Article courtesy of Human Resource Executive
Last summer, amid growing national unrest over racial inequality, scores of corporations opened up conversations with employees about what diversity, equity and inclusion did, or should, look like at their organizations. For medical device company Medtronic, leaders sought to take the conversation one step further—with action.
Among the DEI initiatives taken over the last year, the organization launched a Global Day of Action for Racial Equity on July 29, which connected all of its more than 100,000-plus global employees with opportunities to virtually volunteer, learn about the issues and give back to community organizations.
Carol Surface, senior vice president and CHRO at Medtronic, says that, while Medtronic—which boasts pay equity of 100% for gender and 99% for ethnicity in the U.S.—has long been invested in DEI, the events of the past year prompted it to both deepen and extend that commitment.
“I would say 2020 woke us up to say, ‘We have a responsibility, grounded in our purpose statement, to amplify our impact outside of Medtronic and make a more visible and sustainable commitment to rooting out systemic inequities in society,’ ” Surface says.
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