Walmart's interest in Women-Owned Businesses

Via the Spend Matters blog:

". . . in addition to the innovation small suppliers can provide, [a] real reason to invest in supplier diversity: building programs that stick over the long-term." A look at Walmart's journey in Supplier Diversity, in this case specifically working with woman-owned businesses. DIR hopes they have our National Minority and Women-Owned Business Directory to reference!

Fabulous Posters Celebrating Diversity

Just discovered these great, annual posters from Western Washington University. You can order past posters ... so I wanted to share. Enjoy!

new publication: ReInventing Diversity by Howard J. Ross

"Many prejudices are unconscious, and exclusions are often unintentional. Only through challenging our own preconceived notions about diversity can we build a productive and collaborative work environment in which all people thrive."

The above quote is part of the description for a new (pub date August 2011) book by Howard J. Ross: ReInventing Diversity: Transforming Organizational Community to Strengthen People, Purpose, and Performance. Howard J. Ross is Founder and Chief Learning Officer of Cook Ross Inc. He is one of the nation’s leading diversity training consultants and nationally recognized expert on diversity, leadership, and organizational change.

Have you read it? Do you have some opinions on it? Please share. I'm anxious to check it out.

Awards Program Announced ... great opportunity for DIR Suppliers who are Woman-, Veteran-, and Minority-Owned

DiversityBusiness.com . . . will be conducting its 12th annual "Top Businesses in America" survey. The research allows entrepreneurs to be identified and honored for their business achievements on a national and regional basis.

. . . An opportunity to have your business listed by the world's most preeminent publications including Forbes Magazine, Business Week and thousands of media outlets throughout the world. Honorees will be recognized and honored at the 12th Annual Multicultural Business Conference in April of 2012.

This year's survey will determine the Top 500 businesses in the United States and the Top 100 businesses in each State in the following categories:, Privately-Held Businesses, Women Owned Businesses, Small Businesses, Veteran and Diversity Owned. More at DiversityBusiness.com.

The Executive Order on promoting diversity and inclusion in the Federal workplace

On August 18, 2011, President Barack Obama signed an Executive Order establishing a coordinated Government-wide initiative to promote diversity and inclusion in the Federal workplace. Here's the LINK to the actual EO, and here's a LINK to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Diversity and Inclusion which includes this message:

"When we draw on the wisdom of a workforce that reflects the population we serve, we are better able to understand and meet the needs of our customers-the American people. Government-wide, we have made important progress toward hiring a workforce that truly reflects America's diversity, and we will continue to pursue that goal. But merely hiring a diverse workforce is not enough.

We must make our workplaces more inclusive as well.

America was founded on the ideal that from many, we are one, a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. That is the rationale for inclusion. To gain the maximum benefit from our increasingly diverse workforce, we must make every employee feel welcome and motivated to work their hardest and rise through the ranks. We must affirm that we work better together because of our differences, not despite them."

Steps in the right direction.