The Diversity Within The Workplace - 1540 Words

It is a known fact that in order for companies to flourish, excellent leadership practices and employees go hand-in-hand. What most companies have failed to acknowledge is how diversity within the workplace, especially in management and executive leadership, does not have a very strong presence. Numerous executives have embraced the fact that their hiring practices are inconsistent with their new motto (we do not discriminate†¦), but fail to realize that it is more of an internal issue than it is external. The government has tried to regulate some of the practices of hiring and firing applicants. The Americans with Disabilities Act includes protection from discrimination based on a disability as well as requirements for employers and those†¦show more content†¦Louis Gerstner, former CEO of IBM, took the initiative to change the hiring/promotion strategy to encourage diversity in the company. By implementing a diversity task force in addition to personal development, div ersity in the company did not stop when he stepped down. Louis Gerstner, born March 1, 1942, began his career with McKinsey Company as a consultant from 1965 through 1978. He then received a job working for American Express Company as an Executive Vice President and Head of Charge Card Business between the years of 1978 and1981. From 1981–1983, he served as Vice Chairman of the board and from 1982–1985 as President While at American Express. He then joined Travel Related Services between the years of 1985–1989, where he was a Chairman and his first Chief Executive Officer position. He continued on his Chairman and CEO position at Nabisco between 1989 and1993, then later obtained a position at International Business Machines (IBM) Corporation from1993–2002, and is currently at The Carlyle Group where he has served as Chairman since 2003 (referenceforbusiness.com). Louis Gerstner noticed that only a few of the company’s executives had acknowledged that diversity in the company was an area where strategic focus was needed. However, once Gerstner viewed his senior executive team, he noticed that it did not match the diversity of talent that IBM