CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Some of Charlotte’s biggest names in business came together to talk about racial diversity in their companies.
They discussed how things are now and how the business community as a whole can still do better.
The head of Charlotte’s Regional Business Alliance, Janet Labar, kicked off the zoom gathering with some of Charlotte’s biggest names in business saying, "We must be an anti-racist community."
The CEOs of Lowe’s, Novant Health, TIAA and Blue Cross Blue Shield North Carolina came together for a frank conversation about diversity in Charlotte and the big companies that are headquartered here.
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"I would like to see us as leaders come together more to bridge the racial divide," BCBS NC CEO Tunde Sotunde said.
You might be surprised to hear that of the 5,100 workers at Blue Cross Blue Shield, more than half are racially diverse.
"Diversity is critical not just within our organization but we acknowledge the need for equity across the community in which we all live and work," Sotunde said.
At Lowe’s, the numbers were drastically different until about two years ago when the new CEO started.
"There was zero diversity in leadership, now it’s 46 percent. If we can take action, we can drive change," Marvin Ellison said.
And as one of the few black CEOs of a public company Ellison said he feels an obligation to talk to his team during times of social unrest.
"We need to have a real conversation so they can understand the issue and the impact on me and people who look like me," Ellison said.
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TIAA Was the first fortune 500 company with a Black CEO, but the current CEO said despite a long history of diversity. In 2020, they focused on a creative approach – starting “Be the Change” including a run for diversity and a book club promoting new connections between co-workers of different races.
"We've allowed these crises to give us a chance to double down our values," Roger Ferguson said.
The CEO of Novant Health, Carl Armato, said for them it goes beyond just diversity in the workplace but making sure diverse neighborhoods in Charlotte have equal access to healthcare. That’s why they opened the two Michael Jordan clinics.
"My goal is to eliminate health disparities," Armato said.
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