Ragland is vice president of corporate public affairs for Duke Energy. She has
responsibility for working with officials at the
federal, state and local levels to develop
responsible public policy that protects consumers and businesses. She is also responsible
for working with Duke Energy’s International
interests on energy initiatives for broad-reaching policy positions with stakeholder organizations.
Hilda has more than 30 years of experience
in the energy industry and has held a variety
of leadership roles. She has been an officer
since 1998.
Hilda grew up in Hillsborough, N.C., graduating magna cum laude from North Carolina
A&T State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting. She earned an
MBA from Duke University and completed
Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Public
Policy Executive Leadership Program.
Active in the community, Hilda is past chair
of the N.C. State Board of Community Colleges. Member of the Board for the American
Association of Blacks in Energy as well as RTI
International. She is a member of the board
of trustees for the National Parks Foundation
and the N.C. College Foundation.
Received the 2008 NC 4-H Lifetime Achievement Award and the prestigious Education
Award for Leadership in Community Colleges
from Vice President Joe Biden. Savoy Magazine recognized her as one of the 2012 Top 100
Influential Women in Corporate America. She
also received the Distinguished Alumni Award
from North Carolina A&T State University.
Hilda and her husband, Al, have one daughter and one granddaughter.
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As we prepare the next generation of Black women
leaders to achieve socio-economic success and
enhance the well-being of their children and families,
the energy sector provides an array of opportunities
for professional development and advancement.
Nationally, more than 10 million jobs are associated
with the energy industry, and the sector contributes
handsomely to the broader economy. For instance,
the oil and gas sector has added $300 billion to $400
billion annually to the economy since 2008. Likewise, one in every 142 new jobs in the U.S. is created
by the solar industry, which is expected to grow by
15.6% over the next year.
American energy production will continue to flourish
in the coming years, especially with the advent of
new technologies that help strengthen the electric
grid and enhance the way we access various types
of energy – oil, natural gas, coal, or renewables like
solar, wind, and nuclear. What’s more, by 2035, the
world will require 53 percent more energy than it did
in 2008 to sustain modest economic growth.
Demand for high-skilled workers in the energy sector
is critical during this time of rapid growth. To date,
however, too few African Americans have taken
advantage of the benefits this sector provides.
Fortunately, with concerted effort and a focus on
increasing STEM (science, technology, engineering,
and math) engagement among our students – particularly our young girls - we can turn the tide and
put our communities on track for maximum gains.
Presently, African American women only represent
2 percent of the STEM workforce, while women in
general hold 24 percent of those jobs. Participation
in the STEM workforce requires active engagement
in the STEM fields in school. Black people represent
12.6 percent of the U.S. population and 11 percent
of all students beyond high school. But in 2009, African Americans received just 7 percent of all STEM
bachelor’s degrees, 4 percent of master’s degrees,
and 2 percent of PhDs, according to the National
Center for Education Statistics.
The good news? African American women earn
more than half of all science and engineering
degrees completed by African Americans—surpassing their male counterparts. During a time
when the U.S. may be short as many as three million
high-skills workers by 2018 and STEM fields yield the
highest median earnings, African American women
are in a prime position to capitalize on the anticipated growth of the energy sector (and STEM economy, generally), but we must be purposeful and very
deliberate in increasing their participation in these
fields.
Knowing the importance of STEM education, Duke
Energy supports initiatives that strengthen participation in these areas at both the K-12 and higher
education levels through a merit-based scholarship
program and financial support of non-profit organizations and institutions of higher learning focused on
training our future workforce. Likewise, the American
Association of Blacks in Energy provides scholarships
and mentoring to high school students who pursue
STEM in college. These are but two examples of the
work being done to bolster participation – and its
work we can continue at all levels through both
public and private engagement.
The energy sector, and America generally, will benefit from more high-skills STEM workers. It is our job to
ensure African American women get a seat at the
table and become more active in this space.
Duke Energy’s STEM Initiatives:
Power Careers Training Program– Piedmont Community College – Roxboro, NC
The Electric Power Production Technology curriculum is designed to provide students with skills
and technical background required for entry level
employment in the operations of modern nonnuclear fueled power facilities. Students study major
plant systems for the reliable operation of power
plants. These systems include boilers, combustion
equipment turbines, generators, control logics, and
basic fundamentals. The curriculum is designed as a
2 year Associate Degree and typically takes about
5 semesters to complete. Students will be exposed
to basic course requirements such as English, Computers, and Psychology but the majority of course
work is technical/electrical and more complex
math courses. Duke Energy is an integral part of the
Electric Power Production curriculum since we offer
internships at the Roxboro and Mayo Plants. Students are able to learn the basics in the classroom
and couple with hands on experience at the plant
(based on selection process).
INC Tech – Richmond Community College
The Electric Utility Substation & Relay Technology
curriculum is designed to provide students with skills
and practical hands on experience with substation
equipment which involves repair, testing and troubleshooting. The skills acquired in this curriculum are utilized in the electric utility industry and well as other
industries that rely on complex control systems. These
systems include transformers, voltage regulators,
capacitors, and power circuit breakers. The curriculum is designed as a 2 year Associate Degree and
typically takes about 5 semesters to complete. Duke
Energy was an integral part in working with Rockingham Community College in establishing this curriculum because of our need for a future workforce.
Power Careers has accepted students from this curriculum but the majority of students in this curriculum
accept full time employment at Duke Energy within
the Transmission/Distribution Department. n
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STEM is the Key to Greater Participation in the
Energy Sector
Ellen Kullman
Chair of the Board &
DuPont
DuPont is a science company committed to using innovation
to solve for the world’s greatest challenges through the spirit of
inclusive innovation. The company launched its commitment
to science research and science education in 1918, becoming the first corporation to award scholarships and fellowships
to chemists at 48 colleges and universities in the United States.
Today, DuPont continues to forge partnerships with universities and government laboratories worldwide and invests in
science education programs to ensure science literacy, workforce preparation and business and community sustainability.
Ellen Kullman, 58, is the 19th executive to lead
the company over the course of its 210 years
of operations.
She is co-chair of the National Academy of
Engineering Committee on Changing the
Conversation: From Research to Action. She
is a board member of Change the Equation, a coalition of industry leaders who have
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in students and prepares them for postsecondary options. Ellen is also on the board of
trustees of Tufts University and the board of
overseers at Tufts University School of Engineering.
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It concerns me that our science curriculum has not
kept up with modern science. Students should be
learning how a solar panel works, not how to build a
volcano. They should be learning how to create clean
water filtration systems, how to protect people and
the environment and how science can help us feed
a growing population. These are the needs of society
today. That is why I am proud of our partnership with
the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA).
Each year, over 15,000 teachers attend NSTA annual
conferences. DuPont facilitates several workshops
and professional development programs targeted
at teaching our teachers the latest developments in
areas of interest to DuPont such as polymer chemistry,
biofuels, advanced materials, food safety, packaging
and others. We also invite 80+ exceptional teachers
annually to visit DuPont to get additional hands on
experience in industry.
Organizations like Change the Equation are looking
across the US to identify programs that can be standardized into best practices. It is efforts like these that
are critical to the economic success of the United
States.
Beyond standards, what are the first steps we
Solving the challenges of tomorrow will require a workforce that is well-educated. At DuPont, we believe that
we can accomplish more together. Beyond standards,
the most important first step for building a better future
is businesses, governments, educators, administrators
and parents coming together to commit to improving
education for school-age children. We need that commitment to be not just high school or college but from
kindergarten through graduation. One program that is
worth looking at as a model is right here in Delaware.
Delaware’s development of K-12 science and mathematics standards is called The Delaware Model for
Science. It began in 1996 through the creation of the
Delaware Foundation for Science and Math Education, a collaboration of businesses, government, universities, educators and administrators to support
education designed to coordinate business support
science education. Through this work, the Delaware
Science Coalition for teacher development was created and a statewide K-12 science materials center
was created using science inquiry-based curriculum
and assessments. Each school district came together
to change the way science was taught and implemented, and we were proud to have a voice at the
table as this new program was developed. This organization then led a coalition that secured federal funding and matching corporate donations to introduce
inquiry-based science using the Smithsonian Science
Curriculum. The State and 18 school districts support
the ongoing professional development, materials, and
logistics of the program known as the Delaware Model.
As a result of our initial investment, Delaware was one
of the first states to receive funding for Race to the
Top! The Nationally recognized “Delaware Model” has
been replicated in other states.
How does STEM leadership and with it a Diversity
DuPont is a science company. We work collaboratively
to find sustainable, innovative, market-driven solutions to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges
related to food, energy and protection for people and
the environment. Because DuPont has a diverse set of
businesses that touch a wide variety of industries and
manufacture a wide variety of products based on
science, diversity not only helps us better understand
the unmet needs of our customers around the world,
but also enriches our innovation process and improves
our capability to deliver the solutions to help people
everywhere. As part of the President’s Council on Jobs
and Competitiveness we talked about the critical
importance of diversity in STEM. Diversity of thought,
diversity of an individual’s area of expertise, diversity
of gender, of passport—all of these lend themselves
to a strong team that can create true innovation. See
the Jobs Council report here: http://www.jobs-council.
com/recommendations. n
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Available STEM careers are projected to more than
double the rate of non-STEM jobs in the US. To meet
the needs of tomorrow’s workforce, STEM literacy is
essential today. Two dynamics drive the need for STEM
education and workforce development. First, most
corporations are facing a crisis in talent. With an aging
workforce at all levels, corporations will be experiencing a large requirement for new talent. Second, as our
population grows to over 9 billion, it will create strains
on our basic needs such as food, energy and protection. It will take innovative solutions to address these
needs. Bringing new talent to the workforce and solving challenges requires a strong talent pipeline at all
levels of education. Most of those jobs require some
type of post-secondary education in a STEM related
field. As a nation, it is critical that we have an educated STEM workforce.
Monique Hunt
McWilliams
Eli Lilly and Company
Lilly is a global healthcare leader that unites caring with discovery to make life better for people around the world. We
were founded more than a century ago by a man committed to creating high-quality medicines that meet real needs,
and today we remain true to that mission in all our work.
Across the globe, Lilly employees work to discover and bring
life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve
the understanding and management of disease, and give
back to communities through philanthropy and volunteerism.
To learn more about Lilly, please visit us at www.lilly.com and
http://newsroom.lilly.com/social-channels.
Monique Hunt McWilliams was named Chief
Diversity Officer at Eli Lilly and Company in
2013. Her responsibilities include driving the
development and implementation of Lilly’s
workforce diversity and inclusion strategy.
Prior to her role as chief diversity officer, McWilliams was assistant general counsel, litigation
and legal compliance at Lilly, where she has
worked in a variety of legal positions since
joining the company in 1998.
Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, McWilliams has
a law degree from Indiana University.
She has been recognized for her commitment to and advocacy for diversity within the
legal profession, receiving the Pepper Hamilton 2009 Champion of Diversity Award.
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to the IPS Alumni Hall of Fame for inspiring current IPS students to set goals for success.
At Lilly, she has led or participated in various initiatives to increase diversity, including
developing the first round table forum where
Lilly and outside counsel discussed law firm
challenges to hiring, developing, and retaining diverse lawyers.
In her time away from work, she enjoys spending time with her family. McWilliams and her
husband have two children.
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The first step is early education. We need to get young
children interested in math and science so that they
take the right classes. Then, they need to have opportunities for higher education. We view education as a
vital ingredient in creating the knowledge needed for
workers who will find the breakthroughs of tomorrow.
Lilly has a number of educational initiatives to get
more minorities and women interested in STEM. Some
of these initiatives are in partnership with other companies and universities, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and local universities,
which are so vital because if we attract local students,
there is a greater chance that they’ll stay with us for a
career at Lilly. The following are a few examples of our
initiatives:
• Members of the Organization of Latinos at Lilly
(OLA) partner with the Indiana chapter of the Society of Hispanic Engineers, which works to empower
the Hispanic community through STEM awareness,
access, support and development.
• Members of OLA participate in Project Stepping
Stone, a community event for Latino high school
students. The program helps ease the transition
to college and helps participants explore career
opportunities.
• We are recruiting partners with organizations
such as the Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers, National Organization of Black Chemists
and Chemical Engineers, The Thurgood Marshall
College Fund Leadership Conference, National
Society of Black Engineers, Black Data Processing
Associates and Consortium for Graduate Studies in
Management.
• For more than 30 years, Lilly has partnered with the
Center for Leadership Development, which helps
African American youth in Indianapolis realize
their potential as future professional, business and
community leaders by providing experiences that
encourage personal development and educational attainment.
• Students from Indianapolis high school Providence
Cristo Rey participate in a work-study program
and are able to get exposure to various types of
careers at Lilly and access to science mentors and
mentors in other areas.
Our commitment to diversity extends to our educational outreach related to STEM. We partner with advocacy groups, professional societies, public and private
health care administrators and others to reduce health
disparities and to address the unique health care and
educational needs of diverse communities.
Lilly offers 10 employee-led resource groups with about
56 regional affiliate groups globally that connect people from diverse backgrounds and, at the same time,
support Lilly’s business objectives. Many are involved in
our STEM-related initiatives.
Our employee resource groups include the African
American Network, Chinese Culture Network, Eli Lilly
Asian Network, Lilly India Network, Middle Eastern
Network at Lilly, Organization of Latinos at Lilly, People Respecting Individual Differences Equally (PRIDE),
Global Women’s Network, Working and Living With
Disabilities, and Veterans Leadership Network. About
10,000 employees are members of, or have participated in, these organizations. Active ERG members
gave approximately 11,600 hours in 2013 to help Lilly’s
business internally, and devoted 7,000 hours externally.
How does STEM leadership—and with it—Diversity
At Lilly, diversity is a corporate priority.We strongly believe
that the interests of our company are best served by
a Lilly team that reflects the diversity represented in
our communities and that takes full advantage of the
unique inputs, perspectives, talents—including expertise in STEM—and experiences of each and every person whom we engage in our work.
Diversity is at the core of our strategy and mission.
Building a globally-diverse workforce is essential to
our strategy and success because diversity enables
us to attract, develop and retain high-caliber talent,
improve engagement of our employees, increase creativity andproductivity and provide better solutions
that improve outcomes for individual patients.
I am proud that Lilly is a leader in supporting STEM education strategies within the communities we call home,
and that our many of our employees are actively
involved in our STEM efforts. n
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As a company built on scientific discovery, we recognize the critical role that early education programs in
science, technology, engineering and mathematics
(STEM) play in preparing students to find a passion for,
and a career in, STEM fields.
Ken Bouyer
Americas Director,
Inclusiveness Recruiting
EY
EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver
help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in
economies the world over, and we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and
for our communities.
We base our business on sharp analytical skills, and offer diverse career opportunities to STEM-educated professionals,
with degrees in accounting, engineering, finance, mathematics and technology. In addition, EY has a strong commitment
to STEM education. Our Academic Resource Center develops
time-critical learning materials for university faculty. Many of
our corporate responsibility initiatives aim to strengthen education and build STEM skills. For example, we are a sponsor of
Cyberchase, the PBS award-wining series that teaches math
and problem-solving. Our professionals bring those lessons to
life through the Cyberchase Volunteer Program.
Ken Bouyer is the EY Americas Director of Inclusiveness Recruiting. In this role, he is responsible for developing and implementing the
global EY organization’s recruiting strategy to
build and attract diverse and inclusive talent
pools for member firms in the Americas. Ken
frequently serves as an EY and industry group
spokesperson on both diversity and recruiting
trends at a range of events and with leading
media outlets.
Prior to his current role, Ken was a Director in
the firm’s Advisory Services practice, supporting various global internal audit clients.
Ken is currently the Chair of the American
Institute of Certified Public Accountants’
(AICPA) National Commission on Diversity
and Inclusion. Additionally, he is a Board Member and the Chair of the Audit Committee for
the American Accounting Association. Ken
also serves on various university accounting
and dean’s advisory boards. He is a lifetime
member of the National Association of Black
Accountants (NABA) and the ALPFA (Asso-
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Accounting) organization.
Previously, Ken was a Board Member and International President of Beta Alpha Psi. He has
also served on the Board of Directors for the
Federation for the Schools of Accountancy
(FSA). Ken is a recipient of the FSA’s “Practitioner Service Award” for his distinguished
service to the profession of accounting and
accounting education. He is also a recipient
of NABA’s Presidential Award for his extraordinary accomplishments and leadership in the
accounting profession and his commitment
to and support of NABA.
Ken has a Bachelor of Science degree in
Accounting from Manhattan College in Riverdale, New York. He is a Certified Internal Auditor and AICPA member.
Ken currently resides in New Jersey with his
wife and their daughter.
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We can encourage minority and women students to
continue in STEM-related fields through awareness,
role models and experience. We do this first for young
children, by making STEM learning fun and enjoyable through the support of Cyberchase on PBS Kids.
Cyberchase, the Emmy® award-winning PBS television
series, helps build the math and problem-solving skills
of children ages 8-11 and was specifically designed
to engage girls and minorities. EY professionals bring
the Cyberchase concepts to life when they visit afterschool programs and lead hands-on learning activities.
We have just committed to supporting CYBERCHASE
for another 5 years. In middle and high school, mentors and role models provide additional awareness
about the careers and options available in the STEM
field. Mentors can be established through organizations, such as Junior Achievement, which uses mentors
to help students understand the importance of entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and work readiness. We
also try to encourage this population of students to
enroll in college and study STEM and business disciplines. We are proud to fund week-long business and
accounting summer programs at leading universities,
where students live on-campus, meet professors and
learn more about STEM majors. We can provide early
internships to diverse college students, which provide
hands-on experience and learning. This year, at EY, we
had more than 275 “Launch interns,” who get handson experience in Core Business Services, Tax, Advisory
and Assurance, the year or two before their client serving internship. By investing in the diverse workforce of
tomorrow, we help them solidify their decision to stick
with STEM and business majors and eventually, launch
promising careers.
In addition to the programs I referred to above, one of
the initiatives that I am most proud of is our focus on
working with universities to affect diversity in the STEM
pipeline. While most companies can recruit talent off a
college campus, we are working to increase the pipeline of talent into STEM and business majors on campuses as well. For the past 6 years, we’ve convened
25 faculty members from top undergraduate business
schools in New York City for 2-day training sessions and
workshops. While there, these faculty members share
best practices in recruitment and matriculation of students in STEM and business disciplines. We take this one
step further through our Ernst & Young Foundation by
identifying how we can make a difference through
financial and human resources on their campus. For
some universities, we also fund programs to help attract
more students into the STEM and business field or help
them organize summer bridge programs to help fund
a calculus or economics class. For other universities
we may provide tutoring for accounting classes. These
efforts help us develop the STEM pipeline, and I’m very
proud of the scale in which we do this and are able to
drive change.
I often say that I have the greatest role in the firm.
One reason why I say this is because I have the ability to be a mentor and help students and professionals achieve their full potential. Mentoring is a critical
part of growing the population of students and professionals interested in STEM disciplines. Personally, I have
had many mentors throughout my career and I can
honestly say that I would not be in my position without
them. Mentorship is important and it’s something that
we cultivate at EY through many channels. Externally,
our College MAP program matches small groups of EY
professionals with groups of high school students. The
program curriculum includes monthly workshops, college visits, and tutoring tied to financial skills that will
help students succeed in college and make the most
of their financial futures in general.
I would tell minorities and women who are coming
“up” the system to ask questions and seek out mentors
through networking. Strong relationships matter. Mentors give you advice you may not want to hear and
can provide you with an alternative point of view that
can help you make better decision. Ask successful people, how they become successful. They will share that
knowledge and if you keep in touch, they will become
your mentor. For example, at EY, for the past three years,
we’ve hosted our EY Unplugged program for diverse
Staff 1 when they join the firm. The purpose of this program is to have our African-American and Latino Partners share advice and insight into how to succeed
during their first year at the firm. By introducing these
foundational building blocks early in one’s career, we
can help minorities and women come “up” the system.
We continue to mentor and advise our diverse professionals through our support of professional conventions
with the National Association of Black Accountants
and ALPFA, which is the largest Latino association for
business professionals and students. More than 150 EY
professionals attend each organization’s national convention and they’ve all found it to be a great place to
network and inspire students. n
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To deliver exceptional client services we need to
understand our clients’ goals and objectives. One way
we can achieve this is by hiring professionals with STEM
backgrounds who can analyze and think through complex problems. Building a diverse workforce is another
critical component of delivering exceptional client
service. Our clients are global, so it’s important that our
professionals bring diversity of thought, innovation and
a global mindset to our clients and their teams. When
we bring diverse perspectives and experiences to the
table, our organization succeeds in the market.
Pamela Drew
President of Information Systems
Exelis
Exelis is a diversified, top-tier global aerospace, defense, information and services company that leverages a 50-year
legacy of deep customer knowledge and technical expertise
to deliver affordable, mission-critical solutions for global customers. It is a leader in positioning and navigation, sensors, air
traffic management solutions, image processing and distribution, communications and information systems; and focused
on strategic growth in the areas of critical networks, ISR and
analytics, electronic warfare and composite aerostructures.
Headquartered in McLean, Va., Exelis employs about 17,000
people and generated 2013 sales of $4.8 billion.
Dr. Pamela (Pam) Drew is Executive Vice President and President of Information Systems, a
business area of Exelis that is a leading provider
of mission critical network solutions. These solutions leverage the group’s core capabilities
that span the full life cycle of critical networks—
including system architecture, design, development, deployment, integration, test and
evaluation, operations, maintenance, sustainment and modernization. These services are
currently provided to US government agencies
including the FAA, NASA, US Air Force, US Navy,
US Army, Defense Threat Reduction Agency
(DTRA), and the Intelligence community; additionally, the business includes a growing commercial aviation and international presence.
Before joining Exelis, Dr. Drew was the senior vice
president of Strategic Capabilities and Technology at TASC, leading an enterprise-wide team
that provided systems engineering and integration, cyber security, financial and business
analytics and test and evaluation solutions to
intelligence, defense and federal and civil customers. In a prior role at TASC, she led the Enterprise Systems business unit that served defense
and federal civil agencies.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Prior to that, Dr. Drew was sector vice president
of business development for Northrop Grumman’s Mission Systems sector and also served
as vice president and general manager for
Boeing’s Integrated Defense and Security Solutions organization and for the C3ISR Solutions
business unit in the Air Force Systems division.
And in a prior role, she led a significant portion
of Boeing Phantom Works developing and transitioning technology across the commercial airplane and military businesses.
Dr. Drew has held several leadership roles with
the National Academies including her recent
service as the vice chair of the National
Research Council Air Force Studies Board and
her current role on a “NextGen” Air Traffic Management committee for the Transportation
Research Board. She also serves on the Strategic
Advisory Councils to the Chancellor and Dean
of Engineering at the University of Colorado,
Boulder, where she earned both her doctorate
and master’s degree in computer science and
a bachelor’s degree in mathematics.
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Showing the value of STEM education and the longlasting contributions that careers in those fields can
make is an important message to convey when
encouraging our youth to pursue those areas of study.
I come from a family with strong engineering and
entrepreneurial roots. My father was an electrical engineer who worked on many NASA programs, including the Viking, Sky Lab and Apollo programs. He then
went into biomedical engineering and started his own
company, Aspen Labs. My mother was also a part of
the aerospace industry at the time. Growing up, I was
inspired by the great accomplishments of the space
program and wanted to try to make similar contributions myself. Engineering was a path to become part
of initiatives larger than myself—and I think that same
notion still holds true, and can inspire others to pursue
studies and careers in STEM-related fields.
our goals of promoting diversity, and encouraging and
developing our next generation of leaders. Promoting
a culture that values and embraces diversity is critical
to the success of any organization—especially at a
company like Exelis that is built on the talent and expertise of individuals in the areas of science, technology,
engineering and mathematics. The bottom line is that
a diverse workforce produces better business results,
and I’m proud that Exelis recognizes its importance.
I serve as an Executive Sponsor of the Council, and it’s
a role that I’m extremely passionate about. I think it is
critical to encourage individuals of all genders, races
and nationalities to pursue work in STEM-related fields
as they bring diversity of thought, which will ultimately
help continue to improve and evolve the industry.
I believe that each of us is the CEO of our own career.
We should think about what inspires us and pursue a
career that we can be passionate about and believe
in. I’ve always been motivated to make a broader
impact—both in my personal and professional life—
and that’s how I feel about the field of engineering.
We do things that really matter. We help keep the flying
public safe with better air traffic management solutions; we help advance science and our knowledge
of the universe around us by keeping space missions in
communication and properly launched into orbit; and
we do the advanced science and engineering that
keep our troops as safe as possible while in harm’s way.
That’s why the field is so rewarding for me.
I hope the idea of being able to contribute to the world
in a way that is meaningful and having the opportunity
to promote a larger purpose are things that will help to
inspire the next generation of STEM leaders. n
strategy?
Exelis is committed to fostering an inclusive culture that
promotes diverse perspectives and backgrounds. We
established an Inclusion and Diversity Council, chaired
by our CEO and President, Dave Melcher, to further
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The fields of science, technology, engineering and
mathematics are the cornerstone of our future. In
today’s world, more than ever, the key to competiveness and success is not only being on the cutting
edge of what’s happening now, but foreseeing and
planning for what lies ahead. That’s why developing
tomorrow’s talent in STEM-related fields is critical for
the competitiveness and prosperity of our country –
across all industries and disciplines. Whether it is ensuring the health and safety of individuals, developing
the systems and infrastructures needed to support the
world’s growing population or the technologies and
solutions that will help to protect our nation’s security,
encouraging the development of a workforce rooted
in the areas of STEM is critical.
George Paz
Chairman, President and
Express Scripts
As America’s leading pharmacy benefit manager, Express
Scripts manages more than a billion prescriptions each year
for tens of millions of patients. On behalf of our clients—
employers, health plans, unions and government health
programs—we make the use of prescription drugs safer and
more affordable. Express Scripts uniquely combines three capabilities—behavioral sciences, clinical specialization and
actionable data—to create Health Decision Science, our
innovative approach to help people make the best drug
choices, pharmacy choices and health choices. Better decisions mean healthier outcomes
George Paz drives Express Scripts’ strategy,
ensuring our business model of alignment
with clients’ best interests delivers better, more
cost-effective health outcomes for millions of
people. George joined Express Scripts in 1998
as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer and became President in 2003. In 2005
he was named Chief Executive Officer and
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M the following year was elected chairman of
the board. He currently serves as a member
of the board of directors for Honeywell, Inc.
George holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and accounting from the
University of Missouri - St. Louis and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
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When we talk about our future economy and the
future of employment, there is a huge focus on growing
jobs in the high-tech and healthcare sectors. We sit at
the intersection of both. We know from our experience
that when talented people apply their STEM expertise,
you can get a dramatic benefit in terms of not only our
country’s competitiveness, but our overall health.
challenges in STEM?
We are proud to partner with nonprofit and academic
organizations to fund efforts to expand STEM education. Like any company, we look to the return on
investment with every capital allocation we make. By
investing in human capital, STEM education and the
workforce of tomorrow, the return on that investment
will ultimately create leaders who apply their skills to
make healthcare better for everyone.
through diversity?
STEM in and of itself reflects diversity of thought and
expertise. There is no doubt that women and minorities are underrepresented in many of the areas STEM
encompasses. As individuals, we give our time and
talents to many organizations and help increase the
diversity of STEM education and STEM-related jobs. As
a company, we are creating an environment that fosters diversity of opinions, thoughts, and experiences,
which help us address the needs of our customers—
the patients who take medications to extend and
enhance their lives.
At its core, Express Scripts is a technology company
that applies science and engineering to healthcare’s
challenges. We have built an innovative culture led by
those who can evaluate the challenging healthcare
landscape, find opportunities to improve patient care
and then discover, develop and deploy novel solutions
to our clients – the companies, health plans, unions
and government health plans that provide pharmacy
benefits to more than 90 million Americans. Our innovation, fueled by a focus on STEM competencies, helps
people live better, longer lives. To us, there’s no more
important outcome for innovation. n
When we talk about our future economy and
the future of employment, there is a huge
focus on growing jobs in the high-tech and
healthcare sectors.
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The future of our nation is based on having a healthcare system that drives people to the best outcome
at the lowest cost, essentially, what we do every day
at Express Scripts. For us, STEM is shorthand for what has
made us successful over the past 28 years. To grow in the
future and help clients and patients navigate through
an ever more complicated healthcare landscape, we
need a workforce that’s not just fluent in STEM, but is
world-class in each specific component of STEM. From
our pharmacy, to our facilities to our research scientists,
each person at Express Scripts represents at least one
aspect of STEM and most represent all of them.
Cisco Sanchez
IT Vice President, Enterprise
Foundational Services & Enterprise
Business Services
FedEx
FedEx was founded more than 40 years ago on a foundation
built from science, technology engineering and math, and it
is through innovation and technology that we will continue to
grow our business and connect millions of people across the
globe.
FedEx is excited about the many possibilities a STEM education can provide our youth today. By supporting organizations
like the Congressional Black Caucus Science and Technology
Braintrust, FIRST Robotics, Teach For America and many other
community outreach programs, we are proud to join the effort
to help open doors for diverse students to achieve success.
Cisco is an IT Vice President supporting the
Enterprise Foundational Services & Enterprise
Business Services for FedEx based in Memphis, TN. His key responsibility is developing
common services, which will be utilized by all
FedEx Operating Companies and Divisions.
Cisco has a diverse background, allowing
him to work in Europe for 3.5 years focusing on developing solutions that are utilized
by Europe and other regions in Clearance,
Imaging, Hub Technologies, Monitoring, Information Security and Mergers & Acquisitions.
Cisco holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer
Science and a Masters degree in Management Information Systems. Cisco Started In
1997 as a full time employee for FedEx under
the IT Core Clearance Systems department
and supported core clearance and regulatory related applications that now support
all of Canada. In 2005 he worked supporting
the IT America’s Regions (Canada and MX)
on both tactical and strategic roles manag-
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M ing critical project completions that benefited the region and different Cross Regional/
Cross OpCo departments. In 2007 worked
directly for the Latin American Caribbean
(LAC) group and started working on domestic service for Mexico and began to looking
at how to launch and enable new domestic
services in other countries. Cisco successfully
launched domestic services in Mexico, India,
Switzerland, Brazil, Colombia, and a new
product for Canada. To further expand on
experience with acquisitions, Cisco led a few
acquisitions in LAC and in Europe, providing
the business with the necessary layer to continue to save costs and reduce the impacts
to the end customer. Cisco has a varied IT
background focusing on development and
architecture.
Cisco has been with FedEx for 17 years and
has been awarded the highest FedEx award
(Five Star) twice.
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The challenge is helping to guarantee we have
enough students gravitating toward a STEM field education. Students need to see the STEM education field
as an attractive field allowing them to change tomorrow’s capabilities and build a stronger U.S. economy.
FedEx is a highly automated, global company that
strives to make every customer experience outstanding. The company has a strong background in engineering and technology. It is vital to ensure we have
talented and diverse STEM team members who can
continue to help us introduce innovative capabilities
in the years to come.
It is imperative that we illustrate the need to have
STEM-related courses. The steps to do this can be summarized as 3 M’s:
1. Market/ Promote: Work locally and globally as a
community to build STEM courses as early as K-12.
This should be at the national level, in addition to
local efforts.
2. Make it Fun: Utilize different tools (Arduinos, Raspberry Pis, etc.) to help demonstrate a cost-effective project that can be entertaining and exciting
to utilize.
3. Mentor and Train: Continue to provide mentorship and leadership guidance to help reinforce the
message that STEM activities can help change the
world.
The bottom line is we have to be diligent by illustrating the issue (locally and globally), create new and
fun programs, and mentor. Today’s young people are
tomorrow’s leaders, so let’s invest in them.
The biggest principle I apply to both my professional
and personal life is to stay curious. Technology is con-
stantly changing and advancing, which is exciting
and can be intimidating all at the same time. However,
change should drive and encourage us to discover
new and improved ways to do, create, use or enable
solutions for a better world.
One of the things that has helped me in my career is
my strong background in technology. Because technology is always changing, it is important to understand
that and stay curious about new things. It is not that
awareness,but also understanding the importance of
embracing and giving back to the STEM education
system. Leaders acting as mentors is the key to ensuring we have a strong base of future leaders.
The biggest advice is to stay true to yourself and
embrace both the good and not-so-good lessons you
may have experienced throughout life.
The STEM field is rapidly changing and morphing into
multiple areas. Where the field stops and starts is less
defined, but you can embrace it and learn as much
as you can. I believe that it is necessary to continue to
build relationships and find mentors and champions to
support you as you go forward.
A mentor helps ensure your reflection is not only what
you think it is, but they also open you up to new ideas.
A mentor ensures you are battle tested and ready for
the next challenge. As a minority myself, I have always
tried to absorb as much as I can and engage in topics that are outside of my particular area of expertise.
When doing that, you quickly see how closely things
are tied to another.
FedEx is a global company, with more than 300,000
team members. Diversity is not an option; it is a requirement to ensure that we continue to connect people
and possibilities around the world. Diverse teams offer
unique perspectives and beliefs, which ultimately help
ensure we create stronger solutions for our customers.
From the inception of FedEx our founder and chairman, Frederick W. Smith, stated that the “information
about the package is as important as the package
itself.” This emphasis on data illustrates the importance
of technology to help enable business capabilities
and provide solutions for our customers. n
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Is STEM Education/workforce development critical
to the future of our nation?
STEM is all around us in everything we do. It is hard to
go anywhere and not have science, technology ,engineering or math play a major role in developing or
designing a capability. STEM is critical in our education
and workforce to ensure we create and establish new
innovative ideas, which will allow us to be more competitive globally.
Felicia J. Fields
Group Vice President, Human
Resources and Corporate Services
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader
based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 183,000 employees
and 65 plants worldwide, the company’s automotive brands
include Ford and Lincoln.
Ford has been a long-time supporter of STEM initiatives relevant
to the automotive industry, from high school FIRST robotics teams
to university solar car and electric vehicle teams. This year Ford’s
High School Science and Technology (HSSTP) program, which
gives students the opportunity to spend time on Ford’s Dearborn campus to meet with scientists, researchers, engineers and
technicians and learn how science and engineering can have
real-world applications, celebrates 30 years. In addition, Ford
Next Generation Learning is nationally recognized for engaging school districts, employers, workforce and economic development entities, and local organizations in the development of
career-themed academies within existing public high schools.
Felicia J. Fields, Ford Group Vice President for
Human Resources and Corporate Services
since March 25, 2008, leads the global Human
Resources and Corporate Services functions for
Ford Motor Company. In this position, Fields provides expertise in key HR capabilities including
succession planning and talent management,
strategic workforce planning, compensation and
benefits, organization development, recruiting,
and leadership and professional development.
She is also responsible for corporate security,
travel, and the company’s Dealer Policy Board.
As a group vice president, Fields ensures the
development and execution of business strategies that reflect the global business environment,
customer and market needs. She reports to Mark
Fields, Ford president and CEO.
Fields previously was vice president for Human
Resources, an appointment she received on Jan. 1,
2005. Before that, she served as executive director
of Human Resources, Automotive Operations and
Corporate Staffs. Since joining Ford in 1986, Fields
has held HR leadership positions in Manufacturing,
Research, Information Technology, Finance, Product Development and Corporate Development.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Fields is a member of the Board of the Inforum
Center for Leadership and the Women’s Health
Advisory Council at Oakwood Hospital. She
was formerly on the Board of Directors for the
National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME) and also served as Vice Chair
of the Governance Committee.
Her outstanding leadership and professional
achievements have been recognized by major
professional and news organizations. These recognitions include 2010 Black Enterprise Most
Powerful Women in Business, American Society of Employers (ASE) 2009 HR Executive of
the Year, Michigan Chronicle’s 2009 Women of
Excellence Award, and 2010 Automotive News
“Leading Women in the North American Automotive Industry.”
Fields is a proud third-generation Ford employee.
She received a bachelor of arts degree in psychology with high distinction from the University
of Michigan and a master’s degree in administration from Central Michigan University. She
has various certifications in leadership development, personal effectiveness and diversity.
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What traits do corporate leaders need to effectively support and advance STEM today?
As corporate leaders, one critical element to supporting and advancing STEM is staying connected. We must
continue to work with community and business leaders, educators, and policy makers, to engage in discussions about the state of STEM and ways help close the
skills gap. We also must continue to proactively look for
ways to collaborate and partner on projects and programs that will engage, inspire and elevate students.
In addition, it is important for corporate leadership
teams to regularly engage in discussions about the
future of the company—in terms of technology, products and talent—in order to be more aware of future
business needs. Framing STEM in terms of its future business impact helps engage corporate leaders.
At Ford Motor Company, we understand that our
success today, tomorrow, and in the future not only
depends on being socially and environmentally
responsible, but on being a company that’s able to
attract the best and brightest talent in all areas.
supported are you most proud of?
At Ford, we support a number of STEM initiatives, so
it’s difficult to select just one. However, before STEM
became a popular acronym, Ford recognized the
need to have a pipeline of qualified technical talent
to innovate and create the products that our customers want and value. Ford’s High School Science and
Technology (HSSTP) program will celebrate 30 years in
October and is something we are extremely proud of.
This program has given students in southeast Michigan the opportunity to spend time on Ford’s Dearborn
campus to meet with scientists, researchers, engineers
and technicians and learn how science and engineering can have real-world applications. Each year about
150 students attend six Saturday morning sessions at
Ford’s Research and Innovation Center with Ford
employees who voluntarily teach them various STEM
career applications.
• Square One - This high school vehicle team competition focuses on Great Lakes states (MI, OH, IN).
Like Formula SAE, students build and race vehicles
in various categories
• Camp Invention - Summer camp for elementary
school students to teach them about the process
of invention and creativity
• AMTech - Collaboration of colleges and companies working to strengthen the competency and
global competitiveness of the automotive workforce
• DAPCEP (Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering
Program) – Non-profit organization that provides
promising K-12 students from underrepresented
groups educational programming and exposure
to STEM fields through Saturday and summer programs
• NACME (National Action Council for Minorities
in Engineering) – Provides scholarships for underrepresented minority engineers, gathers research
on diversity and equity in Engineering, advocates/
lobbies for STEM education and provides programs
for students throughout the education pipeline
How can we do a better job to strategically coordinate all those engaged in STEM across the company or different departments?
In recent years we have stepped up our efforts and
are supporting STEM initiatives in a more holistic way.
Our STEM strategy recognizes the importance of a
strong governance structure with leadership that supports the strategy with resources to ensure it remains
sustainable. We have councils at various levels of
the company that engage many sectors of our business. We ensure that our current and future initiatives
are aligned, using data and metrics to drive actions
and decisions on where we will invest in the future. In
addition, we stay connected to our stakeholders and
active partners. These include external organizations
already working on great STEM initiatives as well as our
own employees.
through diversity?
Diversity in the workplace and within all disciplines
helps maximize productivity and creativity, and ultimately helps meet the needs of a diverse and global
customer base.
At Ford Motor Company we are focused on the
attraction, development, and retention of a diverse
workforce, and believe this is essential to our global
success. Making sure varied disciplines, perspectives
and talents are part of the workforce results in innovative solutions for the rapidly evolving needs of our
diverse society. n
Other STEM programs Ford supports include:
• FIRST Robotics - High school robotics competition.
Ford supports Detroit area high school FIRST teams in
local, regional, and national robotics competitions.
There’s also a FIRST LEGO league, targeted at ages
9-14, and Jr. LEGO leagues for ages 6-9
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Beyond standards, what are the first steps we
Encouraging students to continue their education in
the areas of math and science requires an entire community -- parents, educators, community and corporate leaders --working together to help reinforce the
importance of STEM skills and how these skills are connected to the real world. It’s not enough to talk about
the importance of STEM and teach STEM education
in the classroom. As leaders, we must ensure that we
are helping students make a real world connection
between skills such as critical thinking and spatial
knowledge. In addition, students need to have access
to mentors and role models.
Alicia Boler-Davis
Senior Vice President, Global Quality
& Customer Experience
General Motors
Headquartered in Detroit, Mich., General Motors is one of the
world’s largest automakers. GM and the GM Foundation support the development of the next generation of leaders and
innovators by making education more accessible, affordable
and rewarding from birth through college. The GM Foundation pledged $27.1 million to the United Way for Southeastern
Michigan to establish a “Network of Excellence” in seven Detroit-area high schools. The grant is infusing STEM into curricula,
and aims to improve graduation rates from roughly 50 to 80
percent over five years. The GM Foundation also funds one
of the largest scholarship programs in the country—the $4.2
million annual Buick Achievers Scholarship Program that supports students interested in pursuing STEM majors and careers.
GM and the GM Foundation both support programs that reinforce math and science skills among younger students, including MathCounts, FIRST Robotics and the SAE Foundation’s
“A World in Motion” initiative.
Alicia Boler-Davis was named Senior Vice
President, Global Quality & Customer Experience effective July 1, 2013. This appointment
expands her customer experience role from
a U.S. position to oversee the rest of the world
where GM does business. Ms. Boler-Davis
reports directly to GM’s CEO Mary Barra.
In February 2012, Ms. Boler-Davis was
appointed to U.S. vice president, Customer
Experience. Later that year, her role was
expanded to vice president, Global Quality
and U.S. Customer Experience.
Previously, Ms. Boler-Davis was plant manager
of Orion Assembly and Pontiac Stamping simultaneously. This appointment included the dual
role of vehicle line director and vehicle chief
engineer, North America Small Cars, which she
held until January 2011. Prior to that, she held
the positions of plant manager at Lansing Consolidated Operations and Arlington Assembly, where she was the first African-American
woman to be appointed to plant manager at
a GM vehicle manufacturing plant.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Ms. Boler-Davis began her GM career in 1994
as a manufacturing engineer at the Midsize/
Luxury Car Division in Warren, Michigan. During her career, she has held many positions
of increasing responsibility in Manufacturing,
Engineering and Product Development.
Ms. Boler-Davis has been recognized by
numerous organizations and publications for
her professional accomplishments and community service activities. In 2010, Automotive
News named her as one of the 100 Leading
Women in the North American Automotive
Industry; and in 2011, was honored by the
Michigan Chronicle as a Woman of Excellence. She is a Board Trustee of the Care
House of Oakland County and a member of
Links, Inc. Oakland County Chapter, a volunteer organization for women.
Ms. Boler-Davis holds a bachelor’s degree in
chemical engineering from Northwestern University and a master’s degree in engineering
science from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
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We need more well-educated and trained STEM
graduates to become our next generation of creative
innovators. For more than 40 years, the U.S. has been
ranked considerably lower than our global partners in
China, Germany and Korea in our math and science
aptitude. It is staggering to think that the percentage
of American adolescents who study mathematics and
science is actually lower than half of other countries.
However, investing time, resources and capital into
STEM educational initiatives, while immensely important, is only half the battle. Once we’ve trained these
professionals, we also have to create environments
and opportunities for innovation to prosper; where it is
encouraged to take risks and try new things.
One of the biggest opportunities we have in the STEM
area is with the lack of women and Hispanics and African-Americans going in to these fields. These groups
make up a significant portion of our future workforce,
yet they are the most underrepresented groups in
many STEM professions. I’m proud to say that GM outpaces the industry average of every one in ten engineers being a women by nearly doubling this with
about every one in five engineers being a woman in
the U.S. However, as you can see there is still a long way
to go. This is why GM’s STEM efforts are heavily focused
on women and minorities. GM and the GM Foundation
support programs such as MathCounts, United Way
“Network of Excellence schools, U.S. Naval Academy
STEM camp, and founded one of the nation’s largest
scholarship programs, The Buick Achievers, all in an
effort to help raise the water level on STEM education
for minority and underserved communities.
I have several life lessons that I’d like to share with all
future STEM professionals, but particularly for minorities and women coming “up” in the system. The first,
is to follow and show your passion. In my experience,
the people who make that difference are those who
establish clear priorities, and who throw themselves
into their work with all the passion and enthusiasm
they can muster. The second, is to try new things and
take risks. Understand that failure can often lead to the
greatest success stories. Third, establish a strong moral
compass. This likely means challenging the status quo
and conventional thinking which is not the easy route,
but leads to the best, most morale outcome. Fourth,
never stop learning. Know what your strengths and
weaknesses are and make a personal commitment
to improving what you need to. Finally, give something
back, especially as it pertains to STEM. Being involved in
mentoring and in helping at-risk children has been tremendously rewarding for me and it has shown me that
everyone can make a difference. Engineers are naturally great at building and all should take advantage
of opportunities to help build, educate and improve
the lives of others.
GM is fortunate enough to have a STEM professional
managing our leadership team in our CEO, Mary Barra,
along with other senior leaders rising from a background in STEM. Mary brings with her a career of engineering, manufacturing and product development
knowledge, experience and passion. She also happens to be a woman, and women not only influence
60 percent of all vehicle purchase decisions, but also
spend up to $200 billion a year on new vehicles, maintenance, and service in the U.S. Which is why GM puts
women at the center of every marketing, design, and
product-planning decision we make. However, diversity of all kinds, not just regarding women is so critical
to GM’s success. Having a diverse workforce, one that
truly mirrors out customer base, is critically important
for any business, in the U.S. and around the world. n
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To ensure the strength of our nation and the growth of
our economy, the next generation of leaders and innovators must have the skills and education necessary to
compete globally. According to the U.S. Department
of Labor, STEM jobs account for more than 50 percent of our country’s economic growth, yet only five
percent of U.S. workers are employed in STEM fields.
Of those five percent, a majority are reaching retirement age leaving many to wonder to whom they will
pass the torch. Securing qualified engineering and IT
talent will continue to be critical to our success. GM
can only progress if we continue to feed a pipeline of
innovative, tech-savvy, globally focused young thinkers
to our product development teams. There has never
been a more important time for leaders in STEM fields
to develop the next generation of talent.
Carey Smith
President,
Honeywell Technology Solutions Inc.
Honeywell
Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified
technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers
worldwide with aerospace products and services; control
technologies for buildings, homes and industry; turbochargers; and performance materials. Based in Morris Township, N.J.,
Honeywell’s shares are traded on the New York, London, and
Chicago Stock Exchanges. For more news and information on
Honeywell, please visit www.honeywellnow.com.
Carey Smith is the President of Honeywell
Technology Solutions Inc. (HTSI), a subsidiary
within Honeywell Aerospace. Since September 2011, Carey has led the HTSI business
that provides space, engineering and operations, physical and cyber security solutions,
and healthcare and logistics support for the
Department of Defense, civilian, commercial
and international customers.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Throughout her career, Carey has managed
complex operations across hundreds of
worldwide locations, delivered excellent contract performance and consistently demonstrated growth. Her career in the aerospace
and defense industry spans 28 years. Carey
has a B.S.E.E. with a computer science option
from Ohio Northern University and an M.S.E.E.
from Syracuse University.
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tant is listening to members of your team prior to making
any decision so that all available information is known.
People with a STEM education can provide innovative solutions for tomorrow’s problems. Solving these
challenges will invigorate both our economy and our
competitiveness. Energy efficiency, renewable energy,
climate control, healthcare safety and mobility, counter
terrorism and cyber security are just a few of the areas
where STEM talent is needed. Solving these challenges
and future ones that are not yet faced by our nation will
improve our competitiveness.
I am a mentor and I view mentorship as a very important
part of one’s role as a leader. To be able to help people
develop in their career as well as improve in their day-today job performance, is one of the most important attributes that a person can contribute to their organization.
For students to continue in their study of STEM subjects,
they must be engaged in activities of interest to them.
Whether it is designing a robot, defending against
cyber hackers, commanding and controlling satellites
or developing solutions to prevent diseases any person
engaged in STEM must participate in an area in which
they have passion.
Finally, understanding your customer and their priorities
and needs is fundamental for any leader. It is important
to know what motivates them and how they make
decisions to be able to offer the best product, service
or solution.
Mentorship should be built upon trust, where individuals
can have direct and honest discussions on items of any
area. It is also important to consider having more than
one mentor to get different opinions and to help in multiple areas.
Mentorship should also work two ways, where the mentor not only helps but also learns from the mentee. When
I first meet my mentee, I like to establish this two-way
communication and learn from them too.
How is your company innovating to promote STEM?
Math and science education is a key pillar of Honeywell
Hometown Solutions signature programming, such as:
For women and underrepresented minorities, it also
helps for them to see people like themselves in STEM
and leadership fields. Having a mentor is important for
all employees regardless of their field of study or level in
the organization.
FMA Live: Middle school students learn about physics
with hip-hop music, videos and experiments. Sponsored
by Honeywell and NASA, it is aligned with National Science Education Standards. Nearly 320,000 students in
1,000 schools across the U.S. have participated in FMA
Live!. www.fmalive.com.
Innovation is the key driver to an economy’s growth,
and human capital drives innovation. The availability
and mobility of talent worldwide has changed in recent
decades. The United States is in a position to not just help
developed countries, but also those emerging and poor
economies, which are in need of STEM resources.
Honeywell Educators @ Space Academy: Honeywell
sends 400 teachers every year to the U.S. Space and
Rocket Center (USSRC) in Huntsville, Ala. Aligned with
Next Generation Science Standards, HESA brings science to life in the classroom. In 10 years we’ve touched
more than 2,000 teachers from 56 countries, reaching
over 2 million students and creating livelier and more
dynamic learning environments. http://educators.honeywell.com/
To stay at the top of global innovation, the United States
needs an increased and continuous focus on STEM
human capital. This needs to start at ages K-12 and continue through getting students to attend college and
pursue advanced degrees in the STEM fields. We need
to teach creative and critical thinking, and entrepreneur risk taking.
All leaders must always operate with honesty and integrity. They need to stay true to themselves and make decisions based upon their values and beliefs.
Key to leadership is having a strong technical and business balance. Understanding technology helps a leader
to ask the smart questions and anticipate challenges.
The ability to make timely and accurate decisions is a
key attribute for any leader. One must readily assess the
facts, make a decision and move forward. Also impor-
Honeywell Leadership Challenge Academy: Each
year Honeywell sends more than 300 children of employees to the USSRC to develop skills through science-oriented workshops. More than 1,150 students from 47
countries have participated. http://leadership.honeywell.com/
Honeywell Initiative for Science & Engineering: Honeywell partners with global universities to inspire students
to pursue careers in science through lectures by Nobel
laureates. In the last three years alone, nearly 500 of
these graduates are now engineers in Honeywell. http://
www.honeywellscience.com/
We also run two environmentally-focused programs for
teachers and students – Honeywell Green Boot Camp
and Honeywell Institute for Ecosystems Education, and
offer Honeywell Horatio Alger Scholarships. Honeywell
invests in these programs because they align directly
with our business strategy. n
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To remain competitive in an increasingly global environment, the United States must educate, graduate and
retain the best technical talent. This talent will drive our
nation’s economy, in critical areas including research
and development, finance, manufacturing, information
technology, healthcare and other sectors.
Rod Adkins
Strategic Partnerships
IBM
IBM has been an innovation company for more than 100 years
and generates annual revenues in excess of $100B. We pursue
continuous transformation, always re-mixing to higher value in
our portfolio and skills, in the capabilities we deliver to our clients and in our own operations and management practices.
We create business value for enterprise clients through innovative integrated solutions and deep business insights. IBM has
done this repeatedly over the past century and is well position for the new era leveraging cloud, analytics, mobile, social and security solutions. We are a highly inclusive workforce
with more than 430,000 employees with operations in over 170
countries.
Rod Adkins will retire from IBM at the end of
2014 after more than 33 years of service for
the company. During this transition, he will continue to focus on several strategic corporate
projects and client relationships. Mr. Adkins
had been Senior Vice President of Corporate
Strategy since 2013, and previously was senior
vice president of Systems and Technology
Group, a position he held since 2009. In this
role he was responsible for all aspects of IBM’s
semiconductor, server, storage, and system
software businesses, as well as the company’s
Integrated Supply Chain and Global Business
Partners organizations.
one of the 50 Most Powerful Black Executives
in America.
Inducted into the National Academy of Engineering in 2005, Mr. Adkins is also a member
of the Executive Leadership Council, and the
National Society of Black Engineers, which in
2001 awarded him the Golden Torch Award
for Lifetime Achievement in Industry. In 2011,
Black Enterprise magazine chose Mr. Adkins
as its Corporate Executive of the Year, and
in 2002, Fortune magazine named Mr. Adkins
Mr. Adkins holds a Bachelor of Arts degree
with an emphasis in physics from Rollins College, Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in electrical engineering from
the Georgia Institute of Technology, and Honorary Doctor degrees from both the Georgia
Institute of Technology and the University of
Maryland Baltimore County.
He serves on the board of directors for United
Parcel Service (UPS), Grainger, Inc. and PPL
Corporation. He also serves on the national
board of the Smithsonian Institution and the
board of directors for the National Action
Council for Minorities in Engineering. Mr. Adkins
serves on the Georgia Tech Foundation, Rollins College Board of Trustees, University of
Maryland Baltimore County Board of Visitors,
and the University of Miami College of Engineering Visiting Committee.
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What is your advice on using private-public
partnerships to tackle our most pressing education challenges in STEM?
At IBM, I am involved in a public-private education partnership called P-TECH (Pathways in Technology Early College High School). The model
began in Brooklyn and Chicago, and is now rolling out in states around the country. Students at
these innovative grade-9-to-14 schools will graduate with an associate’s degree, along with the
skills and knowledge they need to continue their
studies or transition directly into jobs in the information technology industry. The schools also pair
students with corporate mentors, who help guide
curricula and provide real-world insight into industry trends. Public-private partnerships like this can
help invigorate and maintain students’ interest
in STEM. Programs like P-TECH can help improve
the composition of the STEM education pipeline
to include more women and underrepresented
minorities. Although women fill close to half of all
jobs in the U.S., they hold less than 25% of STEMrelated jobs. At the same time, 43% of school-age
children today are of African American, Latino,
or Native American descent. Yet of all the engineering bachelor’s degrees in the U.S., less than
15% are awarded to underrepresented minorities.
We need to reconcile these opposing trends so
that the composition of our STEM education pipeline reflects America’s shifting demographics.
National nonprofit organizations, like the National
Action Council for Minorities in Engineering, also
play an important role, by supplying Congress
with research and policy analysis, in addition to
providing scholarships directly to students.
What principles do you apply to your professional and personal life to advance STEM education?
Show by example how fun and rewarding careers
in STEM can be! Sometimes students just need role
models who inspire them to pursue STEM-related
careers. For me, that person was my father, who
encouraged me to deconstruct, analyze, and
experiment with our home appliances. The insight
I gained into how things work together opened
my eyes to new possibilities and instilled in me a
desire to create new technologies. n
The insight I gained into how things work
together opened my eyes to new possibilities
and instilled in me a desire to create new
technologies.
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Why is STEM Education/workforce development critical to the future of our nation? How
do you believe STEM education can improve a
There is no doubt that to advance our economy
and our society we need to create the next great
technology innovations, not just consume them.
That’s why there is such urgency for the U.S. to
develop a stronger workforce of experts in STEM.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, only
5% of U.S. workers are employed in fields related
to science and engineering, yet they are responsible for more than 50% of our sustained economic expansion. So it is clear that to benefit our
economy and society, our national priority should
be on encouraging more students to study STEM.
Unfortunately, the U.S. is trending in the opposite
direction. When I graduated from college, about
40% of the world’s scientists and engineers resided
in the U.S. Today that number has shrunk to about
15%. To turn this trend around, we need to improve
both the size and composition of the pipeline of
U.S. STEM students. We can do this by by maintaining an enthusiasm for science, technology, engineering and math throughout high school and
college. Our youngest students show an interest
in STEM subjects, but the President’s Council of
Advisors on Science and Technology has concluded that roughly 40% of college students planning to major in engineering and science end up
switching to other subjects. STEM-related degrees
represent only about a third of all the bachelor’s
degrees awarded in the U.S. In Japan, China and
Singapore, that ratio is more than one in two.
Kimberly Stevenson
Corporate Vice President and
Intel
Intel designs and manufactures advanced integrated digital
technology platforms. A platform consists of a microprocessor and chipset, and may be enhanced by additional hardware, software, and services. We sell these platforms primarily
to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), original design
manufacturers (ODMs), and industrial and communications
equipment manufacturers in the computing and communications industries. Our platforms are used in a wide range of
applications, such as PCs (including Ultrabook™ devices and
2 in 1 systems), desktops, servers, tablets, smartphones, automobile infotainment systems, automated factory systems,
and medical devices. We also develop and sell software and
services primarily focused on security and technology integration. We serve customers around the world, and at fiscal
year-end 2013 we had 107,600 employees in more than 60
countries.
Kimberly “Kim” Stevenson is Corporate Vice
President and Chief Information Officer (CIO)
of Intel Corporation. She is responsible for the
corporate-wide use of Information Technology (IT). Intel’s IT organization delivers leading technology solutions and services that
enable Intel’s business strategies for growth
and efficiency. The IT organization is comprised of over 6,000 IT professionals worldwide.
Previously, Stevenson was vice president and
general manager of Intel’s Global IT Operations and Services. In this role she led both the
strategic and tactical support of Intel’s worldwide infrastructure components, including
Data Centers, Network and Telecommunications, Enterprise Application Support, Client
computing and a 24x7 internal Service Desk.
Prior to joining Intel, Stevenson spent seven
years at the former EDS, now HP enterprise
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M services, holding a variety of positions including vice president of Worldwide Communications, Media and Entertainment (CM&E)
Industry Practice, and vice president of Enterprise Service Management where she oversaw the global development and delivery
of enterprise services. Before joining EDS, Stevenson spent 18 years at IBM holding several
executive positions including vice president
of Marketing and Operations of the eServer
iSeries division.
Stevenson earned a bachelor’s degree from
Northeastern University. She holds a master’s
degree in business administration from Cornell
University where she is an appointed member
of the Cornell University Johnson School Advisory Board. She serves on the board of directors of Riverbed Technology and Cloudera.
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Over the last 15 years, we’ve added roughly 4 million
tech-sector jobs, but we’re having trouble filling those
roles because our school systems have been unable
to produce enough qualified engineers to support the
growth. We cannot hope to innovate without investing
more in our future STEM workforce—and that starts with
a great foundation of science, technology, engineering and math.
To curb the STEM education crisis, we first need to get
kids excited about STEM fields - so they say things like,“I
want to be an engineer when I grow up.” Mass media
has an enormous power to inspire kids. Abby Sciuto’s
character on the television show “NCIS,” is a hip scientist that has inspired a generation interested in science. Dr. Brennan’s character on “Bones,” is a brilliant,
quirky and relatable scientist. Entertainer Will.i.am produced a T.V. special called “i.am.FIRST: Science and
Rock and Roll.” The program’s focus was on the FIRST
Robotics competitions where kids in grades 7-12 used
a sports model design to build and program competition robots. More character and real role models will
drive increased interest in STEM.
Awareness around engineering is also critical. Our
research shows that teens don’t know or appreciate
what an engineering career entails. Many associate
engineering with transportation or maintenance. However, when you have the opportunity to explain what a
career in engineering is and the income potential, you
can change their minds about pursuing a career in
the field of engineering. We found roughly 60 percent
of teens are more likely to consider engineering after
learning about the career’s earning potential.
Second, just like athletes play on teams and practice after school, kids need more opportunities to be
involved in after school and summer programs that
emphasize STEM. There are already many successful
examples. Intel PC Pals, an e-mail mentoring program
between students of area schools and Intel employee
volunteers, helps students develop their writing and
communication skills, receive mentoring, feedback,
encouragement, and support for their schoolwork from
a local business person. FIRST® LEGO® League and
Girl Scouts are showing kids that not only can they be
successful in math and science, but they can also be
leaders in those fields.
For educators and others in the STEM education space,
it starts with keeping kids in STEM courses. In some
schools, children can stop taking science and math in
8th or 9th grade. This places them at a huge disadvantage when it comes to working after high school or
attending college. There’s also a gender gap—not as
many girls are staying in STEM—so that’s an important
area to focus on.
Participating in these programs can also lead to
awards and other recognition. For example, at the Intel
International Science and Engineering Fair each year,
approximately 7 million high school students around
the globe develop original research projects with the
hope of winning scholarships and receiving recognition of their work. These programs are opportunities for
kids to apply STEM in practical experiences. Intel has
found that access to educational programs can provide kids with the opportunities for quality education
and personal growth through technology, scholarships
and community programs. Mentoring after graduation
is also key to keeping graduates in STEM fields.
In my organization, we’ve launched a rotation program specifically for IT professionals, which offers challenging development opportunities and is designed
to transform high performing college graduates into
future IT leaders. On a personal note, I devote time
to Girls Who Code and Girl Geeks organizations that
focus on growth and development of females in tech.
I believe that STEM offers real-world, problem-based
development opportunities that students will apply in
future learning, jobs and everyday life. While we’ve got
a lot of work ahead of us, addressing the STEM education crisis is crucial to our Nation’s continued success
– and we all have a part to play. n
To curb the STEM education crisis, we first need
to get kids excited about STEM fields - so they
say things like, “I want to be an engineer when
I grow up.” Mass media has an enormous
power to inspire kids.
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Technology and innovation have been a great source
of economic prosperity here in the United States, and
we spend more than one trillion dollars each year on
information and communication technologies. Our
children today are digital natives. They were born and
raised in the digital era, giving them the capacity to
continue the innovation cycle and invent what we
cannot yet conceive.
Adriane Brown
President and COO
Intellectual Ventures
Intellectual Ventures® (IV) is firmly grounded in the belief that
ideas are valuable. We invent on our own, we partner with
others to invent, and we buy existing inventions. Since our
founding in 2000, IV has become the leader in the business of
invention.
IV believes in invention not only as an economic opportunity,
but also as a unique characteristic of humanity that gives us
the power to improve the world. In addition to our day-to-day
business operations, we look for ways that our expertise can
unlock the full power of invention and encourage future generations of inventors.
Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) are the
building blocks of modern invention, and IV supports STEM organizations in their mission to lay this foundation for aspiring
inventors. As a company who values STEM education, we help
ideas grow by supporting organizations and mentoring youth
who will spark tomorrow’s greatest innovations. Learn more at
Project Eureka!, www.eureka.intven.com.
Adriane Brown is President and COO for Intellectual Ventures (IV), the leader in the business of invention. With a portfolio of nearly
40,000 high tech patents, her leadership and
business acumen serve as the cornerstone for
building a strong, global performance for IV.
Before joining IV, Adriane served as President
and CEO of Honeywell Transportation Systems. Under her leadership, this $5 billion business experienced profitable growth through
disciplined global expansion and innovative
new products. In 10 years at Honeywell, Adriane earned a reputation for driving business
results, strengthening customer relationships,
and inspiring and leading talented people.
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Humane Letters from Old Dominion University,
a Master’s Degree in Management from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she
was a Sloan Fellow, and earned a Bachelor of
Science Degree in Environmental Health from
Old Dominion University. Ms. Brown is recognized for mentoring emerging talent from all
walks of life and for developing future leaders. Adriane serves on the board of directors
of Harman International Industries, Inc., the
Pacific Science Center and Jobs for America’s Graduates. She lives in the Puget Sound
area with her husband and daughter.
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Early in my career, I had the opportunity to build a mentee relationship with Astrid Brown, a department head
in manufacturing at Corning. Brown’s position was not
a typical role for a woman, and she helped open my
eyes to my own potential as a leader. She saw something powerful in me that I had not yet recognized.
Now I am a mentor and have the opportunity to
encourage women and girls to become leaders in
science, technology, engineering, and math. Young
girls have the potential to create the next revolutionary invention. As mentors, we have the responsibility to
encourage girls to open their eyes to their own power
to achieve great things.
Intellectual Ventures employs scientists, engineers,
inventors, lawyers, and business leaders and our work
makes us a unique resource for our community. We
mentor teams of high school students in robot-building
competitions; sponsor code days and hackathons;
host STEM-related workshops for middle–school aged
girls; and we volunteer within the community.
One STEM organization that I’m particularly proud to
support is the Pacific Science Center (PSC) who does
fantastic work encouraging youth to pursue careers in
STEM.
I serve on the PSC board and have the opportunity to
support initiatives within the Seattle area that prioritize
STEM education. IV also sponsors PSC’s Science Café
series—programming that educates adults within the
Seattle/Bellevue area on the work of local scientists.
Additionally, IV supports the PSC Discovery Corps—a
youth development program that inspires a lifelong
interest in STEM.
Having the opportunity and the resources to show students the amazing things they are capable of is something I’m very proud of. Through our support of Pacific
Science Center and a number of other community
programs, Intellectual Ventures is able to mentor hundreds of youth.
encouraging girls and young women to consider STEM
careers.
Women and girls make up half of the global current
and future workforce. There is no shortage of problems
to solve through invention, but women are underrepresented in the effort. The idea that young girls don’t
have the same stake in the innovations and inventions
of the future is a complete myth. Girls face false claims
that that they aren’t as good as their male peers at
science, technology, engineering or math—the cornerstones of modern invention. As the mother of a
teenaged daughter, I’ve seen first-hand how some of
these influences can play out. But when we overcome
those negative influences, we’re unlocking half of the
world’s inventive brainpower.
strategy?
At IV we believe that diversity is key to innovation. I
believe that collaboration of great, diverse minds is
how we will solve our world’s toughest challenges and
create the next round of breakthrough technologies.
There is no mold for the typical employee at IV. We are
in the business of great ideas and we are attracted to
people with diverse backgrounds, skill sets, and a burning desire to disrupt the status quo. We’re used to hiring
trailblazers, and we’ve learned is that trailblazers are
never cut from the same cloth.
I grew up in Richmond, Va., and attended an all-black
school in first and second grade. In 1954, the Supreme
Court abolished segregation in schools, and in 1966 Virginia acknowledged that decision. My parents insisted
that I switch schools and sent me to an all-white school
in third grade. Five children including me integrated
the school. It was a challenging year, but the next year,
as other students enrolled, they came to me with questions. I became sixth-grade class president in a majority
white school, and at the time I didn’t appreciate what
an accomplishment that was. The impact of being 8
years old and stepping into a difficult position molded
me. It showed me that discomfort breeds growth, and
I’ve followed that tenet ever since.
At Intellectual Ventures we know that inspired ideas
are born from a diversity of thought, and we’ll continue
to push the limits in science, technology, engineering,
and math. We’re excited to see which young trailblazers will join us. n
As president and COO of Intellectual Ventures, a company that promotes and depends upon innovative
people, I am acutely aware of how women in STEM
fields have contributed to the growth of innovation.
But we must think about where we could be and
what frontiers we might cross if we do a better job of
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Mentorship has the power to help a person recognize their full potential. I strive to be a mentor in many
capacities: to the people working with me at Intellectual Ventures, others in the business of invention,
my community in Washington state, and beyond. I’ve
experienced how crucial mentorship is not only for our
youth and to individuals in the workforce, but also to
the success of businesses across the country and to
our nation’s ability to innovate.
Anita Zucker
Chair and Chief Executive Officer
The InterTech Group
The InterTech Group is a global holding company that owns or
has investments in a wide array of industries including aerospace,
advanced chemicals, financial services, consumer products,
sports teams and arenas, location-based entertainment,
real estate and alternative energy. The Company is listed by
Forbes magazine as one of the largest privately held entities
in the country. Since being founded by Jerry Zucker in 1982,
The InterTech Group has grown substantially through a series
of acquisitions, expansions, takeovers, “green field” start-ups,
and organic growth. The Company has purchased significant
divisions of DuPont, Johnson & Johnson, and Exxon, among
others. Public company takeovers include the 2006 acquisition
of the Hudson’s Bay Company, North America’s oldest company,
which was founded in 1670. Philanthropy and community service
are ingrained in the foundation of The InterTech Group with a
focus on education, workforce development and STEM initiatives.
The InterTech Group currently supports programs within the top
colleges and universities in South Carolina, including the University
of South Carolina, Clemson University, College of Charleston and
The Medical University of South Carolina.
A longtime advocate of education and
renowned South Carolina philanthropist, Zucker
currently serves as Chair and CEO of The InterTech Group, her family holding company.
Zucker has been a leader in the Charleston
area and South Carolina for numerous organizations. She served as chairperson of the
Board of Governors of the School of Business at the College of Charleston; she also
served on the Advisory Boards of the School
of Humanities and Social Sciences and Jewish Studies and she served on the board of
the Addlestone Hebrew Academy, Porter
Gaud and Ashley Hall Schools. Zucker is past
chair of the MUSC Foundation Board, Hollings
Cancer Center Citizens Advisory Committee,
member emeritus (first chair, 1993). Zucker
currently serves on the President’s Initiatives
Committee of the University of South Carolina.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Zucker has served as president of the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce and the
Education Foundation. Zucker also chaired
the Drug-Free Workplace Program and participated in the School to Work Task Force.
She is a past vice-president of Education and
Leadership and formerly chaired the Business
Education Council, and the Business Education Partnership Committee. She is a former
member and past chairperson of the Trident
Technical College Foundation Board and
Executive Board. She was appointed to the
Trident Technical College, Area Commission
by Governor Mark Sanford in October 2007.
Zucker earned a B.A. in education from the
University of Florida and a Master’s of Education from the University of North Florida. She
taught elementary school for over a decade.
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My family and my business are supported by a foundation
based on creating change in the world around us. My
late husband, Jerry Zucker, passed away in 2008 after a
battle with cancer. His passion for science, technology
and innovation continue to be the driving inspiration that
propels The InterTech Group each day. This inspiration
combined with a deep-rooted love of education have
become guiding principles in our business. In an effort to
have a direct impact on local students, we have invested
in an ongoing scholarship program for graduating high
school student interested in entering STEM related programs at our local technical college.
Where do you see the biggest area of opportunity in
advancing STEM careers?
The advancement of STEM careers will require a progressive approach to education. Within a global economy,
businesses must compete on a broader scale. The skills
and resources needed to compete across the globe
will only be possible through a comprehensive restructuring of the education system in our communities, from
cradle to career. According to World Economic Forum,
the United States ranks 4th for business sophistication and
7th for higher education and training, alarming statistics
when you consider the economic challenges we face.
STEM education?
Hang in there. We are making progress. To all the supporters of STEM education and leaders who are pushing education reform at any level, I commend your efforts. Our
voices are being heard and we are beginning to see the
needle move in a positive direction.
As we work to change the landscape of education, I
believe it is critical to retrain our guidance and career
counselors at every level. We are creating a future workforce. To do so our counselors must be knowledgeable
and fully invested. In tandem with counselors and administrators, we must keep talking about STEM education and
the importance of giving EVERY child an opportunity to
grow and prosper through enlightenment.
I believe it is important for us to remember the arts. Creativity drives innovation and lays the foundation for
building new processes and concepts. Bo Bennett, a
successful tech innovator said, “enthusiasm is excitement
with inspiration, motivation, and a pinch of creativity”. It’s
in everything we do, every idea, design and invention. It’s
important to remember the arts and creativity are a vital
part of our world and our work.
Leaders are in great demand as business builders and
role models. What advice do you have for minorities
and women coming “up” in the system?
STEM is integrated into every facet of business today.
There are opportunities across all markets, in practically
every region of the world. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF and take
advantage of EVERY opportunity to engage in STEM
programs, specifically opportunities that offer hands-on
learning.
Along with my executive team, I am involved in a number of mentoring programs throughout the year. We find
ourselves constantly working with students and young
professionals. Together, we see mentoring as a necessary
component of helping young leaders transition from one
level to the next. For this reason, we make ourselves available for mentoring to high school and college students as
well as MBA candidates and scholars. We are proud of
the time and resources we invest in helping young people
develop their skillsets.
What Employee Resource Groups does your company
have in place?
Our staff members are considered our most valuable
assets. As a result, we spend a great deal of time and
resources to ensure we attract and retain top-level talent throughout our business. Our employee resources
and programs ensure that we are actively engaged in
the health and development of everyone in our business family. To name a few, we offer traditional employee
assistance, wellness programs, personal and professional
development, as well as continuing education.
Why do you believe STEM Education and workforce
development are critical to our nation’s future?
Now more than ever, industries and markets are competing globally. Leaders consider science, technology, engineering and math as more than a choice for students or
a workforce. Our children and their children are making
decisions today that are molding the future of communication and technology and these decisions will fundamentally change the way business is conducted in the
future. We have to make strides daily to keep up with
other nations – STEM is a driver of this. As the modern
world evolves and becomes more connected, STEM education will ensure we thrive in a global economy.
The InterTech Group, Inc., its member companies, and
associates, as well as The InterTech Group Foundation,
seek to make a difference in the lives of others. Education
has become a top priority as we develop a future workforce. The InterTech Group currently supports programs
within the top colleges and universities in South Carolina
including Clemson University, College of Charleston and
The Medical University of South Carolina. Most recently,
we are excited about multiple programs with The University of South Carolina relating to aerospace engineering
and polymer science.
What is the STEM initiative that your company has supported are you most proud?
The InterTech Group STEM philanthropic strategy centers
on building awareness and opportunity. I am most proud
of the new and exciting developments in ongoing STEM
education and job development through our work with
the Medical University of South Carolina and Clemson
University. The Zucker Graduate Education Center, a new
addition to the Clemson University Restoration Institute
in Charleston, SC, is currently under construction and will
soon offer students the opportunity to acquire advanced
degrees in engineering. n
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What principles do you apply to your professional and
personal life to advance STEM education?
Liz Dente
Vice President of Human Resources
Service Delivery, Planning and Execution /
Acting Chief Human Resources Officer
ITT
ITT is a focused multi-industrial company that designs and
manufactures highly engineered critical components and
customized technology solutions. Our customers in the energy,
transportation and industrial markets depend on us to solve
their most critical problems, and we focus on partnering with
them to find solutions to their unique challenges. We serve
customers globally through long-standing brands – including
Goulds pumps, Cannon connectors, KONI shock absorbers
and Enidine energy absorption components, to name a few –
that are recognized and trusted globally. Founded in 1920, ITT
is headquartered in White Plains, N.Y., with employees in more
than 35 countries. The company has sales in approximately
125 countries and generated 2013 revenues of $2.5 billion. For
more information, visit www.itt.com.
Liz Dente is Vice President of Human Resources
Service Delivery, Planning and Execution and
acting Chief Human Resources Officer at ITT
Corporation. Since she joined the company
in 2012, HR has enabled a move from a holding company to an operating company by
upgrading talent across corporate functions,
received approval and funding and executed
the transformation of the function including
evolving the organization to a business partner
model, and articulated a global talent strategy in support of the overall enterprise strategy.
in various Vice President-level roles in Sales as
well as Information Technology. Previously, she
was a partner at the management consulting
firm A.T. Kearney Inc. and lead electrical design
engineer at Texas Instruments Inc., where she
designed and built missile test systems.
She has a Master of Business Administration
from The Wharton School at the University of
Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Science in
electrical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Prior to joining ITT, Liz was Vice President of
Human Resources and Process Excellence at
Avon Products Inc. At Avon, she also served
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Looking back in history, it has always been those countries that were best able to drive innovation that have
held leadership positions in the global marketplace.
In today’s modern world, innovation and technology
remain the foundation of competitiveness, so it’s clear
that fostering science, technology, engineering and
math education is a key path to continuing to improve
our ability to compete. Looking to the future, a focus
on innovation will be a hallmark of this century and our
most exciting advances as a society will likely be made
through technological innovation. So, any nation that
wants to compete effectively must encourage STEM
education and its focus on enhancing the strategic
thinking, problem solving and technological capabilities of the next generation of innovators. And, not only
does STEM improve a nation’s competiveness, it also
can improve our cohesion. Think back to the exciting
days of the early 1960s when President Kennedy galvanized the nation by challenging our best STEM leaders to win the race to the moon: “ We choose to go
to the moon in this decade and do the other things,
not because they are easy, but because they are hard,
because that goal will serve to organize and measure
the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are
unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win”
For most corporations that have a focus on science,
technology, engineering or math, talent acquisition
and development is always top of mind. To help foster
a talent pipeline, corporate leaders can look outward
to support STEM education and workforce initiatives
by working collaboratively with others. They can also
look inward to encourage and develop those traits
and capabilities that foster diversity and innovation.
For example, leaders must embrace diversity and
become ever more transparent and open to a wide
variety of thoughts and viewpoints.
To encourage students to pursue science, technology,
engineering and math subjects, we need to first draw
them in early and then help them see how fascinating and relevant these subjects are. This type of work
is being done through programs as varied as science
museums that give children hands-on experiences
to learn and explore, to more career-focused programs that expose older students to the opportunities
that the study of STEM can unleash. I personally was
influenced as a high school student by participating
in a program sponsored by Carnegie Mellon University called Women in Science and Engineering (WISE).
WISE exposed me to different types of engineering,
helped me understand how exciting a STEM career
could be and enhanced my appreciation for the
enduring impact STEM makes in the world. This type of
early exposure is critical in framing the advantages of
STEM education and making an indelible mark on the
next generation.
My advice for those coming up in the system is to
remember that “competence trumps all.” As a woman
or a minority, you may face obstacles, some of which
are outside your control. What you do have control
over are your own efforts. I’ve found that if you are
good at what you do, the rest usually sorts itself out
over time. Find your passion and be great at it.
What do we need in the U.S. to continue to be at the
Today, our employees, customers, suppliers and other
stakeholders come from all over the world representing
a tremendous variety of perspectives and experiences.
To create the best possible ideas, solutions, innovations
and partnerships, we need to continue to support STEM
education while embracing diversity at all levels of our
organizations. I believe that having a variety of viewpoints, ideas and contributions leads to better decisions and that helps drive smart innovation that will
help solve the myriad global challenges we face. I also
believe that we as a society should try to focus on making our heroes the scientists, inventors and dreamers of
the world. Our celebrity and brand oriented culture
does not always serve us well, and we will need to celebrate and rally around our innovation heroes to help
drive the next generation of advancement. n
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WanyonyiKendrick
JEA
JEA is Northeast Florida’s Not-For-Profit, Community-Owned
Utility. Located in Jacksonville, Florida, JEA proudly serves an
estimated 420,000 electric, 305,000 water and 230,000 sewer
customers. JEA was created by the City of Jacksonville to serve
those who live here and in the surrounding communities. Our
goal is to provide reliable services at a good value to our customers while ensuring our areas’ precious natural resources
are protected. JEA owns and operates an electric system with
over 730 miles of transmission lines, and more than 6,500 miles
of distribution lines. JEA’s total generating capacity is approximately 3,757 megawatts. JEA’s water system consists of 135
artesian wells tapping the Floridan aquifer, which is one of the
world’s most productive aquifers. Water is distributed through
36 water treatment plants and over 4,200 miles of water lines.
More than 3,700 miles of collection lines and seven regional
and seven non-regional sewer treatment plants comprise the
JEA sewer system.
Ms. Kendrick has been at JEA for over 16 years
and been appointed separately by 3 CEOs
as Chief Information Officer. Before she joined
JEA’s management team Ms. Kendrick was
the Vice President of Corporate Reporting
at Citibank Card Services (formally AT&T Universal Card Services). Ms. Kendrick believes
a STEM education is truly the great career
equalizer. She has committed her community activities to supporting STEM education
through numerous organizations including
the Executive Leadership Council, University
of North Florida’s Board of Trustees, Ameri-
can Association of Blacks in Energy (board
member), Edward Waters College’s Presidential Advisory Council and Jacksonville Zoo
and Gardens (board member). Ms. Kendrick
holds a Bachelor of Business Administration
in Accounting and Master of Accountancy
degree from the University of North Florida.
Ms. Kendrick holds active licenses as a Certified Public Accountant, Certified Management Accountant and Certified Information
Systems Security Professional. Ms. Kendrick
has won several national and international
awards for system integration and innovation.
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A STEM education is truly the great equalizer. A STEM
career doesn’t rely on your family history, your connections or your strength. A STEM education allows an individual’s hard work to pay off with a great career. Hard
work is what built American into a great nation. A STEM
education (followed in turn by a career) will continue
to build the nation’s competitive edge for many generations.
A STEM education is achievable. American youth must
believe they can become an engineer. A STEM education must be demystified by presenting it in less complex terms: for example I represent technology is just a
series of ones and zeros. The American education system must provide great STEM role models for our youth
to model. STEM education should be represented as a
viable option that’s as exciting as becoming an NBA
player.
Support the STEM pipeline as I have been supported
in my career. Spend time as a mentor as my mentors
has spent time with me. Demystify STEM education
wherever possible. Continue to learn and grow in STEM.
Never stop asking why.
For nearly four decades, INROADS has helped businesses gain greater access to diverse talent. INROADs’
unique leadership development process assists companies with anticipating business needs and identifying quality future employees. I brought the INROADs
program to JEA in the early 2000. Since then JEA has
hired many INROADs graduates as engineers.
Annually JEA proudly hosts over 100 high school and
college students in a wide variety of internship and
mentoring programs.These programs provide handson experience for students already enrolled in degree
and technical programs in their chosen field. JEAs
interns, co-ops and mentoring students work directly
with JEA employees trained to guide them through the
work environment, while also teaching them about the
utility industry. Students often get the chance to help
complete special projects while working side-by-side
with our employees. At the end of the program interns
are provided an opportunity to present the summer
activities to the JEA management team. Many JEA
employees start their JEA careers through JEA internships. JEA internship and co-op opportunities include
work in these JEA departments: Engineering, Informational System, Biology & Chemistry and Health. n
STEM education should be represented as a
viable option that’s as exciting as becoming
an NBA player.
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The unemployment rate among youth and minorities
remains high in the United States. However there continues to be a shortage of qualified computer science
engineers in the US. This mismatch has resulted in the
need to ship significant amounts of talent into the US.
This gap wouldn’t be sustainable at a company level
and can not be sustainable at a national and economic level. The US needs to develop our youth and
minorities to meet the demands of our nation.
Seema Kumar
Vice President, Innovation, Global
Health, and Policy Communication
Johnson & Johnson
Caring for the world, one person at a time, inspires and unites
the people of Johnson & Johnson. The company embrace
research and science - bringing innovative ideas, products
and services to advance the health and well-being of people. Johnson & Johnson’s approximately 126,000 employees
at more than 270 operating companies work with partners
in health care to touch the lives of over a billion people every day, throughout the world. Johnson & Johnson is proud to
be a strong supporter of numerous STEM education initiatives
and science mentorship and diversity programs.
Seema is a member of the Communications
Leadership Council at Johnson & Johnson
and responsible for maintaining the company’s leadership position in innovation and
global health. She works closely with Johnson
& Johnson Chief Scientific Officer and Worldwide Chairman of Pharmaceuticals, Dr. Paul
Stoffels, as well as communication leaders in
Corporate and R&D. Seema also serves as
the communication leader for the Worldwide
R&D Council and several innovation centers.
Seema was previously Vice President, Global
R&D Communications at The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, where she has had oversight of internal
and external communications across the
pharmaceutical R&D enterprise.
Prior to joining Janssen, Seema was the chief
communications officer at the Whitehead
Institute/Massachusetts Institute of Tech-
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M nology Center for Genome Research. She
played a key role in enhancing worldwide
public awareness and understanding of the
Human Genome Project.
Seema has published more than 200 news
and feature articles on science and medicine,
for which she has won several awards, including an Award of Excellence in writing from the
American Medical Writers Association and
three Gold Medals for Media Relations, Science Education, and Web Development.
Seema holds a master’s degree in science
journalism from the University of Maryland, a
fellowship at the National Cancer Institute,
a bachelor of science and communication
from the University of Maryland, a graduate
diploma in journalism and mass communication, and a bachelor of science in physics
from Stella Maris College, in Madras, India.
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The United States has been a world leader in innovation and scientific development because of a
national spirit of individualism and inventiveness
and because the country historically provided
strong support for STEM education at all levels of
the American education system. STEM education
is the nation’s seed corn for progress and prosperity. It produces new crops of young scientists and
engineers who grow up to be the innovators that
drive the American economy forward.
Anyone who worries about the future of the nation
should ensure that we support STEM education
at all levels. Nothing is more important to keeping America competitive for the future. To maintain our global leadership and competitiveness,
the United States must continue to strengthen its
investment in STEM education to ensure a future
generation of scientists, engineers and innovators.
How do we encourage students to continue
their study of STEM subjects, particularly
women and underrepresented minorities?
I think as a society we all need to work on inspiring
young students to get into STEM careers. First of all
we need to make sure that we portray careers
in science and technology in a better light. There
is not enough awareness and understanding
about the myriad career options that a STEM
education can create. We need to demonstrate
that STEM topics are fun and interesting. We also
need to break down stereotypes of scientist and
technologists being “nerds” and communicate
through a variety of ways that STEM professions
can be rewarding, fun, impactful and glamorous. For example, we at Johnson & Johnson support SWIVET, a fun and entertaining way to bring
STEM education to students, parents and educators around the world through videos and online
interactive content featuring cool kids exploring
technology and applying it to their lives. Men-
tors—especially women and minorities working
in the maths and sciences—are key to engaging
underrepresented populations in STEM. They serve
as role models and inspiration for young women
and minority students.
I have had numerous mentors guide me along
my career path. They have helped me develop
my own personal goals and objectives, build my
professional network, and develop my technical
and communication skills.
From such experiences, I’ve come to recognize
the value of these relationships. I am grateful
that as an organization, Johnson & Johnson has
a number of internship and job-shadowing programs that allow for students and young adults to
learn more about the healthcare industry. J&J also
partners with an organization that pairs graduate
students with a mentor in a STEM related industry as a way for them to learn about professional
opportunities and receive career development
coaching and advice. The program also gives the
mentees the opportunity to be hired.
Anyone who has had a successful career probably owes it to a teacher or mentor or several
along the way to instructed, inspired and made
success possible. I think we owe it to society, and
to ourselves, to return the favor.
What traits do corporate leaders need to
effectively support and advance STEM education today?
Innovation is the lifeblood of companies like Johnson & Johnson. Leaders need to deeply appreciate the need for innovation in their business
models.
And the only way to ensure a ready pool of clear
thinkers and creative minds is to support and
actively engage in STEM education. We actively
encourage government support for STEM education but we are also ourselves engaged in STEM
education programs, in part to build the relationships with the best and the brightest coming out
of the nation’s leading universities. These relations
will fill the corporate ranks with the innovators who
will create the future of any company. n
...we need to make sure that we portray
careers in science and technology in a better
light.
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Why is STEM Education/workforce development critical to innovation and the future of
our nation?
Data from numerous sources shows that nearly
half of the growth in the Gross Domestic Product of the United States since mid-20th century
resulted from scientific discoveries and technological developments.
Bernard J. Tyson
Chairman and
Kaiser Permanente
As one of America’s leading health care providers and nonprofit health plans, Kaiser Permanente is shaping the future of
health care. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente’s mission is
to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and
to improve the health of its members and the communities its
serve.
Care for members and patients is focused on their total health
and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team
of caregivers. Kaiser Permanente’s expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion,
disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and worldclass chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is
dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to kp.org/share.
Bernard J. Tyson is the Chairman and CEO of
Kaiser Permanente, America’s largest integrated health care provider and not-for-profit
health plan. With annual operating revenue of
$55 billion, Kaiser Permanente provides comprehensive health care and coverage—from
birth through all life stages—to more than 9.5
million members in eight states and the District of Columbia.
Kaiser Permanente’s more than 175,000
employees and 18,000 physicians consistently
focus on prevention as well as deliver some
of the best cancer care, cardiovascular care,
and neuroscience outcomes in the nation.
Kaiser Permanente also leads the nation
in infection prevention, cancer screenings,
patient safety, and quality.
Tyson has been a strong advocate for the
elimination of health care disparities among
individuals by promoting the use of aggregated data from members’ electronic health
records to determine the most effective treatments for optimal clinical outcomes. He is
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mission to provide high-quality, affordable
health care services for all the organization’s
members and to improve the health of members and the communities it serves.
Tyson’s career at Kaiser Permanente has
spanned 30 years, and he has successfully
managed all major aspects of the organization. He has a Bachelor of Science in health
service management, a Master of Business
in health service administration from Golden
Gate University in San Francisco, and a leadership certificate from Harvard University.
He serves on the board of directors of the
American Heart Association and recently
completed service as chair of the Executive
Leadership Council. He currently is the Cochair of the World Economic Forum’s Health
Governors Community in 2014, and cochaired the private Health Governors Meeting in Davos.
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What traits corporate leaders need to effectively
support and advance STEM education today
Some of the hallmarks of STEM education include not
only a focus on specific skills acquisition, but on innovative approaches to problem solving, often in collaborative settings. In business, as much as we’d like
to think there are clear right and wrong answers to
challenges, there often is not. But there usually is a best
answer based on a shared understanding of the issues,
conditions and what the organization can accomplish
together.
To support and advance STEM education, corporate
leaders should be working inside and outside their
organizations to foster the right conditions for innovative problem solving, discussion and debate. In doing
so, we are creating not just the best conditions for STEM
education to flourish in the workplace, but in the home,
where children can also experience the beauty and
the freedom of exploring their ideas and inspirations,
applying their minds to their generation’s opportunities
and challenges.
Where I see the biggest area of opportunity in
advancing STEM job careers
Today, care is no longer offered only in a hospital or
medical office setting. Instead, we are seeing a growing need for STEM experts to bring 21st century thinking
and tools to deliver care anywhere via video, tablet,
and more. As our equipment to deliver health care
becomes more technologically driven, we also need
a workforce that is educated and trained for the future
of health care. While the human-to-human touch will
always be at the heart of care delivery, technology is
enabling high-quality care that is data-driven, replicable and outcomes focused.
Future breakthroughs in the fields of health care
research and genetic engineering will address some of
the biggest challenges of today’s critical and chronic
conditions, including what I hope will be the elimination
of health care disparities. Advances in applied health
care sciences will help millions manage their chronic
conditions with minimal disruption to their lives through
new wearable technologies and telemedicine.
Advice for minorities and women coming “up” in
the system
The good news is more opportunities for minorities and
women will be apparent in the coming decade as the
high tech industry recruits a more diverse workforce
to better reflect the needs of a culturally diverse consumer base. No matter your race or gender, you need
to be at your best every day. Enjoy what you do; seek
out mentors who can help you achieve your goals;
and thoughtfully and strategically build your personal
brand – You, Inc. Now days, your social brand is foundational to your overall personal brand. The world is
technologically driven, so the next generation of leaders must be both tech savvy, and participate in the
conversations that are happening real time in social
media.
How I translate my work into innovation
As CEO of a $55 billion organization, my role is to set
the course of the entire organization – its leaders, physicians and employees – on the course for the future. As
an organization, we are looking ahead to what health
care “could” be in 2025, and are creating cross-organizational and cross-generational synergy around identifying both opportunities and barriers so we can map
to what are the most realistic and feasible developments for workforce training, technology development,
digital health, and more. My role is chief futurist, creating an organization that is nimble so we can adjust to
today’s demands while meeting the competitive marketplace of the future. n
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Why STEM Education/workforce development is
critical to the future of our nation
America’s legacy has been built on our ability to
shape the future, and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) expertise is critical to our
ability to compete in an increasingly global economy.
The World Economic Forum ranked the United States
52nd in the quality of mathematics and science education, and 5th (and declining) in overall global competitiveness in 2011. Global leaders must determine
the education, skills, and areas of expertise needed for
the next decade of business success and beyond, and
it’s clear the students of today – and business leaders
of the future – will need an increased focus on STEM
to keep the U.S. in the running. Success in the future
will require the ability to harness the data amassed
through technology and interpret its significance to
shape and improve America and the world. STEM
expertise will be invaluable in determining areas of
focus based on the aggregated data and its meaning. With the strength of STEM education in emerging
countries, we need American students to be competitive so the U.S. will remain a guiding force in innovation
and new technology.
Kathy H. Hannan
National Managing Partner,
Diversity and Corporate Responsibility
KPMG LLP
KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm (www.kpmg.com/
us), is the U.S. member firm of KPMG International Cooperative
(“KPMG International”). KPMG International’s member firms
have 155,000 professionals, including more than 8,600 partners, in 155 countries.
The KPMG Foundation is a Gold Sponsor of The STEM Connector, which brings together STEM leaders in business, education, government and the public sector to promote STEM
education and skills building. The Connector places a special emphasis on increasing interest and participation in key
constituent groups like women and minorities, to ensure that
every community is engaged in pursuing the many opportunities in STEM fields. This focus aligns with KPMG’s commitment to
diversity and inclusion.
Kathy H. Hannan is the National Managing
Partner for Diversity and Corporate Responsibility at KPMG. In this role, she focuses on linking
ethics, philanthropic partnerships, stakeholder
engagement, environmental best practices,
and diversity objectives to the organization’s
commercial strategy and enterprise sustainability. She also actively supports programs
that help underserved communities and initiatives targeting workforce readiness, youth
and education.
Hannan began her career at KPMG in the
New York office in 1985 and was admitted to
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M the partnership in 1994 as part of the International Corporate Services Tax practice.
After being elevated to Midwest Leader
of International Corporate Services in 1996
and Leader of KPMG’s Chicago Metro-Tax
Practice in 1998, Hannan was appointed to
the role of Vice Chair, Human Resources in
December of 2000. In 2004, she was named
the Midwest Area Managing Partner of Tax
Services, KPMG’s first female to be named to
such a position. She also served as a member of KPMG’s Management Committee and
Global HR Steering Group.
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KPMG is committed to supporting programs along
the education continuum that help students prepare
for the future. STEM education is critical to workforce
readiness, particularly in the financial services industry where science, technology, math and engineering
all play an important role. U.S. global competitiveness directly correlates with the future success of our
nation’s children.
KPMG is committed to building a sustainable, diverse
talent pipeline for our organization and the broader
market by continuing to make long-term, strategic
investments in programs from early childhood and
throughout the education continuum including helping to build a cadre of diverse professors in academia.
Some of these programs include: KPMG’s Family for
Literacy program, which is dedicated to fighting childhood illiteracy in low-income communities; our work
with Junior Achievement’s Finance Park program,
which expands to financial literacy for middle-school
students; our work to inspire interest in the accounting
profession among high school students through the
National Academy Foundation’ 250 Finance Academies; our focus on STEM education; and our PhD
project, which helps encourage minorities to pursue
doctoral degrees and has increased diversity in the
teaching ranks nearly four-fold at business programs
nationwide.
Innovation is critical to our organization’s future and is a
key priority for any business operating in today’s rapidly
shifting economy that includes increasing regulation,
disruptive technologies, and economic and political
uncertainty. Companies must be nimble and innovative to grow and compete. Innovation requires a longterm focus, as well as a willingness to change course
when the market calls for it. It also means requires that
companies recruit and retain diverse, top talent.
One of the challenges facing U.S. companies when
it comes to innovation is basic workforce readiness.
The gaps in workforce readiness are most evident
among youth growing up in low-income communities.
If companies are going to have long-term access to a
strong and diverse talent pool, we need to be part of
the solution. That means engaging our people in, and
focusing our strategic investments in the community,
building programs and initiatives to help ensure that
every young person has the skills and opportunities he
or she needs to be a valued and successful employee
in the future.
I have been a mentor at many points along my career
path and continue to serve as one in my present role.
I’m a strong advocate for mentorship as it serves as
valuable vehicle to assist employees’ professional
development. Beyond mentorship, our organization
also focuses on sponsorship. I am happy to serve as a
sponsor as well.
Mentors act as role models and close advisors, providing a helpful perspective on things like how to invigorate one’s career, achieve internal recognition, or
navigate professional relationships. The role of a sponsor differs, however, because they will use their political
capital to advocate for that person’s career growth
and advancement as they continue to build their
career. A sponsor will promote their protégé’s visibility,
and will strongly recommend her for strategic opportunities. Diverse, high-performing employees should have
mentors and sponsors throughout their careers. I speak
from personal experience, as I’ve been mentored and
sponsored by great people.
At KPMG we have many programs that support diversity through mentorship and sponsorship. One such
program is our Leaders Engaging Leaders program,
which connects members of KPMG’s Board of Directors
and Management Committee with high-performing
diverse partners, better preparing them for advancement into our organization’s leadership.
Working individually and collaboratively, KPMG’s
seven national Diversity Networks provide our employees with exceptional opportunities to participate in
development programs, connect with mentors and
sponsors, demonstrate their leadership skills, broaden
professional experiences, and build career-enriching
relationships, both within and beyond the firm.
Membership in the networks is open to all and with
nearly 140 local employee-driven chapters across the
country. The networks engage more than 40 percent
of our employees, and are key contributors to KPMG’s
business strategy. KPMG’s Diversity Networks include:
Abilities in Motion (AIM), African-American Network
(AAN), Asian Pacific Islander Network (APIN), Hispanic/
Latino Network (HLN), KPMG’s Network of Women
(KNOW), pride@kpmg (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Allies) and the Veterans Network.
Strategically aligned with our organization’s diversity
priorities, KPMG’s Diversity Networks share a single
mission: to engage, support, and provide opportunities for personal and professional development to all
our people, while raising awareness and fostering an
inclusive work environment. Working together, the networks contribute to and support the firm’s recruiting,
onboarding, and talent development and retention
efforts; relationship building and market engagement
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STEM education and workforce development in the
United States needs to improve significantly to ensure
we have the pipeline of talent to compete in the
global economy today and in the future. According
to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development, American students score 23rd in math
and 31st in science when compared with 65 other top
industrial countries.
Yolanda Conyers
Vice President, Global HR Operations
and Chief Diversity Officer
Lenovo
Lenovo is a US$39 billion personal technology company, the largest PC company in the world, serving customers in more than
160 countries. Dedicated to building exceptionally engineered
PCs and mobile internet devices, Lenovo’s business is built on
product innovation, a highly-efficient global supply chain and
strong strategic execution. The company develops, manufactures and markets reliable, high-quality, secure and easy-touse technology products and services. Its product lines include
legendary Think-branded commercial PCs and Idea-branded
consumer PCs, as well as servers, workstations, and a family of
mobile internet devices, including tablets and smartphones.
Furthermore, Lenovo is a global industry leader in the education
market and we are uniquely positioned to make a sustainable
difference through our support of education related programs
and initiatives. Lenovo aims to advance, enhance and extend
education at all levels in both K-12 and higher education.
Yolanda Conyers is the vice president of
global human resources operations and the
chief diversity officer at Lenovo, the #1 PC
vendor in the world.
In addition to founding the first-ever diversity
office for a company of Chinese heritage, she
has transformed Lenovo’s day-to-day human
resources operations by ensuring consistency
of processes, systems and data for a complex
global company with employees in more
than 60 nations.
Throughout her tenure, Yolanda has ensured
increasing diversity in the Lenovo workforce
and has continually strengthened the foundation of “The Lenovo Way”—a blending of eastern and western business cultures, philosophies
and ideas—in a unique and high-impact way
that truly defines Lenovo as a next-generation
global company. She is also the co-author of,
The Lenovo Way – Managing a Diverse Global
Company for Optimal Performance, which
reveals the story behind Lenovo’s iconic journey to become a global leader.
With a Bachelor’s degree in computer science from Lamar University and an MBA in
international business from Our Lady of the
Lake Executive MBA Program, Ms. Conyers
has a passion for promoting STEM with young
people. She has served on the board of directors for the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) organization in Austin, Texas. She
currently serves as a member of the Executive Leadership Council (ELC), Austin-Travis
County Mentoring Advisory Council, Bridget B
Foundation Board of Directors, and the Cross
Cultural Marketing Communications Association (CCMCA) Advisory Board. She has been
recognised for her work having received the
“Outstanding Texan in Business” award from
the Texas Legislative Black Caucus, and the
“National Awards for Special Achievement”
from the Women of Color in Engineering.
Prior to joining Lenovo, Ms. Conyers spent 15
years at Dell, Inc., before which she served as
a systems analyst at Texas Instruments.
Ms. Conyers is married and has three boys.
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My computer science degree from the college of
engineering, coupled with over 25 years of working
for three high tech companies gives me the perfect
opportunity to talk to youth about the opportunities
with STEM. I live by the three basic principles of how to
problem solve, how to take big concepts and make
them real, and how to be creative leveraging different
inputs from data or people. These are easy to for young
people to understand and translate into real life. My
passion is encouraging young people, especially children from disadvantaged backgrounds, to focus on
math and science in school in order to pursue careers
in programming and engineering. Most recently I
attended the National Society of Black Engineers Conference where I gave a speech on this topic: As I told
attendees, I believe an engineering degree is a passport whose usefulness extends beyond the job itself.
Our vision for diversity is to develop and enable the
very diverse talent of our people globally to spark the
innovation, creativity and the performance excellence
needed to be the world’s leading personal technology company. In order to achieve this vision, we have
to ensure that children from all backgrounds are prepared to join technology companies like Lenovo. To
support this we are involved in numerous initiatives.
Examples include being a founding partner of the
Kramden Institute, a non-profit organization, whose
mission is to help less advantaged students in grades
3-12 cross the digital divide. Through a network of over
2,500 volunteers, Kramden refurbishes used comput-
ers and works with school districts across the state to
place them, free of charge, into homes of students in
low-income areas. Kramden volunteers include middle and high-school students, and Lenovo employees.
Lenovo’s partnership with Kramden has exposed the
student volunteers to careers in STEM, helping to ignite a
spark for the next generation of innovators. Also in support of STEM, we have established the Fran O’Sullivan
Scholarship which awards a scholarship annually to a
college woman who is majoring in engineering.
through diversity?
I truly believe that having a diverse employee population gives Lenovo a competitive advantage. In fact, I
just launched a book, called The Lenovo Way, in which
I talk about how our strength is in our ability to leverage
diverse perspectives in the design, development, marketing and sales of our products. Our vision of having
a diverse, multicultural company cannot be achieved
if we don’t focus on preparing our children to be able
to compete for and pursue technical careers. A lack
of inclusiveness will mean that we will miss out on all
the innovative and creative ideas that this group can
bring to work place. Therefore, we must always look for
ways to encourage more diversity in high tech companies. I wrote The Lenovo Way because I thought it
was time to share my story of how STEM has helped me
become a global executive for a Fortune 500 company. I hope that my successes and challenges in this
book will help influence others, especially women and
minorities, to consider this path.
As an African American girl who grew up in southeast
Texas, I didn’t know that I could be a global executive
someday! My mentor in high school, who recognized
my knack for math and science, influenced me to take
a computer science class and later, pursue a computer science degree in college. It was yet another
mentor in college who introduced me to an organization called the National Society of Black Engineers;
he said this conference would change my life and he
was right - I landed a job with Texas Instruments! This
all led to a 25 years+ career in high tech companies.
My mentors encouraged me and now I have to pay
it forward, so I mentor at all levels. I have been a mentor for years and through my mentoring have encouraged many to pursue or stick with engineering during
their most difficult times. Having someone to see your
talent and encourage and guide you through unfamiliar, and sometimes intimidating areas, is necessary.
I would not have been given the career opportunities
without a STEM education that was driven by my great
mentors. n
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Education is the passport to our growth and economic prosperity, and at Lenovo we support education related programs/initiatives through our industry
leading products and technologies, community investments and sponsorships. We don’t limit the scope of
our education related social investments but rather
consider each opportunity based on its own unique
merits. We donate equipment, provide cash contributions and lend our expertise to schools and related
organizations across all global markets. For example,
Lenovo recently announced a new agreement with
the National Academy Foundation (NAF) to bring a
robust mobile app development curriculum and delivery program to NAF academies in the United States—
the Lenovo Scholar Network. Whilst in the UK, Lenovo is
in the third year of a University Placement Programme
which offers 1 year placements to university students
during their degree course.
Frank Armijo
Vice President of Energy Solutions
Lockheed Martin
Advancing STEM education is a critical focus for Lockheed
Martin. Our future success—and our nation’s technological
advantage—depend on a constant supply of highly trained,
highly capable technical talent. We believe strongly that
advancing STEM education requires collaboration among
industry, educators, policy makers and families. As an industry leader, Lockheed Martin, with an employee population
that includes 60,000 engineers, scientists and IT professionals,
is committed to working with these groups to develop programs that educate and inspire tomorrow’s scientists, engineers and mathematicians. To help address these challenges
and strengthen the workforce pipeline, Lockheed Martin provides generous funding to STEM education outreach activities
for students from elementary school through college. We are
committed to supporting programs, events and campaigns
that focus on student achievement, teacher development,
and gender and ethnic diversity.
Frank Armijo serves as the vice president of
Energy Solutions within Lockheed Martin’s
Information Systems and Global Solutions
Civil organization. He leads a team of 2,900
employees responsible for providing a full
range of energy and environmental services
and solutions to government, commercial and
regulated industry clients. Mr. Armijo’s organization supports the Department of Energy,
Environmental Protection Agency, Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, Federal Energy Management Programs and eight of the ten largest utilities in the United States.
In addition to his 25 years of professional
experience, including 16 years in leadership
roles at Lockheed Martin, Mr. Armijo has been
actively involved in the community, with a
focus on education and technology development. As chairman of the TRIDEC regional
economic development organization, he led
the effort to turn Washington State University
Tri-Cities into a four-year institution. He also led
the Columbia Basin College Board of Trustees,
was a founding board member of the Read-
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appointed to Washington Learns chaired
by Gov. Christine Gregoire, and co-founded
the Hispanic Academic Achievers Program,
which has provided over $2 million in college
scholarships. He has served on the Washington Technology Center Board of Directors
and was elected to two terms on the Washington Technology Industry Association.
Mr. Armijo holds a bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems, with a minor
in Communications, from Eastern Washington University, and an Associate of Arts and
Applied Science degree in Computer Science from Columbia Basin College. He has
completed executive courses at MIT Sloan
School of Management and Stanford University. In 2011, he received the Executive
Excellence Award from the Hispanic Engineer
National Achievement Awards Corporation.
Mr. Armijo is a Paul Harris Fellow and a recipient of the North Star Award from the Boy
Scouts of America.
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As the question suggests, proficiency and curriculum
standards are just one part of the answer to closing the
STEM education gap. I believe that the most effective
way to produce more students who want to pursue
an education—and, ultimately, a career—in science,
technology, engineering and math is to make these
fields more exciting and accessible for them. We need
to address this challenge on multiple levels, including
improved STEM training and curriculum tools for teachers, greater commitment by scientists and engineers to
support extra-curricular STEM programs, increased support from corporations, and better parent outreach to
help them understand that a career in science and
engineering is a realistic goal for their children. By moving on all these fronts, we can help students
Because Lockheed Martin employs approximately
60,000 scientists and engineers, our Corporation supports STEM programs on many levels, from elementary
school through higher education. While much of our
funding is targeted toward fields where Lockheed
Martin has the greatest talent needs, we also see the
value in supporting general programs that build awareness and excite interest in all types of technological
achievement. Our business areas implement local
efforts to address the unique needs of our communities
and employees. This includes educational outreach
to schools, museums and after-school programs to
engage directly with students and teachers. In addition, our Corporate Contributions Committee, which
evaluates all grant requests greater than $100,000, has
set a goal of allocating approximately one-half of all
Board of Directors-authorized charitable contributions
to STEM initiatives by 2015. We use an online database
to track progress toward our goals for philanthropic
contributions, volunteer hours and matching gift programs related to STEM initiatives.
As a Hispanic American and the child of parents who
were migrant farm workers, I have a deep appreciation for the value of education in opening the door
to a brighter future. I attribute my career success to
both the opportunity to receive an education and the
encouragement to capitalize on it. I therefore devote
most of my community volunteer efforts toward promoting educational initiatives, encouraging students
to pursue them, and convincing parents that their children can achieve great things. When I am introduced
to a young person, I always ask where—not if—he or
she is going to college. In my position as vice president of Energy Solutions at Lockheed Martin, I use the
energy sector as an example of the growing number
of opportunities that are open to young people who
pursue a STEM education.
Lockheed Martin offers multiple resources and groups
for diverse individuals to advance their careers. Under
the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, the Corporation
supports Employee Resource Groups and Employee
Networks that are open to all employees. The Resource
Groups are established based on the primary dimensions of diversity, such as race, ethnicity, gender, disability status, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
These groups support professional development, provide opportunities to network, and help advance the
company’s mission and business objectives. Personally,
I have served on the Executive Diversity Council and
co-founded the Lockheed Martin Hispanic Leadership
Council. The Corporation also has established Effective
Leadership of Inclusive Teams (ELOIT) learning labs for
vice presidents and above.
Lockheed Martin believes that the need for a STEMeducated workforce is too great and too important to
exclude or discourage any segment of our society—
based on race, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation
or any other characteristic—from becoming science
and engineering professionals. I have seen firsthand in
the Hispanic community that many promising young
students fail to achieve their full potential because
they do not receive adequate support or opportunities. Lockheed Martin understands that companies
who actively engage traditionally underrepresented
populations are tapping into a source of next-generation STEM leaders who can provide their organizations
with a significant competitive advantage. Moreover,
creating an inclusive work environment encourages a
diversity of opinions that strengthens our solutions and
provides our customers with the highest value. n
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Working for one of the world’s leading technology
companies, I see every day how critical STEM education is for our nation’s success on many levels—for our
economy, for sustainability, and for our national security. The United States’ technological advantage in all
of these areas depends on a constant supply of highly
trained, highly capable technical talent. Technological
leadership has been the cornerstone of our nation’s
success for more than a century, and now, more than
ever, our future prosperity rests on our ability to increase
the pipeline of engineers and scientists entering the
workforce. The size and number of fields that require
technical talent is growing—everything from addressing the challenges of energy sustainability to meeting
the needs of an information-driven society. From my
perspective at Lockheed Martin, I see a growing gap
in the demand for these professions and the number of
qualified individuals ready to step into them.
Ann Cairns
President, International Markets
MasterCard
MasterCard is a technology company in the global payments
industry. We operate the world’s fastest payments processing
network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. MasterCard’s products and solutions make
everyday commerce activities—such as shopping, traveling,
running a business and managing finances—easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone.
Ann Cairns is president, International Markets
for MasterCard Worldwide, responsible for the
management of all markets and customerrelated activities in more than 210 countries
and territories outside of North America. As a
member of the company’s Executive Committee and based in London, England, Ms.
Cairns leverages the company’s seamless
global structure and presence to the benefit
of all stakeholders.
Ms. Cairns brings more than 20 years of experience working in senior management positions across Europe and the U.S., running
global retail and investment banking operations. Prior to joining MasterCard in August
2011, Ms. Cairns was a managing director and
head of the Financial Industry Services group
for Europe with Alvarez & Marsal in London.
From 2008 to 2011, Cairns led the European
team managing the estate of Lehman Brothers Holdings International through the Chapter 11 process.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Previously, Ms. Cairns was Chief Executive Officer, Transaction Banking at ABN-AMRO in London, where she managed a global business
with over 5 billion euros in revenue in 50 countries, covering the commercial, retail and
financial institutions segments, and reported
to the Group Board and served on the bank’s
Executive Committee.
Prior to joining ABN-AMRO, Ms. Cairns spent
15 years in senior operational positions at
Citigroup, including Chief Operating Officer,
e-Business, where she led U.S., European and
Japanese operations. Ms. Cairns also served
as Trustee of Charity Bank in the UK.
At the start of her career, Ms. Cairns spent time
as an award-winning research engineer, culminating as the head of Offshore EngineerPlanning for British Gas. Managing a team
of 50 plus engineers, Ms. Cairns was the first
woman qualified to go offshore in Britain.
Ms. Cairns received a B.Sc. in Pure Mathematics at Sheffield University and an M.Sc in Statistics from Newcastle University, U.K.
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ture, experience and thought all drive innovative thinking. And, it’s a priority that has been woven into the
fabric of our operations, with our CEO personally chairing our executive diversity council. Every day, employees take advantage of opportunities to tap into these
backgrounds to contribute to our business and the
enrichment of their colleagues.
We’re already seeing the use of money in the form of
cash and check decline and the use of electronic payments increase. Keep in mind, we’re at the beginning
of this journey as more than 80 percent of the world’s
retail transactions are still done in cash and check. But,
this transformation is creating new industries that didn’t
exist a decade ago. From online shopping and travel
reservations to digital music and movies, we’ve just
begun to scratch the surface.
STEM education?
Students today should identify their passions and pursue them. They shouldn’t feel like they need to live up
to an image or an ideal to please others. That’s exactly
what I did. I went to Sheffield University to study pure
mathematics and had no idea what I would do after
I graduated.
Our future relies on the continued education of tomorrow’s leaders and engineers. Without a passionate
support of STEM principles, our way of life and competitive advantage may be threatened.
How does MasterCard encourage students to continue their study of STEM subjects?
Earlier this year, we launched Girls4Tech, a hands-on,
inquiry-based program that connects the foundations
of our business to STEM principles. Through the oneday curriculum, we hope to use our employees as role
models and mentors to shows students that it takes all
kinds of interests and skills to pursue a career in STEM.
The curriculum is based on global science and math
standards and was created in conjunction with our
top engineers and technologists. We look forward to
building on the momentum of this pilot to inspire young
women to pursue their education and future careers.
When many people first think of MasterCard, they think
about credit cards or our Priceless advertising campaign. But, that’s only part of the story. MasterCard is
much more—we’re a technology company driving
innovations that will power greater convenience, simplicity and security in the way you pay and shop.
Eight Business Resource Groups—with over 4,000 members—have been established with chapters across the
globe, comprised entirely of volunteers who are drawn
together in common interests that are typically not in
their job descriptions. These BRGs represent the diverse
nature of our employees, including gender, race, sexual orientation and experience.
To me, the joy of math is that you can look at tables of
numbers and see patterns. It’s like looking at a painting. It’s an experience. It’s what I’m passionate about.
It’s just the way your mind works. And today, our teams
are doing just that. They’re taking information available
to them—what we’re calling “big data”—to identify
trends that will help businesses make better decisions
and connect more closely with their customers.
In the near term, the future of money is about innovations like chip cards, digital wallets or biometrics like
a fingerprint or retina scan that increase security and
reduce fraud.
In the longer term, we will work to move toward a new
landscape where technology will help overcome
the challenge of exclusion around the world, in both
developed and developing countries.
Look at South Africa where millions are getting their
social benefits through debit cards with biometric
technology built into them. Before this program, Hilda,
a 77-year-old woman, was anonymous and subject to
harassment by her own relatives who would forcibly
take her cash. Now, she has an identity inside of South
Africa, greater control of her money and more security.
The UN World Food Programme is using MasterCard
technology to provide more than one million Syrian
refugees in Lebanon and Jordan with prepaid cards.
These are reloaded every month and are designed to
help those in need buy the food they need from local
stores.
It’s this future that exists because advancements
in technology have and will continue to lead to
unprecedented potential for economic growth and
productivity. n
But, the one they have in common is the belief that
diversity is at the heart of innovation. Diversity of cul-
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Why do you believe STEM Education/workforce
development is critical to our nation’s future?
Today, we’re living in a world that is increasingly digital.
These digital lives and related devices—smartphones,
laptops and wearables, not to mention the payments
business—exist because of advancements in technology. Money, in some form, has existed since the beginning of time.
Nimesh Shah
General Manager,
Managed Services
McKesson
McKesson is in business for better health. As a company working with health care stakeholders in every setting, we are
charting the course toward a stronger, more sustainable future for the entire industry. As the oldest and largest health
care services company in the nation, McKesson plays an integral role in health care and has a unique vision for its future.
We serve more than 50% of American hospitals, 20% of physicians and 100% of health plans, and as the largest pharmaceutical distributor in North America, we deliver one-third of
all medications used there every day.
Our software, distribution and business services play an essential role in addressing the challenges health care organizations
face today — and shaping how they’ll overcome them tomorrow. We believe that improving the business health of health
care organizations across the spectrum of care is key to achieving better health outcomes and lower costs for everyone.
Since November 2012, Nimesh Shah has
served as the Senior Vice President and
General Manager of Managed Services in
McKesson’s Provider Technologies Division.
Shah’s portfolio of solutions includes application management and hosting, IT outsourcing, technology, hardware and other
infrastructure related services. Mr. Shah brings
to McKesson over 25 years of managed services leadership across a range of global vertical industries including healthcare, financial
services, manufacturing, and government.
He has extensive experience at leading business transformation and driving client-centric
process improvements that drive increased
customer satisfaction, service delivery excellence and revenue growth.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Prior to joining McKesson Mr. Shah served
as the Vice President and Global Portfolio
Executive for infrastructure services at CSC.
Under his leadership, the company launched
numerous new services, standardized its
delivery models to ensure consistency and
efficiency, and developed extended service
delivery capabilities that improved the customer experience.
In addition, Mr. Shah led global operations
across Asia-Pacific and India for AT&T and
held leadership roles in operations, sales and
strategic planning for Sprint’s web hosting
and data service lines. He has a bachelor’s
degree from Mary Washington College and a
master’s degree from George Mason University. Mr. Shah and his family reside in Milton, GA.
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Students engaged in STEM studies will have the ability to
impact all market verticals and potentially improve the
lives of people throughout the world. We require a diversity of experiences and ideas in order to maximize the
opportunities for innovation and women and minorities
bring unique perspectives that improve, elevate, and
expand the dialog of what is possible. This can be not
only a personally lucrative endeavor but also one that
provides immeasurable social good. You can literally
change the world.
Just short of changing the world, however, over 70% of
available positions within the Managed Services Organization at McKesson require a STEM degree. These are
roles that affect the quality of healthcare delivery for our
customers and improve the operational performance
of hospitals. These impacts are more immediately felt
on an individual basis and improve that quality of care
received by patients every day.
Taking the abstract into the practical and being able to
leverage those capabilities to drive new products and
services, improve customer outcomes, and contribute to
business success will create expanded personal opportunities for those positioned with the right skills. This reality
applies to all areas of business. The ability to marry STEM
skills with business acumen is a critical opportunity for
those individuals that bridge the two.
Within healthcare this is becoming even more pronounced. Population health management and predictive
care models are creating new avenues of research and
analytics. Technology adoption in the healthcare environment is accelerating to drive new standards of care and
improved patient outcomes. These are new fields of study
are driving entirely new career opportunities and bring
together business, clinical, and STEM disciplines in entirely
new and compelling ways.
How can we advance mentorships in the STEM
pipeline?
Mentorships can be an invaluable asset to students and
individuals starting their careers. But mentorship is a twoway street and requires the active participation of both
parties. For students and people new in their career, they
should request mentorships and then foster those relationships. There is no doubt that the success of a mentor
relationship rests first with the mentee. The more you put
into it, the more you get out of it.
At the same time companies need to encourage their
executives and leaders (at all levels) to serve as mentors.
McKesson is very active in building mentorships and creating a programmatic structure to help foster and manage these relationships. Mentorship can be an incredibly
powerful tool for identifying and retaining the next generation of leadership or nurturing innovation within the
business. The return on investment for mentorships is
extremely high and beyond that, can be fulfilling in ways
that cannot be measured.
Women and minorities should participate in the programs offered within the business. This is a tremendous
opportunity to network with other leaders in the business and identify potential mentors. McKesson offers an
array of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) that provide ideal opportunities for all individuals to engage in
teaming and collaboration. ERGs also provide an avenue for individuals to ask for help in addressing business
issues. Asking for help is just another way of participating—engaging others in helping to solve a problem.
Regardless of the role or position you must execute
on your commitments. It is surprisingly difficult to find
individuals who can develop, articulate, and then fully
execute on a plan. Together with engagement in the
broader organization, successfully executing on objectives can earn sponsorship within the business and
position an individual to mentor others.
The fastest path to innovation is through teamwork.
Success is more quickly achieved by being part of
something larger than oneself and by leveraging the
collective creativity, intellect, and motivation of a group.
And diversity of thought and diversity of experiences
enrich the process and improve the outcome. Great
ideas are everywhere—the work is in harnessing and
focusing the energy towards achieving meaningful customer and business improvements.
The Managed Services Organization within McKesson
is focused on elevating the role of information technology in healthcare to improve patient outcomes and
increase the success of hospital systems in serving their
communities. This mission requires constant innovation
not only in accelerating technology adoption but also
improving clinical workflows and business processes.
Our team relies upon the collective intellect of our clinicians, engineers, developers, database analysts, network and storage architects, business analysts—every
individual on our team—in order to achieve our goals
in serving our customers.
Within the Managed Services organization, innovation
is our work. We achieve that mission by working as a
team towards a common set of goals and by leveraging the collective strengths of each individual. Given
that we are in a technology field, STEM individuals are
at the core of our business. n
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Students enrolled in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics, STEM, curriculum are engaged in
the study of building the future. The internet, mobility,
big data, virtual reality, and the next great application
have all been (or will be) developed through individuals trained in STEM disciplines.
STEMconnector® congratulates all of the
100 Diverse Corporate Leaders in STEM
and salutes their commitment to a
stronger, more diverse STEM pipeline.
When the world demands a
highly-skilled workforce,
and you need the best
collective leadership,
we are here with you.
Over 120 members strong
(and counting!)
n
STEM 2.0 as Operating Principle - Demand for Jobs
n One-Stop for STEM Information and Careers
n STEM Management Consulting
n Powerful Convener of STEM Stakeholders
n Leverage of a Strong STEM Network
n Focus on the Entire Pipeline (K-Jobs)
n Research | Benchmarking
n Emphasis on Women & Diversity
n Global STEM Vision
n Strategic STEM planning
n STEM Best Practices
To learn more about how to be part of STEMconnector®
go to page 17 or visit www.STEMconnector.org
Lorinda Burgess
Vice President, Finance and
Customer Care
Medtronic, Inc.
Headquartered in Minneapolis, MN, Medtronic, Inc. (MDT) is
the world’s largest independent medical technology company. At the core of all we do is our Mission: to alleviate pain,
restore health and extend life. The company is in more than
140 countries and employs 49,000 people, including 5,800 scientists and engineers, pursuing research and innovation that
has led to more than 28,000 patents.
We believe the key to innovation is collaboration. Last year
more than 9 million people worldwide relied on our therapies,
which treat many conditions including cardiac and vascular
diseases, diabetes, and neurological and spinal conditions. If
you are interested in sharing your medical technology product and service inventions or concepts with us, or want to
learn about The Medtronic External Research Program, visit
www.medtronic.com
Lorinda Burgess is Vice President of Finance
and Customer Care for Medtronic’s US
Region. Medtronic is one of the world’s leading medical technology companies. She
is a Certified Public Accountant and has
been with Medtronic since 1998. Ms. Burgess
is responsible for the overall vision, strategic
development and direction of the Customer
Care organization that has over 400 customer
service employees and 70 Accounts Payable/finance employees who serve a diverse
customer base including hospital administrators, physicians and patients. The organization
includes Customer Service and Support, the
Contact Center, the Call Center and Customer Finance.
In her current role, Ms. Burgess provides leadership and strategic support for the SVP of
the US Region and oversees the company’s
National Answering Service, the registration of
all implantable devices, partnership with over
5,000 sales representatives and the recruiting,
hiring and training of employees. The immediate focus of her team is to provide world-class
global customer care to Medtronic customers.
She is based in Minneapolis and reports directly
to the Sr. Vice President of the US Region.
Burgess was formerly Vice President of Finance
for Medtronic’s Cardiac Rhythm Disease Management (CRDM) Sales and Marketing Business
Unit. In this position she served as the primary
finance representative to the Sales and Marketing organization of Medtronic’s oldest and
largest business unit. She provided leadership
to more than 70 professionals responsible for
supporting their business partners, the Vice
Presidents of Sales and Marketing.
Burgess earned a bachelor’s degree from
the University of Michigan and a Masters of
Business Administration from The Ohio State
University. She is a member of the University of
Michigan Alumni Association and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
(AICPA). Ms. Burgess serves on the board of
directors of Hamline University and currently
mentors more than 20 financial and operational professionals within Medtronic.
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The National Science Foundation has alerted us that
80% of jobs in the next decade will require STEM skills.
The United States Department of Commerce estimates
that by 2018, the US will have 1.2 million unfilled jobs in
the science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)
fields because the workforce will not possess the necessary skills or interest to fill them. Part of this need is
due to the aging workforce of baby boomers nearing
retirement. If we fail to act on STEM education, we will
not have the talent to provide the products and services needed for the 21st century workforce.
For the US to remain the global innovation leader,
we simply must make the most of all of the potential
STEM talent this country has to offer. Underrepresented
minorities must be included in the STEM educated talent pool. For our nation and companies to succeed in
the future we must have a skilled, inclusive and diverse
workforce.
STEM is also critical to the success of our domestic
workforce, local economies and issues of governance
on our own soil. In fact, 7 of the 10 projected fastestgrowing occupations over the next ten years are in
STEM fields. STEM occupations are expected to grow
twice as fast (17%) in the next ten years.
At Medtronic we encourage students to continue their
study of STEM subjects through mentoring programs
and internships. We provide INROADS students with
paid internships. The INROADS organization places
talented underserved youth in business and industry.
Medtronic has two programs for highly talented MBA
students: the MBA Associate Program and the Leadership Development Rotation Program. Our Summer
Associate Program offers technical internships to top
undergraduate and graduate engineering students.
We must reach students as early as kindergarten
to keep them in the STEM pipeline because by high
school many have dropped out of this track. We know
from the successful STEM work of the National Society
of Black Engineers’ Summer Engineering for Kids (SEEK)
program - as well as the work of Dr. Freeman Hrabowski
at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC)
- that it is possible to engage the interests of women
and underrepresented minority students at a young
age and to keep these and other students on-track
through college, graduate and even post-graduate
school. SEEK’s “free, three week program is a STEM
pipeline designed to expose African American chil-
dren to STEM fields as early as the third grade through
the twelfth grade.” Now operating in 12 cities, SEEK is
the largest STEM program for African American children and mentors in the nation. During these summer
programs, students are introduced to foundational
math, science and engineering concepts through fun,
hands-on activities, such as building and launching
a rocket or creating a fragrance. They work in teams
and are coached by trained mentors – responsible
college and graduate students they can look up to
and admire.
By introducing students to foundational scientific
concepts at an early age in a fun, hands-on, teamoriented environment, their curiosity is piqued, their
confidence is strengthened and they see STEM as a
viable option for their future studies. Besides being fun,
the training must be different, innovative and designed
to meet the needs of those who grew up with social
media and iPads.
Parents must also be part of the agenda to encourage students to stay engaged in STEM education.
Through effective partnering with schools and community agencies we can increase STEM awareness
amongst the parents. We can help them explore and
understand the possibilities and hope that exist for their
children’s future with strong science, technology, engineering and math skills.
Corporate leaders must have an awareness and
understanding of the strategic role STEM education
plays in the success of our nation and our companies.
With this top of mind, corporate leaders must establish
and maintain partnerships with universities and technical colleges. This collaboration can provide needed
insight into the future skills needed in the workplace.
Corporate leaders will inform the universities of future
needs, enabling the universities to better understand
the workplace. Corporate leaders can also collaborate with private, public and non-profit sectors to
support STEM education. Internally, leaders can collaborate with ERG groups to mentor and support those
who have the aptitude for STEM.
Leaders must be mentors and coaches who have a
commitment to corporate citizenship. At Medtronic,
our Mission in Motion program supports this with a
global network of employee volunteers. We established the Medtronic Global Mentoring Program and
Medtronic Women’s Network (MWN) to increase
employee development opportunities.
Corporate leaders must be inclusive and understand
the need for a diverse workforce. We get our most
innovative work from diverse teams with diversity of
thought. Currently women and minorities are the most
underrepresented groups in the STEM fields. Leaders
need to understand the gap in education and have
the passion to invest in our children. n
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Innovation is a key factor in Medtronic’s ability to fulfill our mission of alleviating pain, restoring health,
and extending life. Innovation is also a requirement
for companies and a nation to stay competitive. Our
workforce requires talent with science, technology,
engineering and math (STEM) skills.
Shafiq Anwar
Michelin North America
Dedicated to the improvement of sustainable mobility, Michelin (www.michelinman.com) designs, manufactures and
sells tires for every type of vehicle, including airplanes, automobiles, bicycles, earthmovers, farm equipment, heavy duty
trucks, and motorcycles. The company also publishes travel
guides, maps and atlases covering Africa, Asia, Europe and
North America. Michelin is recognized as the leading innovator in the tire industry. The Michelin brand is the top selling
tire brand worldwide. Worldwide sales for the Michelin Group
were 22.2 billion euros in 2013. Sales in North America in 2013
were $10.3 billion1. Headquartered in Greenville, S.C., Michelin
North America employs approximately 21,500 people and
operates 19 major manufacturing plants in 16 locations across
the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Throughout his extensive career, Shafiq has
held a variety of assignments in both manufacturing and IS. He began his career in manufacturing with Procter & Gamble, holding a
variety of assignments in plant maintenance
management, production management, cost
and quality control management. After ten
years in manufacturing, he entered the information technology field, leading the development of a reliability improvement system to
integrate maintenance management, store-
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M room and purchase order processes. Shafiq
moved to Japan to lead the implementation
of SAP in the thirteen Asian countries where
P&G had business. After three years of successful implementation, he returned to the
United States and managed P&G’s Global
Business Services for North America. He joined
Michelin in 2007 and became the North
America CIO in 2009. Shafiq holds degrees
in Mechanical Engineering (BS) and Systems
Engineering and Operations Research (MS).
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If our nation is to pioneer the next generation of innovation, it is critical that tomorrow’s workforce is prepared to take on the challenge and lead.
Unfortunately, the challenge ahead cannot be won by
courage alone, but rather it requires a thorough understanding of complex subjects throughout science,
technology, engineering and mathematics.
Without these skillsets, companies will be forced to seek
them elsewhere, and consequently our nation will not
reap the benefits of the innovation leadership it has
enjoyed in years past.
America is known throughout the world as the home
for innovation. Continuing this trajectory is a complex
challenge, but to do so we must:
1. Never forget what America does best. America is
known throughout the world as a place where people move fast and take risks. These are critical parts
of America’s entrepreneurial spirit and are critical
components of competitive innovation.
2. Prevent further erosion of our technical edge. The
reality is that the world is not waiting for America to
innovate. The information age has enabled people
throughout the world in a way which wasn’t possible before, by providing everyone with the latest
technology and near limitless access to information and educational resources. To maintain this
edge, America’s education system must become
more competitive in all of the STEM subjects. In
order to do so, we must see a strengthening of our
focus on STEM at all levels of education, but particularly throughout our primary levels of education.
In doing so, we will provide businesses in America
with the skillsets needed for today and tomorrow.
Michelin focuses heavily on support of public education with multiple programs that impact elementary,
middle and high schools as well as technical colleges
and universities that provide a pipeline for Michelin’s
employment pool. In the 1970s when Michelin chose
to establish its North American base in South Carolina,
the company was attracted by the state’s technical
school system and the strong, work-ready labor force it
produced. Today, Michelin works closely with the state’s
technical schools and other educational institutions
to help them evolve and adapt to the future needs
of manufacturers to enable South Carolina to remain
competitive on a global scale.
Michelin has also partnered with local technical colleges
across the state of South Carolina to develop the Michelin
Technical Scholars program, whereby students have the
chance to co-op with Michelin in its facilities so they can
experience the real world application of their studies.
Michelin covers the cost of books and tuition, and the
scholars are paid to work 20 hours a week with Michelin
technicians. Upon successful completion of their education, Michelin Technical Scholars are often hired for a
full-time position. The program has not only increased the
number of future employees in the Michelin workforce
pipeline, but has spread the word to young people and
parents alike, that manufacturing jobs are available, pay
well and can lead to even greater career opportunities.
Historically, manufacturing jobs were held by men and
were not necessarily conducive for boasting a diverse
employee base.
Today, Michelin’s employee resource groups such as
the Upstate Women’s Network, the African American Network, the New Hire Network and others are
charged with developing programs and starting the
dialogue about how we, as an organization, can continue to improve ourselves.
In November 2013, the Upstate STEM Collaborative was
officially created, with Michelin serving as one of the
main partners. The Upstate STEM Collaborative is collaboration between some of the Upstate of South Carolina’s biggest manufacturers, public school districts,
Clemson and Furman universities and Greenville Tech.
The Collaborative, which seeks to promote STEM education throughout the state, is the result of a luncheon
hosted in November of 2011 by Michelin Challenge
Education and the Michelin African American Network
to start a dialog among various stakeholders about
developing curriculum to prepare today’s students for
the workplace of tomorrow.
In Information Technology, innovation and modernization is a daily part of my work life. Radical innovation
in technology is a daily occurrence, and many times a
year those innovations, in turn, transform the enterprise in
a big way. Examples of such transformations are present
throughout our organization, and are impacting our business results and the way our employees work every day.
At Michelin North America, we have a dedicated initiative toward technical innovation within IT, the steering committee of which I am the Chairman. Through
this initiative, we have uncovered innovative technologies which are enabling new efficiencies, services and
ways of working.
In Information technology, there is no shortage of
opportunities in innovation, but we are constrained
in what resources we are able to allocate. But there
is never a question of if we should innovate, but only
where do we innovate. n
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Today’s business climate is one with rapid technology
change, innovation and modernization. Breakthrough
technologies such as, big data, cloud computing and
mobile computing were hardly a consideration for the
vast majority of computer science programs just a few
years ago. Today, these trends are revolutionizing the
workplace, enabling better decision making and more
robust technical capabilities, while achieving cost savings. However, CEOs and CIOs alike are scrambling for
qualified talent to lead these initiatives.
IreneRosenfeld
Chairman and
Mondelēz International
Mondelēz International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDLZ) is a global
snacking powerhouse, with 2013 revenue of $35 billion. Creating delicious moments of joy in 165 countries, Mondelēz International is a world leader in biscuits, chocolate, gum, candy,
coffee and powdered beverages, with billion-dollar brands
such as Oreo, LUand Nabisco biscuits; Cadbury, Cadbury
Dairy Milk and Milka chocolate; Trident gum; Jacobs coffee
and Tangpowdered beverages. Mondelēz International is a
proud member of the Standard and Poor’s 500, NASDAQ 100
and Dow Jones Sustainability Index. Visit www.mondelezinternational.com or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MDLZ.
Irene is Chairman and CEO of Mondelēz International, the global snacking powerhouse launched
following her strategic decision to spin-off of the
company’s North American grocery operations
in October 2012. Creating delicious moments of
joy in 165 countries, Mondelēz International (NASDAQ: MDLZ), with 2012 revenue of $35 billion, is a
world leader in chocolate, biscuits, gum, candy,
coffee and powdered beverages, with billion-dollar brands such as Cadbury, Cadbury Dairy Milk
and Milka chocolate, Jacobs coffee, LU, Nabisco
and Oreobiscuits, Tang powdered beverages and
Trident gum.
Since returning to Kraft Foods, the predecessor to
Mondelēz International, in June 2006 as CEO and
then Chairman in March 2007, Irene has changed
the face, footprint and prospects of the company,
which she successfully repositioned to deliver
consistent top-tier growth by reinvigorating iconic
brands, transforming the portfolio and strengthening its presence in fast-growing emerging markets.
Irene began her career in consumer research
before joining General Foods, which later became
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M part of Kraft Foods. Irene led the restructuring and
turnaround of key businesses in the U.S., Canada
and Mexico. She served on the team that spearheaded the company’s initial IPO in 2001, and
successfully integrated the Nabisco, LU and Cadbury businesses.
Irene took a short break from Kraft Foods in 2004,
serving for two years as Chairman and CEO of
Frito-Lay. While there, she accelerated growth in
better-for-you products and health and wellness
offerings.
The Financial Times, Fortune and Forbes have
repeatedly ranked Irene on their lists of the “Top
50 Women in Global Business,” “50 Most Powerful Women in Business” and as one of the world’s
“100 Most Powerful Women.”
Irene holds a Ph.D. in Marketing and Statistics, an
M.S. in Business Administration and a B.A. in Psychology – all from Cornell University. She is active
in a number of industry and community organizations, including The Economic Club of Chicago
and the Board of the Consumer Goods Forum.
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How is your company innovating to promote STEM?
Our company works to promote STEM both inside and
outside of our workplace. Most schools where we recruit
have a STEM component in their curriculum, and we
partner with several diverse student groups on campus
and mentor students. In addition, we’ve supported the
Conrad Foundation’s efforts to spark students’ interest
and promote careers in science and technology in the
research and development field.
On the professional front at Mondelēz International,
we’ve supported diversity efforts for many years. In our
Research, Development & Quality function globally, we
work hard to advance diversity, and our results show it!
In fact, more than half of our global RD&Q employees
are women. In the U.S., we’re focused on increasing the
number of women and people of color; outside the
U.S., we’re focused on increasing the representation
of women. And I’m proud that our executive incentive
compensation is tied to performance in advancing our
open and inclusive environment.
How can we do a better job to strategically coordinate all those engaged in STEM across the company?
(Across different departments)
Supporting STEM activities can be specifically tied to diversity, and I’m passionate about making our workplace
more diverse. To achieve our company’s goals, we need
to attract, inspire and engage talented people from different backgrounds—in STEM and beyond—to access their
creativity and encourage them to challenge us to raise
our game. Diverse thinking enables us to create and build
strong, relevant brands; tap multiple perspectives in search
of good ideas; and makes us a great place to work!
We also need to reflect the faces of our consumers in
our employees, and especially in our leaders. That’s why
“open and inclusive” is one of our core values guiding our
employees. Diversity is about the perspective, capabilities, identity, experiences and style that make each of us
unique. Being inclusive means proactively creating a culture where each colleague can comfortably contribute
and reach his or her full potential, while helping to create
delicious moments of joy for our consumers.
I’m proud of the excellent progress we’ve made in increasing the diversity of our workforce, and of the external recognition we’ve earned.
What can we do to assure more women leaders in
STEM?
We can encourage girls and young women to pursue
math and science in grade school through high school.
Unfortunately, there’s still too much peer pressure that
makes excelling in math and science difficult for girls. Programs that show girls how STEM can be fun, both in and
out of school, need to be prioritized. What’s more, girls and
young women need visible positive role models. I’m proud
that there are five women on my leadership team who
serve as role models in our organization.
Innovation is a great competitive advantage for Mondelēz
International, and our numbers indicate success. In 2013,
revenue from new product innovation was about 13.6%
across all of Mondelēz International which I’m proud to say
is world-class for our industry. Our business success relies on
our skilled, innovative workforce to turn consumer insights
into great new product platforms that meet consumers’
needs—even needs they may not be aware of yet!
We have about 2,750 food scientists, chemists and engineers working in 12 key technology centers around the
world. Our Research, Development & Quality (RD&Q)
team is aligned with our marketing and business unit leadership from the beginning of innovation pipeline. We rely
on our RD&Q team to build our innovation pipeline every
day, and we know in order to keep that pipeline going in
the future, we’ll also need a pipeline of highly-skilled and
passionate people in the STEM fields.
Our colleagues in RD&Q have been integral to our recently
launched Call For Well-being. It’s a call-to-action for ourselves, our suppliers and our partners to work together to
drive growth by developing new approaches that have a
positive impact on the well-being of our planet. We’ve seen
that the growth of our business is directly linked to the wellbeing of the people who make and enjoy our products and
the communities in which we serve. The Call For Well-being
is focused on four areas that are critical to the well-being of
the world and where Mondelēz International can make the
greatest impact: mindful snacking, sustainability, community
and safety.
Today, we have a two-pronged approach to Mindful
Snacking: improve the nutrition of our current portfolio and
transform our portfolio through new product innovation. By
2020, across our portfolio, we plan to reduce sodium and
saturated fat by 10%; and increase whole grains by 25%.
We’ll also grow Better Choice products to 25% of our revenue by 2020, and increase Mindful Portion products by 25%.
Tackling these challenges in the Well-being space is no
small task and one that we cannot do alone – much of
this work falls on our RD&Q team, and they’ve continued
to develop great products, like Ritz Crackerfuls, Nabisco
Honeymaid Grahamfuls and our Crispello confectionary
in Europe. Working with others—including the next generation of STEM leaders—we can pave a new path forward
and bring innovative ways of addressing well-being to
the world. n
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Why do you believe a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics) Education and Workforce are
important to our nation?
Innovation is critical for countries and companies to compete in the global economy. STEM fields help us to develop
technology that translates into products consumers around
the world want. As we continue to grow, we’re finding that
engineering is a pinch point. We use engineers to develop
and commercialize our new products, and finding qualified
engineers is becoming more challenging. Since the U.S. only
produces a small percentage of the world’s engineers, we
have to focus our public policy on ensuring we can remain
competitive.
Steve Mizell
Executive Vice President,
Human Resources
Monsanto
Monsanto is committed to bringing a broad range of solutions to help nourish a growing world. The company produces
a variety of seeds ranging from fruits and vegetables to key
crops – such as corn, soybeans, and cotton – that help farmers
produce abundant and nutritious food. Its employees across
the globe work to find sustainable agriculture solutions that
help farmers conserve natural resources, use data to improve
farming practices, use water and other important resources
more efficiently, and protect their crops. Through programs
and partnerships, Monsanto collaborates with farmers, researchers, nonprofit organizations, universities and others to
help tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges.
Monsanto supports and invests in a variety of initiatives to
encourage the study of STEM, helping to develop a pipeline
to meet agriculture’s future needs for STEM talent. These include partnerships with 4-H, FFA and the Girl Scouts, to name
a few—all of which expose young people to the broad range
of career opportunities within agriculture.
Steve Mizell is Executive Vice President of
Human Resources for Monsanto Company, a
leading global provider of technology-based
solutions and agricultural products that
improve farm productivity and food quality.
Monsanto remains focused on enabling both
small-holder and large-scale farmers to produce more from their land while conserving
more of our world’s natural resources such
as water and energy
—increasingly critical
goals as the world’s population is projected
to increase by one-third by 2050.
Steve has responsibility for the company’s
global human resources operations. He is an
officer of Monsanto and a member of the
executive team. Steve joined Monsanto in
2004 as the Chief Human Resources Officer
responsible for attracting, developing and
retaining a global employee base.
Steve has been a strong leader and supporter
of diversity and inclusion at Monsanto, ensuring that it is woven into its people and business
priorities. With 23,000 employees in over 60
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and inclusion is ingrained into every aspect
of its operations. This enhanced awareness
and focus allows for greater innovation, agility, market and customer insight, and trust—all
of which contribute to a competitive advantage for the company.
Prior to joining Monsanto, Steve held a variety
of leadership roles with increasing responsibilities at Westinghouse Electric, CBS Broadcasting, Zilog (TPG) and Advance PCS.
Steve has a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial
Management from the Georgia Institute of
Technology and a Master’s degree in Management from Carnegie Mellon University.
He currently serves on the Board of Directors
for Opera Theatre of St. Louis and previously
served on the Board of Directors for Youth
in Need, National Kidney Foundation and
March of Dimes.
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Today’s corporate leaders must be passionate about
and committed to advancing the efforts around STEM
education. Collaborations with schools, teachers, parents and other stakeholder groups will allow us to come
up with the most effective solutions to the challenges. We
must be willing to engage, and to engage early on, with
the next generation, and to communicate the breadth
of opportunities available with a STEM education. It is
important for corporate leaders to serve as role models
to students across all levels of education—and we must
be creative and innovative in our approaches—to spark
a curiosity and to inspire the pursuit of careers in STEM.
Monsanto has a rich history of supporting education,
especially in STEM fields, through a variety of innovative
programs and investments. While I am proud of the company’s overall commitment to developing future generations of agriculture and scientific professionals, one
initiative that I am particularly inspired by is the America’s Farmers Grow Rural EducationSM Program.
America’s Farmers Grow Rural Education is sponsored by
the Monsanto Fund and helps farmers positively impact
their communities by supporting rural school districts. This
program gives eligible farmers the opportunity to nominate a public school district in their community to compete for a merit-based grant of either $10,000 or $25,000
to support projects focused on science and/or math.
Education is the cornerstone of any successful community, and nothing is more important than helping to
educate the next generation. This program reaches
students in the early stages of their education and
exposes them to the many possibilities of STEM. In 2014,
more than 83,000 farmers demonstrated their support
for STEM education by nominating over 4,000 school
districts. Grants totaling $2.3 million were awarded to
163 grant recipients.
strategy?
At Monsanto, diversity is not a program or initiative—it’s the way we do business, and a cornerstone
of our recruitment and development strategies. We
approach our diversity and inclusion efforts and STEM
initiatives as one in the same. To sustain and grow our
business across all world areas, we actively seek out
talent from diverse backgrounds, regions, experiences
and academic disciplines.
Beyond talent, we know our work must reflect and
respect the diverse cultures, ideas and interests of all the
stakeholders we serve and the communities we touch.
Our commitment to diversity and inclusion also impacts
farmer/grower customer initiatives, programs aimed at
end users through supplier diversity, scholarships, university partnerships, and other key relationships.
Recognizing that different members of the company
have broad and varied needs, Monsanto supports nine
employee-led Business Resource Networks (BRN) that
provide networking and learning opportunities for people with varied backgrounds—African American; Asian;
Differently Abled; Families; Gay, Lesbian, Bi-Sexual and
Transgendered; Hispanic; Veterans; Women; and Young
Professionals.
The mission of these networks is to further the professional
development of their members so that they can make
their fullest contribution to the achievement of our corporate goals and objectives. To help facilitate this and
create dialogue between employees and senior management, all the Business Resource Networks have an
Executive Team member as a sponsor.
Another key driver for diversity and inclusion is the commitment of our senior leadership, from our CEO to the
Executive Team and their direct reports. Through the
Monsanto Diversity and Inclusion Council, comprised
of senior leaders from all functions, Monsanto develops more leaders to shape our culture of inclusion, and
encourages the strategic development and recruiting
of diversity and inclusion champions at every level.
With a global workforce, over 50% of which is located outside of the US, and a significant and increasingly growing percentage of our customers and business located
outside of the US as well, our efforts around diversity and
inclusion will continue to be critical to our success.
the workforce?
The scope of challenges in STEM is too large and complex for any one stakeholder group to tackle alone. Collaboration will continue to be critical to the success of
our combined efforts to address the current and future
issues facing STEM education and workforce needs.
Collaborative partnerships, between corporations,
schools, teachers, parents, government, NGOs and other
groups, create added value through the integration
and cross-transfer of skills, knowledge and expertise. And
this can lead to increased innovation and efficiency, as
well as long-term, sustainable solutions to address some
of the challenges.
Monsanto has learned and benefitted greatly from the
value that collaborations can bring – from internal, crossfunctional teams to external multi-sector partnerships –
all of these move us towards our goal of advancing the
industry through projects and programs that make a difference.
Working together, bringing diverse resources to bear,
we can all make positive contributions to improve STEM
education and help the next generation achieve success as the future workforce—a purposeful endeavor
that I am proud to be a part of. n
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Today’s corporate leaders play a critical role in the
development of the next generation of leadership. It
is important that we first recognize the importance of
STEM education today for our future—and this is not limited to one industry or discipline.
Eduardo Conrado
Marketing & IT
Motorola Solutions
Motorola Solutions is a leading provider of mission-critical communication solutions and services for our customers. Our passion to provide solutions that connect people, businesses and
governments in the moments that matter is what motivates
our employees’ volunteer efforts and our philanthropic giving
in the communities where we operate. We work closely with
the Motorola Solutions Foundation, our charitable and philanthropic arm, to ensure our charitable giving and product
donations benefit these communities. With our history deeply
entrenched in technology and innovation, we remain committed to supporting educational programs that help the next
generation strengthen their skills and interest in these careers.
We are an active supporter of education programs, particularly those focused on science, technology, engineering, and
math (STEM) education in the United States and around the
world.
Eduardo Conrado is senior vice president,
marketing & IT, for Motorola Solutions. In this
role, he is fusing the marketing and IT organizations to enable the company’s drive toward a
customer-centric strategy. He joined Motorola
in 1992 and has served in a variety of marketing leadership roles in the company’s paging, cellular, satellite, cable, and enterprise
mobility, government businesses. He has had
multiple international business and marketing assignments in a range of consumer and
commercial segments across Motorola.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M He earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from Texas Tech University;
a master’s degree in business administration
from ESADE in Barcelona, Spain; and a master’s degree in international management
from Thunderbird School of Global Management.
He held an industrial engineering role at Texas
Instruments prior to pursuing a Masters of International Management at Thunderbird University followed by a MBA at ESADE in Barcelona.
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Foundation sponsored 110 Girl Scout robotics teams of
approximately 660 girls in STEM education throughout
targeted Motorola Solutions communities and other
U.S. locations. In addition, several of our employees
act as advisors to local teams, donating their time and
expertise to students. It’s great to see so many young
students get hands-on experience through building
the robots and the competitions.
We recognize that, as a technology company, in order
to grow and find business success, we depend on
strong supply of diverse individuals with STEM backgrounds. The students we foster today will be our
employees tomorrow. In 2013, the Motorola Solutions
Foundation provided over $4.7 million in grants to support educational programs, with a specific emphasis
on STEM education. In North America, approximately
150,000 students received an average of 92 hours of
STEM education from programs Motorola Solutions
Foundation supported during 2013.
My advice is to always take the time to evaluate and
understand yourself. Individuals growing in their career
need to understand and accept their strengths, weaknesses and areas of opportunity. By frequently taking
a close look at where your different traits lie, you can
take action to improve yourself. But you need to be
honest. That’s where understanding yourself comes in
– you need to make sure the goals you set really are
the goals you want to achieve. This level of honesty
and self-evaluation will allow you to see opportunities
to grow your career that you may not have accepted
before, such as taking a role you wouldn’t consider
your “sweet spot” or seeking advanced education, or
perhaps even changing fields. Look to gain skills and
behaviors for the role you want down the line, not only
for the role you have today. I would also recommend
finding a mentor or manager that can be your advocate. Having someone else keeping an eye out for
opportunities for you to highlight your skills is crucial to
growing your career.
For example, The Motorola Solutions Foundation joined
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s initiative to help cultivate the next generation of scientists and engineers in
February 2012 by supporting a new early college STEM
school, the Chicago Vocational Career Academy.
More than 100 Motorola Solutions employees are working with administrators, teachers, students and parents
at the school to support approximately 150 students
in their pursuit of science- and technology-related
careers through curriculum development, extracurricular activities and mentorship.
through diversity?
Diversity can play a huge role in the success of U.S.based companies because diverse individuals can
attract the best technical talent, something nearly
every U.S. company needs. Having diverse talent fosters different points of views from a multicultural perspective. Those trained in the technology segment
help foster a start-up culture in any organization, be it
in STEM careers or otherwise.
Our goal in 2014 is to reach over 150,000 students and
teachers in STEM education efforts, globally.
I am most proud of our support of the FIRST® Robotics Competition. Motorola is a founding sponsor of the
FIRST Robotics Competition since 1989. Teams of students work together at these competitions to create
robots, which are tested in regional and national FIRST
Robotics competitions. In 2013, the Motorola Solutions
Diversity brings a worldly perspective to the company,
which is important in this global economy. It allows U.S.
businesses complete more effectively against global
competitors. These individuals bring in past experiences and different cultures, and are open to new
ideas and foster creativity in the work place, making
STEM a more dynamic, flexible career choice. Diversity
will open new doors for those in STEM careers, and it
will continue to evolve what it means to have a STEM
background. n
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Corporate leaders need to understand that STEM is
always changing. There are no “traditional” STEM roles.
But core education and skills need to be built before
today’s youth can become tomorrow’s STEM leaders.
Corporate leaders must be willing to embrace STEM,
even if it is not their area of expertise. They need to
understand what role STEM plays in their organization
both today, and in the future. With this background,
corporate leaders can see how important hiring individuals with a STEM background are to ensuring the
future success of their organization. Leaders with this
type of understanding and vision are most likely to
take initiatives to support and advance STEM education today. They understand that not supporting STEM
education can cause a huge skills gap in their corporation tomorrow.
Adele Gulfo
Chief Strategy Officer
Mylan
Mylan is one of the world’s leading global pharmaceutical
companies. Our medicines range from difficult-to-manufacture dosage forms, such as injectables and transdermal
patches, to HIV/AIDS antiretroviral (ARV) therapies, and include generic, brand and specialty products. The company
has exceptional research and development capabilities and
is one of the world’s largest active pharmaceutical ingredient
manufacturers. Every one of Mylan’s 1,300-plus medications
meets one global quality standard regardless of where it is
produced.
Adele Gulfo serves as Mylan’s Chief Strategy Officer. Reporting directly to the CEO,
she focuses on Mylan’s key growth drivers,
including the company’s expansion in Latin
America, the development and expansion of
its global Specialty franchise and the development of global commercial strategies to
maximize its upcoming launches of increasingly complex generic products, such as biologics, injectable and respiratory therapies.
Previously, Gulfo served as President & GM of
Pfizer’s U.S. Primary Care business unit, which
included Commercial Operations and the
Managed Markets organization for all of Pfizer’s Biopharmaceutical business units. Under
her leadership, Pfizer’s U.S. Primary Care business generated more than $13 billion in revenue. Earlier in her career at Pfizer, Gulfo was
instrumental in the launch and commercial
success of LIPITOR, which became the world’s
best-selling medicine with peak revenues
greater than $10B globally. Immediately prior
to joining Mylan, Gulfo served as President of
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Latin America in Pfizer’s Emerging Markets
business unit. In this capacity, she led a team
of more than 4,000 colleagues operating
across approximately two dozen countries. In
2012, under her leadership, the Latin American business achieved more than $3 billion
in revenue, making it the largest revenue
generator within the unit. Trained as a scientist, with experience in both operational and
strategic roles, Gulfo serves as an advisor for
Cleveland Clinic’s Innovation Center, Partners
Healthcare and Springboard Life Sciences.
She was recognized for work in developing
medical and public-education campaigns
that helped to establish the significance of
lowering LDL cholesterol in preventing and
managing heart disease, and has five patents. She serves on the Board of Directors for
Volunteers of America and the Committee
of 200 (C200), an invitation-only membership
organization of the world’s most successful
women business leaders.
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Medical, biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical
device industries are all predicated on STEM education and training. Without competent and driven next
generation students and talented STEM-trained professionals, medicine will not advance. We are in the
midst of a scientific discovery explosion. The opportunities and challenges of the next generation of STEM
graduates are to apply these amazing discoveries to
develop practical innovations that will advance health
and society.
ing advances.) Now we just need to spread the word.
America’s STEM industry leaders need to communicate more effectively with today’s students about the
many exciting job opportunities available in STEM. And
we must tap into the curiosity and creativity of our high
school graduates and show them the fascinating parts
of science and technology.
One of the biggest challenges we face in attracting
women to STEM is a lack of role-models. In fact, we
have just the opposite. Scientists today aren’t perceived as “cool” or “edgy” but as quite the contrary.
They are usually stereotyped as “geeky,” “grungy” or
“nerdy” males. We have Hollywood to thank for solidifying this image. Fortunately, TV shows are making progress in this area by casting women in leading roles as
doctors, scientists and smart STEM-based professionals
(more, please!). However, as important as role models
are, we also need mentors. Studies show that sustained
mentorship efforts help to achieve the goal of getting
women to pursue careers in STEM. Beyond that, we
can use the help of more enlightened men who are
already playing a huge role in helping to create a culture of inclusion for women.
We also have an unprecedented opportunity for
cross-STEM disciple collaboration—information technology and biology, physical chemistry and engineering, math (big data), and neuroscience—to come up
with cures for Alzheimer’s disease, all forms of cancer,
congenital diseases and more. Our ability to interrogate huge masses (big data) of population data to
find the genetic basis of disease is especially exciting.
Now is the time, as opportunities and rewards have
never been more promising and tangible in STEM than
they are today.
To end on an optimistic note, women are making significant inroads in biotech. In 2010, they occupied almost
half (46%) of all positions in the biologic and life sciences fields. What’s more, those women are reaching
out to our future scientists. Case in point: NexGene Girls
is an organization that pairs young girls with women in
biotech to expose the girls to the field early on, excite
them and bring them into the field. Women in Bio (of
which I am a member) takes on the challenge of helping women in biotech network and connect with each
other, with a goal of assisting them to attain leadership
positions.
Equally important: How do we encourage students
to continue their study of STEM fields, particularly
women?
First and foremost, we need to explain the connection
between STEM education and a fulfilling and exciting
career. For students (I was one of them), it is very hard
to connect the dots from a biology lecture or organic
chemistry lab to running a multi-billion business in a
Fortune 50 science-based company. Now, I make it my
goal to share this insight anytime I can, especially with
students who are taking sciences courses and are not
sure why.
Top business groups are also taking action, putting their
considerable resources and talent towards furthering
the progress of women in STEM industries. The Committee of 200 (C200), an invitation-only, global organization composed of many of the world’s most successful
female entrepreneurs and corporate leaders (of which
I am a board member), has turned its focus on highlighting the issue of women in STEM.
It’s critical that we help students see what’s possible
with the foundational skills of a STEM education. Who
wouldn’t want to play a role in making the world a better, healthier place to live? Or be a part of the team
that produces the next generation of Google Glass,
as a practical and fashionable product. Or invent the
first commercially available hover board or jet pack
to speed through traffic jams. (With the help of my
niece and nephew, I could go on listing more excit-
In fact, C200 thanked Renee James, President of Intel
Corporation, for her contribution to the field with the
organization’s first-ever STEM Innovator Luminary Award
during the 2013 C200 Annual Conference. The organization also hosted a first-ever STEM-focused Reachout
event at UCLA, a daylong event discussion with C200
members on topics related to careers in Entrepreneurship and STEM. In conjunction with this event, C200
provided $10,000 Scholar Awards to female student
leaders within STEM related careers, and welcomed
six new Scholars into its Scholar Network, where they’ll
receive valuable guidance and support in their
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Why is STEM Education and Workforce Development
Critical to the Future of Our Nation?
Ours is a knowledge-based innovation economy
fueled by technology and technological advances.
STEM education creates critical thinkers and provides
the foundational skills for the next generation of innovators. Barack Obama said it best when he declared
the need to increase STEM education, especially for
underrepresented groups, including women. As President Obama stated, “Reaffirming and strengthening
America’s role as the world’s engine of scientific discovery and technological innovation is essential to
meeting the challenges of this century.”
Arleene Porterfield
Vice President,
Global Information Technology
NI
NI provides powerful, flexible technology solutions that accelerate
productivity and drive rapid innovation. From daily tasks to grand
challenges, NI helps engineers and scientists overcome complexity to exceed even their own expectations. Customers in nearly
every industry—from healthcare and automotive to consumer
electronics and particle physics—use NI’s integrated hardware and
software platform to improve our world. Many of the world’s most
significant engineering challenges will be met decades in the future
by the next generation of engineers and scientists. To inspire and
enable today’s students to become tomorrow’s innovators, NI invests in improving science and engineering education globally with
contributions of time, technology, and financial support to teach
fundamental engineering concepts. NI believes the best way to encourage students to pursue careers in engineering and science is
to give them fun, hands-on experiences with real-world engineering
tools. NI engages students using interactive robotics platforms powered by NI technology that teach engineering fundamentals, such
as mechanics, electronics, and software programming. NI provides
support for robotics competitions, in-classroom mentoring, and enrichment programs.
As vice president of global information technology, Arleene Porterfield is responsible for
NI’s global IT strategy, budget, systems, infrastructure, and service delivery. Arleene’s
strong corporate leadership and passion for
STEM education serve as an inspiration to NI
employees around the world.
For years, Arleene has led the evolution of
NI systems and processes to support the
company’s ongoing growth and worldwide
expansion. Arleene sets high standards for hiring and developing careers across the global
IT organization and is responsible for creating
the IT Leadership Development Program to
foster career growth and IT staff development.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Arleene is on the board of directors for Girlstart, a nonprofit organization with a mission
to empower girls in STEM. Through its comprehensive programming, Girlstart provides
a year-round, intensive suite of STEM education programs for K-12 girls. Girlstart’s core
programs foster STEM skills development, an
understanding of the importance of STEM as
a way to solve the world’s major problems, as
well as an interest in STEM electives, majors,
and careers.
Arleene holds a bachelor of business administration in international business and marketing from The University of Texas at Austin.
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Investing heavily in improving science and engineering education, engaging students with real-world
technology, and equipping educators with resources
to help teach fundamental engineering concepts in a
fun, hands-on way will keep students on the STEM track
and create a pipeline of well-qualified candidates for
STEM jobs of the future.
If we’re going to meet the world’s demand for engineers, we need to make STEM learning an inviting,
inspiring and exciting prospect for students. Students
need fun, hands-on experiences using real world tools
to demystify science and engineering, and serve their
natural inclination to learn, discover, tinker and build.
Making time and applying resources to do science
and engineering inside and outside the classroom creates the rich environment students need for learning
STEM skills that matter. When we create comfort and
engagement with science and engineering practices
early, we make students more likely to choose a path
of lifelong STEM education.
We need to help students understand the incredible
impact STEM careers have on the world. Engineers
and scientists are designing and inventing tools that
improve quality of life and solve major world challenges. We need to make STEM career paths inspiring
and relevant to them.
We also need to engage students with hands-on experiences with real industry tools education to allow them
to focus on doing science and engineering rather than
memorizing facts and figures.
Locally, NI collaborates with Girstart, a non-profit organization working to empower girls in STEM, to support
afterschool programs that give girls hands-on learning
experiences with STEM in a way that is interesting and
inspiring to them. Additionally, we work with the engineering program at Huston-Tillotson University to help
prepare underserved middle and high school students
for college engineering and science studies through
hands-on learning.
NI has a long history of partnering with student robotics programs that make engineering as cool for kids as
sports are today. These programs teach core engineering concepts, problem-solving skills, teamwork, and
leadership skills. Students who participate in these programs learn science and engineering skills by doing.
NI is proud to support these programs through technology donations, financial contributions and volunteer
mentorship/time. By providing students with support
and access to NI technology, we are able to help give
them fun, hands-on experiences with real-world tools
that prepare them for STEM majors and careers. Two of
our most significant student robotics partnerships are
with FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science
and Technology) and WRO (World Robot Olympiad).
Students are significantly more likely to attend college,
major in science or engineering, and be outstanding
future employees because of these programs.
STEM education?
Keep up the great work, collaborate with others and
continue to inspire the next generation of engineers
and scientists through hands-on learning.
To make a large impact on STEM education, it is essential to collaborate with others. At NI, we are proud
to have several partnerships that have helped drive
change in STEM learning. An example of this is our partnership with LEGO Education. For nearly two decades,
LEGO Education and National Instruments have
worked together to improve how STEM concepts are
taught. Through co-developed, interactive technology that merges toys that kids love with professionalgrade engineering tools, students as young as six are
getting inspired and staying engaged by doing engineering and not just learning about it. In short, LEGO is
an expert in hands-on learning, and NI is an expert in
engineering technology—the perfect partnership and
marriage of strengths! n
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Our future engineers and scientists will inherit major
challenges that need to be solved during their lifetimes.
From increasing population and diminishing resources,
to the sudden shift to digital infrastructure, our future
generations have their work cut out for them. Unfortunately, we are facing a supply and demand problem:
demand for scientists and engineers is up and supply
is down. Because of this, our nation needs more graduates to choose, and stay in, STEM careers. And it is up
to us to help develop the next generation of scientists
and engineers.
Terrance Williams
President and
Chief Operating Officer
Nationwide Agribusiness
Nationwide Agribusiness is the brand name under which two
companies operate: Farmland Mutual Insurance Company
and Nationwide® Agribusiness Insurance Company. Based in
Des Moines, Iowa, Nationwide Agribusiness is the #1 insurer of
farms in America, and a leader in insurance and risk solutions
for commercial agribusinesses. Nationwide Agribusiness is a
member of Nationwide, a Fortune 100 mutual company based
in Columbus, OH, that provides a full range of insurance and
financial services, including auto insurance, homeowners, pet,
motorcycle, boat, farm, commercial insurance, life insurance,
annuities, mutual funds, public and private sector retirement
plans, banking, mortgages, and specialty health services. It’s
one of the largest and strongest diversified insurance and financial services organizations in the U.S. and is rated A+ by
both A.M. Best and Standard & Poor’s.
For more information, visit www.nationwide.com and www.
NationwideAgribusiness.com.
Terrance Williams is President and Chief Operating Officer of Nationwide Agribusiness
Insurance Company. Since joining the larger
Nationwide organization in 1995, Mr. Williams
has held a variety of leadership positions
throughout the company.
With nearly 25 years of insurance industry
experience, Mr. Williams is known as a purpose-driven leader, a motivator of people,
and a dedicated senior executive. He has
led thousands of associates in a wide variety of staff and line business unit roles, always
striving for continuous improvement and customer loyalty. Offering a rare blend of creative and operational strengths, Mr. Williams
has achieved exceptional results in various
functional areas through motivation and
empowerment.
With an ongoing dedication to philanthropic
causes, Mr. Williams has been active in a vari-
ety of local and national organizations. He
is currently a member of the national STEM
Food & Ag Council, a member of the Executive Leadership Council, and provides board
service for Feeding America and United Way
of Central Iowa. Additionally, he serves as a
mentor for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central
Iowa.
Terrance Williams was born in the low country
region of South Carolina and made the decision to pursue a career in the insurance industry at a young age. With these aspirations
in mind, he earned a Bachelor of Science
degree in Insurance at the University of South
Carolina, and a Masters of Business Administration degree at Walden University.
Mr. Williams resides in West Des Moines, Iowa,
with his wife and two sons. With family time a
priority, he is also an avid sports fan and car
enthusiast who enjoys travel and reading.
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Driving success with STEM hits close to home for Nationwide because of our farm and agriculture company,
Nationwide Agribusiness. We’ve watched agriculture
change through new technologies, new practices, bigger equipment and better ways to grow safe, nutritious
food for an expanding world. We’ve watched people
become deeply interested in where their food comes
from and overwhelmingly support farmers, ranchers
and agribusinesses. We’ve watched farms and agribusinesses face increasing pressures: government regulations, more liabilities and litigation, environmental issues
and public opinion often influenced by people and
organizations that don’t necessarily know agriculture.
As we continue to expand our reach into diverse markets, we’ve broadened our focus to meet each industry’s unique needs by hiring more in-house specialists,
including industrial hygienists, nurses, fleet specialists
and agronomists. STEM education feeds directly into
many of these specialized fields.
Nationwide associates and leaders are proud of the
difference they can make in the communities where
they live and work. Every associate has access to
an online volunteer network that connects them to
opportunities they find meaningful.
Through systems such as this, large companies can
identify ways to partner with local educational institutions and other higher education institutions. Mentoring students and offering internships in areas such as
actuarial and underwriting will help encourage our
youth to persevere in these challenging fields.
We also benefit from exploring affinity relationships
and partnerships with educational institutions of all
levels for STEM-related jobs, as well as other fields. At
Nationwide Agribusiness, we continually ask ourselves
where our agricultural professionals for future growth
will come from and we try to engage with them even
before they start their careers.
One way we’re doing that is by connecting with
potential new talent thanks to Nationwide’s relationship with Historic Black Colleges and Universities. In
addition, Nationwide Agribusiness has forged a relationship with Tuskegee University. Two of our associates
have been instrumental in growing this partnership
through attending career fairs and serving as presenters at the Tuskegee-sponsored Professional Agriculture
Workers Conference (PAWC). These associates took
time to mentor both college and high school students
by conducting one-on-one mock interviews to help
sharpen students’ job search skills. Connecting with students early during their education is one way we can
help advance STEM careers that will lead to a successful workforce tomorrow.
What traits do corporate leaders need to effectively support and advance STEM education today
I believe the traits are the same ones leaders need to
effectively lead people and achieve results. Nationwide leaders abide by our corporate values in all we
do. From acting accountably and working as one
team to placing value on coaching and feedback
and showing a bias for action, we aim to live the values each day. Using these traits as a beacon, our leaders work with associates to help ensure they are fully
engaged and have solid plans for personal and professional development.
Our leaders also support diversity and inclusion at all
levels of the organization for two main reasons. First, it’s
the right thing to do as a corporate citizen. And second,
it’s a business imperative based on the ever-changing
demographics of our country. By creating an inclusive
workforce that develops its people, we achieve greater
success as a company. We seek out a winning combination of academic backgrounds, ages, cultures, life
circumstances, and thinking styles that will lead to superior performance. This philosophy advances us so that
we can better understand the diverse needs of our customers so that we can provide the most effective products and services possible, and be a strong corporate
citizen within the communities where we live and work.
through diversity?
As a member of the STEM Food and Agriculture Council, our mission is to join with America’s youth to inspire,
nurture and engage individuals to passionately pursue
Food and Ag careers by unlocking their full potential
as leaders and professionals.
At Nationwide Agribusiness, we understand the importance of attracting and retaining associates from different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives to
create a well-rounded team and to meet the unique
needs of our customers. Our highly skilled and trained
professionals are passionate about their commitment
to science and technology as it relates to farming and
food safety. Because food safety is a basic need for all
of human survival, it is critical for our industry to build
tomorrow’s workforce with people who understand
the importance of STEM education.
Without biotechnology in today’s industry, our country
would not have a sustainable food chain. We need
professionals and leaders with diverse ways of thinking in tomorrow’s workforce who are also prepared to
take on STEM careers as they relate to agriculture. We
are making huge gains through technology and science by reducing our dependency on chemicals and
water, while also reducing the tillage it takes to grow
crops. Our industry is very high tech and because of
that, we have the best food system in the world. n
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It is essential to not only help build a great economy,
but also for the survival of all human beings. The U.S.
educational system needs to better understand that
STEM can be integrated into a variety of interests.
Experts say that one of the most effective ways to
advance STEM education for the workforce of tomorrow is to expose students to coursework as early as
middle school, and continue the exposure through
high school and beyond. The sooner we can introduce
these subjects to students, the more likely they will be
to embrace them and pursue these types of careers.
Cynthia C. Earhart
Executive Vice President
Administration
Norfolk Southern Corporation
Norfolk Southern Corporation is one of the nation’s premier
transportation companies. Our Norfolk Southern Railway
Company subsidiary operates approximately 20,000 route
miles in 22 states and the District of Columbia, serves every
major container port in the eastern United States, and provides efficient connections to other rail carriers. We operate
the most extensive intermodal network in the East and are a
major transporter of coal, automotive, and industrial products.
Norfolk Southern is the fourth largest U.S. railroad and traces
its history back to 1827 during the earliest days of railroading
and modern-style commerce in America.
The railroad is an engine for economic growth. In the last decade, NS helped 1,024 new and expanded facilities locate
along our lines, generating 44,000 jobs and representing $29
billion in customer investment. America’s railroads are a growth
industry, and Norfolk Southern seeks qualified individuals proficient in all areas of STEM to fuel our business and the economy.
Cynthia C. Earhart is executive vice president
administration for Norfolk Southern Corporation. Prior to her appointment in 2013, she
served as vice president human resources;
vice president information technology; assistant vice president information technology;
assistant vice president accounting operations; and in various positions in the Accounting and Audit and Compliance departments.
Prior to joining Norfolk Southern, Ms. Earhart
worked with the accounting firms of Touche
Ross and Ernst & Whinney. A CPA, Ms. Earhart
graduated from the University of Missouri with
a B.S. in Accounting. In 2008, she completed
the Harvard Advanced Management Program.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M With 28 years of service in the rail industry, Ms.
Earhart has served as chairman of the Compensation Committee for Railinc, a railroad
industry resource for IT and Information Services. She serves on the board of GoRail, also
an industry organization that unites rail stakeholders with community leaders and the public in support of rail solutions.
Active in her community, Ms. Earhart has
served on the board of the Metro Atlanta
Chamber of Commerce and the Urban
League of Hampton Roads. She currently
serves on the boards of directors of LEAD Virginia where she also served as chair of the
Compensation Committee; ACCESS College
Foundation; the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts Foundation; and the EVMS Foundation Board of Trustees.
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The demand for STEM-capable workers is steadily
increasing; however, 60 percent of U.S. employers have
reported difficulty in finding qualified candidates to fill
those positions. To ensure that the U.S. can continue to
attract the best and the brightest, it is critical that we
improve the quality of STEM education.
Investing in human capital is critical to the future of our
nation. Today’s students will become the next generation of innovators and leaders. We need to prepare
young people to handle the evolving scientific and
technological challenges of the 21st century in order
to drive future innovation and economic prosperity.
That preparation begins in the classroom.
It is important to build interest in STEM at an early age
and demonstrate that it is a valuable and rewarding
career path. At the same time, we need to remember that education is a lifelong commitment. Norfolk
Southern, for example, offers a variety of training and
educational opportunities for employees to continue
to grow both personally and professionally throughout
their careers.
Enhancing our STEM education and workforce will
improve the U.S.’ position in the global marketplace
of ideas and commerce. And as an innovation leader,
the U.S. will continue to attract individuals from a
diverse range of backgrounds and skills, strengthening
our competitive base.
Norfolk Southern manages diversity as a continuous
process to recognize, cultivate, and use all the best
talents of our employees to improve service and produce better business outcomes. When we combine
the backgrounds and viewpoints of our team of 30,000
railroaders – military veterans, recent college graduates, women, and minorities – the possibilities for innovation are endless.
Our most effective and innovative solutions to business challenges are produced when NS employees
collaborate. A recent example at Norfolk Southern is
LEADER—Locomotive Engineer Assist Display Event
Recorder—an onboard, GPS-based computer system
that prompts locomotive engineers with real-time information on optimum throttle, speed, and brake settings.
This employee-driven effort helps NS achieve maximum fuel efficiency while benefitting the environment.
Nearly every job at Norfolk Southern requires science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics knowledge. From accounting, billing, and strategic planning
to building and maintaining track and bridges, operating trains and equipment of all types, and designing
and managing complex information technology systems—they all require STEM backgrounds.
Norfolk Southern offers opportunities for students to
gain real world knowledge and corporate experience
in their field of interest while completing their education. The goal of our co-op and internship program is
to allow students to put theory into practice as they
apply classroom knowledge to practical work situations. Students see, firsthand, the range of opportunities
in STEM and their potential to succeed in these roles.
Not to mention, it’s a great way for students to establish mentoring relationships.
in advancing STEM jobs/careers?
Recruiting and maintaining female employees in STEM
is a challenge and one that we absolutely must overcome. We must work together as a nation to refute
misconceptions of gender-typical career paths, particularly in STEM-related fields. When we capitalize on
the talents of women and men alike, we create new
avenues for creativity and increase potential for scientific and technological innovation.
At Norfolk Southern, we actively recruit women,
men, and minorities for all positions on the railroad,
in both office and field locations. We offer a variety
of employee resource groups to promote diversity
and inclusion while building teamwork and connections across departments and work locations. WiNS—
Women in Norfolk Southern—is a group dedicated to
helping NS women develop leadership skills, advance
their careers, and network.
As a business leader and woman in the STEM field, I
am committed to educating women and young professionals on the benefits of pursuing STEM careers.
Through my board membership with ACCESS College Foundation, we offer guidance and financial
assistance for students to attend and complete college, so that one day, they too might become STEM
professionals. n
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The U.S. is a longtime leader in the global marketplace largely because of our qualified and talented
workforce. Experts in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are primary drivers of
our nation’s technological innovation, productivity,
and competitiveness.
KarlGouverneur
Vice President and
Chief Technology Officer
Northwestern Mutual
Northwestern Mutual has been helping families and businesses achieve financial security for nearly 160 years through
a distinctive planning approach that integrates risk management with wealth accumulation, preservation and distribution.
With more than $217 billion in assets, $26 billion in revenues
and more than $1.5 trillion worth of life insurance protection in
force, Northwestern Mutual delivers financial security to more
than 4.2 million clients.
Northwestern Mutual is proud to be an award-winning employer for IT professionals and actively invests in STEM initiatives
in southeastern Wisconsin. The company’s internship program
employs exceptional technology candidates at the college
level, many of whom become employees. The company is a
strong partner and sponsor of events and programs that encourage students at all levels to pursue STEM careers in technology and math fields. Northwestern Mutual is the marketing
name for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance CompanyMilwaukee, WI and its subsidiaries.
Karl Gouverneur is vice president and chief technology officer for Northwestern Mutual, and head
of the company’s enterprise technology management department. In this role, Gouverneur
oversees the company’s technology direction,
innovation and governance, ensuring a reliable
operations infrastructure, and managing information risk to protect the company’s brand and
reputation.
Gouverneur focuses on providing technology that
leads to efficiency and flexibility for business processes to enrich the experience of the company’s
clients, financial representatives and employees.
He partners with business areas across the enterprise to integrate technology with the company’s
business strategies and objectives.
Under Gouverneur’s leadership, the company
has implemented a comprehensive, multi-year
program to simplify its technology environment
through elimination and consolidation of technology assets. In addition, Gouverner leads an
award-winning technology innovation program
which evaluates technology-based ideas for
rapid development and funding.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Prior to joining Northwestern Mutual in 2006,
Gouverneur was the vice president and chief
technology officer at Seattle-based Safeco Insurance, where he built an IT architecture practice
and identified over $110 million in business value.
Before his role at Safeco, he was the chief architect at Chicago-based CNA Financial, where he
focused on business alignment, IT strategy and IT
standards, and strategic and innovative IT solutions including a claims transformation program,
service-oriented architecture, voice over IP, strategic sourcing and enterprise content management. He began his career at Ernst & Young, where
he progressed through the ranks to become a
senior manager.
Gouverneur is a graduate of the University of
Florida, where he earned a bachelor of science
degree in business administration – computer
science. He is currently a member of the CTO
Research Board. In the Milwaukee community,
Gouverneur serves on Marquette University’s
Global Sourcing Advisory Board and is the vicechair and an active member of the Board of
Directors for the Milwaukee Urban League. He is
an advisor to the Northwestern Mutual Hispanic
Employee Resource Group.
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At the college level, Northwestern Mutual has a strong
corporate internship program to recruit students interested in pursuing careers in information technology,
actuarial science, finance, accounting and other
areas within the company. The corporate program is
designed to recruit from broad and diverse sources,
including historical black colleges and universities,
and provides students the opportunity to experience
Northwestern Mutual’s inclusive culture and career
opportunities in STEM fields.
In addition to educational initiatives, several members of the executive team are personally involved by
going beyond mentoring to sponsoring students, helping them realize the value of STEM skillsets. Although this
current student generation was born with technology,
we can and should coach and encourage them to be
more than users of the technology that surrounds them.
Rather, we should also inspire them to become the person who creates that next app or next smart appliance
or becomes the next analyst to leverage data in new
and innovative ways.
In the end, nothing happens unless we all get engaged.
I believe the earlier we can encourage students, the
better. Career impressions are often formed at an
early age, so it’s imperative to get school counselors
involved to ensure they help influence students to
select STEM courses and careers. We must clearly and
consistently communicate how vital science, technology and math skills are to the future of our companies.
As leaders, we must first recognize that the number of
STEM-skilled graduates is diminishing in our country. The
next step is to take responsibility to grow this focus and
capability to maintain a global competitive advantage. Companies that are known for their investments
in innovation are already making a difference, but
leaders in every company should get involved in initiatives that encourage interest in STEM education tracks.
The opportunities to sponsor STEM programs exist everywhere. Without a pipeline of STEM-educated leaders,
our nation’s competitive profile will erode over time. It
is our responsibility as leaders to prevent this from happening.
in advancing STEM jobs/careers?
We are currently living in an era of technology that
is powered by cloud, mobile and social computing.
A fourth component with growing and significant
opportunity is in the mining of big data and leveraging of advanced analytics. This is a field of tremendous
opportunity for young and diverse talent. As demands
continue to grow, there will very likely be a shortage
of talent with the analytical skills required to create
insights from data. Many academic degrees can lead
to careers in this field, including statistics, actuarial science, math, engineering, computer science and others. By raising awareness of analytics as a growing field
of opportunity for young talent, in particular women
and minorities, we will be better positioned to capitalize on this important trend while providing meaningful
careers.
Are you a mentor, and what is your view of mentorship?
I am a firm believer in mentoring and typically take
it a step further with what I call “sponsorship.” Participating in a sponsorship engagement with me is more
than just meeting occasionally. Together we identify
activities and create action plans that will lead to selfdevelopment with the ultimate goal of not only career
advancement and professional development, but also
life learning and engagement. I tend to focus on sponsoring women and minorities and am currently working
with five individuals. For me, it’s very personal. I benefitted from the support of a sponsor who took an interest in my career and development, so I like to pay it
forward.
Often I try to ensure these individuals are taking advantage of growth opportunities, additional coaching
and development. I am a big believer in real, candid
feedback, which is a rare and valued gift. I often recommend that the “mentee” seek out other sources of
feedback. I have found this approach leads to a highly
engaged individual who clearly sees and understands
what he or she needs to do to take a career to the
next level.
Anything I do to help others is simply my way to pay
forward for those who helped me early in my career.
Northwestern Mutual has established several Employee
Resource Groups on our Milwaukee campus as part of
our diversity and inclusion journey. The groups consist of
individuals with shared interests who are committed to
making inroads in diverse markets and promoting business objectives. I am an executive advisor to the Hispanic ERG and am highly engaged with this group. n
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As one of the largest companies in Wisconsin, Northwestern Mutual is uniquely positioned to create and
participate in initiatives that address and advance
STEM education, especially for young women and
underrepresented minorities. Believing success begins
in the early primary and middle school years, we partner with several programs in Southeastern Wisconsin
that stress the importance of science and math for all
students. Northwestern Mutual partners with nonprofit
organizations, such as the Milwaukee Urban League,
and several local school districts to influence and support students with not only math and science but also
interpersonal skills, such as communication, negotiation, dealing with conflict, and teamwork.
Carolyn L. Green
President and Chief Executive Officer
Professional Environmental
Engineers
Incorporated in August 1997, Professional Environmental Engineers (PE) is a minority, woman-owned environmental
engineering firm offering a full range of cost-effective and innovative solutions for governmental and commercial clients.
The company is headquartered in St. Louis, MO, with offices in
Kansas City, MO; Omaha, NE; Atlanta; and Houston. PE’s diverse team members include engineers, geologists, hydro-geologists, environmental scientists, chemists, biologists, wetlands
specialists, health & safety professionals, field technicians,
hazardous materials managers and lead/asbestos inspectors.
PE is proud of its ethnic and gender diversity and places top
priority on ensuring that a diverse talent pool is part of every
recruitment. The company contributes to and encourages
employees to work with student chapters of such organizations such as NSBE, AABE and Association of Environmental
and Engineering Geologists.
Carolyn L. Green is President and CEO of Professional Environmental Engineers, Inc. (PE).
Based in St. Louis, MO, the company provides
environmental compliance and remediation
services to public and private sector clients
nationwide. PEEI is a portfolio company of
EnerGreen Capital Management, LLC, a private equity firm that Green founded to invest
in growth stage companies involved in the
energy and environmental industries. Prior
to founding EnerGreen, Ms. Green was Vice
President - Health, Environment and Safety for
Sunoco, Inc. With over 30 years of environmental and energy experience, Green served as
Director of Government & Public Affairs for
Ultramar Diamond Shamrock, Environmental
Affairs Manager for Southern California Gas
Company, Deputy Executive Officer for the
South Coast Air Quality Management District
and President of the Los Angeles Department
of Water & Power Board of Commissioners. A
graduate of the University of Iowa, Green also
was a HUD Urban Studies Fellow in the Graduate Program in Urban & Regional Planning
at Iowa. Green was national board chair of
the American Association of Blacks in Energy
from 2008-2010 and formerly served as Environmental Committee Chair for the National
Petrochemical and Refining Association (now
AFPM). She is Vice President of the Dean’s
Advisory Board for the College of Liberal Arts
& Sciences (CLAS) at the University of Iowa
and serves as Treasurer of the board of the
Alliance to Save Energy. She chairs the Energy
Sector Working Group of the Executive Leadership Council and mentors young corporate
engineers and scientists in both the ELC and
the AABE.
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For their part, corporations need to be partners
in identifying and developing the necessary skillsets. Corporate executives need to think critically
about what skills and attitudes the company will
need in the future rather than focusing on degrees
or job titles, or assuming that tomorrow’s jobs will
be merely some variation on today’s. Companies
also will need to take into account the different
priorities of younger employees, who value work/
life balance as much or more than career growth,
which may lead significant numbers of them to
seek the independent consultant or entrepreneurial route. Companies that can both attract
talented workers and harness the creative energy
of contractors and consultants will have a leg up,
especially if those companies truly value and
encourage diversity – of thought and approach,
as well as gender, ethnicity or national origin.
Building a more inclusive, more technologically
competent society requires that business and
academia collaborate to develop STEM curricula
that work both for business and for students. The
focus on theory and memorization must be coupled with experiential learning to reflect the varied ways in which people learn. Instruction also
needs to reflect the ways in which technology has
changed how students process information. Students want to understand the relevance of what
they are being taught. They constantly ask how
they can apply their studies in the workplace and
in their everyday lives. Equally importantly, they
need to learn the “soft” skills that will allow them to
utilize their “book” knowledge, which means they
need to know how to think critically, how to question assumptions and put forward alternatives in
a positive manner, and how to apply the lessons
from one discipline to solve another, seemingly
unrelated problem. Students need problem-solving skills, cultural sensitivity, and an understanding
of group dynamics so that they can interact productively with colleagues from backgrounds and
disciplines very different from their own. Finally, the
workers of tomorrow need to be lifelong learners,
so both business and academia need to break
down the barriers to continuous learning by bringing academia into the workplace and into communities rather than requiring students to learn
only within an academic setting.
As a minority and woman-owned engineering
company, PE prides itself on finding and hiring
outstanding engineering and scientific talent,
irrespective of gender or ethnicity. By insisting on
a diverse hiring pool, we find that the most qualified candidate often is diverse as well. While we
can’t necessarily compete with large companies
in salary and benefits, we can provide a collegial
working environment, interaction with senior management, opportunities for individual initiative,
and more rapid progression from individual contributor to project manager. Our people work on a
broad range of projects, which may not occur as
readily within larger, more siloed organizations. We
also focus our recruitment efforts on people educated in or with ties to the communities in which
we operate, rather than trying to compete in a
national pool. We think that, by focusing on our
local marketplace for talent and by emphasizing the advantages of working in a small diverse
organization, we combine the technical expertise
of large engineering firms with the local presence
and access to decision-makers that our clients
desire. n
Building a more inclusive, more
technologically competent society requires
that business and academia collaborate to
develop STEM curricula that work both for
business and for students.
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In an increasingly complex and inter-connected
world, no nation can be competitive economically without a technologically savvy workforce.
This both requires people who are comfortable
using technology and those who can develop
new generations of technological progress in all
areas of commerce, but especially in manufacturing, transportation, healthcare, environmental
protection and consumer products. Nations that
can master the challenge of producing a STEMliterate workforce, while encouraging individual
creativity and lifelong learning, will position themselves for long-term prosperity.
Mehmood Khan
Executive Vice President,
Chief Scientific Officer,
Global Research & Development
PepsiCo
PepsiCo is a global food and beverage leader with net revenues of over $65 billion and a product portfolio that includes
22 brands that generate over $1 billion each in annual retail
sales. Our main businesses – Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade,
Frito-Lay and Pepsi-Cola – make hundreds of enjoyable foods
and beverages that are loved worldwide. PepsiCo’s people
are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth
by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet,
which we also believe means a more successful future for
PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose:
PepsiCo’s promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages from treats to healthy eats; to find innovative ways to
minimize our impact on the environment by conserving energy and water and reducing packaging volume; to provide
a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support
and invest in the local communities where we operate.
Mehmood Khan, M.D., is executive vice
president and chief scientific officer, global
research and development, PepsiCo. In
its global portfolio of food and beverage
brands, PepsiCo has 22 different brands that
generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales. With net revenues
of over $66 billion, PepsiCo’s main businesses
also make hundreds of other enjoyable foods
and beverages that are respected household names throughout the world.
As chief scientific officer, Mehmood leads
company-wide research and development
(R&D); recruits highly regarded clinical scientists, global health leaders and medical
experts; launches research projects with
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R&D facilities.
As executive vice president, Mehmood leads
a global team of experts in nutrition, medicine, research, science, marketing/branding,
ingredient sourcing and product innovation.
He directs PepsiCo’s enterprise planning,
portfolio development and execution of new
technology to grow the company’s nutritionfocused brands in four areas: grains (Quaker),
fruits (Tropicana), vegetables (Sabra) and
dairy (Wimm-Bill-Dann). With the creation of
the GNG, PepsiCo is one of only two food
and beverage companies worldwide with an
operation dedicated to health and wellness.
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While much more STEM capability-building needs to
occur, we’re moving in the right direction. Today, STEM
education is ascending the national agenda. In classically American fashion, we recognized a problem,
rolled up our sleeves, and resolved to tackle it. Government, industry, the non-profit community, and educational institutions are aligned and making solid progress.
STEM is now preparing to move to the next level: STEM
practitioners are increasingly being challenged to master career skills needed to translate content expertise
into commercial gain; they’re learning to evolve from
one-off inventors to innovators who create sustainable
pipelines and processes; they’re applying STEM learnings to spe¬cific “real world” problems through digital and emerging technologies; and they’re learning
industry-specific hard skills to deepen expertise across
all business sectors. This progress will generate ROI
for American industry now, and will yield even higher
returns in the future.
At PepsiCo, our commitment to STEM starts at the top.
Our Chairman and CEO, Indra Nooyi, is a tireless advocate for STEM—so much so that she has been named
among the Top 100 CEOs in STEM.
Our commitment to STEM is expressed inside and outside the company. Inside, we created a PepsiCo STEM
council, a cross functional team whose mandate is
to translate our most ambitious ideas into action and
measurable results. Outside, our STEM professionals
are determined to make a contribution to their professions—not just their company and industry. That’s
why PepsiCo chairs the STEM Innovation Task force, a
coalition of more than 30 industry, government, educator and NGO partners working cross functionally to
develop and implement programs to help solve the
STEM shortfall.
For PepsiCo, it’s not just about investing dollars; it’s also
about investing in relationship-building. The ability to
build strong public-private partnerships is the most critical driver of long-term success.
Accordingly, our efforts to engage at a private-public
level include the PepsiCo Global R&D Fellows program,
a select cadre of PepsiCo R&D research and techni-
cal specialists who both serve as STEM mentors internally and speak externally. Further, the PepsiCo R&D
Research Apprentice program enables many high
school students to learn from our PepsiCo R&D associates in real life problem solving environments
PepsiCo also launched the first ever “STEM Career
Accelerator Day.” By partnering with schools, parents
and teachers, we’re showing students how STEM is
translated from classroom theory into commercial
action.
Additionally, stakeholders outside the STEM professions
must be educated about the stakes of STEM shortfalls
and the capabilities industry must fortify to create successful innovation. Further, we believe non-STEM audiences can and must be “recruited and activated” on
our behalf to raise awareness and strengthen our STEM
capability nationally—because everyone’s economic
destinies are intertwined.
We must develop an agile, adaptable global STEM
workforce. Inside PepsiCo, we’re doing this two ways.
First, we have a global network of STEM experts that
spans across the company, building skills internally and
serving as STEM role models. Second, we’re cultivating
relationships with nearly 50 premier academic institutional partners across five continents.
While the focus of our STEM discussion is on the U.S.,
we believe that good ideas—and exemplars of STEM
excellence—are found outside the U.S., too. Accordingly, at PepsiCo, our R&D team may be locally
embedded and tasked with tackling region- or country-specific challenges, but we import and export our
people and ideas to other locales regularly. If a company wants to lead innovation globally, it needs to be
staffed by “glocals”--global experts with local experience. The STEM shortfall might be local, but we strongly
believe that the STEM solution will be a global solution.
Administrative and executive duties notwithstanding,
my job at PepsiCo, fundamentally, is to mentor. My job
is to create a framework in which nearly 2,000 R&D
associates can flourish, to unleash talent by providing
guidance and counsel when requested (or required),
to give people the tools they need to succeed, and
most importantly, to create a culture in which the PepsiCo R&D team feels empowered to create solutions to
problems conventional wisdom said were insoluble. As
a mentor, the greatest reward is mine, because, along
with our Chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi, I have the
honor of distributing annually to our employees the
Global R&D Academy of Science Awards—PepsiCo’s
version of the Nobel Prize for outstanding achievement
in food and beverage science. n
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Innovation is the engine of economic growth for our
nation’s economy. And STEM professionals, in particular,
are major enablers of this growth. Indeed, if the innovation potential of STEM workers were to be fully optimized, compa¬nies could realize 14 percent higher
sales in new prod¬uct launches, says data from The
Corporate Executive Board Company.
Anne Roby
Senior Vice President
Praxair, Inc.
Praxair, Inc., a Fortune 250 company with 2013 sales of $12
billion, is the largest industrial gases company in the Americas
and one of the largest worldwide. The company produces,
sells and distributes atmospheric, process and specialty gases
and high-performance surface coatings. Praxair products,
services and technologies are making the planet more productive by bringing efficiency and environmental benefits to
a wide variety of industries, including aerospace, chemicals,
food and beverage, electronics, energy, healthcare, manufacturing, metals and many others.
Named by Newsweek as one of the world’s greenest companies in 2014, Praxair was also named in CR Magazine’s 100
Best Corporate Citizens list and is the only U.S. chemical company selected for 11 consecutive years to the prestigious Dow
Jones World Sustainability Index. In 2013, Praxair was listed in the
Global Carbon Disclosure Index for the 6th consecutive year,
one of only four companies in the world to have this distinction.
.
Anne Roby was named senior vice president in
2014, responsible for Global Supply Systems, R&D,
Global Market Development, Global Operations Excellence, Global Procurement, Sustainability and Safety, Health and Environment.
Roby joined Praxair in 1991 as a development
associate in the company’s R&D organization.
She became global marketing manager for
chemicals and refining in 1996 and moved to
Houston in 1999 to become a pipeline sales and
business manager in the North American Industrial Gases business unit. She was named area
director in 2004, responsible for commercial
activities related to both pipeline and merchant
atmospheric products. In 2006, she became vice
president of the U.S. South Region, responsible
for Praxair’s business in a seven-state area that
includes many of Praxair’s major chemicals and
refining customers. She was appointed vice president, global sales, for Praxair, Inc. in 2009. In 2010,
Roby became President of Praxair Electronics,
with global responsibility for products, services
and technologies supplied to the semiconductor, flat panel display, LED and solar industries. In
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M 2011, Roby became president of Praxair Asia,
responsible for Praxair’s industrial gases business
in China, India, South Korea and Thailand as well
as the electronics market globally.
Roby has a long track record of supporting
women in the workforce and STEM education. She oversees Praxair’s Skills Pipeline program, the company’s multifaceted approach
to help address the growing need for skilled
workers in today’s global economy. She is also
regularly involved in TechSavvy, an annual
conference designed to expose young
women in middle school to the opportunities
and careers in STEM fields through educational and fun hands-on activities. Additionally, Roby launched a series of Praxair Women
in Leadership forums globally and is the Executive Sponsor of Diversity at the company.
Roby earned a bachelor’s degree from Villanova University and a doctorate in chemical
engineering from the University of Delaware.
She holds four patents for industrial gas applications.
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The U.S. is currently facing a serious shortage of STEM
graduates—both male and female. I recently read that
fewer than 40% of students who enter college intend to
major in a STEM field.
As a global employer of STEM professionals in most
areas of our business, we continue to face increasing
challenges recruiting top STEM performers. Supporting
STEM education is critical to our long-term success.
Over the years, we have established critical partnerships with educational institutions to support STEM education by funding scholarships, workforce development,
diversity initiatives, teaching and research related to
areas of engineering and technology of specific interest to Praxair. Strong ties and collaboration between
government, educators and business is the best way for
our investment in STEM to make a long-term, meaningful impact. We all have a stake in it and our collective
success requires that we work together to build a robust
STEM workforce in America.
In my experience abroad, the culture of innovation in
the U.S. is the envy of the world and has helped our
nation be successful. Our innovation has been spurred
by the influx of talent from all over the world, as America’s science and engineering programs have been
able to attract and develop the best and brightest
both domestically and globally.
Engineers bring us technology and solutions because
they constantly push for innovation. Engineering
involves making sense of complexity, seeing opportunities where others see insurmountable obstacles,
envisioning possibilities where others are limited to the
status quo, organizing, inspiring and influencing actions
beyond what is considered possible, and achieving
measurable results that effect positive change in the
world.
In order to maintain this competitive advantage, we
must continue to invest in STEM education and encourage high school and college students to jump into
these creative and fun fields. We must re-build our
pipeline of domestic talent by modernizing our programs and strengthening their foundation.
Many of our female and minority middle and high
school students have not had exposure to the potential of STEM careers. I didn’t hear the term “chemical
engineer” until I was in college. I had no idea what an
engineer did because it was never suggested as a
potential career path and it didn’t seem viable for me.
However, while participating in a Work-Study program
in the chemical lab at school, I came to learn much
more about the types of problems that chemical engineers help to solve. I was attracted to the creativity
and innovation that was possible in an engineering
career. We need to provide more women and minorities with exposure to these exciting careers and ensure
that they have the tools needed to excel in them.
How does STEM leadership and diversity help your
company compete?
In order to develop innovative products and processes and create new markets, we need to leverage
the best ideas from everyone in our organization. The
best source for innovation is the convergence of different perspectives, work experiences and opinions. At
Praxair, we have found that innovation and creativity is
seldom the result of one person shouting “Eureka!” It is
the culmination of the exchange of ideas with our customers and employees—and we rely upon this blend
of diverse talent.
Praxair considers diversity a way of life, not just a program. We work hard to integrate diversity principles
into every aspect of our business to deliver the best
products, services and technology to our customers.
We believe our strong culture of diversity and inclusion
is a competitive advantage—and we work hard to
push our performance to the next level.
People have a tendency to hire and associate with
people like themselves, but this tendency is counter to
innovation and inclusion. If we brainstorm solutions with
a team whose members all look the same and have
the same background, experiences and perspectives,
we will be at a disadvantage. Having seen women and
minorities drowned out by the majority, I recognize the
need for mentors to show diverse employees the ropes
to ensure that their voices are heard.
Throughout my career I have been a formal and informal mentor to many people and have benefited from
mentoring relationships myself. Mentoring isn’t always a
formal program or process; sometimes it’s about identifying and developing talent throughout your organization
and then reaching out to help them get the exposure
they deserve.
I really like a quote from Michelle Obama, who at the
2011 National Mentoring Summit said, “We should always
have three friends in our lives—one who walks ahead
who we look up to and follow; one who walks beside
us, who is with us every step of our journey; and then,
one who we reach back for and bring along after we’ve
cleared the way.”
Every leader in an organization should be reaching back
and bringing the next generation of leaders up through
the ranks. n
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 195 Praxair, Inc.
As a leading industrial gases company, competing
successfully in a global economy requires a diverse
workforce that is well-educated in STEM. A strong STEM
education provides students with a solid foundation to
pursue many different careers. Excelling in math and
science requires strong analytical and critical thinking
skills—both essential to the future of our country as the
challenges we face become more complex.
Maria Castañón
Moats
PwC US
PwC US helps organizations and individuals create the value
they’re looking for. We’re a member of the PwC network of
firms in 157 countries with more than 184,000 people. We’re
committed to delivering quality in assurance, tax and advisory services. Tell us what matters to you and find out more by
visiting us at www.pwc.com/US.
Our firm has a long-standing history of helping resolve complex
issues and providing an incomparable professional experience
for our people. Our diversity strategies are designed to attract,
develop, and advance the most talented individuals regardless
of their race, sexual orientation, religion, age, gender, disability
status or any other dimension of diversity. Doing business responsibly, while engaging our stakeholders, is critical to our business,
our people, and our communities. Through PwC’s Earn Your Future, the firm is preparing students to make responsible financial
decisions and helping contribute to a healthier US economy.
Maria is one of sixteen on PwC’s U.S. Leadership team and reports directly to the Senior
Partner. Since 2011, she has served as the
Chief Diversity Officer—setting strategy and
deployment of PwC’s U.S. diversity and inclusion efforts. In addition, Maria is currently serving as the Lead Engagement Partner on a
major Northeast retail and consumer company.
PwC is known as a top company for diversity, receiving high rankings and awards from
Working Mother magazine, the Human Rights
Campaign and the Great Place to Work
Institute, among others. In 2012, the firm was
recognized as DiversityInc magazine’s #1
company for diversity.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Maria has over 24 years of professional
accounting and auditing experience with
financial services, retail, consumer and industrial product clients. She is a graduate of the
University of Texas at El Paso, is a licensed CPA
in Texas, New Jersey and New York.
Maria has been a dedicated board member
for the March of Dimes and an advocate of
children’s adoptions. She is a first generation
Mexican American and speaks Spanish fluently. Maria lives in the New York Metro area
with her husband and two children.
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How is your company connecting diversity initiatives with STEM initiatives? Is this part of your comprehensive strategy?
Cultural inclusion and diversity of thought are areas of
strategic importance to PwC because they are paramount to creative problem-solving and innovation
and success in today’s global business environment. As
a professional services firm with clients across technology, finance and other industries, the value we add is
only as great as our talent. So, what keeps me awake
at night is wondering if we are doing everything we
can to create an environment that will attract individuals from all backgrounds to careers in professional
services, develop everyone regardless of their dimension of diversity, and, most importantly, retain them at
PwC.
PwC’s Earn Your Future commitment is exposing children
to careers in finance and accounting. In classrooms,
our people are working with youth from underserved
communities—an estimated 70% impacted through
Earn Your Future are from minority backgrounds, and
50% are female. Our 41 curriculum modules have been
translated into multiple languages, and our affinity networks have contributed to the development of several
modules. Helping students become more financially
capable is a collaborative effort, so we are also spending time speaking with representatives across minorityfocused organizations, government, and academia
to better understand the challenges individuals within
underserved communities are facing when it comes
to financial literacy. Working together with key stakeholder organizations, we can build a healthy pipeline of talent with the skills needed for STEM-focused
careers and beyond.
women and minorities coming up in the system?
Never shy away from your differences. Early in my career
my supervisor overheard me whispering on the phone
in Spanish and told me to flaunt my fluency because
it was a business asset. That was the day I realized that
being myself was an asset. I also encourage everyone,
women and minorities included, to look for diversity in
their own mentors. It’s natural to seek a role model in
someone who looks like you, but resist it. Seeking alternate perspectives can help you see beyond your present circumstances because others don’t see the same
limits or boundaries that you do.
How can we advance Mentorships and Apprenticeships in the STEM pipeline?
It is not always easy to cultivate mentor-mentee relationships, but what’s most important is providing your
employees with the resources they need along every
step of their careers so they can establish meaningful relationships with other professionals from day one.
As an example, our “Start” program targets diverse
students in their sophomore and junior years of college and offers learning and development, shadowing programs and real-world exposure to partners and
staff. Our “Diamond” program serves as a coaching
and advocacy program for high performing minority
senior managers and directors within our organization.
Through these programs, we create personal connections and encourage young people to take an interest
in STEM careers while also supporting those who are
already in the workforce.
We also believe strongly in sponsor relationships. Sponsors are those within an organization that not only give
you advice, but advocate for you and take you alongside them for the journey. I am a first-generation Mexican American immigrant who is now a partner at one
of the largest professional services firms in the world. I
believe strongly that my success at PwC is a credit to
those who had the ability to dream bigger for me than
I ever dreamed for myself.
What Employee Resource Groups does your firm
have in place?
We strive to create an environment where everyone,
regardless of their dimension of diversity, has access
to role models and support systems that help them
advance their careers. Affinity Networks have been
established for women, parents, LGBT individuals, veterans, and disability caregivers as well as other multicultural groups. Most recently, we established a
Professionals with Disabilities Network which seeks to
strengthen the PwC experience for all partners and
staff by leveraging the unique talents of people with
disabilities and fostering a culture of awareness, inclusion, leadership and trust. And when connecting inperson is not an option, PwC has online networks for
diverse individuals to connect socially. n
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 197 PwC US
PwC is focused on delivering value in all we do, and we
cannot do this by ignoring social issues that threaten the
sustainability of businesses, and our communities. One
such issue is the growing need for financial literacy education in schools, and helping to build stronger skills in
financial decision-making and financial capability. This
issue is particularly acute in underserved communities.
CEOs continue to express concern about the pipeline
of talent—not only how to find diverse individuals with
the skills they need, but how to retain them. Given the
skills of our more than 39,000 people in accounting,
finance and consulting services, we realized years ago
that we were in a prime position to extend our work of
adding value to businesses by strengthening the next
generation workforce, and enhancing people’s lives.
Through PwC’s Earn Your Future, our $160 million commitment to instill responsible financial behaviors that
will position students for future job readiness and economic stability, we’re sharing our knowledge and skills
with students in grades K-12 and helping them prosper.
William Gipson
Chief Diversity Officer /
Senior Vice President, Research and
Development, Global Hair Care,
Color, and Salon Professional
Procter & Gamble
For more than 175 years, innovation has been P&G’s lifeblood.
It’s the primary way we drive growth, prevent the commoditization of categories, reduce costs, and deliver consumer
value. We have more than 40,000 active granted patents
worldwide, and invested more than $2 billion in research and
development in 2013.Throughout our Company’s history, we
have delivered product innovations like Tide, Crest, Downy,
Pampers, Swiffer, Gillette, and Febreze. We’ve also driven social innovations with programs like Children’s Safe Drinking
Water, and been a leader in business innovations as the first
company to sell direct to retailers and the creator of brand
management. Driven by passionate people and a common
purpose, P&G serves nearly five billion people around the
world with its portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands.
The Company has operations in approximately 70 counties
worldwide.
As Chief Diversity Officer and Senior Vice President of Research and Development, Global
Hair Care, Color, and Salon Professional, William Gipson is leading P&G’s global diversity and inclusion strategy to ensure every
employee is valued, included and able to
perform at their peak. On the research and
development side of the business, he’s leading overall innovation for Procter and Gamble’s multiple brands of Hair Care and Color
products in both Retail and Salon Professional.
With 29 years at P&G, Gipson has grown his
career with increasing levels of responsibility, including assignments in Sao Paulo, Brazil,
and Caracas, Venezuela, assuming overall
responsibility for Pampers R&D Latin America
and led R&D innovation for brands like ThermaCare, Bounty, and Duracell. Most recently,
in July 2012, William was named P&G’s new
Chief Diversity Officer, reporting directly to
A.G. Lafley, Chairman of the Board, President
and Chief Executive Officer.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M A University of Alabama-Tuscaloosa graduate with a degree in Chemical Engineering,
prior to joining P&G, Gipson served in the US
Air Force. William’s external affiliations include
the Board and Executive Committee Member on the Cincinnati Scholarship Foundation,
Board Member on the National Council for
Minorities in Engineering (NACME), Member
on the Cincinnati Business Committee Education Task Force, Member of the Conference
Board, Board and Committee Member on
the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) and
Member of the Executive Leadership Council.
He is a native of Montgomery, Alabama, and
the husband of Jacqueline and father to Joy,
Justin, and Jonathan.
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As an innovation company, P&G believes that U.S. Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Education is
critical for developing future innovation leaders. Interest by employees is extensive, evident by the wide
range of related activities in which many are involved,
voluntarily or on P&G’s behalf. Through collaboration
internally and externally we can more effectively support programs that reach the underserved as well as
benefit the programs P&G volunteers support in their
communities. The creation of our STEM Education Core
Team enables P&G to implement our “where to play”
and “how to execute” strategy by harnessing the talent of our employees, leverage Company resources
and improve internal coordination and external collaboration to impact student literacy in fields critical to
innovation success.
The biggest opportunity will be led through the engagement of the next generation of leaders early in their
academic careers. For employers, presenting to students a range of careers available in STEM fields helps
break down barriers and stereotypes by showcasing
what types of careers are available in math and science in large corporations. At P&G, we integrate this in
a variety of ways including a P&G Resident Scholar Program, a summer program to a group of high achieving
minority students, INTERalliance Summer Camps for IT,
scholarships for minority students seeking STEM carrers,
and our “Bounty Experience” which provides handson interactive demonstrations that teach the science
behind Bounty to local high school students.
At the heart of P&G’s innovation pipeline are the
nearly 8,000 employees in Research & Development.
These people are spread out across innovation centers on five continents and span a variety of disciplines.
With a culture rooted in learning and productivity, our
researchers are technical masters who can apply their
skills across multiple categories. They use their expertise
in digitization, modeling, simulation, and prototyping
to bring world-class innovation to our consumers. Our
engineers and scientists view every challenge not just
as world-class technologists, but as consumers, too. We
believe innovation starts with the consumer. We gain
insights into their everyday lives so we can combine
“what’s needed” with “what’s possible.” Our goal is to
provide consumers with product options at all pricing tiers to drive preference for our products and provide meaningful value. With more than 300 brands, we
understand why the world identifies us as a consumer
products leader, but at our core, we are a true technology company that thrives on innovation.
Diversity & Inclusion as a critical enabler for innovation,
connecting seemingly unconnected nodes to create innovative products that delight the consumers
we want to serve. We know that fully leveraging our
Diversity and Inclusion leads to bigger and better innovations. By creating diverse teams of people we bring
together different styles of thinking. And by connecting these diverse nodes we spark innovative ideas. By
design, Diversity & Inclusion is top of mind and embedded into our systems and processes, for sustained
change.
At P&G, we are fulfilling our Company Purpose and
going beyond just marketing products to multicultural
consumers. We are making social investments for sustained improvement for the socioeconomic status of
our multicultural consumers as well. n
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Effective U.S. STEM education is critical for developing
our future innovation leaders and meeting 21st century challenges. Yet we face a growing talent gap in
science, technology engineering and mathematics,
especially in Ohio, which lags the nation in critical
indicators from student preparation to educational
attainment. Uncoordinated initiatives by P&G or industry risk lost synergy, scale and the collection of data to
drive future investments. Locally and nationally, there
are efforts underway to collaborate and improve the
impact of industry efforts.
Barbara G. Koster
Prudential Financial, Inc.
Prudential Financial, Inc. is committed to helping individual
and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth
through a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds and
investment management. Prudential was founded in 1875
with a clear purpose in mind: making life insurance affordable for working class families. Since then, a strong sense of social responsibility has remained embedded in the company,
guiding our efforts to help our customers achieve peace of
mind and financial security. Prudential carries out this mission
by providing innovative solutions to complex financial challenges. Today, Prudential continues to build on its legacy and
collective business expertise to help address the barriers that
prevent individuals and communities from achieving financial
and social mobility. As a purpose driven company, Prudential
uses its skills and resources to ensure that everyone has the
opportunity to achieve economic success.
Barbara G. Koster is senior vice president and
chief information officer for Prudential Financial, Inc. She has oversight responsibility for information technology at all Prudential locations
worldwide and ensures the privacy and integrity
of Prudential’s information. She formulates policies, establishes standards and architectures,
and develops guidelines and management
practices. Koster also manages the company’s
global networks, data centers and other technology infrastructure; and oversees a companywide program that helps military veterans
transition from military to civilian life.
In addition, Koster is chairman of the board of
Pramerica Systems Ireland, Ltd. and founding
member of Prudential Systems Japan, Ltd.,
both technology subsidiaries of Prudential
Financial, Inc.
In 2013, Koster was inducted into Junior
Achievement’s New Jersey Business Hall of
Fame. In 2011, NJ Biz newspaper named
Koster one of the “Best 50 Women in Business.”
She was named CIO of the Year in 2008 by
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M the Executive Council and listed among the
top Executive Women of New Jersey. She also
has been named among the Premier IT Leaders by Computerworld magazine; the Top 20
Financial Management Technologists by the
CIO Forum; and the Elite Eight by Insurance
& Technology magazine. Koster received
the 1999 Women in Science and Technology
award from the Smithsonian Institute.
Koster has an honorary Doctor of Humane
Letters degree, a bachelor’s degree in business administration and an associate of science degree in computer technology from
St. Francis College.
She is a member and past chair of ACORD (a
standards body for the life insurance industry)
and currently serves on the boards of trustees
of Liberty Science Center in New Jersey and
St. Francis College, as well as on the Junior
Achievement of New Jersey’s State Board of
Directors. Koster also is a member of Executive Women in NJ and The Research Board,
an international think tank.
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and technology. I am grateful to the women 10 years
before me who fought the real battle of breaking into
business and technology. I have tried to be a role model
by demonstrating business excellence, visionary and
innovative leadership, community involvement and high
ethical standards. I have a strong commitment to corporate social responsibility through my work with organizations that help Newark high school students attend
college while they train for business and technology positions at Prudential.
Prudential leverages its financial expertise and human
and financial resources to deliver lasting, high-impact
solutions. We have a long history of investing in education
and supporting future workforce needs. For decades we
have made a total of more than $200 million in impact
investments in charter schools and organizations and
funds that support educational technology and career
readiness. We also have provided more than $142 million in grants to nonprofit organizations in the education and workforce development sectors. Our corporate
social responsibility strategy has a focus area dedicated
to supporting organizations and initiatives to help people prepare for and obtain quality jobs. For example,
we recently awarded a $1.5 million grant to help create
training for low wage workers. Senior executives serve on
the boards of numerous nonprofit organizations that seek
to prepare students for success in school and in life. I sit
on the board of the Liberty Science Center, a learning
center dedicated to bringing the excitement of science
to people of all ages.
Where do you see the biggest area of opportunity in
advancing STEM jobs careers?
Statistics show that young people are not choosing technology careers—especially girls who are in school right
now. That means that it is up to us to think about how
we get girls interested in math, engineering, science
and technology. I frequently speak with middle- and
high school girls to encourage them to concentrate on
math and science and to consider careers in business
and technology. I also encourage my leadership team to
partner with colleges, universities and non-profit organizations to attract diverse new IT talent into the organization and encourage young people to pursue careers in
business and information technology.
In addition, through a partnership with Workforce Opportunity Services, Prudential has offered full-time employment to more than 200 students and veterans over the
past six years. We collaborate with other corporations to
extend the WOS program across the U.S.
I am executive sponsor of VETNET, which represents Prudential within the military veteran s’ community and raises
military veterans’ issues as they relate to the company.
In addition, I have oversight responsibility for Prudential’s
Veterans Initiatives, a program that establishes a robust
training and educational platform for Veterans, and a
talent pipeline for our company. Working in collaboration
with Workforce Opportunity Services we help transitioning military service men and women get the training and
development they need for sustainable jobs mostly in the
technology sector.
When I attended St. Francis College, it had just begun
accepting women students. Because there were only
a couple of women in the business program, I felt challenged to work a little harder, work a little faster. I have
dedicated much of my time to encouraging young people – especially women – to consider careers in business
The percentage of women graduating with a technology degree is down dramatically so I look for opportunities to talk to women about the rewards of a career
in business technology. Recently, I was a panelist at the
Women’s Future Leadership Forum sponsored by Junior
Achievement of New Jersey and advised teen-aged girls
about the skills they should develop to become business
and technology leaders and the steps Prudential is taking to help the next generation develop the skills they
need to succeed. I also have worked with a women’s
mentoring group at Rutgers University that was designed
to help women find their right paths in the business world.
Through these and other activities, I have tried to
strengthen diversity in the business world, and especially
the technology sector.
What Employee Resource Groups does your company
have in place?
Prudential has six employee resource groups: Abled &
Disabled Associates Partnering Together; Asian/Pacific
Islander American Association; Black Leadership Forum;
Employee Association of Gay Men, Lesbians, Bisexuals and
Transgenders; Hispanic Heritage Network; and VETNET.
I also am active with Prudential’s Women in Finance
group, which brings women in the company together to
share experiences. n
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 201 Prudential Financial, Inc.
Realizing that there is a significant shortage of students
pursuing IT degrees, Prudential began a partnership with
Workforce Opportunity Services (WOS) more than six
years ago to provide work/study programs and career
opportunities for high potential urban students from the
Newark area. We recently added veterans to the program. Through partnerships with local high schools, colleges, youth organizations, veteran support organizations,
government offices and local military bases, recruits are
offered scholarships to attend a training and certification
program at a local university. Courses can be converted
into degree credits. The recruits become paid consultants of WOS while working at Prudential. At the end of
the training period, Prudential has the option to maintain
the consultancy or extend full-time offers for employment
based on business needs. In 2014, our early talent identification program exposed more than 40 summer interns
to the field of technology. Some of them were from such
schools as Rutgers, NJIT and Seton Hall; and others were
from the Girl Scouts of Northern New Jersey. And for the
past two years, we provided work/study opportunities
and exposure to technology careers to students at the
Cristo Rey Preparatory school in Newark.
Sanjay Verma
Divisional Vice President,
Global Services
PTC
PTC is a Needham, Massachusetts-based software solutions
company. Founded in 1985, it employs over 6,000 professionals
serving more than 28,000 global manufacturing businesses.
PTC Solutions transforms product delivery through a combination of process know-how and best-of-breed capabilities,
delivered through a flexible platform. Its solutions for Product
Lifecycle Management (PLM), Computer Aided Design (CAD),
Application Lifecycle Management (ALM), Supply Chain
Management (SCM) and Service Lifecycle Management
(SLM) span the complete product and service lifecycle.PTC is
also a Strategic Partner of FIRST, to which it provides financial
support, access to professional-grade engineering software
and countless man-hours of employee support. By exposing
FIRST students to sophisticated tools and global customers,
PTC hopes to inspire students to develop high-demand engineering skills. Additionally, PTC is a founding member of the
Real-World Design Challenge (RWDC), an annual high school
competition run by a public-private aerospace partnership
that aims to increase the U.S. STEM workforce.
Sanjay Verma is currently the Divisional Vice
President for PTC’s Global Services. His responsibilities include worldwide operations, strategic planning and global initiatives. He is also a
contributor to Celebrity Series of Boston in the
roles of a Board Member and a member of
the Executive Committee. He recently joined
the board of DRINKWELL (drinkwellsytem.
com), an organization dedicated to bring
cost effective water solutions to areas in the
world affected by poor availability of quality
water using cutting edge technology developed in the US.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Before moving to PTC he was the Founder
and Managing Director of ITC Infotech India
Ltd., a software services and solutions provider with offices in India, USA and UK.
Sanjay is a Charter Member of TiE Boston. In
this role, he mentors early stage technology
ventures to achieve their potential.
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We also need to provide role models for these students.
Everyone who can and should, has a responsibility to
give back in a meaningful way. If you can motivate just
one person to participate in STEM, that is a win. However, usually one mentor, one role model can influence
a roomful of students or a few students on a robotics
team.
Motivating these students to participate in the after
school programs makes a world of difference. You can
learn as much outside the classroom as you can inside
it. You can learn collaboration, conflict resolution, team
building, competing and winning, etc.
Corporate leaders need to promote awareness of
STEM education and socialize it in employee, industry
and customer settings. At PTC, we make STEM education and our Engineer of the Future program a standard
talk track of our corporate overview and corporate
communication. Our leadership team is active at local
and regional events which drive the STEM message.
This includes initiatives such as FIRST robotics.
In our case at PTC, our CEO Jim Heppelmann, actively
encourages employees and customer to participate in
FIRST. It is part of his normal talk track in employee and
customer meetings. As a result, many of our employees
(over 300) and customers (over 100) have participated
in supporting FIRST.
Corporations need to provide employee, financial
and program support to create more STEM careers.
PTC has created its “Engineer of the Future” program
to address this for itself, for our 28,000 customers and
for the community. We have encouraged our 6,000
employees to get involved and invest $1.0 Million per
year in FIRST.
In our Engineer of the Future case, we have created a
STEM Certificate program. This provides software, curriculum, technical support and hands on modules to
help teachers adopt STEM in the classroom. The good
news is that benchmarks have indicated the content is
world class. And the best part of it is the program is free
to students, teachers and schools. We feel we will get
paid at the back-end when these students go work for
our customers.
through diversity?
In the global interconnected world of today, opportunity is no longer restricted by, race, geography, economics or sex. As technology reaches every part of our
lives and the world, it inherently creates career opportunities.
The beauty of STEM is that from an early age it has no
glass ceiling related to demographics. Students are
in touch with technology in its different forms from an
early age. Through early introduction and easy accessibility to STEM, students of all backgrounds and means
are creating new nontraditional careers.
We can also address major global problems like access
to energy, water and basic hygiene. Technology can
provide a much better quality of life. Students here in
the United States are creating and can continue to
create solutions that can be adapted globally.
In our case, we are participating in many outreach
events with cities, schools and programs. There are so
many audiences that help promote a good message,
we want to take advantage of them. n
Corporate leaders need to promote
awareness of STEM education and socialize it
in employee, industry and customer settings.
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Accessibility and insight into career opportunities
drive interest in STEM careers. Inner city students, rural
students, women, etc. need to have easy and nonintimidating access to STEM technology. This could
include completely outfitted computer labs, access to
software, embedded classroom curriculum and after
school clubs like FIRST robotics. Also creating targeted
internship aligned to the STEM initiatives
Shawn A. Covell
Vice President, Government Affairs
Qualcomm
Qualcomm is a leader in wireless technologies and the mobile
communications industry. For nearly 30 years, Qualcomm’s
ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of digital communications, linking people more closely to information, entertainment and each other.
Today Qualcomm is the world’s largest wireless semiconductor company, powering more than 500 of the top smartphones
and tablets on the market from all of the leading device manufacturers and operators.
The Company’s technologies not only fuel the next-generation of smartphones and tablets but are also pushing wireless
connectivity invention beyond mobile to transform other sectors from healthcare, automotive, government, education to
home entertainment.
Shawn A. Covell is Vice President of Government Affairs for Qualcomm Incorporated. In
this capacity, Covell oversees two government affairs teams, Qualcomm Public Affairs
and Qualcomm® Wireless Reach™, who are
responsible for elevating Qualcomm’s profile
among policy makers, opinion leaders and
governments.
Wireless Reach is a strategic initiative that
creates projects using wireless broadband to
increase social and economic development
throughout the world. Wireless Reach invests
in projects that foster entrepreneurship, aid in
public safety, enhance the delivery of health
care, enrich teaching and learning and
improve environmental sustainability.
Formalized in 2006, Covell has grown Wireless
Reach to include nearly 100 projects in more
than 35 countries. She directs a global team
that manages mobile broadband projects
which make innovative uses of Qualcomm
technology for social good and provide
unprecedented opportunities to empower
individuals across all socioeconomic classes.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M An inspiring female mentor within Qualcomm,
Covell also seeks out opportunities to positively impact not just the lives of the women
with whom she works, but women around the
world. By designing programs to accelerate
women’s ownership of mobile phones and
providing life-changing services for women in
emerging regions, Covell is finding inventive
ways to improve quality of life, help stimulate
economic ecosystems and promote women’s inclusion in the workforce through access
to advanced wireless technology.
Covell has also guided her team’s launch of
the Women Enhancing Technology (WeTech)
program, which aims to build a steady pipeline of girls and women in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) careers.
Covell holds a master’s degree in international affairs from the University of California,
San Diego’s School of International Relations
and Pacific Studies and a bachelor’s degree
from the University of California, Santa Barbara, in political science with an emphasis in
international relations.
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In September 2013, Qualcomm announced our
commitment to the Women Enhancing Technology
(WeTech) program at the Clinton Global Initiative
Annual Meeting with the Institute of International Education and other public/private sector organizations.
The project aims to build a healthy pipeline of girls
and women in STEM fields by linking them to university
scholarships in engineering, leadership and technical
skills training, mentorships and internships that prepare
them for entrance to and success in high-paying tech
careers.
As part of this commitment, we target the youngest
part of the pipeline with our “Qcamp for Girls in STEM,”
a two-week summer camp for pre-sixth grade girls to
learn about STEM.
At the high school level, Qualcomm and Goldman
Sachs partnered through WeTech on the Technovation Challenge to mentor female students to develop
mobile apps and comprehensive business plans that
will fuel economic and technological growth in India.
With the support of their WeTech mentors, the students
have invented a wide-range of creative apps that
address community problems ranging from assistance
with career planning and finding study buddies to
organizing patient medical histories and creating doctor profiles. The students also participate in field trips
and gain exposure to ICT role models and resources to
lay the groundwork for the next generation of female
ICT leaders.
At the University level, through a mentoring platform,
WeTech connects young Indian women with local and
global mentors to support them as they plan their tran-
sition from undergrad to the workforce, ensuring there
is no leak in that part of the pipeline, and linking them
to engineering scholarships and internships, while
expanding and strengthening peer networks.
STEM education?
My advice is to have early and continued engagement. STEM education is the foundation for the next
generation of scientists, inventors, engineers and entrepreneurs. These young students are critical to global
prosperity and their education will be a key driver for
growth and the advancement of societies.
Research from the American Association of University
of Women tells us that that in their middle school years,
approximately 74 percent of girls express an interest
in engineering, science and math. However, by the
time these young women get to college, just 0.3 percent choose computer science as a major. I think it’s
exceedingly important to engage girls at a younger
age, before middle school, and promote it in a way
that enables girls to realize STEM can be fun.
The WeTech Qcamp curriculum, for example, focuses
on STEM subjects with a strong emphasis on engineering. The girls learn the fundamental building blocks
of computer vision, the complexities of light, how to
develop apps, and build circuits but they do that in
a very fun way – by applying those concepts to both
designing and programming robotic hats.
I think it is also critical to not just have “one off” engagements. Part of Qualcomm’s unique approach with
Qcamp is the goal of long-term engagement with
every girl, inviting them not just for one summer camp,
but inviting them back yearly and reconnecting with
them during the school year until they reach college
where, ideally, they will pursue a STEM degree. Each
summer Qualcomm will add new cohorts to build a
robust network of girls, linking older girls with younger
ones as mentors and camp counselors.
At Qualcomm, we work very hard to create a supportive, inclusive environment that mentors women working in STEM. Qualcomm has several Employee Resource
Groups available, such as Qualcomm Women in Science and Engineering (QWISE), a group that exists to
promote personal and professional growth of women
in technology at Qualcomm and in the community.
We also have Qualcomm Women Influencing Information Technology (QFINITY) – to inspire a more diverse IT
organization by increasing awareness of opportunities
and to encourage leadership, mentorship and career
development for women in IT. n
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What area of STEM are you most passionate about?
Innovations in mobile technology have dramatically
changed the world we live in. To that effect, I am most
passionate about women using technology for development. In my role at Qualcomm, I manage Wireless
Reach, a strategic initiative that brings advanced wireless technology to underserved communities around
the world. Our programs focus on entrepreneurship,
education, health care, public safety and the environment. Through my work with Wireless Reach, I have
seen firsthand how women using advanced wireless
technology have worked in various ways to empower
themselves economically and lift themselves out of
poverty. There is nothing more satisfying than participating in programs that enable individuals to transform
their lives. Ultimately, all STEM subjects are at the root
of the myriad ways we can achieve social and economic development.
Rebecca R. Rhoads
President, Global Business Services /
Raytheon Company
Raytheon Company, headquartered in Waltham, Mass., is a
technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, security and civil markets throughout the world. With a history of
innovation spanning 92 years, Raytheon provides state-of-theart electronics, mission systems integration and other capabilities in the areas of sensing; effects; and command, control,
communications and intelligence systems, as well as cyber
security and a broad range of mission support services.
Raytheon believes that strengthening education enhances
global innovation and that technology companies have a responsibility to act in the best interest of building tomorrow’s workforce. Raytheon’s broad-based STEM program, MathMovesU®,
is an initiative committed to increasing students’ interest in math
and science education. Since the program’s inception in 2005,
the company has invested more than $100 million in STEM programs, scholarships and grants that impact students from kindergarten to college, as well as STEM educators.
Rebecca R. Rhoads is president of Global Business Services (GBS) and chief information officer of Raytheon Company. Rhoads also serves
as Executive Diversity Champion for Raytheon
and leads the Executive Diversity Leadership
Team, delivering accountability for diversity at
the most senior level of the company.
Rhoads has more than 35 years of experience
within the defense industry. She began her
career with General Dynamics in 1979 as an
electrical engineer, designing automated test
systems for RAM and Stinger missile programs.
She worked in Engineering and Operations,
holding various assignments of increasing
responsibility at General Dynamics, Hughes
and Raytheon. In addition, Rhoads taught
electrical engineering classes at California
Polytechnic University in Pomona, Calif.
Outside of Raytheon, Rhoads serves on the
Aerospace Industries Association Business
Technology Council, the CIO Editorial Advisory Board, the IBM Advisory Council for CIO
Center for Leadership, the Massachusetts
Technology Leadership Council and is a Mas206
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M sachusetts Institute of Technology Center for
Information Systems Research sponsor.
Rhoads has bachelor’s and master’s degrees
in electrical engineering from California Polytechnic University. She also holds a master’s
degree in the executive management program from the University of California at Los
Angeles Anderson Graduate School of Business Management.
Throughout her career, Rhoads has received
numerous awards and recognition, including: Corporate America Top 100 Influential
Leaders, CIO Hall of Fame (CIO Magazine),
Women to Watch, Women of Distinction, Top
50 Women in Technology (Corporate Board
Member Magazine) and California Polytechnic University Engineering Distinguished
Alumni. She was also named Boston’s most
powerful woman in technology on Boston.
com in February 2012. Rhoads was inducted
into California State Polytechnic, Pomona,
College of Engineering’s 2014 Hall of Fame,
recognizing alumni and their achievements.
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In regards to reaching young women, there is still work
to do to break down gender stereotypes that only men
can work in STEM. One way to do this is by introducing
young women to female professionals who work in STEM
careers, and also by providing them opportunities to
gain confidence in their skills by doing experiments and
activities. Raytheon has had success in this area with our
year-round mentoring programs, local partnerships with
organizations like the Girl Scouts, as well as special events
such as National Engineers Week Girl Day. DiscoverE and
the Women in Engineering ProActive Network (WEPAN)
recognized our efforts to connect young women to
STEM mentors with their 2014 “National Engineers Week
Girl Day” award.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in STEM jobs is projected to grow to more than 9
million between 2012 and 2022, an increase of about
1 million jobs over 2012 employment levels. They also
show that the median annual wage for STEM careers is
nearly $76,000, compared to $35,000 for all other jobs.
The data tells us there is a tremendous opportunity for
today’s students to have successful futures in STEM.
To help encourage them, we need to reach them early
on and then continue to invest in them throughout
their education. As part of our MathMovesU® program,
Raytheon has invested more than $100 million in programs that do just this. From Engineering is Elementary
to MATHCOUNTS to the Team America Rocketry Challenge and FIRST Robotics to the National Collegiate
Cyber Defense Competition, we’re able to reach students from kindergarten through college.
Part of our strategy is to also invest in educators. Our Math
Heroes award recognizes outstanding teachers with an
individual grant and an additional grant for their school
or math-related non-profit program. We’ve also teamed
up with the Museum of Science, Boston to expand their
Engineering is Elementary program, which helps teachers
integrate engineering and technology concepts and skills
into their classroom curriculum. Another great program is
the Teacher Industry Internship Program, which we partnered with the University of Arizona College of Education to develop. It gives teachers real-world experience
in industry while they’re pursuing a three-year master’s
degree program.
STEM education?
Engage students early. To ensure students have the confidence to purse STEM disciplines later in life, we need
to reach them in their elementary and middle school
years, while continuing to foster and support that connection through college. Students must make the connection to math and science no later than middle
school, or they may fall behind and it can be difficult
to catch up. Fundamentals, such as calculus and physics, may have been overlooked in high school and it
becomes a more significant hurdle for college students
to overcome, leading to a lack of interest in what they
believe are “hard careers.”
Also, many of our programs aim to show students the
connection between math and science and the things
they love, like music, sports, video games and dance.
When you can capture their interest in STEM through
activities they are already drawn to, that’s where we
can have a big impact. That’s why we developed a
traveling exhibition called MathAlive! that demonstrates the math concepts involved in photography,
snowboarding, mountain biking and more. It’s currently touring in the United States and the Middle East.
through diversity?
According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, only 24
percent of STEM workers are women, and I’d like to see
us close this gap by encouraging more young women
to study and work in STEM. Once we get them there, we
need to keep them. A 2012 survey by University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee researchers showed that female engineers
are leaving their jobs because they don’t see opportunities for career advancement or the work environment isn’t
supportive. In the male-dominated fields of technology
and engineering, companies need to create a culture
where all employees feel valued and have opportunities
to learn and advance in their careers. One way Raytheon
has done this is through our employee resource groups,
like the Raytheon Women’s Network, which has been in
place for 12 years and comprises 6,000 members.
What employee resource groups does your company have in place?
Raytheon has nine employee resource groups that
are at the core of our Diversity program. These groups
offer a forum where our employees can build their
networks and share experiences. They are also very
active in their local communities and give much of
their personal time to mentoring students in STEM.
Our employee resource groups include Raytheon
American-Indian Network, Raytheon Black Employees
Network, Raytheon Women’s Network, Gay, Lesbian,
Bisexual, Transgender and Allies, Hispanic Organization
for Leadership Advancement, Raytheon Asian-Pacific
Association, Raytheon Persons with DisAbilities Association, Young Employee Success Network and the Raytheon Veterans Network. n
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It’s critical that all students, regardless of background,
gender or ethnicity, have the opportunity to learn and
excel in math and science. One way to accomplish this
is through student mentoring. Raytheon has teamed up
with the White House to be one of the founding sponsors of US2020, a program that will match 1 million STEM
mentors with students at youth-serving nonprofits and
education organizations by the year 2020. One example of our mentoring programs is our Science of Sports
science fair, a partnership with the New England Patriots, where Raytheon employees mentor New Englandarea Boys & Girls Club members for four months as they
develop projects that showcase the science involved
in sports.
Dawne S. Hickton
Vice Chair, President and CEO
RTI International Metals, Inc.
Headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, RTI International Metals, Inc.
(NYSE:RTI), is an advanced titanium and specialty metals manufacturer with more than 2500 employees and 25 manufacturing and other facilities in North America, Europe and Asia.
The company develops, produces and delivers advanced titanium mill products, titanium and specialty metal extruded
shapes, formed and precision-machined parts and components, sub-assemblies and specialized services across the
entire supply chain to a broad range of customers in the commercial aerospace, defense, energy exploration and production and medical device industries.
Throughout its more than 60 year operating history, RTI has
gained an international reputation for innovation, quality, reliability and value in its product and service offerings.
Dawne S. Hickton is Vice Chair, President
and CEO of RTI International Metals, Inc. She
has more than 25 years of diversified metals
experience, including more than fifteen years
in the titanium industry spanning several business cycles.
Since becoming Chief Executive in 2007, Ms.
Hickton has led a strategic transformation of
RTI to become a leading vertically integrated
global supplier of advanced titanium and
specialty metals products and services for
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M the commercial aerospace, defense, energy
and medical device markets.
Ms. Hickton is the President and a Director of
the International Titanium Association. She is
also the Chair and a Director of the Board
of Directors of the Pittsburgh branch of the
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and a
Member of the Board of Governors of the
Aerospace Industries Association.
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In order for the U.S. to maintain a position of global
economic leadership, we will need executives, managers and highly skilled workers to create the innovation and levels of productivity in manufacturing and
other fields upon which our future competitiveness
demands. A strong STEM education needs to be the
foundation of America’s business and economic leaders of tomorrow.
Accordingly, I believe it is the responsibility of educators at all levels, business leaders, government, academia—all sectors of society—to make world class
STEM education and workforce development more of
a priority in the U.S. than it is today. I strongly believe we
need to focus on early education and middle school
to develop math skills and science interest.
We sponsor high school students in science projects
and encourage our workers to have their own young
adult children work as summer interns in our plants.
As a business leader and woman in the STEM field, I see
strong daily evidence of the need to find more ways
to increase the desirability of STEM subjects for all students. We need to be creative at all levels in finding
new methods to inspire and motivate students.
Everyone with an interest in STEM needs to recognize
this reality, and take it personally. And in fact, you never
know what will motivate a student. It’s not always
something they are exposed to in school. Inspiration
can come from many sources. For example, my own
kids have ridden the robotic Raytheon simulator in Disney World, and at the same time I share work experiences with high school classmates of my children
through my Twitter account. All this shares real world
experiences that demonstrate technology can be fun
and even exciting.
I’m not suggesting that a theme park ride alone can
be enough to stimulate someone to pursue a career
in engineering or technology, but I do know the experience made a positive impression on my children that
could play a role in their future career decision-making.
What traits do corporate leaders need to effectively support STEM education today?
Most simply put, corporate leaders need to make a
serious and lasting commitment to STEM education.
This means supporting rigorous math and science
classes throughout the education system, but this need
for commitment transcends the classroom.
Corporate America must offer more internships and
apprenticeships, devote more resources to scholarships and expand mentoring programs in order to
advance STEM. At RTI, we support apprenticeship,
co-op engineering and internship programs for students in college, and we provide a defined technical
career track for employees once they join RTI. We are
always looking for new ways to broaden our involvement.
What is your advice to those promoting STEM
education?
Promoting STEM education is particularly challenging
because, for the most part, technical and engineering careers are not generally the most high-paying
opportunities, and they tend to lack the glamour of
Wall Street or big business careers.
So the most important advice I can give to those promoting STEM education is to understand, first of all,
that in many ways they have an uphill challenge that
requires patience. Promoting STEM is not a short-term
project and those involved in the effort need to be in it
for the long haul. Having said that, I also think it is important to pay special attention to students that demonstrate interest and aptitude in STEM and to look for
creative ways to inspire that go beyond the classroom.
Business can help in this endeavor by providing opportunities for students to see their STEM education “in
action” through special projects and programs. One
STEM-related initiative we are proud of at RTI is our
sponsorship of a high school team to compete in the
annual Aerospace Industries Association Team America Rocketry Challenge (TARC). This year, we included
a visit by the RTI-sponsored TARC team to our titanium
plant in Niles, Ohio, as a way of showing the students
some of the opportunities to which their interest in
STEM can lead.
In sum, everyone with a stake in America’s economic
future has a responsibility to take an interest in promoting STEM education with energy, imagination, creativity, lasting commitment and resources. The U.S. has built
the most dynamic economy the world has ever seen.
To sustain our leadership, advancing STEM education
needs to be a continuing priority. n
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As someone who leads a global industrial manufacturing company, my daily experience brings home
the message that technology is evolving faster than
ever before, and competition in the global economy
is growing more fierce every day. We see it directly at
RTI, where the last major change to manufacturing
titanium metal took ten years to bear fruit. Today, in
just eighteen months, we are seeing additive manufacturing and 3D printing changing the technology
landscape. In this context, I am also made more keenly
aware every day that STEM education and workforce
development are more important to our nation’s technology future today than they have ever been in our
history.
Radhika Kulkarni
Vice President,
Advanced Analytics R&D
SAS
SAS is the leader in business analytics software and services,
and the largest independent vendor in the business intelligence market. The high-tech company values its knowledge
workers and has created a world-renowned workplace culture that has consistently earned top rankings on the Best
Places to Work lists globally. SAS focuses its philanthropic efforts on education initiatives geared towards increasing the
STEM-skilled workforce. SAS uses a multi-pronged approach
to provide support through many channels and using its resources to develop creative instructional materials. Examples
of this approach include providing free interactive, standardsbased curriculum software for grades 6-12 as well as free SAS
software to students, professors and researchers at the university level. In 2007, SAS supported the first Master of Science in
Analytics program at North Carolina State University. By supporting efforts that prepare more graduates for college, work
and success in the 21st century, SAS continues to play a vital
role in the global community.
Dr. Radhika Kulkarni is Vice President of
Advanced Analytics R&D at SAS Institute Inc.
She oversees software development in many
analytical areas including Statistics, Operations Research, Econometrics, Forecasting
and Data Mining. Her Division is also responsible for providing key components of business
analytics solutions in several areas including
Finance, Retail, Marketing, Hospitality and
Supply Chain. Kulkarni is an active member
in the Institute for Operations Research and
Management Science (INFORMS) and serves
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Advanced Analytics at North Carolina State
University, The Center for Hospitality Research
at Cornell University and the Marketing Analytics and Data Mining Board at Oklahoma
State University.
Radhika Kulkarni has a Master’s in Mathematics from the Indian Institute of Technology,
New Delhi and a Master’s and Ph.D in Operations Research from Cornell University.
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I have always had a passion for mathematics. As a
young student, I especially loved solving word problems where I was given a scenario and asked to figure out the math that got me the answer. That was the
most exciting part of being able to do math! I believe
that we can excite all students (regardless of minority status) about math by showing them real world
applications. What do we need to do differently for
minorities to spark their interest? The same thing, with
the added note – never let them feel that their background or gender should in any way impact their ability to succeed. I was fortunate to have great family
support to pursue my love of mathematics throughout
my education that culminated with a PhD in Operations Research. Never once did my parents indicate
that I need to curtail my interests because I was a girl.
They were proud of my passion and nurtured it. However, I was aware that others, especially young girls
in middle school, who had difficulties with STEM subjects, decided too early to avoid them. Or, too many
young students regardless of gender were turned off
because they felt the subject was boring and they did
not see how these skills could be valuable in life. It’s at
this point that educators, parents, and the community
must intervene and help young students reengage. It is
well known that Salman Khan first started Khan Academy in order to help his 12-year-old cousin overcome
hurdles in understanding her seventh-grade mathematics. It is important to make mathematics relevant
and teach it using creative approaches and materials
that capture students’ interests. To engage our youth
and in particular girls, we must look at ways to promote
STEM knowledge and focus on its purpose and diverse
applications in the real world.
SAS Institute is a strong advocate of promoting STEM
education at all levels of studies from grade school to
universities. My direct involvement has been mostly at
the University level. I serve in advisory roles at several
universities including the Institute of Advanced Analytics at North Carolina State University. The Institute’s mission is to produce world-class analytics professionals.
One of its prominent achievements was launching our
country’s first Master of Science in Analytics program in
2007. Today, its graduates are among the most soughtafter and highly compensated individuals. I have been
able to guide the program and also see firsthand how
well prepared these graduates are as validated by
how the majority receive multiple job offers before they
complete the program. It is very rewarding to support
the continuing growth and success of this program
which has also been a model to initiate other similar
programs at top universities across the country.
I like teaching, working with students, and seeing how
they can grow. One of my favorite activities is my
involvement with INFORMS, the largest society of operations research professionals, where I mentor young
professionals and sponsor a student analytical scholarship, among other activities. At the annual conference,
members of my team and I mentor master’s and PhD
students as they transition into successful real-world
careers. I take every opportunity to engage with students and young professionals to encourage and help
them stay excited about their STEM passion.
My experience is “Success speaks for itself”. If you focus
on your goal and achieve excellence in your work, your
gender or minority status will not matter at all. Never
be afraid to pursue your passion. If you like science or
math, do not be timid about pursuing it fearing you
may end up being the only woman in your group. In
fact, you could turn your uniqueness into an advantage! I take every opportunity to teach others to have
this confidence by sharing my knowledge and experience. Most importantly, be an active member of any
group you engage with. In this regard, I often refer to
great advice from a former boss. I was at a meeting
and was sitting in a chair outside the inner circle. He
said, “Radhika, if you want to be heard, you have to sit
at the table.” Be confident about being at the table:
you have every right to be there! n
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Our nation’s competitiveness relies on the ability of its
workforce to innovate, especially in technology. Every
innovation from medical advances to engineering
breakthroughs in manufacturing to statistical modeling in victorious political campaigns has become
extremely dependent on mathematical and scientific ingenuity and computing advances. To be competitive in any area one needs a strong foundation
in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics. I
believe that innovation is all about combining existing
and new technologies to implement radically different
solutions to challenges that were thought to be impossible to overcome. In order to maintain our country’s
historic domination in innovation, our education system must equip knowledge workers with the ability to
solve problems by providing solid training in STEM skills.
Tammara Combs
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Serendipity Interactive, LLC
Serendipity Interactive, LLC is a marketing technology firm
that develops strategies to match products and services
with the right customers. Headquartered north of Charlotte,
NC, Serendipity Interactive is in good company with 8
companies from the Fortune 500 list. The company develops
software, conducts market research, and builds market
strategies for clients looking to understand ever-changing
consumer mindsets, obtaining competitive insights, and
achieving executive buy-in. The company specializes in
digital strategy, web development, operations planning and
celebrity engagements. The team is not only dedicated but
also experienced in working with Fortune’s top companies
to achieve profitable results. Serendipity Interactive was
founded in 2010 and has served organizations throughout the
United States and globally. For more information, visit www.
serendipityinteractive.com, or follow on Twitter @Innovate4You.
Dr. Tammara Combs is recognized in digital
marketing, social technology and data security. She’s held leadership positions in conceiving and executing innovations in technology,
market strategy and business development
for corporations, startups, and universities. Dr.
Combs’ specialties include online communities, social networking, and engaging social
influencers within organizations. Dr. Combs is
founder of Serendipity Interactive, a marketing technology firm that customizes cohesive
digital user experiences for corporations and
personal brands. She has served as interim
CEO of technology startups, enhancing the
value of companies while securing customers and funding. As a VP at Lowe’s, Dr. Combs
held responsibility for the e-commerce website, online strategy and customer loyalty program, MyLowes. As an engineer & research
manager at Microsoft, her work included
product development, enhancing grassroots
creativity and company-wide innovation. Dr.
Combs is well published, a frequent speaker
and present in the media. She has served on
trustee boards of non-profits and organizations. Dr. Combs is a member of the Executive
Leadership Council, an organization dedicated to empowering corporate leaders to
make significant and impactful contributions
in the global marketplace and their communities. Dr. Combs resides in North Carolina with
her two young sons.
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Women and minorities in STEM roles in organizations
have to be touchable and show examples of hard
work and hard play. The beauty of the diversity of STEM
fields is that it can be used to make games for pure
enjoyment as well as to develop medicine and apparatuses to save lives. In fact, we can develop games
that train doctors and pilots to save people and we
can build apps with extensive monetization models
that have people paying real currency in exchange
for social currency.
Young people want to make a difference in school,
in work and in life. It is exciting to see students’ minds
open when they see the science in everyday things.
For instance, I remember when I was taught to recognize that the Fibonacci Sequence occurs in nature
in many difference occasions – in strawberries, pine
cones, sunflowers, etc. I was so intrigued that I began
to look for the sequence everywhere. We encourage
students to continue their studies in STEM by finding
something that truly intrigues them and by cultivating
their curiosity, situating their natural thirst for knowledge
in something STEM-related.
Sometimes we make the mistake of thinking if someone has a STEM-related degree that we no longer
have to worry about retaining their interest in the field.
That could not be further from the truth. There are many
who have survived the grueling nights of writing and
compiling code, developing cool apps and memorizing theorems only to find that the real world applications of their studies are not what they expected. In
some cases, it is the divergent mind-set and of their
work colleagues that have them wanting to explore
different career options.
In actuality, companies will not need to do much to
create more STEM careers besides keep progressing
with the times. Many industries have been impacted
in some way by STEM. In working with our clients, many
executives recognize the need to do something different but there are many reasons why they do not
move as quickly as they aught. One main reason for a
slowed pace of transition is the often heard mantra of
the inability to find appropriate candidates. Corporations will need to partner with colleges and universities to recruit talented students and spend time trolling
online communities for STEM-enthusiasts who may not
have completed college but are skilled in their craft.
students and the workforce, more formal and informal
intervention programs need to be established to allow
students to see the diversity of STEM. They must see
that for every success story, there were a dozen failures and many more lessons learned, understanding
that no great success was ever achieved without failure. Educators should have their students research and
study not just the commercial STEM projects that have
succeeded but also those which were major blunders
and what the industry learned.
“When we give ourselves permission to fail, we, at the
same time, give ourselves permission to excel.” - Eloise
Ristad.
Mentorships are critical in life and particularly in STEM.
We need programs that maximize the matching process for students to corporate leaders. Students will be
able to apprentice with someone who would be of
benefit to them and the corporate leaders will have
eager students with whom to work.
Even before individuals reach the level of working in
a corporation, I am a firm believe in reaching while
you climb. That means, at every level you find yourself, there is at least one person you can mentor who
is trying to achieve the level you have completed. If
you are in high school, mentor someone is middle or
elementary school. Mentorship and apprenticeship
should embody the meaning of paying forward.
How should those working to improve the STEM
workforce measure success?
The most obvious answer to key performance indicators for improvements in STEM is the number of talented
peopled, including women and underrepresented
minorities, in the pipeline. Additionally, we must hold
ourselves to a higher standard. Many programs that
are developed lack a systematic procedure for measuring success and those that do, are evaluated by
internal employees with no audits or checks in the process at the level of sourcing and hiring. We must ensure
that the diversity in leadership of corporations mirrors
with diversity of the customer-base and that there is at
least some diversity of the board of directors level. n
the workforce?
As we look to the next-generation global leader, current corporate executives must recognize that students today work in a highly collaborative environment
at school, at home and in extracurricular activities. In
order to foster collaboration between STEM educators,
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Tracy S. Faulkner
Vice President,
Global External Affairs, Downstream
Shell
Shell is an innovation-driven global group of energy and petrochemical companies. We take natural resources and add
value in many different ways. We find and extract crude oil,
natural gas and bitumen, and transform them into products
for sale to retail and commercial customers. We have about
92,000 employees and operate in over 70 countries. We need
people who can harness technologies to see through rock,
drill wells beneath two miles of water and produce oil and gas
from the remains of single-celled creatures that lived millions
of years ago. STEM workers balance our books, program our
computers and manage our multi-billion dollar drilling projects.
They are also the entrepreneurs and suppliers who create the
deep-water robots we use, build our ships and offshore platforms, and launch the satellites we use for communications.
STEM workers are critical to Shell’s success.
Tracy Faulkner is Vice President of Global External
Affairs for Shell’s Downstream business. In this role,
she oversees external and internal communications and engagement, and provides strategic
advice to Shell leaders on a range of reputation
issues and opportunities. Tracy leads a global
team of professionals responsible for managing
Shell’s brand, reputation, social license to operate and communications strategies for various
countries and global businesses, including Manufacturing, Chemicals, Retail, Lubricants, Aviation,
Marine, Supply & Distribution, Trading, Shipping
and Alternative Energies. In addition, Tracy sits on
the Decision Review Board for the global Shell
Eco-Marathon program in which students driving
specially designed cars powered by biofuels, electricity, hydrogen and traditional fuels compete to
see who can travel furthest on the least amount
of energy, encouraging innovation and fuel efficiency. Nearly every aspect of her work deals with
science, technology, engineering or math (STEM),
including engagements with external stakeholders
on topics such as emerging alternative energies,
mobility, fuel pricing, arctic exploration, carbon
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and deep water drilling.
Previously, Tracy held management positions in
the power generation, agricultural and construction equipment and automotive industries, working for the Federal Government’s Tennessee Valley
Authority, Fiat Group and General Motors.
Tracy earned a bachelor’s degree from ClarkAtlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia. She completed the Center for Creative Leadership
- Leadership Development Program and the Harvard Business School Executive Education program.
Tracy is a member of The Executive Leadership
Council, a Trustee of both the National Urban
League and Institute for Public Relations and a
Director on the British American Business Board.
Tracy has worked on six continents and has lived
in three of them. Currently, she is based in London,
England. She is married to Kermit Faulkner, an electrical engineer, saxophonist and private pilot.
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Government, industry and academia must join forces
to address this pressing issue.
I love to spread enthusiasm for my industry and company, with science, technology and engineering
being at the core of what we do. I try to make our
complex business simple, relevant and meaningful for
those young people I engage with. I know I’m biased,
but I get pretty excited when talking about the energy
industry, the global scale and scope of Shell and the
difference we’re making in people’s everyday lives.
The U.S. Department of Labor workforce projections for
2018 show that nine of the 10 fastest growing occupations that require at least a bachelor’s degree will
require significant STEM related training. I can only
imagine the impact we can have on young people,
women and minorities by getting them excited about
science and math, by spending time with them and
sharing our personal experiences. Fortunately, my message seems to have resonated with a number of young
people, including my twin nephews who are now pursuing Engineering degrees at schools in Indiana. With
75 nieces and nephews, I have a vested interest and a
few more young people to encourage.
It’s hard to pick a favourite because Shell has so many
wonderful STEM education initiatives and partnership
programs. However, I am very proud of the human
ingenuity I get to see in action at our Shell Eco-marathon (SEM) events, which challenge student teams
from around the world to design, build and test ultra
energy-efficient vehicles. With annual events in the
Americas, Europe and Asia, the winners are the teams
that go the furthest using the least amount of energy.
This year, the Americas event was held in Houston. In
2015, it will be held in Detroit. While the competition
encourages innovation and fuel efficiency, the part I
love the most is when I engage with the students and
hear their personal stories. I will never forget meeting
an all-girls SEM team called ShopGirls. One young lady
told me that before her eco-marathon experience
she did not like high school, she was not performing
well and she lacked confidence. Fortunately, she had
a teacher who cared enough to get her involved in
the school’s SEM team, which was full of young ladies
with big ideas and big hearts. She had no idea that
her eco-marathon experience would teach her more
about science, technology, engineering and math
than she imagined. She ended her eco-marathon
journey with more confidence and a keen interest in
studying science and engineering. Shell later invited
the young ladies to appear at the Aspen Ideas Festival,
where they held a panel discussion on their SEM experience. They talked about STEM fields being of even
greater interest due to their Shell Eco-marathon experience. One of the young ladies even said she wanted
to go to an Ivy League school to study engineering. I
smiled from ear to ear when I read her Stanford University acceptance letter, which applauded her ecomarathon experience.
I mentor young people in STEM and non-technical
roles, and I encourage others to do the same. Relationships cannot be legislated, so it is key to ensure there
is rapport and the necessary time is taken to establish the mentor-mentee relationship. I view mentorship as a trust based relationship that offers mentees
a safe place to discuss issues and explore solutions to
challenges – all in the spirit of their development and
growth, with the intent of strengthening their performance in the workplace.
It helps in our quest to become the world’s most
competitive and innovative energy company. Our
products, services and overall energy portfolio must
be attractive to customers and partners. We will not
achieve this without a diverse workforce reflecting the
diverse markets in which we operate. Our talent is one
of our strongest assets. We recognize the need to harness the innovative ideas and advanced technical
skills of a new generation of STEM talent that includes
a diverse skilled pipeline. Solving our greatest energy
challenges will require the best and brightest from all
walks of life, contributing to their full potential. We are
committed to building a culture that embraces diversity and fosters inclusion. It makes good business sense
and it’s simply the right thing to do. n
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While the answer to this question seems obvious, it is still
valid considering the fact that U.S. students ranked 25th
in math and 17th in science in the most recent international testing – proving there is still significant work
to be done to advance STEM education and increase
STEM workers. STEM is critical to the future of our nation
and its economic viability because some of society’s
greatest challenges (a cure for cancer, clean drinking
water, climate change, renewable energy sources) will
only be solved by future scientists, engineers and other
STEM workers with great passion for creativity, innovation and competitiveness.
Anne Cooney
Chief Operating Officer
Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics
Siemens AG
Siemens AG is a global powerhouse in electronics and electrical engineering, operating in the industry, energy, healthcare, and infrastructure & cities sectors. For over 165 years,
Siemens has built a reputation for leading-edge innovation.
With 362,000 employees in 190 countries, Siemens reported
worldwide revenue of approximately $100 billion in fiscal 2013.
Siemens invests nearly $1.4 billion in R&D and more than $500
million in job training annually, including $50 million in the U.S.
The U.S., Siemens’ largest market, is an extremely vital production location, global export base, and one of its most important research centers. In 2014, Siemens was ranked 3rd in the
Electronics category of Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies, and was also named one of “The 50 Smartest Companies” by MIT Technology Review. On the 2013 Universum/NY
Times “Top 100 Ideal Employers” list, Siemens landed at #23 in
Engineering, #60 in IT, and #83 in Natural Sciences.
Anne Cooney has been the Chief Operating Officer for the global Division of Siemens
Healthcare Diagnostics since April of 2011.
She heads the Operational Services Group,
which comprises Supply Chain Management;
Product Support and Service; the R&D Project
Management Office; Quality Management;
Environmental, Health and Safety; and Medical, Clinical, and Statistical Affairs.
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tegic sourcing, and product and inventory
management among others. Immediately
before joining Siemens, she served as Vice
President Manufacturing at Alladin Industries.
As of October 1, 2014, she will lead the Process Industries and Drive Technologies Division for Siemens in the U.S.
After joining Siemens, Anne spent 11 years in
the company’s Industry Sector, first as Vice
President of Operational Excellence and Supply Chain Management in Siemens Energy
and Automation, then as Vice President of
the Power Conversion Division, and ultimately
as President of the Drive Technologies Division
for the U.S.
Cooney began her career with GE Transportation as a machinist apprentice in a four year
program, and spent over 21 years in various
roles such as plant management, materials
management, international marketing, stra-
Anne holds an MBA from Emory University and
a B.S. in Industrial Management from Gannon University. She and her husband of over
34 years, Gregory Cooney, have three adult
children and one granddaughter.
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envision themselves succeeding in a similar field without concerns about how they will fit in. However, it is just
as important that we encourage all leaders to coach
and sponsor students who are among underrepresented minorities in STEM and offer encouragement
and support for taking the risk to be “unique”. It is difficult at times to be unique—to stand out as different—
and we as leaders need to make everyone feel valued, comfortable, and able to contribute to their full
extent. In order to get to that place in the work arena,
we have to take extra efforts to create a comfortable
and welcoming environment for those who are underrepresented due to their backgrounds because of
race, color, gender, beliefs or any other factors. This will
take extra effort and attention. It won’t happen on its
own.
the workforce?
Some of the collaboration possible in STEM education
and the workforce is in the form of apprenticeships and
internships. There is also a chance to provide career
fairs or similar events that allow students to have interaction with people in a variety of different STEM jobs
in order to provide them a means of understanding
through first hand discussion the types of opportunities
available in the workplace. There is also the chance
for businesses to work in partnership with universities
in solving some of the real business challenges they
face—either in the form of a specific project for a class,
or by identifying students to work on projects alongside
employee mentors. The graduate programs in STEM
should be aligned with R&D departments of US based
companies. This research resource in the universities is
a great chance to create value for their departments,
as well as provide solutions for companies’ biggest
challenges.
Focusing on diversity in filling STEM related positions will
expand the potential pool of talent and provide the
opportunity to bring differing perspectives to teams
seeking solutions to business challenges. Continuing
to successfully recruit and retain talent from among
larger pools of diverse talent will allow business to find
solutions that reach all customers. Certainly, no business that is excluding populations of people from its
potential workforce will be a global leader for long. It
simply makes business sense.
One of the ways to encourage students of all underrepresented minorities in STEM fields is to introduce
them to and provide interaction with role models from
those same underrepresented groups, so that they can
We need the US to continue to be at the top of global
innovation in order to remain the global leader that
we are. This is at risk if we do not improve our educational system, our investment in research and development, and our focus on STEM subjects and successes.
We need to do this in order to maintain the standard
of living that we have come to expect as the country
with limitless hope and possibilities. We do not want to
be the source of cheapest labor, or reduce our standards for treatment of people or the environment, so
we must create value in other ways. It is only through
innovation and productivity that we can sustain our
standards of success, to remain the global leader that
we are. n
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I believe that corporations have a responsibility and
an interest in ensuring alignment of skills creation with
opportunities for jobs. This means taking active or supporting roles in school programs, from grade school
through and including technical schools and university programs. It is good to have students who are
employable graduating from schools—not only for the
company to continue to succeed, but for the health
of the community. If companies are aligned with specific programs at schools, then open positions can be
filled more quickly with candidates who have necessary skills. In addition, students will see the opportunities
in the market that may encourage them to pursue a
specific area of study.
Gerri Mason Hall
Senior Vice President /
Chief Human Resources Officer
Sodexo
Sodexo is committed to developing the next generation of
STEM leaders. We believe there is a unique opportunity to seize
upon the momentum built in recent years and to transform discourse into solutions; to mentor and prepare young people for
unbridled success in tomorrow’s demanding global marketplace. With that marketplace expanding at unprecedented
rates and demographic shifts playing an increasing role in the
American economy, it is clear that business leaders, industry
experts and academics must offer a more comprehensive approach to preparing future leaders to successfully enter the
workforce. In order to cultivate student interest in STEM fields, it
is important to provide relevant and exciting examples of STEM
job opportunities. At Sodexo, our diversified operations offer
career fields that span culinary arts to facilities management
and functional disciplines from finance and human resources
to safety and risk mitigation. We deliver more than 100 types of
services within our portfolio – with operations spanning industry
sectors such as healthcare, education, government, aviation,
and senior living. www.SodexoUSA.com.
Gerri Mason Hall is senior vice president and
chief human resources officer for Sodexo, Inc.,
with responsibility for all human resource functions for the company in the U.S. and Canada.
She assumed the role in August 2014 after
serving as vice president in Sodexo’s Learning and Performance Organization.
Gerri joined Sodexo in 2006 leading Diversity
& Inclusion in the Corporate and Government Services business. Prior to Sodexo, Gerri
designed and implemented Amtrak’s diversity programs as the VP Business Diversity and
Strategic Initiatives. She was instrumental in
re-branding the nation’s sole intercity passenger railroad, following the settlement of racebased class action lawsuits.
A graduate of Vassar College and the George
Washington University National Law Center,
Gerri held a number of appointments in both
the federal and District of Columbia governments, including the U.S. Commission on Civil
Rights where she honed her interest in Inclusion. Gerri is a member of Sodexo Women’s
International Forum for Talent (SWIfT) and the
Executive Leadership Council
Understanding that people are at the heart
of any successful business, she is committed
to developing employees through Sodexo’s
award-winning diversity & inclusion training and mentoring programs. She is equally
focused on attracting and retaining STEM talent, taking every opportunity to lead and support public-private partnership efforts focused
on developing employability skills, improving
digital fluency and creating a framework for
acquiring the hard skills that translate to jobs
and impact our nation’s critical STEM careers
imperative.
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How will STEM personally affect the future of our business? Sodexo strategically partners with clients to
improve performance of their organizations and the
well-being of their people, their customers and the
local communities where we operate. A key to sustaining progress for Sodexo—and our clients and
communities—is STEM education and engagement.
We deliver more than 100 types of technical services
within our portfolio – with operations spanning industry
sectors such as healthcare, education, government,
aviation, and senior living. Our 133,000 employees in
North America fill positions at more than 9,000 sites,
making it imperative for us to ensure that future talent
is sufficiently prepared to step into these challenging
careers.
We need to approach this the same way we do most
everything else when it comes to encouraging young
people. We have to lead by example. That means
holding up role models they can related to and making the connections between academic success in
STEM areas and the personal aspirations students have
to lead a more fulfilling life. At Sodexo we are able to
make this connection for students even in our culinary
mentoring programs where Chef’s expose them to the
technical rigors that need to be mastered by the aspiring chef or registered dietitian.
Statistics highlight the challenge: Young girls and
women are less likely than their male counterparts to
work in STEM fields. In fact, just 24 percent of women
work in STEM fields. What’s more, 80 percent of the
fastest growing occupations in the U.S. depend upon
mastery of mathematics and scientific knowledge
and skills. That last statistic maps to our own business as
well. Our fastest growth areas at Sodexo are in energy
and facilities management. If women and underrepresented minorities are to compete for such opportunities, we need to expose students to early and relevant
mentoring relationships.
as do the fields of consumer electronics and web- or
cloud-based enterprises. Food science and sustainability are going to be equally important areas of
focus. The world community will need to balance its
explosive population growth to an estimated 9 billion
people by 2050 against food growth, production and
distribution methodologies. It will be a talented cadre
of next-gen STEM leaders that will help navigate these
difficult issues along with the many growing environmental challenges to include water shortages and climate change.
challenges in STEM?
Private-public partnerships are essential for effectively
addressing STEM. With the global marketplace expanding at unprecedented rates and demographic shifts
playing an increasing role in the American economy, it
is clear that business leaders, industry experts , elected
officials and academics must offer a more comprehensive approach to preparing future leaders to successfully enter the workforce.
Employee Business Resource Groups at Sodexo are
organized by employees who, based on shared experiences, join together to provide a positive forum for professional development, and input ideas that support
the success of the company’s diversity efforts. Sodexo
currently has nine Employee Business Resource Groups
that include: African American Leadership Forum
(AALF), Honoring Our Nation’s finest with Opportunity
and Respect (HONOR), Intergenerational Network
Group (i-Gen), Native American and Aboriginal Council (NAAC), Pan Asian Network Group (PANG), People
Respecting Individuality, Diversity, and Equality (PRIDE),
Sodexo Organization for disAbilities Resources (SOAR),
Sodexo Organization of Latinos (SOL) and Women’s
Network Group (WiNG).
Sodexo is committed to providing its employees with
a diverse and inclusive work environment, and we’re
proud to have received widespread recognition for its
leadership in this area. We are the only company to
rank in the top two on DiveristyInc’s Top 50 Companies for Diversity list five consecutive years. Leadership
from the very top of the company along with active
participation of its Resource Groups is instrumental in
achieving such recognition. Sodexo’s office of Diversity
in partnership with the PRIDE resource group, for example has helped the company earn top marks on the
Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index
for seven consecutive years. That leadership in diversity
and inclusion stems from an understanding that being
a dynamic company requires people with rich backgrounds and diverse perspectives. n
Where do you see the biggest areas of opportunity
in advancing STEM jobs and careers?
It’s actually hard to imagine a field or career with
growth potential that does not offer huge opportunities for STEM educated professionals. Health care,
energy, and transportation all offer clear opportunities,
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Why is STEM education /workforce development
critical to the future of our business?
STEM education and workforce development is important not only to the future of Sodexo’s business; it is a
critical element to the competitiveness and performance of nearly every business nationally as well as
globally. It transcends political party and state lines,
national borders and is a bi-partisan public-policy
issue upon which most Americans generally agree. It
is so critical, in fact, that the degree to which we as a
nation are able to successfully load the talent pipeline
with STEM educated professionals will directly affect
the country’s ability to flourish economically and compete on a global scale.
Sandy Price
Senior Vice President of
Human Resources
Sprint
Sprint (NYSE: S) is a communications services company that
creates more and better ways to connect its customers to the
things they care about most. Sprint served more than 54 million customers as of June 30, 2014 and is widely recognized for
developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; leading no-contract brands including
Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and
a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. The American Customer
Satisfaction Index rated Sprint as the most improved U.S. company in customer satisfaction, across all 43 industries, over the
last six years. Sprint has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) North America in 2011, 2012 and 2013. You
can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.
facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.
Sandy Price was named senior vice president
of human resources for Sprint in May 2006,
and is responsible for all human resource initiatives, including compensation and benefits, staffing and employee relations, learning
and development, talent management, and
flight operations. Previously, Sandy served as
senior vice president designee for the human
resources, communications and brand management functions of the Sprint Local Telephone Division (LTD) as the organization
prepared for its divestiture from Sprint in 2005
and subsequently became EMBARQ (now
CenturyLink).
Sandy joined Sprint in 1993, serving a variety
of human resources roles. Before coming to
Sprint, she was a principal in the Blue Valley
School District (Overland Park, Ks.) and the
Jenks (Okla.) Public Schools District in Tulsa.
She has a B.A. in special education, a M.A.
in learning disabilities and school administration, and completed doctoral coursework in
policy and administration at the University of
Kansas.
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Sandy is also currently a board member of
the Overland Park Chamber of Commerce
and was most recently selected as Kansas
City’s Chairman for the 2015 Go Red For
Women campaign benefitting the American
Heart Association. Sandy was named to the
Kansas City Business Journal’s “Women Who
Mean Business” list for her professional accomplishments, contributions, and her efforts to
improve the business climate for women and
to the Profiles in Diversity Journal’s “Women
Worth Watching.” She has served as president
of the Johnson County Community College
Foundation as well as holding board positions
for the University of Southern California Center for Telecommunications Management,
the Kansas City Chapter of the American
Red Cross, and the Volunteer Center of Johnson County, Kansas.
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Thus, it is important that we work as a nation to expose
children to experiences and opportunities during
elementary and middle school. This will cultivate an
interest in these areas and encourage young people
to pursue a STEM career path. In addition, STEM education creates critical thinkers, increases technical literacy, and enables the next generation of innovators.
Innovation leads to new products and processes that
sustain our economy.
At Sprint, we are continually interested in technical
skills as they are our lifeblood. Without these skills, we
limit product development, network engineering,
and technical infrastructure—in short, our ability to
innovate.
Sprint is committed to building our future talent pipeline of the best and brightest developers, engineers,
data scientists and business analysts by providing a
robust summer internship recruiting program for college students to experience STEM disciplines outside
of the classroom. Our program takes students beyond
their project assignments by giving them opportunities to learn about the broader organization, access
mentors and coaches, work together to solve business
challenges and support our communities with “Good
Works”.
I am most proud of the STEM initiatives that Sprint supports where we not only make financial contributions
but harness the knowledge and experience of our
employees to help young people pursue interests
in STEM fields. In our hometown of Kansas City, Sprint
provides support for Project Lead the Way and the
Kansas City STEM Alliance, which supports FIRST Robotics. Project Lead The Way’s comprehensive curriculum emphasizes critical thinking, creativity, innovation
and real-world problem solving. The hands-on project
based program engages students on multiple levels and provides them with a foundation for college
and career success in STEM-related fields. US FIRST is a
national program that partners locally with companies
and schools to create challenging after school activities that give students ages 9-18 an exciting platform
for discovering career opportunities in STEM. One of the
robotics-based competitions is FIRST Robotics which
offers the technology leaders of tomorrow a chance
to demonstrate their skills, imagination and gracious
professionalism. Through several internal programs,
Sprint employees donate their time and expertise to
both the Academic Project Lead the Way program,
and the extracurricular FIRST Robotics programs. These
partnerships provide students real world applications
to what they learn in school.
As a young leader, I was concerned about earning
the respect of direct reports who were, in most cases,
more experienced than me. As my career progressed, I
found myself in positions of increasing responsibility and
scope and was asked to lead functions that were not
necessarily my core competency. I would find myself
thinking I might not have what was needed to succeed. Over time, I learned that my concerns about my
age, gender, and subject matter expertise were misplaced and counterproductive. I became confident
in my ability to ask questions, learn quickly, and solve
problems. I learned that it is possible to be both gracious and decisive.
With each new opportunity, I shared my strengths
with my colleagues and built high-performing, diverse
teams that possessed competencies I did not have.
I built strategic partnerships and asked for help from
trusted advisors. I learned that, as Max Depree writes,
“leadership comes from abandoning oneself to the
strengths of others while shaping a compelling vision
for the future.” I learned to have fun at work and that I
couldn’t (and shouldn’t!) do everything myself. I developed a support structure to help me manage my professional life, personal life, the needs of my family, my
commitments to the community, and my health.
Through this experience, the advice I give to young
leaders is to dream big, work hard, and be brave. Don’t
be afraid to ask for help, surround yourself with strong,
talented people you can learn from, and most of all,
have fun while doing it.
I am a beneficiary of the accomplishments of many
successful women over the years, including those of
former Sprint executive, Karen Krepps who was one
of my early mentors. Because of leaders like Karen,
women today have an opportunity to not only succeed but have a great impact in their professions and
in their communities. With opportunity comes responsibility. Karen reminded me to consistently deliver results,
to exercise influence, to take on hard challenges,
and to actively mentor others. I endeavor to do these
every day.
Mentoring women is important. I mentor female leaders assuming new executive roles and newly graduated women just beginning their careers. I also work
with women returning to school or the workplace later
in life. They often need support in procuring financial
aid and mastering essential academic and workplace
skills. Finally, I mentor promising young high school
women who are underprivileged. It is essential they
have an advocate who encourages them and helps
them understand their potential. n
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Strong foundational STEM education is critical to many
career paths and to being an integrated contributor
to society. The U.S. Department of Labor predicts that
in the next decade, 80 percent of jobs will require STEM
skills. However, only 16 percent of college students pursuing bachelor degrees will be specializing in STEM
fields.
KariEscobedo
Vice President,
Enterprise Systems Development
T-Mobile
As America’s Un-carrier, T-Mobile is redefining the way consumers and businesses buy wireless services through leading
product and service innovation. For more information visit:
http://www.t-mobile.com. As an employer with a significant
reliance on STEM skills in our workforce, we are working to develop those skills both within our employees and within the
communities where we live and work. Our 9-year signature
volunteer program, Huddle Up, works with youth in after-school
environments to ensure they have a safe, inspiring space to
learn and grow. One component of that program involves
leading STEM activity fairs, which we call “T-Exploration,” to expose youth to STEM and mobile technology concepts through
fun games and projects led by T-Mobile employees. We also
have a community initiative through our Women’s Leadership
Network that is developing coding and IT skills in girls. The TMobile Foundation compliments these STEM-related volunteer programs with financial support.
Kari Escobedo is Vice President, Enterprise
Systems Development for T-Mobile in Bellevue, WA. She leads the team responsible for
the development and delivery of solutions for
the Enterprise Back Office systems that support the T-Mobile business. Kari has made it a
key principle for her teams to make diversity
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outside of the company as well as bringing
up resources from within the T-Mobile ranks. In
parallel to her leadership role at T-Mobile, Kari
is heavily involved in increasing women’s roles
in technology through Women in Leadership
organization.
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The first steps to curbing the STEM education crisis is
to invest in early education of STEM curriculum for all
children, both within the education system as well as
within the home. The earlier a child is exposed to a set
of curriculum and to technology as a whole, there is
an increased familiarity with the STEM fundamentals
and foundation. The education system will have more
time to advance the curriculum taught within the STEM
educational programs prior to a child’s entry into the
American workforce or enrollment into higher education. By increasing the involvement of parents in the
STEM education crisis solution, the exposure and prioritization of children to mathematics, science, technology and engineering expand beyond the schoolroom.
One problem I see is the varied access to technology
to children, i.e. many schools do not have access to
technology foundational pieces like laptops, computers, tablets and other applications that could be used
to expose kids to the various ways technology is and
can be used in the real world to help inspire kids to
engage.
It’s important that women and minorities have increasing visibility into the varied and critical role that women
and minorities currently play in STEM fields while those
women and minorities are going through early and
higher educations. This exposure will in fact enable
women and minorities to realize that they are not
required to shed their femininity and cultural differences in order to fit into the STEM fields thereby increasing their ability and desire to become engaged in
these fields. This exposure is significantly more important in the earlier years of their education, when STEM
classes and information is easily accessible. Increasing exposure can be realized through various paths
including after-school activities, in-school guest speakers, news and social media. These activities require a
web of partnerships across the community, including
local government, corporations and local community
programs. This partnership will also increase the visibility
that women and minorities have of the criticality of the
issue and importance that they play in STEM fields.
Measuring the success of improvements in the STEM
workforce should be accomplished by utilizing multiple data sources to produce an accurate view of
the diversity of the American workforce in STEM fields.
Various industries and corporations, including T-Mobile,
are finding innovative ways to better understand their
customers through data in order to better serve them.
The same principles should be used to understand the
American workforce through simple and complex BI
solutions, enabling those working to improve the STEM
workforce to both understand the workforce they’re
trying to improve and identify innovative solutions to
continue to improve the success of STEM initiatives.
The greatest advice that we can provide to women
and minorities coming up in the system is to believe in
themselves and their ideas. One of the greatest weaknesses that a lack of diversity causes is a lack of differing opinions, ideas and solutions within the workforce.
As an increasing number of women and minorities rise
within the system, their ideas and solutions may differ from the majority of those surrounding them, both
upstream and downstream, due to the fact that they
are bringing different experiences and perspectives
to their leadership roles. It will be a struggle to make
their ideas heard through the hum of the majority
around them and therefore, they must be their own
champion and the champion of their diverse ideas
and solutions. n
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Education is the foundation of the answer to a nation’s
competitiveness. By increasing the involvement of girls
and boys from diverse backgrounds in STEM related
studies during k-12 education – especially in elementary and middle schools where we see the most significant drop off in participation and interest in the
fields especially in girls, we increase the likelihood
that those children choose a STEM academic focus in
higher education and career. Delaying STEM skills, such
as Engineering, until later in a child’s education may
increase the possibility that those children will focus
on more familiar areas of their education once STEM
educational areas are introduced later in their educational career. If Engineering and other STEM skills are
introduced early during a child’s education, as early as
elementary school, the foundation of an American talent pool in the areas of STEM is strengthened, increasing the viability for a diverse American workforce to
compete against immigrants coming to America on
work visas.
Surya Kant
President, North America,
UK and Europe
Tata Consultancy Services
Tata Consultancy Services is a leading global IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that delivers real results to global business. TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated
portfolio of services, delivered through its unique Global Network Delivery Model™.
TCS is deeply vested in socially responsible practices and
STEM initiatives that enable students, underserved minorities
and girls access to computer science programs and technology careers. In North America, our STEM initiatives include TCS’
goIT program and partnerships with STEM 2.0, US2020, Million
Women Mentors, NCWIT, and Teach For America (TFA).
TCS has over 305,000 of the world’s best-trained consultants in
46 countries representing 119 nationalities, of which 32.7% are
women. The company generated consolidated revenues of
US $13.4 billion for year ended March 31, 2014 and is listed on
the National Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange in
India. Visit us at www.tcs.com.
In a career spanning more than 30 years,
Surya (“Sury) Kant has made a significant
contribution to the growth of the global software industry and Tata Consultancy Services
(TCS), one of the largest IT services, consulting and business solutions organizations in the
world.
In his current role as President for North America, UK and Europe (regions that account for
more than 75% of the company’s global revenues), Sury is responsible for overseeing and
strengthening customer relationships and revenues across TCS’ largest markets, and plays
a key role in expanding the company’s range
of technology and service offerings. Highlights of his longstanding and distinguished
tenure at TCS include establishing the presence of the Indian software industry in Japan
in 1987, leading UK operations in the ‘90s while
recording substantial growth and visibility for
the organization, and serving as the Head of
Operations in North India until 2005. Further-
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on 2011.
Sury is a member of several bodies connected with academic institutions, and a frequent speaker at industry conferences. He is
also actively connected with various social
causes, most notably playing a leading role
in the US supporting STEM education and
careers—particularly for women and minorities—through prominent partnerships with the
likes of STEMConnector, US2020 and NPower.
Sury received his Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering with a specialization in Electronics from Delhi College of Engineering in
1976, and his Master’s degree in Electrical
Engineering with a specialization in Computer Technology from IIT Delhi in 1978. On
both occasions, he finished at top of his class.
Sury also speaks several languages, including
Japanese.
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The demand for skilled technology talent in the U.S.
will continue to increase for the foreseeable future,
and these jobs will include all sectors, from banking,
financial services and manufacturing, to retail, insurance, and agriculture. We must inculcate new critical
capability platforms such as digital fluency, innovation
excellence, employability skills, and hard skills in order
to prepare our future thinkers, leaders, entrepreneurs,
and workers. TCS is proud to support STEM 2.0, a cross
sector initiative to prepare students for future STEM
jobs, and is leading efforts towards digital fluency of
tomorrow’s workforce.
What is your advice on using private-public partnerships to tackle our most pressing STEM education challenges?
Policy makers, educators and businesses all have a
stake in nurturing next generation students, but in a
rapidly evolving discipline like computer science (CS),
often companies have the clearest view into the
most disruptive, emerging technologies. For example,
TCS recently hosted a Computer Science Education
Roundtable, which brought together business executives, government officials, educators, national agencies, non-profits, and thought leaders to examine how
communities are advancing CS education by providing new ways to create a digitally fluent workforce.
We work closely with the White House OSTP to improve
access to computer science education for students,
especially girls, minorities and underprivileged youth.
We are also supporting the US Chamber of Commerce
Foundation’s Talent Pipeline Management initiative
that looks at innovative ways for public-private partnerships to close the skills gap. At a grassroots level, we
recently collaborated with Teach for America (TFA) on
a pilot program where our employees worked alongside TFA faculty to teach a programming language to
local NYC public school students. We are also working with the National Center for Women & Information
Technology (NCWIT) on their goal to introduce computing to 10,000 girls in the next three years. These partnerships ensure that our educational curriculum can
iterate as quickly as the industry evolves, adequately
preparing students.
As the world’s second most valued IT services and
business consulting company with operations in 46
countries and an employee pool of more than 305,000
professionals from 119 nationalities around the globe,
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is at the front and
center of the digital revolution. The future of our business, and our ability to help businesses across an array
of industries, relies on continuing to find and cultivate
local talent—both here in North America and around
the world.
We provide ‘anytime, anywhere learning’ opportunities
for our current workforce, and use a variety of custom
built digital platforms to cater to their competency
development. In North America, our STEM education
initiatives, including investments in TCS goIT, STEM 2.0,
US2020, Million Women Mentors, NCWIT, and Teach For
America (TFA), help to create next generation leaders
in STEM. We are actively investing the passion, expertise and time of our skilled employees in communities
where they live and work to ignite students’ interest in
STEM subjects and inspire them to pursue promising
STEM career opportunities.
What STEM initiative supported by TCS make you
most proud?
STEM education is very important to me personally. It is
our responsibility as a company and as individuals to
give back to the communities where we work and Iive.
To address the growing skills gap in STEM fields for middle and high school students, we created our goIT student technology awareness program in Ohio six years
ago. Students involved in the program participate in
computer science career awareness workshops and
a hands-on technical summer camp aimed at developing students’ interest and proficiency in technology.
goIT has so far engaged more than 7,000 students
across 35 school districts, with promising results: 70 percent of participants reported an increase of interest in
STEM, and goIT schools reported a 27 percent increase
in high school students choosing STEM majors in college. And this year, the program has expanded to 11
cities across United States, and launching in Toronto
Canada this fall. This year alone we have reached over
475 new students from 11 cities and trained over 200
new employee volunteers, resulting in over 6,500 hours
of high-impact skill building, and CS programming for
underserved groups, minorities and girls.
At TCS, we believe that a diverse work environment
generates the most innovative solutions and that mentorship is a necessary tool to support minorities as they
pursue their career aspirations. For example, through
our partnership with STEMconnector, TCS is working
closely with Million Women Mentors to mobilize one
million women and men to serve as STEM mentors by
2018. Likewise, through our partnership with US2020, TCS
is working to mobilize one million industry professionals
to serve as mentors for underprivileged students from
ethnic minorities.. By developing the digital platforms
for MWM and US2020, we are committed to building
a national infrastructure for mentoring and industry
engagement for STEM education and careers. n
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For any nation to become and remain a major player
on the world stage, its students today must have a solid
foundation in STEM and be fluent in the technologies
that will power the global economy of the 21st Century.
Businesses must also have employees who are experts
in digital disruptive forces and able to innovate and
compete with their global counterparts.
Earl Newsome
Corporate Chief Information Officer
and Vice President, Digital
TE Connectivity
TE Connectivity (NYSE: TEL) is a $13 billion world leader in connectivity. The company designs and manufactures products
at the heart of electronic connections for the world’s leading industries including automotive, energy and industrial,
broadband communications, consumer devices, healthcare,
and aerospace and defense. TE Connectivity’s long-standing commitment to innovation and engineering excellence
helps its customers solve the need for more energy efficiency,
always-on communications and ever-increasing productivity.
With nearly 90,000 employees in over 50 countries, TE Connectivity makes connections the world relies on to work flawlessly
every day. To connect with the company, visit: www.TE.com.
Earl Newsome currently serves as corporate
chief information officer and vice president,
Digital, for TE Connectivity. In this role, Newsome
is responsible for transforming and repositioning how TE drives digital across the enterprise
to deliver an extraordinary customer and
employee experience. In addition, he is responsible for partnering with corporate strategy to
ensure IT and technology innovation is a key
component of the TE corporate strategy, helping to create a competitive advantage within
the corporate functions leveraging technology, driving architecture throughout enterprise, and leading IT innovation and strategy.
Previously, Newsome served as vice president,
Infrastructure and Operations at TE, where he
was responsible for transitioning a long-term
IT shared services strategy into a consumerized offering, driving innovative thinking and
implementation of new improved processes.
Prior to joining TE Connectivity in 2012, Newsome served as vice president, Global Shared
Services for the Estee Lauder Companies,
responsible for technology infrastructure and
operations, risk and security, development,
production support, architecture and service
management services. Prior to Estee Lauder,
Newsome held key positions at the following
organizations:
• Vice president and chief information officer at Owens-Illinois General Inc., responsible for directing the information systems
strategy;
• Partner at Deloitte & Touche, leading
the Mid-America/Gulf Coast Integration,
Development and Infrastructure and Oracle practices, and managing the firm’s
state-side Knowledge Communities for
Enterprise Application Integration and
Enterprise Architecture; and
• Senior director, Strategy and Integration &
Global Operations, at Bowne & Co., responsible for directing the merger and acquisition strategy of the digital business unit and
managing Global Operations.
Newsome holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from the United States Military
Academy, West Point, NY.
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We need to drive our investments from a “buyer” perspective. Let’s build a winning “product” in the future
by growing and developing people with the right skills
for the future. To do that, begin with the 4-Voices – Our
Customers (Corporate America), Our Partners (Higher
Education), Our Students and Ourselves. This will give
us the unvarnished truth and facts to guide us on the
journey moving from Good to Great.
My advice is know yourself and what matters to you.
From that you will make better choices and better
investments. A framework that I use is the 6 A’s: Aggressiveness, Ability, Agility, Appearance, Aptitude & Attitude—have the right mix of this for yourself and look
for it in others.
I’m involved in mentoring and sponsorship 365 days a
year. I personally believe in talent management and
development—what I call “taking care of employees”—which is based on my military background of
“taking care of soldiers” which is based on ensuring our
employees are tooled, trained and practiced effectively. We owe this to everyone to allow them to be all
that they can be.
TE has established an Engagement and Inclusion
Council that serves in an advisory capacity to the CEO
and senior leadership team. The goal of the council is
to promote an organizational culture where engagement and inclusion is valued and employee potential
is unleashed. The council shares best practices and
focuses on a few key TE wide areas of action.
Given the broad mix of businesses and global markets
we are in, we also empower our leaders to define their
inclusion and diversity priorities locally. This helps to promote both sponsorship and organizational buy-in by
ensuring we focus our efforts on issues most relevant to
the business. Our leaders go through various development courses aimed at enhancing awareness fostering an environment of inclusion and diversity.
When it comes to supporting education in the STEM
fields, TE Connectivity is a major supporter of FIRST (For
Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) which engages students in grades K-12 in exciting
mentor-based programs that build science, engineering and technology skills.
TE employees have volunteered hundreds of hours
serving as mentors for local FIRST teams and support
the regional FIRST events as judges, robot inspectors and general volunteers. In 2014, the TE Connectivity Foundation supported 25 teams, granted over
$120,000 to support the teams, and made donations
to match TE employee volunteer hours. In addition, as
a supplier sponsor, TE Connectivity provided supporting products and technology to help students complete their designs. n
A framework that I use is the 6 A’s:
Aggressiveness, Ability, Agility, Appearance,
Aptitude & Attitude—have the right mix of this
for yourself and look for it in others.
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The business is digital and the digital is the business—
the world is changing and the next wave of change
is digital. In order to compete, we need to digitalize
STEM. This means applying social, mobile, analytics
and cloud (SMAC) to all of our STEM efforts to ensure
they not only utilize these technologies on a regular
basis, but also think about how to apply STEM to them
to envision the next wave of digital technologies—
this is only the beginning. Additionally, as Internet of
Things (IoT) and SMART (Sensors, Maker Machines, Augmented Humans, Robotics and Thinking Machines)
technologies invade the way we work, build and live,
STEM capabilities combined with a strong sense of
social responsibility will help to define a progressive
and positive future.
Kelvin Baggett
Senior Vice President of Clinical
Operations and Chief Clinical Officer
Tenet Healthcare Corporation
Tenet Healthcare Corporation is a national, diversified healthcare services company with more than 105,000 employees
united around a common mission: to help people live happier, healthier lives. The company operates 80 hospitals, more
than 190 outpatient centers, six health plans and Conifer
Health Solutions, a leading provider of healthcare business
process services in the areas of revenue cycle management,
value based care and patient communications. Tenet is moving health forward in a variety of ways: by making safety, service and industry-leading clinical outcomes the cornerstones
of its mission; by seeking to provide high-quality, high-value
care backed by compassionate service; by giving its caregivers the tools, technologies and resources they need to deliver
the best care possible; and by always doing what’s right for
its patients, its employees and its communities. To learn more,
please visit www.tenethealth.com.
Dr. Kelvin Baggett serves as the senior vice
president of clinical operations and chief
clinical officer for Tenet Healthcare Corporation. Together with the president of hospital
operations, Dr. Baggett co-leads strategies to
enhance Tenet’s position as a leading provider of high-value care. He is also responsible for improving and integrating care across
the care continuum, evaluating clinical technologies and providing leadership on clinical
capital decisions.
Previously, Dr. Baggett served as Tenet’s chief
medical officer, overseeing the efforts to
improve clinical outcomes and efficiency.
Prior to joining Tenet, Dr. Baggett served as
vice president of clinical strategy and chief
operating officer of the Hospital Corporation
of America Clinical Services Group, a leadership team focused on developing strategies to improve quality and safety throughout
HCA’s facilities.
Certified by the American Board of Internal
Medicine, Dr. Baggett completed his train-
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School of Medicine. He completed fellowships in general internal medicine at the Duke
University School of Medicine and as a Robert
Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar at the Johns
Hopkins University School of Medicine.
He earned a bachelor’s of science degree
from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a doctor’s of medicine degree from
the East Carolina University School of Medicine, a master’s of public health degree from
the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a master’s of business administration degree from the Fuqua School of
Business at Duke University.
Dr. Baggett is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians and of the American College of Healthcare Executives. He is active
in the Dallas community and serves on the
museum council of the Perot Museum of
Nature & Science and the board of St. Philips
School and Community Center.
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At Tenet, we use technology every day, in countless ways, at every hospital and facility, to make our
patients happier and healthier. For the most part, we
don’t develop the technology we use – the tools, the
software and hardware and equipment . That’s done
by others. What we do, and do very well, is apply and
use this technology in the real world. Particularly with
new technology, we see its impact on human beings—
our patients—and we share those learnings with the
developers and manufacturers of the technology.
Sometimes, we’re able to help them understand how
they can make their tools or software or equipment
even better and more effective. Very often, that leads
to better outcomes for our patients. This is a very important role—a critical one, in fact—and I’m very proud
we play it.
I am absolutely a mentor, and I’m a big believer in
mentorship. But I think that to be truly effective, mentorship has to be a two-way street. Both people should
learn from each other; the give and take goes both
ways. So, you need to find those people willing to invest
in you, and then you need to invest in them. That’s
the kind of mentorship you’ll find most important and
rewarding.
We have to start with the basics. We must improve our
educational system – and specifically, we need much
more of a focus on STEM education. We have to do
everything we can to make these core subjects—
science, technology, engineering and mathematics—
as attractive and engaging as possible to students. And
frankly, we need to do all we can to attract women
and minorities to these subjects and fields as well. With
our country becoming increasingly diverse, we simply
can’t afford to leave any group behind when it comes
to STEM education. The reason is simple: We can’t outsource leadership in these critical areas to other countries. We need to keep this brain trust here in the United
States – and that means involving as many people as
possible in our great country. That’s very much in keeping with the true spirit of innovation. We can do it here –
and do it better than anyone else. But we have to start
with the basics, and we can’t leave anyone behind.
minorities and women coming up in the system?
There are three things I would suggest. First, I would say,
quite simply, don’t limit yourself to being a woman or
a minority. You’re so much more than that, and you
should never isolate just one dimension of yourself,
no matter how important that dimension is. Second,
I would encourage you to find good people around
you and learn from them. It’s fine to look for people
with similar resumes and career paths, but frankly, it’s
far more important to find good people with different
backgrounds, skills and interests. I have what I call my
own internal board of directors – men and women I
engage with, share with and learn from. They come
from a variety of fields and disciplines. You need a
global perspective, and looking outside your own field,
or career, will give you that. And finally, I would say to
be willing to take risks. That’s critical to your own growth
and development.
At Tenet, we believe strongly in a diverse and inclusive
environment, one that’s grounded in our dedication
to the health and well-being of all people. We do not
harass or discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity,
religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or
expression, national origin, age, disability or veteran
status. Our equal opportunity and employee development programs embrace the unique characteristics of
our people and our communities. To that end, in the last
year, we have established two groups charged with
furthering these objectives. Our Diversity and Inclusion
Group is dedicated to developing programs and initiatives to support Tenet’s culture of inclusion. The group
uses robust metrics to guide it in its mission. And our
Veterans Affinity Group develops programs and initiatives to help veterans determine whether a career in
healthcare is a fit for them and, if so, helps them assimilate into the civilian healthcare environment. Current
employees who are veterans, including some of our
senior executives, play an active role in the group. n
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I think the key here is to really know and understand
your customer. Find out what your customer needs and
wants – and focus your technology and investment
there. Technology for technology’s sake doesn’t really
accomplish much. But if you can look at your customer and determine what’s going to make his or her
life easier, or less complicated—or in the case of our
patients, what’s going to make them healthier—that’s
how to approach the issue. It’s easier to find a problem
to solve than it is to create demand. Know your customer. It’s one of the oldest rules in business.
LisaBallantyne
Vice President and General Manager
Turner Construction Company
Turner Construction Company is a North-America-based, international construction services company and the largest
general builder in the United States. With more than 5,000
employees and an annual construction volume of $10 billion,
Turner is a leader in major market segments including green
building, education, healthcare, manufacturing, sports, commercial and transportation. Turner is also recognized as a
leader in the adoption of Building Information Modeling technology tools and embraces the utilization of lean construction practices that foster collaboration and improve project
outcomes.
At Turner, we do our best work in teams made up of individuals
from different backgrounds and skills. The diverse and inclusive
culture begins with recruiting resourceful graduates in many
disciplines, particularly STEM. The company encourages innovation, creativity, and continuous improvement that drives
positive change. As a result, our people focus on improving
our business and continuing to deliver increasingly safe, efficient and unique projects to our clients.
A graduate of Tulane University with a B.S. in
civil engineering, Lisa worked for a heavy /
highway construction company for one year
prior to joining Turner’s Boston office in 1998.
In Boston, Lisa served for 14 years in operations roles including project manager, project
executive and operations manager, while
simultaneously earning her MBA from Simmons College. In 2007, Lisa was promoted to
general manager of the office’s Special Projects Division and the following year she was
named vice president.
In 2012, Lisa was named general manager of
Turner’s Risk Management group where she
oversaw safety, insurance, claims and legal
management for the company and assisted
other leaders and offices—both domestically
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their risk while delivering the highest level of
service.
Lisa now serves as vice president and general
manager of Turner’s offices in San Francisco,
Oakland and San Jose. In her current role,
Lisa leads the operations in the region, with
a strong focus on client service and growing
the company’s business.
Lisa is active in industry groups and philanthropy. She served on the Board of Overseers for the New England Aquarium and as
a member of New England Women in Real
Estate (NEWIRE). Currently, she serves on the
Tulane Fund Board in New Orleans, Louisiana.
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In construction, we see firsthand the role that new
technology and process innovations play in the planning, development, and construction of a building.
And because construction is an industry that touches
so many industries, we also have a unique vantage
point from which to understand how these technological advancements and process innovations are also
driving positive changes for our clients as they plan,
build, teach, heal, research and manufacture.
As the United States is a world leader and economic
power, it’s imperative that we work to improve upon
our education in STEM. I believe the future of our students, and our collective future, is extremely bright, but
only with our continued and increased support of their
education.
Over the past several years, we have strengthened
a company-wide approach to connectivity with the
understanding that the more we can help facilitate
relationship building, encourage establishment of
common goals, and enable effective communication,
the better the company will perform.
This effort is supported by personal meetings and conversations, regional meetings and company-wide
webcasts, and a new, company-wide knowledge
sharing platform. For more than 15 years Turner has
used the Turner Knowledge Network as an information
sharing tool. We recently launched the Turner Learning
Tree, an enhanced communication and knowledgesharing platform through which employees can ask
questions, connect with subject matter experts and
share great practices. The Turner Learning Tree helps us
share and benefit from the collective talent, creativity, resourcefulness and experience of all our people,
engaging these STEM professionals and future STEM
professionals across all departments.
What is your vision for future of STEM careers through
diversity?
Building diversity in STEM professions continues to be
challenge. Although the number of women and minorities involved in STEM has increased over the years, they
are still well behind the averages of other industries.
We need to continue to focus on recruitment — the
number of diverse students we have graduating from
undergraduate programs in engineering and science
is at an all-time high. Once hired, it is equally important
that we offer them the support and mentorship they
need to develop their careers with us.
Leading companies, including Turner, are making great
efforts in diversity and inclusion; however, the pool of
applicants still needs to be broader and this is where
all of our community outreach in elementary, middle
and high schools comes in. By increasing the number
of individuals entering STEM education programs, we
hope to increase the number of passionate, diverse
graduates entering the field. My vision for the future
is one in where the percentage of diversity is equal
throughout construction and other STEM industries –
from the field to the board room.
supported are you most proud of?
Turner Construction Company is a leading sponsor
of the ACE Mentor Program. Through the ACE Mentor program, professionals are paired with high school
students, supporting and encouraging their interest in
STEM, and offering them an inside look at the life and
career in the architecture, construction and engineering industry. I am always thrilled to see Turner’s bright
and energetic college recruits engage immediately
and become mentors to high school students. Their
ability to transfer their excitement about construction
and their passion for the work we do to these young
men and women is a great asset to the STEM mission.
Turner takes career planning very seriously. The company engages in a formal career development conversation with each and every employee as part of our
annual employee review process, as well as engaging
in any number of informal conversations with peers
and supervisors throughout the year.
Although career planning is clearly part of a company’s responsibility, to me it is first and foremost the individuals’ responsibility. My advice for those coming “up”
in the system is to take ownership of your own path,
while helping others on theirs. The more you can do to
develop yourself as a person, the more opportunities
there will be for your advancement. Actively engage
in the industry, community and company. Engage in
organizations and philanthropy that you are passionate about. Help others in their pursuit of success. Mentors, advocates and sponsors are everywhere, go find
them. Help define your path, and you will find plenty
of friends, colleagues and confidants along the way
to success. I think Maya Angelou put it well when she
wrote, “I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life
with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be
able to throw something back.” n
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nation’s competitive advantage?
Science, technology, engineering and mathematics
professionals help create better, more efficient, and
more sustainable ways to work, communicate, and
live. It’s important that we encourage students to pursue careers in STEM as they are the future leaders in
important industries and disciplines.
William Plummer
Chief Financial Officer
United Rentals, Inc.
United Rentals, Inc. is the largest equipment rental company
in the world. The company has an integrated network of 883
rental locations in 49 states and 10 Canadian provinces. The
company’s approximately 12,400 employees serve construction and industrial customers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners and others. The company offers approximately 3,400 classes
of equipment for rent with a total original cost of $8.42 billion.
United Rentals is a member of the Standard & Poor’s MidCap
400 Index, the Barron’s 400 Index and the Russell 3000 Index®
and is headquartered in Stamford, Conn. Additional information about United Rentals is available at unitedrentals.com.
William Plummer is Executive Vice President
and Chief Financial Officer of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE: URI), the world’s largest equipment rental company. He has been honored
as one of the “100 Most Powerful Executives
in Corporate America” (2012) by Black Enterprise, which highlighted his accomplishments
as a collaborative leader, and has twice
been named “Best CFO: Business, Education
& Professional Services Sector” by Institutional
Investor (2013 and 2014). Mr. Plummer’s more
than two decades of financial executive
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senior positions with Dow Jones & Company,
Alcoa Inc., Mead Corporation and General
Electric Capital Corporation.
Mr. Plummer serves on the boards of John
Wiley & Sons, Inc. and UIL Holdings Corporation. He holds a master of business administration degree from Stanford University Graduate
School of Business, and degrees in aeronautics and astronautics from the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology.
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STEM fields also play a vital role in enhancing the security of the US, either directly through the development
of military defense technologies, or indirectly through
addressing major threats such as global warming and
energy security. I believe that many of the biggest
issues we face as a nation (and as a world) will have to
be addressed through STEM.
Since many leaders come from educational disciplines
other than STEM, they may not recognize the important
role STEM plays. So first, leaders need to understand
that importance and then couple that understanding with the vision to see the long term benefit for their
companies from supporting STEM education. They
then need to dedicate some level or their company’s
resources to identifying programs that align with the
areas of STEM most applicable to them. Finally, they
need to be comfortable leading change outside their
normal business environment, working instead in areas
such as educational policy.
Companies can create more STEM careers by broadening their idea how they deliver value to their customers. For example, our company, United Rentals, has
recently started an effort to use advanced statistical
analysis to build better predictions of when and how
customers will need to rent construction equipment
from our fleet. Those skills (and jobs) are brand new to
our company and represent new demand for those
with STEM backgrounds. Filling those kinds of jobs will
require companies to broaden where they recruit and
may even require them to develop their own training
programs.
It is important for me to be involved in organizations
which have STEM education as an important part
of their mission. For example, I am a director of John
Wiley and Sons, one of the largest publishers of scientific journals and science and engineering textbooks in
the world. I also belong to a social group, Sigma Pi Phi
fraternity, which sponsor STEM education seminars and
scholarships for African American youth.
First, I would remind them that they have chosen a
challenging path. Success in a STEM field requires a
high level of focus and discipline, whether in the education or a career. They should be prepared for the
inevitable difficult subject (mine was calculus of complex variables) or job assignment and not let that difficulty turn them away from a very rewarding career.
The challenge of STEM is even greater for minorities
and women given the small number of diverse senior
mentors or role models they will meet in a career. Here I
would say to be open to those who are willing to invest
in your development regardless of their gender or ethnicity. There is always someone willing to help.
I would also advise that success in a STEM career is
about more than just the mastery of science and
technology. Understanding human behavior, organizational dynamics, economics and politics are also vital
to a STEM career. Paying attention to those classes
in school and to those dimensions of your work help
you advance and make your career that much more
rewarding.
The rewards of a STEM career are many, from the purely
financial (STEM degree holders enjoy higher earnings
regardless of whether they work in STEM or non-STEM
occupations, according to the US Department of
Commerce) to the simple satisfaction of mastering a
challenge. Persistence is the route to those rewards. n
Success in a STEM career is about more
than just the mastery of science and
technology. Understanding human behavior,
organizational dynamics, economics and
politics are also vital to a STEM career.
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The US economy derives much of its growth and innovation from fields that depend on STEM-related workers and research. Fields such as computer science,
communications, genetics, and biotechnology produce a disproportionate share of new products, new
companies and new jobs in the economy. Older industries, meanwhile, benefit from STEM through through
the application of new technologies to established
products. Without this important driver of growth, the
US will find it very difficult to maintain its competitiveness worldwide.
Heidi Musser
Vice President, IT Shared Services
USAA
In 1922, when 25 Army officers met in San Antonio, Texas, and
decided to insure each other’s vehicles, they could not have
imagined that their tiny organization would one day serve millions of members and become one of the only fully integrated
financial services organizations in America. We believe they
would be pleased to know that USAA has remained true to
their founding values of service, loyalty, honesty and integrity.
Today, the USAA family of companies provides insurance,
banking, investments, retirement products and advice to 10.4
million current and former members of the U.S. military and
their families. Known for its legendary commitment to its members, USAA is consistently recognized for outstanding service,
employee well-being and financial strength. USAA membership is open to all who are serving our nation in the U.S. military
or have received a discharge type of Honorable – and their
eligible family members.
Heidi currently leads the following capabilities
that make the business of IT better for USAA
and its members:
• IT Business Management (IT Strategy & Planning, Analytics & Reporting, Risk & Compliance, Workforce Management, and IT
Asset & Service Management)
• Development Operations (Configuration,
Change & Release Management, DevOps
Solutions, and Software Development
Improvement & Support)
• IT PMO and Process Execution
• Quality Assurance
Heidi also serves as USAA’s Chief Agilist, Chief
Compliance Officer for the Chief Administrative Office, Executive Sponsor for USAA’s
women in information technology employee
group, Aspire, Executive Sponsor for the enterprise’s Think Differently Forum, Chair of the IT
Infrastructure Portfolio, and is a member of
the Operations Risk Council.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M An experienced business technology leader
with more than 25 years of diverse general
management experience, Heidi has held
senior executive positions in financial services,
healthcare, technology consulting, software,
and public sector finance. She is passionate
about leadership, diversity, innovation, transformation, collaboration, design thinking, and
enterprise agility.
Heidi earned a Master’s degree from MSU’s
Broad Graduate School of Management’s
Executive MBA Program and holds a B.A. in
Accounting from Michigan State University. She is also a graduate of the Institute of
Design at Stanford’s d.school, the Center for
Creative Leadership’s Executive Development Program, and the Society for Information Management’s Regional Leadership
Forum at Babson College.
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What is your advice to those involved in promoting the STEM system?
• First, we need to take the time to understand
the facts driving this issue and the challenges.
Many people believe STEM is a buzzword — it
is not. It is a business imperative to stay competitive.
• Second, we need to recognize the business
risks of NOT working to solve this problem. There
are both short-term and long-term implications of inaction.
• Third, we need to try to understand the root
causes. This issue, like most complex issues, did
not happen overnight. STEM education has
been declining, particularly for women, for
over a generation.
• Fourth, we need to be visible and vocal, and
willing to champion an issue that probably
won’t deliver short-term gains today.
• Fifth, it’s imperative that we make the connection between STEM education and jobs
— jobs that companies like USAA rely on to
deliver exceptional member experiences
to our military members and their families.
There is a shortage of qualified candidates
with education and STEM for both today’s
jobs and especially tomorrow’s jobs. And,
there is a lot of data from reliable sources
that supports this.
It’s my experience as a business leader that you
cannot change what you are unwilling to measure. Said differently, metrics matter because they
influence behavior. So, begin tracking the numbers and measure improvement in those numbers. Are you able to attract more people with
education in STEM? Are you able to retain more
people with education in STEM?
What employee resource groups does your
company have in place?
VetNet, Nexus, Impact and Aspire. Coincidentally,
three were started in response to addressing a
specific business problem. I’m personally excited
and engaged with Aspire. Aspire was started
to encourage and support women in IT to realize their full potential. In so doing, this helps USAA
attract and retain our top female talent in STEM.
Aspire is USAA’s inclusive, grass-roots employee
community focused on growing and encouraging women in IT to realize their full potential. More
than 35 percent of our members are men.
Ensuring advocacy across your enterprise, both
women and men, is vital. Male advocacy —
especially white/Caucasian — matters because
the overwhelming majority (85 percent) of our
leaders are men. At USAA, that number is about
70 percent. If they are not gender and minority
advocates, then the culture won’t change. This is
an issue that females and minorities can’t solve
on their own, because that are not the primary
decision-makers regarding hiring, career development and promotion.
How does STEM leadership with a focus on
delivery help your company compete?
We need the community creating technology
to be as diverse as the community consuming
it! It’s that simple! n
We need the community creating
technology to be as diverse as the
community consuming it! It’s that simple!
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What traits do corporate leaders need to effectively support and advance STEM education
today?
Persistence, patience and courage. Moral courage. We must support and advance STEM education today because it’s the right thing to do.
Indeed, our future depends on this. Find a way to
lean in and tell the story about why STEM education matters in a way that resonates with the
people you’re influencing. Yes, change is hard. But
it can and will happen. One. Mind. At. A. Time.
Nikki Arora
Corporate Marketing Officer
UST Global
UST Global is a leading provider of end-to-end IT Services and
Solutions for Global 1000 companies. Headquartered in Aliso
Viejo, California, UST Global has operations in USA, India, Mexico, Spain, UK, Malaysia, Philippines, and Singapore. UST Global
is a technology leader with profound domain expertise across
the following industries: Healthcare & Insurance, Retail, Financial Services, Transportation & Logistics, Manufacturing & Automotive, Telecommunication and Media & Entertainment. By
focusing on the business model of ‘fewer CLIENTS, more ATTENTION’, UST Global strives for excellence in providing their
clients with the best service and commitment to long-term client success. With 14,000 employees, UST Global’s growth and
clientele have been impressive. Please visit www.ust-global.
com for more information.
Nikki Arora expertly combines strategy and
creativity to help elevate the brand of UST
Global as a leader in IT consulting. As Corporate Marketing Officer, she is responsible
for corporate and business development
through multiple branding and marketing
platforms, including CSR and special philanthropic initiatives.
In the IT consulting industry for more than 18
years, Nikki specializes in corporate brandbuilding, event management, talent acquisition management, operational management
and client relationships.
She has facilitated UST Global’s expansion into
new geographic locations by cultivating relationships with influential industry and country
leaders. She is one of the founding partners
of UST Global’s Mexico Operations Center,
working closely with the company’s CEO and
with former President of Mexico Vicente Fox
to successfully build IT centers throughout the
country.
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M Nikki is skilled at establishing operational
excellence within culturally diverse environments, providing leadership through proactive strategic planning and by delivering
value-added services globally. She began
her career as a recruiter for UST Global, and
advanced to Global Head for Talent Acquisition. In that role she created the Employer of
Choice brand campaign, helping boost the
company’s recruitment initiatives.
An advocate for women in STEM professions,
Nikki is on the leadership committee of the Million Women Mentors Program (MWM). She’s
helping build a network of 1 million mentors to
encourage young women interested in pursuing STEM careers. She’s also been recognized as Exceptional Leader and Woman of
the Year by The International Women Leadership Association and National Association of
Professional Women.
Nikki has a Degree in Commerce from GLS,
India and a Technical Management Certification from UCLA.
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Corporations are under pressure to lower costs
and implement technology quickly and efficiently.
There’s huge opportunity for the companies and
people who can help them achieve that. But to
take advantage of that demand for talent, people need the chance to develop the expertise
and companies need a reliable pool of talent
from which to draw. So creating a sustainable way
to help people build STEM expertise is essential to
our industry and to our nation’s economy.
How do you believe STEM education can
improve a nation’s competitiveness?
Any nation’s competitiveness hinges on its ability to innovate, and to turn those innovations into
products and services that meet real needs and
can be sold in a marketplace that values them.
STEM education powers innovation like nothing
else.
Beyond standards, what are the first steps that
we should take to curb the STEM education crisis?
Companies have a unique opportunity to
enhance STEM education across the board. At
UST Global, we created a strong training program
to fast-track IT education to help meet our own
needs for talent. We recognized that we could
take this expertise in training and offer it more
broadly to populations of people who might not
otherwise have opportunities in STEM careers.
Expanding our focus beyond just those who have
already declared an interest in a STEM career
opens up the possibilities for attracting new,
untapped talent.
How do we encourage students to continue
their study of STEM subjects, particularly
women and underrepresented minorities?
To encourage women and minorities to pursue
STEM, we need to bring the opportunities to them
– which means opening channels for them to get
quality training and good jobs.
At UST Global, we’re tackling this head-on. We’re
investing in recruiting, training and employing
women from inner-cities who display the commitment to attend a community college.
We are working with local community colleges,
foundations and civic organizations to identify
women who have the desire and aptitude to be
successful in the program. The selected women
will go through intensive training on several
aspects of information technology. They will be
trained in advanced visualization, mobility, quality
assurance, along with other aspects of information technology. We have experts, training curriculum, structure and processes to help assess and
prepare the candidates.
What traits do corporate leaders need to
effectively support and advance STEM education today?
Corporate leaders must lead the change and
be the risk takers by embracing the creative
STEM educational programs. We’ve learned that
there’s a vast pool of talent just waiting to be
tapped once we started thinking beyond the
typical four-year-degree candidate. We’ve also
learned that the only way to make these big programs successful is to partner with community
organizations, industry leaders, other companies
and even governments. n
To encourage women and minorities to pursue
STEM, we need to bring the opportunities to
them – which means opening channels for
them to get quality training and good jobs.
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Why is STEM Education/workforce development critical to the future of our nation?
STEM is the prosperity mechanism for a community and a nation. STEM occupations are the biggest job creators both in America and around the
world.
Radhika
Venkatraman
Vice President, IT - Enterprise Sales Life
Cycle and Ordering Systems
Verizon Communications
Verizon Communications is the world leader in delivering innovation in communications, mobility, information and entertainment. We provide superior broadband, video and other
wireless and wireline services to consumers, businesses, governments and wholesale customers across the globe. Verizon
operates America’s most reliable wireless network, with 104.6
million retail connections nationwide, as well as the largest 4G
LTE wireless network. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over
America’s most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers integrated business solutions to customers in more than
150 countries. Through these unparalleled communication
network assets, we deliver products that enhance customers’ lives, strategies that expand access to technology, and
collaborations that apply technology to the world’s biggest
challenges such as education, health care and sustainability.
Radhika Venkatraman is the Vice President
for IT - Enterprise Sales Life Cycle and Ordering Systems. She is also the Verizon Lean Six
Sigma Lead for Information Technology. She
is a transformational leader for Verizon Enterprise Solutions. Leading a global team of
1,200 professionals, she has revolutionized
the way Verizon delivers services to its enterprise clients, which serves 99% of Fortune 500
companies. This transformation effort, called
Rapid Delivery, creates one global process
from quote to billing and accelerates solution
delivery. Her efforts are fundamentally changing how Verizon Enterprise Solutions conducts
business, positioning the company for future
growth.
Prior to current role, Radhika was Executive
director, customer and center experience
IT—Verizon Telecom with primary responsibility
to efficiently scale Verizon FiOS product. Radhika led the transformation program responsible for leveraging technology enablers to
improve operating and capital efficiency,
expand margins and improve cash flow. She
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delivering breakthrough systems automation
in the end-to-end service delivery processes.
Radhika has been generously supporting her
alma-mater; both North Carolina (NC) State
University and Indian Institute of Technology
Mumbai—both known for their rigorous STEM
programs. NC State also supports STEM education for girls in Wake County, NC. In addition, she
provides ongoing support to the National Public
Radio (NPR)—that has launched intense STEM
study of impacts for our society—and Doctors
without Borders, which not only provides humanitarian relief but also education and counseling
to local communities in all corners of the world.
She also participates in women’s leadership
programs at Verizon as well as externally.
She has a bachelor’s degree from the Indian
Institute of Technology, Bombay, India, and 2
master’s degrees—one in Computer Aided
Engineering and another in Computer Science, both from North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA.
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Even recently, when the world was in economic slump,
the bright spot on the American landscape was technology. At every point in our history, we have confronted numerous political and economic difficulties
and yet as a nation moved from strength to strength
in science and technology. Every day we see inspiring
breakthroughs with genetic sequencing to help solve
for diseases like cancer, increase food crop yields and
find alternate sources of clean energy. Now more than
ever, STEM will underpin the next wave of growth and
greatness.
To encourage students to study STEM, particularly
women and underrepresented minorities, it is important to understand what turns the students away.
• In media and television, technical roles are portrayed as a male fields and often imply intellectual
superiority
• The relevance of technology to everyday solutions
is not demonstrated or misunderstood−hence girls
(known to look for outcomes and demonstrate
lateral thinking) are unable to easily connect and
align
• Underrepresentation further exacerbates the problem. Parents, without a STEM background, often do
not encourage their children to consider an engineering career. The general non STEM public is usually unaware of future demand for STEM-related
careers and, unless children grow up in successful
STEM environment, they have no role models who
can offer guidance. This is particularly true of most
of the minority groups
We need to significantly expand STEM literacy in
schools, including teacher training and expand STEM
education and career opportunities for underrepresented groups, including women and girls. We need
to encourage ALL parents to speak about it to their
children and encourage their children to pursue STEM.
Corporations can help by providing volunteer mentors
who are generationally similar to the students and partner with organizations and foundations that already
do so. We could also design curricula in schools that
include collaborative teamwork focused on an outcome, by leveraging principles of STEM, and publicprivate partners could sponsor projects.
The Verizon Innovative App Challenge, now in its third
year, is a very innovative program that teaches middle and high school students−how to code and build
mobile apps and solve problems in their local communities. These are critical computer science and problem solving skills that are very much needed for future
jobs. This Verizon initiative has encouraged thousands
of students to develop interest in STEM subjects. Verizon
is now extending the program to the Obama administration’s ‘ConnectEd’ initiative and has pledged up
to $100 million over the next three years. The Verizon
commercial video, ‘Inspire her mind’ has gone viral
around the globe and is a great depiction of a girl as
the heroine and role model, solving complex technical
problems.
• At work, for new women and minority college hires,
it is very important to encourage them to continue
to pursue technical roles and as a leader of any
team, continue to spot and mentor talent along
the way.
• At home, it is very important to encourage our children to experiment with science, introduce them
to science books, puzzles, building blocks, Legos,
robotics, brain teasers and math problems early on,
and let the child have fun in comfortable settings.
A visit to a museum can be lot of fun for the family.
• In all settings, it is very important to communicate
how rewarding and cool a STEM career is and
that it is possible to balance between a successful
career and a happy family. n
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The power of computing and mobile technology is
out pacing “Moore’s Law,” which says that computing power doubles while its costs drop by half every 18
months. The convergence of mobility, computing, and
biotechnology is not only transforming existing industries but also giving rise to new industries and exciting
new innovation is happening everywhere. All this is
leading to creation of well-paying jobs that can only
be filled by a highly skilled workforce trained in STEM.
Mike Bauza
Vice President and
Chief Information Officer, LATAM
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. helps people around the world save
money and live better - anytime and anywhere -- in retail
stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week,
more than 245 million customers and members visit our almost
11,000 stores under 71 banners in 27 countries and ecommerce websites in 10 countries. With fiscal year 2014 sales of
over $473 billion, Walmart employs more than 2 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity.
By operating globally and giving back locally, Walmart is
uniquely positioned to address the needs of the communities
it serves and make a significant social impact within its core
areas of giving: Hunger Relief & Healthy Eating, Sustainability,
Career Opportunity and Women’s Economic Empowerment.
Walmart and the Walmart Foundation are leading the fight
against hunger in the United States with a $2 billion commitment through 2015.
Mike Bauza is Vice President and Chief Information Officer for LATAM. Previously, he was
Vice President of Quality Assurance and Operations for Walmart ISD. He joined Walmart in
2007 as Director of Distribution Systems. Since
joining the company, he also has served as
Senior Director of ISD Remote Sourcing and
Vendor Management Office. Mike was promoted to Vice President of ISD International
in 2008.
Prior to joining Walmart, Mike was Vice President of Cable and Broadband Services at
The Management Network Group (TMNG).
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R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M He also held the position of Vice President of
Software Development and Program Management for the Convergys Corporation.
Mike also served in the United States Air Force.
Mike is a member of the Project Management
Institute (PMI) and the Association of Latino
Professionals (ALPFA). He has a BS, Management of Information Systems from the University of Maryland and a Masters Certificate in
Project Management from The George Washington University.
© 2©021041S2T ES M
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We must begin this dialog with students as early as
possible. Several years ago, we established a program
in our organization called “Mi Futuro” (My Future) in
which we visit a number of middle schools to challenge these students to stay in school and to dream
big. Unfortunately, some of these minority students
don’t have the visibility and clarity of understanding
about the possibilities of a career beyond what they
see at home or in their neighborhoods. Getting these
kids excited about science and about the possibilities
of a better life can be a great motivator.
Leaders must be engaged and committed. Reality is
that today’s business environment demands so much
time and commitment from everyone in the organization. Leaders must commit by reserving time in their
calendars to visit schools, talk with young students and
mentor junior associates. It is very important to share
stories with students and open their eyes to the many
career possibilities in STEM professions.
Are you a mentor? What is your view of mentorship?
Indeed, I am a mentor in our organization. Mentoring
is one of the most fulfilling parts of my responsibilities.
I had the pleasure to have great mentors early in my
career and I feel it is my responsibility and obligation to
help others. I do make sure that the time a mentee and I
spend together has a specific objective or set of objectives. Typically, the conversation is based on a specific
element of the person’s development plan. There is a
responsibility to prepare for the dialog. And, sometimes,
there is a list of actions that will require follow up.
the workforce?
Very little gets achieved today without collaboration.
We are seeing a dramatic shift in the way we work.
Technology projects require that small teams of talented professionals work together as teams in an
accelerated fashion to deliver value to the business.
The members of these teams must have strong technical skills as well as the ability to work with others. n
strategy?
At Walmart, we have significant engagement and
participation by many leaders. As part of our talent
development program, we have been intentional
about working with schools and universities to support
and encourage students to pursue careers in STEM.
Engagement for these initiatives spans across all leadership levels in our organization.
I had the pleasure to have great mentors early
in my career and I feel it is my responsibility and
obligation to help others.
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Clint Lewis
President, U.S. Operations
Zoetis
Zoetis is the leading animal health company, dedicated to
supporting veterinarians, livestock producers and people
who raise and care for farm and companion animals in 120
countries. Building on more than 60 years of experience in
animal health, Zoetis discovers, develops, manufactures and
markets veterinary vaccines and medicines, complemented
by diagnostic products and genetic tests and supported by
a range of services. Zoetis applies research to a broad and
diverse range of species, therapeutic areas and geographic
regions, and its research encompasses vaccines and medicines. In addition, its R&D activities include the development
of genetic and diagnostic products as well as biodevices
and engineering investments for in ovopoultry applications.
In 2013, the company generated annual revenues of $4.6 billion. With approximately 9,800 employees worldwide at the
beginning of 2014, including 1,100+ R&D specialists, Zoetis has
a local presence in approximately 70 countries, including 27
manufacturing facilities in 10 countries.
Clint Lewis is executive vice president and
president, U.S. operations at Zoetis. Zoetis is
the leading company in animal health. Clint
has worked in the pharmaceutical industry for over 25 years, holding key positions of
increasing responsibility in the areas of sales
management, marketing and general management. In his current role, he oversees the
management of the livestock and companion animal businesses in the United States, the
largest region within Zoetis. Clint is also responsible for leading the global genetics business
for Zoetis.
Clint is a member of the Executive Committee for the Animal Health Institute (AHI), the
trade association for animal health companies in the U.S., and he recently served as
AHI’s immediate past chairman of the board.
Clint currently serves on the Dean’s Advisory
Board for both Cornell’s College of Veterinary
Medicine and Western University’s College of
Veterinary Medicine. Clint is a national board
member and ardent supporter of INROADS,
Inc. and formerly served as a member of the
Board of Trustees for his alma mater, Fairfield
University.
Clint holds a bachelor’s degree in biology
from Fairfield University and a Master of Business Administration degree in marketing from
Fairleigh Dickinson University.
Clint is married to Teresa and has two sons,
Alex and Evan, and a daughter, Eliana.
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As part of its Commitment to Veterinarians strategic
initiative, Zoetis has made a commitment to help educate and mentor the next generation of veterinarians through training and education, investment in the
future of the profession through internship and externship programs, research and development, and a strategic approach to philanthropy. Zoetis has ensured
that each of the various programs also helps to address
the ongoing need for greater diversity across the profession. Training and education initiatives range from
sponsorship of local and national organizations that
address multicultural issues, to educational programs
that enroll large minority populations, summer jobs programs that expose inner-city students to active veterinary practices, and interactive educational programs
that enable high school students to discover more
about the profession. The company’s internship and
externship programs send diverse students around the
country to veterinary practices, farms that raise livestock, Colleges of Veterinary Medicine as well as to
Zoetis departments—from R&D to commercial operations. In addition to its focus on student education and
development, Zoetis sponsors a number of diversityrelated programs and events, including the bi-annual
Iverson Bell Symposium, which promotes diversity within
the field of veterinary medicine, student V.O.I.C.E
chapters (multicultural clubs) at various Colleges of
Veterinary Medicine as well as the Diversity Summit at
the annual American Veterinary Medical Association
Conference.
Zoetis is focused on continuously innovating to develop
animal health solutions that meet the needs of those
who raise and care for animals. R&D is at the core of
our efforts to provide innovation outcomes that anticipate the future needs of veterinarians and livestock
producers in their local markets around the globe.
Our new product R&D leverages relevant discoveries
from the agribusiness, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Combining this capability with the
most promising discoveries from existing Zoetis R&D
generally yields a faster, less expensive and more predictable process and more sustainable pipeline as
compared to human health R&D. Our R&D for existing
products focuses on broadening and enhancing our
existing portfolio through the addition of new species
or claims, securing approvals in additional countries,
or creating new combinations and reformulations that
extend Zoetis innovations to a growing range of those
who raise and care for animals worldwide.
Yes, I am a mentor, and I believe that mentorship is
something that I must model every day—not only
because it’s the right thing to do in developing future
diverse STEM talent—but because it pays dividends
for our business. One of the ways that I help instill the
value of mentorship throughout Zoetis is by our active
engagement in the INROADS organization. I am a
national board member of INROADS, the nation’s largest non-profit source of paid internships for undergraduate, diverse youth. On behalf of Zoetis, I commit to
providing a multi-year professional opportunity for four
interns, and consider the interns for full-time employment upon graduation. We work with them to create,
implement and monitor a career development plan,
designate a business advisor to evaluate their progress, and offer guidance throughout the process. As a
corporate sponsor, Zoetis pays an annual sponsorship
fee to INROADS, as well as a competitive salary for the
interns.
Zoetis has endorsed several key initiatives and activities
to promote the development of an increasingly more
diverse and inclusive workplace environment in ways
that reflect the unique nature of the business as well
as the diverse needs of its employee, customer and
stakeholder base. Zoetis endorses, supports and monetarily funds a Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Council that
comprises leaders from across the organization. The
primary benefit of the Zoetis D&I Council is its inherent
ability to proactively advise, challenge and engage
senior management on approaches to create and
maintain a diverse work force and culture of inclusion.
The D&I Council also promotes an inclusive culture
where colleagues feel empowered, enabled and supported; they feel their presence and contributions are
valued; they are engaged in the business and feel a
strong sense of belonging. From a hiring and recruiting perspective, the D&I Council advocates to ensure
that a very diverse pool of new candidates are considered for every available position, ensuring that everyone from the candidate pool is equally evaluated and
making sure the best individuals are selected. The D&I
Council is also charged with identifying the need for
Employee Resource Groups, and in 2014 is focused on
launching these groups with a focus in five areas of
interest for colleagues: women, blacks, Latinos, Asians
and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT). n
1 0 0 D I V E R S E C O R P O R AT E L E A D E R S I N S T E M | 243 Zoetis
How has your corporation coordinated investment
Zoetis has been at the forefront of advancing diversity in STEM initiatives, specifically in educating the next
generation of veterinarians. For six consecutive years,
Zoetis has invited second- and third-year students of
veterinary medicine to apply for the Zoetis Veterinary
Student Scholarship Program. Since the launch of the
scholarship program in the fall of 2010, more than
$2.7 million in scholarship funding has been awarded
to more than 1,100 exceptional veterinary students.
In addition to traditional selection criteria of academic excellence and financial need, the scholarship
focuses on meeting ongoing needs of the veterinary
profession such as diversity, sustainability, leadership
and fostering diverse careers paths in veterinary medicine. The scholarship complements a number of other
Zoetis programs supporting the veterinary profession,
including millions invested in universities, industry education and training, scholarships, and allied organizations each year.
Spark the possibilities of a
BETTER DIMENSION
INNOVATION | TECHNOLOGY | TRAINING | JOBS | PEACE
Providing End-to -End IT Services and Solutions
UST- Global.com
Diversity Fuels Our Growth — Our clients rely on our ingenuity. The best way to ensure our own
diversity of thought and ideas is by making sure our team members represent a wide variety
of experiences, cultures, languages, backgrounds and abilities. Our diversity enriches us as a
company, as professionals and as individuals.
—Sajan Pillai, Chief Executive Officer, UST Global
With the global marketplace expanding at unprecedented rates, demographic shifts and
emerging global trends playing an ever-increasing role in the American economy, it has become
increasingly apparent that business leaders, industry experts and Academics can offer a more
comprehensive approach to preparing future leaders to successfully enter the workforce.
—Michael Norris, President and Chief Operating Officer, Sodexo
In order to receive a world-class education, students must have access to the most cutting
edge education technology products.
—Muhammed Chaudhry, President and Chief Executive Officer, Silicon Valley Education Foundation
Corporate leaders must lead the change and be the risk takers by embracing the creative
STEM educational programs. The only way to make these big programs successful is to partner
with community organizations, industry leaders, other companies and even governments.
—Nikki Arora, Corporate Marketing Officer, UST Global
With the global marketplace expanding at unprecedented rates and demographic shifts playing an increasing role in the American economy, it is clear that business leaders, industry experts,
elected officials and academics must offer a more comprehensive approach to preparing
future leaders to successfully enter the workforce.
—Gerri Mason-Hall, Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, Sodexo
In the end, nothing happens unless we all get engaged. We must clearly and consistently
communicate how vital science, technology and math skills are to the future of our companies.
—Karl Gouverneur, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, Northwestern Mutual
For nearly two-decades, Cisco has made it a top priority to build a talent pipeline prepared to meet
these challenges. Cisco invests in programs from Kindergarten to College and beyond that are
preparing a diverse generation of talent for careers in STEM.
—Padmasree Warrior, Chief Technology and Strategy Officer, Cisco
For any nation to become and remain a major player on the world stage, its students today
must have a solid foundation in STEM and be fluent in the technologies that will power the
global economy of the 21st Century.
—Surya Kant, President, North America, UK and Europe, Tata Consultancy Services
Leaders must commit by reserving time in their calendars to visit schools, talk with young students and mentor junior associates. It is very important to share stories with students and open
their eyes to the many career possibilities in STEM professions.
—Mike Bauza, Vice President and Chief Information Officer, LATAM, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Partners

100 Diverse Corporate Leaders in STEM

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