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From the editor of Profiles in Diversity Journal
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ASSISTANT TO THE PUBISHER
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Balancing act
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
Laurie Fumic A colleague of mine recently described a special tour he got of a car
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backgrounds sharing jokes and exchanging warm farewell hugs with a departing
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Commentaries or questions The juxtaposition of people and machines, R E L AT I O N S H I P S A N D TE C H N O LO GY
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Profiles in Diversity Journal,
But as Front-Runner May Snowden puts it, many companies want “to G RO W
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Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005 1

 Volume 7 • Number 4
July / August 2005

ON THE COVER / IN-DEPTH FOCUS:

Lockheed Martin Remembers Who They Work For

(and With): An Interview with Robert J. Stevens –
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer
7 Mr. Stevens leads an organization itself comprised of diverse business
areas that together are, “doing what really matters not only in this
country, but also… throughout the world.” Here he updates the
profile of Lockheed Martin’s efforts toward diversity and inclusion.

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics :

Elevating Communities, Suppliers and the Organization
14
Lockheed Martin Electronic Systems :
Delivering Better Value by Creating an Inclusive Business Environment
18
Lockheed Martin Information & Technology Services:
High School Project Helps Students Cross Digital Divide
22
Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems & Solutions :
Career Initiative ‘Grabs’ Talent
26
Lockheed Martin Space Systems :
Affinity Groups: A Company Best Practice
30
2 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
Table of Contents July/August 2005

Front-Runner: May Snowden

Starbucks’ Vice President-Global Diversity
talks about how burritos and baloney
sandwiches contributed to her perspective
for helping create a community gathering
place for Starbucks’ partners and customers
—so the company can “grow big while
staying small.”
40

departments
Diversity Who, What, Where
& When

6
Is Your Culture Aligned with Diversity?
Peter Linkow says before embarking on a diversity
initiative, an organization must determine whether
its culture offers an environment conducive to
diversity; if not, either the culture or the diversity
strategy or both must be changed. A ‘diversity
culture matrix’ facilitates assessment.
50
Gender & Parenting Skew Evaluations
Psychologists have shown that a worker’s gender
and parental status influence managers’ assessments
of job competence for hiring and promotion—with
implications for diversity leaders.

53
Reaching a World of Opportunity
In today’s global marketplace, international
experience is an increasingly crucial factor
for career success and senior leadership positions.
Those seeking global experience need to
overcome stereotyping assumptions and actively
54 pursue, evaluate, and prepare for these
opportunities; Catalyst explains how.

4 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005

At WellPoint, we celebrate the diversity
of our workforce. We are the leading
health benefits company in the nation
serving the needs of 28 million members.
What does it take to be named
FORTUNE magazine’s Most
®

A FORTUNE 50® company, we are

strengthened by the commitment and Admired Healthcare Company
dedication of our associates. If you’re
looking to join a company where six years running?
you will see your ideas in action - where
what you do helps others live better,
consider a career with us.

Visit our website to search opportunities

throughout the United States at:

www.wellpoint.com/careers
People like you.
Opportunities may be available in the
following areas:
• Actuarial
• Administrative/Clerical
• Advertising/Marketing
• Claims/Membership/Customer Service
• Compliance
• Corporate Communications
• Finance & Accounting
• Human Resources
• Information Technology
• Legal
• Management
• Nursing/Case Management
• Pharmacy
• Provider Network Development
• Sales
• Training
• Underwriting

SM
 Emmett T. Vaughn Named
Exelon’s Supplier Diversity
Manager
Emmett T. Vaughn is now Supplier
Diversity Manager at Exelon
Corporation (one of the nation’s
largest electric utilities), replacing
recently retired George Peters.
Vaughn will drive Exelon’s Diversity
Business Enablement Program to
maximize opportunities for minority-
and woman-owned business
enterprises via procurement
expenditure goals, a supplier
diversity council, third-party
certification, and mandatory Tier II
diversity spending.
Vaughn was previously the
principal of Eminent Connections
Consulting; director of business
diversity for Albertsons; director
for diverse business markets at RR
Donnelley; and executive-on-loan
to the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition.
Vaughn serves on numerous boards.
He holds a master’s degree
(management) from Northwestern
University and a bachelor’s degree from
Northeast Missouri State University.
6 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
Leslie Mays Joins Pfizer
as Vice President of Global
Diversity and Inclusion
Leslie Mays has recently joined
Pfizer as Vice President of Global
Diversity and Inclusion—responsible
for augmenting Pfizer’s current
diversity efforts and devising plans
to achieve Pfizer's goal of attracting,
developing and engaging a diverse
workforce.
May was most recently vice
president of global diversity and
inclusiveness at Shell International
(for nine years), establishing the
first auditable global diversity and
inclusiveness policy in a global cor-
poration (see her feature article,
“Shell Makes a Difference for
Women,” Profiles in Diversity
Journal: Nov-Dec 2004.)
Mays has a bachelor’s degree
(communications) from Texas
Southern University.
Roslyn Dickerson Now
Regional Senior VP, Diversity-
The Americas at
Intercontinental Hotels
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG),
the world’s largest and most global
hotel company, has appointed Roslyn
Dickerson, regional senior vice
president, Diversity- the Americas.
IHG, and her appointment represents
the company’s continued focus on
diversity and inclusion by sharpening
its focus on diversity in terms of
internal staffing, operations and key.
Prior to joining IHG, Dickerson
served as chief diversity officer with
Honeywell where she initiated a
complete redesign of strategy,
operating structure and governance
model for that firm’s leadership. She
has also held various senior level
positions managing diversity
initiatives at Citigroup and Merrill
Lynch & Co.
Dickerson has a B.S. (science,
education and health sciences) from
Boston University and an M.B.A.
from Johnson Graduate School of
Management at Cornell University.
She has served on a number
of charitable, educational and
diversity-promoting boards and
PDJ
councils.
Preceding page, inset: The U.S. Presidential Helicopter
Replacement Program aircraft, a big recent win for LM,
would not have been possible without a commitment to
diversity and inclusiveness in encouraging innovative
thought based on a wide variety of dimensions.

This page: Bob Stevens makes meeting LM employees

a high priority.
 Special Feature Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin
Remembers Who They
Work For (and With):
A n I n t e r v i e w w i t h Ro b e r t J . S t e ve n s –
C h a i r m a n , P re s i d e n t a n d C h i e f E xe c u t i ve
O f f i c e r o f Lo c k h e e d M a r t i n .

M r. Stevens’ resume is heady reading: he holds mas-

ter’s degrees in engineering and management as
well as in business; a former U.S. Marine, he is also
a graduate of the Department of Defense Systems
Management course; he served on President Bush’s
Commission to Examine the Future of the United States
Aerospace Industry; and he was named the National
Management Association’s Executive of the Year for 2004. He
leads an organization itself comprised of diverse business
units that together are, in his words, “doing what really
matters not only in this country, but also to… vital institu-
tions throughout the world.” Here he addresses issues of
diversity and inclusion and updates the profile of Lockheed
Martin’s diversity and inclusion efforts since he assumed
leadership. [Note: Many italicized initiatives are detailed in
the business area focus articles that follow this interview.]

Does Lockheed Martin [LM] have any particular

challenges to delivering products and services, or
in hiring and retaining good people? Conversely,
does your company have special opportunities or
advantages?
Lockheed Martin is a global enterprise that offers a broad
range of opportunities for employees of all perspectives. I like
to think that the very nature of our work—which is centered
on delivering complex technological solutions to government
customers, both domestic and abroad—separates us from
other business enterprises. As government exists to serve its
citizens, there is an inherent responsibility for our corporation
to deliver systems that work when called
upon, whether on the battlefield or in the
mail system processing timely delivery of
checks to retirees. Lockheed Martin employ-
ees routinely have the opportunity to expe-
rience a unique sense of accomplishment in
that they truly work day in and day out on
vital programs of national and international
significance.

Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005 9

Robert J. Stevens Chief Executive Officer

Robert J. Stevens,
CO M PA NY: Lockheed Martin Corporation Chairman,
President & CEO
H E A D Q UA RTE R S : Bethesda, MD

W E B S I TE : www.lockheedmartin.com

BUSINESS: Lockheed Martin is principally

engaged in the research, design, development,
manufacture, and integration of advanced
technology systems, products, and services,
particularly in defense and civil government
markets
DATA :
S A LE S : 2004 sales of $35.5 billion (and a
In attracting the best and brightest, we focus on what
we call the “total value” of a Lockheed Martin career. First
is an inclusive work environment based on the conviction
that the success of the individual promotes the success of
the enterprise. At Lockheed Martin, there’s the chance to
work at a company with 60,000 scientists and engineers
and still follow an alternative work schedule that provides
life flexibility and balance. Other elements of our “total
value” package include outstanding pay and benefits, a
commitment to career development, and excellent
rewards and recognition programs.

backlog of $74 billion); ranked 47th on 2005 Your Web site says LM wants to be a place
Fortune 500 list of largest industrial of ‘institutionalized inclusion’, but with five
distinct business areas, how do you make sure
corporations
it’s still ‘one company, one team’?
Lockheed Martin was formed 10 years ago from the com-
E M P LOY E E S : ~130,000 people worldwide at
bination of more than 18 companies, and we have made
939 facilities in 457 cities in 45 U.S. states and major strides in developing one corporate identity—
no small feat in my opinion. Also, we have embarked on
56 nations and territories an initiative to enhance our ‘horizontal integration’, which
simply means to leverage our diverse technical strengths and
C U S TO M E R S / M A R K E TS H A R E : U.S. Department find the most effective solutions to complex challenges.
In the context of our efforts to develop an environment
of Defense/intelligence - 58%; civil government/ of ‘institutionalized inclusion’, each of our five principal
homeland security - 22%; international - 17%; business areas has accountability for encouraging employees
to reach their full potential in contributing to business
commercial domestic - 3% success. Meanwhile, we have established standards,
processes and metrics that are uniform across all our business
SUPPLIERS: has proactive supplier diversity areas to independently evaluate our continued progress.

initiatives designed to develop the capabilities

Do you have any examples of how tapping
of and pursue subcontracts and other employee diversity has yielded significant
procurements with small, disadvantaged, product or profit breakthroughs or synergies?
First, our drive toward one company, one team has
women-owned, veteran, historically achieved remarkable financial success for the
corporation in the last several years. We
under-utilized, black and continue to build on the progress
Native American Indian made. Many of our key wins would
not have been possible without a
and other minority commitment to diversity and team-
work—both within the corporation
institutions and by thinking globally in the con-
text of partners from other countries

10 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005


“ We deliberately set our standards high
so this would not be viewed as a
gimmick to make us look good.
throughout the world. A few examples
of recent big wins underscore this
approach, from the U.S. Presidential
Helicopter Replacement Program to
the Joint Strike Fighter and various
government IT solutions.
Internationally, Lockheed Martin
today has more than 300 alliances,
joint ventures and other partnerships
in over 50 countries. All this activity
requires a diversity of individuals,
thoughts and perspectives that mirrors
the world in which we do business.
In 2001, your predecessor Dr.
Coffman established the LM
Executive Diversity Council and
appointed you as chair—what
is your current role and how is
the Council going beyond
theorizing the corporation’s
diversity commitment?
I am very proud to continue leading
our Executive Diversity Council, and I
believe we are making significant
progress. We have done our best to
put words into action. At the same
time, we must recognize that we are
on a journey to achieve a fully inclu-
sive work environment, and it has to
be a long-term commitment.
In addition to our Executive
Diversity Council, we now have 35
local diversity councils actively sup-
porting our business units’ efforts to
achieve the diversity vision. Since
2002, we have required diversity train-
ing of our managers to help them
understand barriers to inclusion as
well as their accountability in the
process of inclusion.
In 2003, as a result of an
Executive Diversity Council discussion
on mentoring best practices already
Special Feature Lockheed Martin
existing in the corporation, we formalized
a requirement for all vice presidents
and directors to serve in an Executive
Mentoring Program. We have also
” RO B E RT J . S TE V E N S
This is linked directly to our manage-
ment incentive compensation program
to assure accountability.
encouraged all our employees to seek Who monitors this survey
out mentoring opportunities in many
ways, such as participating in mentoring
process to assure it is effective?
In addition to the specific diversity
roundtables or informally seeking out
survey I just mentioned, we conduct
the knowledge of others.
two other surveys on ethics and
Last year, we introduced Diversity
employee satisfaction—each done
Dialogues that managers lead with
every two years and each including
employees on scenarios that illustrate
diversity topics. The Executive
the importance of inclusion to business
Leadership Team for the corporation,
success. The dialogues afford our employ-
the Executive Diversity Council, and
ees an opportunity to express their views
on diversity issues. We are continuing
the management team at each busi-
ness unit are all responsible for assur-
the Diversity Dialogues this year, and
ing that this feedback is leveraged for
the feedback has been very positive.
opportunities to improve. I am pleased
Beyond these efforts, we have
to say that since we accelerated our
been fully involved in a variety of
initiatives to enhance outreach,
diversity activities a few years ago, our
survey results, particularly on the
recruiting, new employee orientation,
work environment around inclusion,
and career development.
have improved dramatically.
How do you measure diversity, How does LM do ‘continual
and what targets do you have
re-recruitment’ of its
for 2005? workforce, from new-hires
Last fall we introduced a new metric
to seasoned employees
that provides us with a common set of
criteria to measure our level of diversity approaching retirement?
maturity and identify opportunities for Is diversity/inclusion helping
improvement. This metric combines
an employee survey, objective demo-
forestall a brain drain
of boomers?
graphic data around diversity, and
Our approach begins before people
business unit self-assessments. The
join Lockheed Martin. We have
most weight goes to the survey,
engaged with some of the most
because we will know we have
important community partners in
reached a state of institutionalized
developing interest, opportunities and
inclusion when employees tell us so.
scholarships for the best talent.
We deliberately set our standards
Overall, with a much-improved new
high so this would not be a viewed as
employee orientation program, we are
a gimmick to make us look good. This
seeing a positive impact on hiring and
fall, we will complete our second
early introduction to the Lockheed
assessment, and our overall corporate
Martin work environment.
objective is to achieve a 25 percent
Independent awards seem to be
improvement in this measurement.
Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005 11
Robert J. Stevens Chief Executive Officer
validating our conclusion that we
are making progress. For example,
Universum Communications’ 2005 stu-
dent survey named Lockheed Martin
the first choice as an ideal employer
for engineering and science students.
Once employees get here we
need to keep them here, and that is
facilitated by providing a supportive
environment where they can develop
and grow. In addition to mentoring,
we are putting increased emphasis on
our leadership development programs
as well as on career planning and
growth for all employees. Soon we
will also launch an alumni network to
keep our ties with employees who
leave for other jobs but may wish to
return. We try to re-recruit our work-
force through exciting challenges,
education and development in an
environment of encouragement for
individual differences as part of a team.
Can you name specific ways
your company supports
upward development of
women and minorities toward
management positions?
We are making measurable progress
in upward development of women
and minorities, but we recognize that,
like a lot of other industries, we must
work hard to improve at an accelerat-
ed pace. Beyond representation per-
centages, the outreach, recruitment
and development programs I just
described should have a major impact
in the long term. More immediately,
two years ago we established the
Lockheed Martin Center for
Leadership Excellence, a state-of-the-
art facility dedicated to the growth and
12 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
development of our employees.
What should not be lost in this
discussion is that we need more peo-
ple to fill the pipeline. With the baby
boomers nearing retirement, there are
not enough minorities and women
going into the technical disciplines.
Fewer students are studying science,
technology, engineering and mathe-
matics, and at the same time shifting
demographics are bringing more
women and minorities into the labor
force as a whole. It is critical for the
future of business and industry to be
actively engaged in outreach efforts to
encourage and support tomorrow’s
engineers today. At Lockheed Martin,
this is a big commitment—because
our survival hinges on it—in every-
thing from the multitude of ways our
employees volunteer in our communi-
ties to bigger, nationwide initiatives
like Space Day and National
Engineers Week.
What is the company’s
commitment to minority
suppliers?
This is an area in which Lockheed
Martin is especially strong, doing over
$4 billion of subcontracting a year
with small businesses. By any meas-
ure, that’s a staggering amount. Our
outreach activities have identified
many small minority- and women-
owned businesses as suppliers.
We have begun holding one-day
workshops around the nation that
focus on how to do business with
Lockheed Martin. We also have a
STAR Supplier Program that recog-
nizes our top performing suppliers to
communicate their success across the
corporation. Internally, we have
upgraded our training efforts with the
help of computer-based modules and
are examining our procurement
processes with the help of lean thinking.
Our supplier diversity efforts have
garnered the corporation many
awards of which we are very proud.
In 2003, we joined just eight other
companies as a member of the Billion
Dollar Roundtable for our leadership
in support of small, disadvantaged and
minority-owned businesses. And we
are continually working to improve.
In accepting the 2004
Executive of the Year Award
from the National Management
Association you said,
“leadership performs best at
the front where the action is.”
What elements of leadership do
you see as important for your
executives in carrying out the
Lockheed Martin diversity vision?
What I am saying is that leadership
can’t hide in offices or behind titles,
but has to be engaged with the people
who are responsible for our success.
This is a major priority of mine, and it
is one reason I have spent consider-
able time meeting with employees
throughout the corporation.
We continue to make progress in the
representation of women and minorities
in our executive ranks. We are develop-
ing a new Leadership Competency Model
that will help us encourage, develop and
grow the best kind of leaders for the suc-
cess of people and the business. This
model is based on what I call ‘full spec-
 Special Feature Lockheed Martin

CORPORATE VALUE STATEMENT

These are the standards that inform and

inspire all of our activities, and distinguish
us as a corporation.
• Ethics
• Excellence
• ‘Can-Do’
• Integrity
• People
• Teamwork
Opposite page: In keeping with his theme of “Leadership
as a Verb,” Stevens has made a special effort to connect
with as many LM employees as possible. FIVE BUSINESS AREAS
Above: Stevens reviews a presentation for an upcoming ARE DETAILED IN SUBSEQUENT
Executive Diversity Council meeting with Manny Zulueta, PAGES OF THIS FEATURE:
senior vice president for Corporate Shared Services, and
Shan Carr, vice president for Diversity and Equal
Opportunity Programs. A E RO N AU T I C S
• Combat Aircraft
trum’ leadership—delivering on the ‘numbers’ and having the
necessary people skills to ensure a positive environment • Air Mobility
where employees can grow and fully contribute. • Research & Development
We will be implementing the new Leadership
Competency Model in evaluating candidates for manage-
ment. In our assessments of current managers, we look at E LE C T RO N I C S Y S T E M S
how well they are modeling our values, which put ethics,
performance, people and teamwork at a premium. Finally, • Missiles & Fire Control
as I indicated, we have introduced a diversity component • Maritime Systems & Sensors
into this year’s management incentive compensation pro-
gram. Our leaders will be held accountable for behavior • Platform, Training & Transportation Solutions
consistent with this model, and I believe it will help us
continue to improve.
I N F O R M AT I O N & TE C H N O LO GY S E RV I C E S

What has been your proudest moment as • Information Technology

leader in this company? • Defense Services
Since taking over as CEO, I have traveled throughout our • Engineering and Science Services
enterprise and have met literally tens of thousands of
employees. These are my proudest moments—to be there
to speak with them and listen to their desires and I N T E G R AT E D S Y S TE M S & S O LU T I O N S
concerns, and to let them know that what they are doing
really matters, not only in this country, but also to our • Intelligence Systems
allies as well as vital institutions throughout the world. • DoD C4ISR
I always come away inspired by the people who
make this the great enterprise it is today.
Lockheed Martin people give me the S PAC E S Y S T E M S
strength and motivation to do every-
thing in my power to help them • Satellites
succeed personally and professionally
in support of some of the most • Launch Services

PDJ
important and, in reality, historic
initiatives of our time. • Strategic & Defensive
Missile Systems

Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005 13

Thanks to the diversity
of our workforce, we are
able to show young people
that success looks just
like they do.
Elevating Communities, Suppliers
and the Organization
The Aeronautics business area
of Lockheed Martin makes a
positive impact on the eight
communities where its facilities
and 28,000 employees are
located in Texas, Georgia,
California, Florida, Mississippi,
Pennsylvania, West Virginia
and Utah.
“
J ust as diversity is a key
component in our company’s
success, it is also a major factor in
community-building efforts,” says
Ralph Heath, Lockheed Martin execu-
tive vice president in charge of the
Aeronautics business area. “The inter-
ests of a diverse and caring workforce
are reflected in the depth and breadth
of involvement our employees have in
their communities. Last year, our
employees contributed more than $3.2
top left: LM Day Camp students got to see
the C-130J airplane being built.
left: LM Aeronautics - Marietta volunteer
David Pettett teaches students about
electricity during an LM Smart Lesson.
lower left: Jeff Thom, a mechanical engineer,
helps middle school students build a can
creation. The students discovered the
engineering and manufacturing process and
also built one-of-a-kind advertisements for
Lockheed Martin's Make Cans Count Program,
where proceeds from recycled aluminum soda
cans help fund Habitat for Humanity houses.
lower right: Brenda Hogan, a senior admin-
istrative assistant, helps fifth graders create
craters at the Lockheed Martin Space Day
celebration. The annual event inspires students
to study math and science by putting the
power of the universe in their own hands.
million to a wide variety of charitable
causes. When combined with $3.4
million in support from the company,
it shows our communities are important
partners for LM Aeronautics.
“In addition, 420 Aeronautics
employees each volunteered over 100
hours of service to local not-for-profits
and hundreds more served on boards
of philanthropic organizations—well
over 98,000 hours of service in total to
many diverse organizations. Some
employees like to pick up a hammer
and help build a house with Habitat
for Humanity, others advance the arts,
and still others go into the classroom
and help youngsters learn to read,
mentor underserved student popula-
tions or participate with them in science
experiments.”
Starting Young :
Educational Outreach
Many, if not most, of the
Aeronautics business area’s
community initiatives focus on
youth and include a diversity
component. Programs like
Aviation Camp, the Texas
Alliance for Minorities in
Engineering, and Aerospace
Careers Outreach provide
opportunities for underserved
student populations.
“We see the importance of
helping to develop a capable,
competent, technical workforce
of tomorrow. Our employees
serve as role models, encourag-
ing non-traditional math and sci-
ence students to pursue technical
studies and careers. Through
mentoring relationships and edu-
cational programs, we provide
young people with confidence
and encouragement. Our goal is
Profiles in Diversity Journal
to teach, to inspire, to motivate. Thanks
to the diversity of our workforce, we
are able to show young people that
success looks just like they do,” says
Heath.
Aeronautics outreach events for
young people range from week-long
day camps to ongoing education pro-
grams. “These programs are not only a
way to be a good corporate citizen,
but they also help us ensure that young
people look forward to careers at
Lockheed Martin—or a similar company
—in the future,” explains Lee Rhyant,
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics executive
vice president and general manager at
the company’s Marietta, GA, site. “We
pride ourselves on ensuring mission
success for our customers at their
defining moments. The school years
are those defining moments for this
nation’s future business leaders. For
our company, our aerospace industry
and our national defense to survive in
the future, these children must be
exposed today to the excitement of a
career that uses math, science and
technology. That will be mission suc-
cess for all concerned.”
Each summer, Lockheed Martin
teams with the Georgia National
Guard, Dobbins Air Reserve Base and
Fernbank Science Center to sponsor
an educational day camp open to 4th
through 8th grade students from
metro Atlanta. Hands-on activities
help students experience the wonders
of science and math through class-
room discussions, aircraft tours and a
chance to see the C-130J transport and
F/A-22 fighter being built.
The company’s partnership with
the University of Texas Pan American
(which contributed to selection of LM
as 2003 “Employer of the Year”)
includes a mentoring program in which
technical professionals use video-
July/August 2005 15
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics
teleconferencing to coach students in a
math-science acceleration program in
the Rio Grande Valley. Lockheed
Martin also hosts officials from the
schools to support their critical role in
encouraging young people to explore
careers in math and science. LM
Aeronautics has helped foster similar
partnership initiatives with Jackson
State University and Cal Poly Pomona.
LM Aeronautics also supports the
Peach State STARBASE (Science &
Technology Academics Reinforcing
Basic Aviation & Space Education)
Program run by the U.S. Department
of Defense and conducted by the
National Guard. After classroom
instruction on the principles of flight,
at-risk elementary school students
begin learning sophisticated flight
simulation in the Lockheed Martin
Technology Center at Dobbins Air
Reserve Base.
Science, math and research
technology are the focus of LM
SMART (Science, Math and Research
Technology) in Marietta. Working with
two partner-in-education elementary
schools, the program encourages
exceptional students to increase their
knowledge in math, science and tech-
nology through classroom experience,
faculty and peer recognition, and
mentoring. Aeronautics employees
conduct monthly workshops and a
graduation ceremony.
LM Aeronautics has an impact at
the high school level as well. In
Marietta, engineers work with high
school students each week as part of
the AVID (Advancement Via
Individual Determination) Program.
An elective class, AVID focuses on
college preparation, writing, inquiry,
and collaboration. Floyd Jerrod Hall,
an aeronautics engineer, recently
described working with AVID for LM
Today, a corporate newspaper.
“We work with the students every
week, and we develop close relation-
ships with the students over the two
or three years they are in the
program,” Hall said. “These kids are
exposed to people who are dealing
drugs. Some of them come from abu-
16 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
We pride ourselves on
ensuring mission success
for our customers at their
defining moments.
sive homes, and very often they are
coming from homes in which no one
went to college. We provide third-
party support, and the kids know
we’re third party support that wants to
to be there with them. When I go into
a classroom and a student comes up
and starts talking about the A’s he or
she has gotten in a particular class, it
makes me feel like I’m giving some-
thing that’s priceless. We may have the
next Lockheed Martin CEO sitting right
in that classroom.”
Learning Points Foundation has
designated Lockheed Martin’s Young
Engineers for America (YEA) Program
as a national best practice in academic
educational programs. YEA, a partner-
ship between the Fort Worth
Independent School District (FWISD)
and LM Aeronautics, was selected as
the 2003 Spotlight Program for
FWISD. Several years ago Lockheed
Martin assisted FWISD in applying for
a $30,000 Department of Education
grant to purchase the Academy of
Engineering and Academy of Robotics
laboratories. The implementation of
the labs at Riverside Middle School is
the first corporate-sponsored / school-
based K-12 engineering Lego lab in
Texas and the only such laboratory in
the nation to fully integrate a six sigma
approach within its curriculum.
“The laboratory is a project-based,
merit-based, and inquiry-based learn-
ing lab,” explained Norman Robbins,
manager of Community Relations for
Aeronautics. “While building 21st cen-
tury technical skills, the curriculum also
emphasizes personal development and
self-esteem. Students build, design and
solve problems with hands-on projects
resulting in knowable, touchable and
observable real-world outcomes. The
portable engineering lab provides edu-
cational opportunities in math, science,
engineering, technology literacy,
physics, electricity, and Web page
design. Foundations of mechanical
engineering and structures in architec-
ture are also explored.”
Since 1992, more than 1,200 mid-
dle-school students from California’s
Antelope Valley have gathered at
the LM Aeronautics Skunk Works
in Palmdale, CA, to attend the
Lightspeed Institute, an outreach
initiative that exposes youth to engi-
neering and physics principles
involved in aeronautics. The weekend
technical ‘camp’ gives students a
chance to explore engineering
concepts through competitive exercis-
es facilitated by technical profession-
als who work with aeronautical sys-
tems and principles on a daily basis.
“Our employees are making a
positive impact not only internally but
in our community as well,” said Rick
Baker, LM Aeronautics vice president
and general manager at the Palmdale
facility. “You’ll find us out in the com-
munity volunteering to share our
strengths where we find weaknesses.
Mentoring youth on many levels is a
primary focus. While Lightspeed is our
signature program, our employees
also take their knowledge and expert-
ise directly into local classrooms—
all grade levels—mentoring robotics
teams, sponsoring American
Enterprise Speech contests, judging
senior projects and teaching about the
importance of environmental respon-
sibility, to name a few. We believe it is
up to us to offer opportunity to all; it’s
what each person does with the
opportunity that makes the difference.”
Building Communities
Community service happens at smaller
LM Aeronautics facilities, as well as the
large sites. Employees in Meridian, MS;
Clarksburg, WV; Johnstown, PA;
Pinellas Park, FL; and Ogden, UT,
support activities such as Habitat for
Humanity, March of Dimes’ Walk-
America, Susan G. Komen Race for the
Cure, and the American Cancer
Society’s Relay for Life fund-raisers.
Almost 1,000 LM Aeronautics
employees participated in volunteer
activities throughout the country for
the 2004 Make a Difference Day. In
Marietta, employees welcomed troops

Members of the Lockheed Martin Leadership Association joined with local commu-
nity members to celebrate diverse cultures during the ninth annual Black
History Celebration Dinner in Palmdale, CA.
home from Iraq, renovated houses,
and donated books and toys to a child-
care center. In Fort Worth, employees
worked on several Habitat for
Humanity projects, providing families
in need with safe, comfortable homes.
And in Palmdale, employees helped
renovate local elementary schools, pro-
viding 5,000 elementary students with
a cleaner, safer place to learn and play.
“Giving back to the community is
a tradition of service taken very
seriously here,” said Alyce Sarno,
director of Community Relations at
Marietta. “Participating in Make a
Difference Day provides our employees
with the opportunity to strengthen the
foundation that makes our local com-
munity successful: education, oppor-
tunities for youth, social services, eco-
nomic development and arts and culture.”
“Make a Difference Day is a great
way to reach out to our neighbors and
lend a helping hand,” said Paul
Weatherman, a Palmdale employee.
Company initiatives designed to
increase inclusiveness and diversity
both in the business itself and in the
community include fund-raising,
scholarship programs and recognition
events for organizations (National
Urban League, National Association
for the Advancement of Colored
People, Latin American Association,
Southern Institute, Georgia Hispanic
Chamber of Commerce, and United
Negro College Fund, to name just a few).
LM Aeronautics is a prime sponsor
or program participant in Martin
Luther King Day celebrations in Fort
Worth and Marietta—serving on the
planning committees, providing
speakers, or hosting tables at events,
many attended by over 500 guests,
including students, civic and political
leaders and corporate representatives.
“Our participation in these ways
offers more than just contribution dollars,”
said Ernesto Duran, director for the
LM Aeronautics Diversity and Equal
Opportunity programs. “It also com-
municates our commitment to the val-
ues and mission of the organizations,
as well as our commitment to support
the communities in which our
employees live and work.”
Supplier Diversity
Suppliers are another fundamental
part of the diversity emphasis at
LM Aeronautics. As part of the corpo-
ration’s commitment to furthering
business partnerships and helping to
develop minority, small, and women-
owned businesses as potential suppliers,
LM Aeronautics supports groups such
as the Georgia Women’s Business
Council, Fort Worth Women’s Business
Center, Georgia Minority Suppliers
Development Council, and Native
American Procurement and Technical
Assistance Center.
Working with the Georgia
Women’s Business Council, for example,
Lockheed Martin has increased its
local supplier diversity database by
more than 50 potential partners,
contracted with women-owned busi-
nesses, provided business develop-
ment guidance and donated several
thousand dollars worth of office equip-
ment and furnishings. LM Aeronautics
Marietta also co-sponsors a south-
eastern regional women’s leadership
conference that brings together more
than 150 women entrepreneurs for ses-
sions on business planning, marketing,
developing competitive bidding
packages, mentoring and access to
corporate opportunities.
This year, LM Aeronautics sponsored
the Annual Showcase for Commerce
Profiles in Diversity Journal
Special Feature Lockheed Martin
hosted by Congressman John Murtha
and the Chamber of Commerce
in Johnstown, PA. In Texas, the
LM Aeronautics Small Business Office
hosted the presentation at the University
of Texas-Arlington’s Automation and
Robotics Research Institute. The company
also provided a presentation at the
Western Regional Business Match-
making event in Pasadena, CA.
Kudos and Careers
Another priority for LM Aeronautics is
highlighting the achievements of
minority and female employees
through national honors programs.
Through nominations by the company,
employees have been honored at
the Black Engineer of the Year Awards,
Hispanic Engineer National Achieve-
ment Awards, Emerald Honors Awards,
and by the Women of Color
Technology, the Chinese Institute of
Engineering, Women in Aerospace and
Women in Aviation organizations.
Professional development and
leadership opportunities for employees
are another aspect of the emphasis on
inclusiveness at LM Aeronautics. The
Excellence through Development and
Growth Enhancement (EDGE) program,
which won a best practice designation
by the U.S. Department of Labor, puts
strategic focus on providing opportunities
for high potential employees. EDGE is
a two-year program that provides men-
toring, professional development classes
and special assignments for participants
nominated by their managers and
selected after panel interviews. Many
past participants are now senior man-
agers and directors in the company.
“The strength of our company rests
on the diversity of our workforce,”
emphasizes Ralph Heath. “Our high
technology products are sold and
manufactured around the world to a
very diverse set of customers. Through
the diversity of our workforce and our
employees’ breadth of experiences,
talents, and perspectives, we are better
equipped to create the innovative
products that are relevant to the wide
range of customer needs. All of this
translates to greater competitiveness
PDJ
and success in the marketplace.”
July/August 2005 17
Understanding our customer enables us to
deliver better value and provide business
solutions that exceed expectations. To do
this, we need a workforce and standards
that mirror the diversity of our customers.
 Delivering Better Value by Creating an
Inclusive Business Environment
Because the Lockheed Martin
Systems Integration unit in
Owego, NY (part of the LM
electronic systems business
area) fosters an environment
that encourages all employees
to feel valued and comfortable
to express their ideas and bring
their skills and abilities to bear
each day, the business is able to
provide its customers with out-
standing products and services.
D iversity takes many different
forms. Beyond factors like race,
gender and age, ultimately
every single employee is uniquely differ-
ent from many dimensions. According
to LM Systems Integration–Owego
president Frank C. Meyer, who is also a
founding member of Lockheed Martin’s
corporate Executive Diversity Council,
strengthening core values like diversity
and inclusion nurtures empowerment,
creativity and ‘what-if’ solutions. This,
in turn, has led to winning significant
new business for Owego and
Lockheed Martin Corporation—such as
the multibillion-dollar award to build 23
next-generation Marine One presidential
helicopters for the U.S. Navy.
How did diversity play a role in
this win? Linking AugustaWestland’s
platform, Lockheed Martin’s systems
integration expertise, and Bell
Helicopter’s manufacturing abilities
made for a winning team comprised of
talented and dedicated people.
AugustaWestland is an Italian-
British firm that specializes in designing
and manufacturing helicopters. Many
Newer aircraft use precision
engagement upgrades by
Lockheed Martin.
time zones and a continent away, LM
employees—primarily in rural, upstate
New York—specialize in integrating
complex systems. Add to the partner-
ship Bell Helicopter’s operations based
in Texas, and you have a scenario that
requires great coordination and collab-
oration to manage the challenges that
developed as a result of different lan-
guages, cultures, and national pride.
Overcoming these differences
through teamwork was made possible
by a dedicated group of employees
from each company—who also
demonstrated the importance of
inclusion—and allowed LM Owego to
remain focused on the critical business
and product issues required to win the
program.
Creating Competitive
Advantage
The presidential helicopter project
illustrates how the company considers
diversity an important key to creating a
competitive advantage. Superior per-
formance and high productivity are
major elements of the corporation’s
customer-focus goals.
“At LM Owego it starts with each
employee’s drive to deliver excel-
lence,” Meyer noted. “One of the key
ingredients of our inclusive approach is
reaching out to people for their input.
There is no doubt in my mind that
doing whatever you can to help all
your employees feel like part of the
team adds value, which in turn makes
a real difference for our customers.”
How is this achieved at LM Owego?
The Technical Assistant (TA) Program
is a good example: each business area
executive competitively selects a mid-
career, high-potential employee to
work with one-on-one for up to eight
months. From this arrangement, the
executive gets an eager, hard-working,
Profiles in Diversity Journal
skilled professional assistant who par-
ticipates in 70 percent of the events the
executive does—from driving action
items to closure to managing the office.
Equally important, the executive also
gets a fresh set of eyes and a diverse
perspective from the assistant.
The TA accomplishes his or her job
by developing close working relation-
ships with each member of the execu-
tive’s team and working with them as
an equal. At the end of the assignment,
the business has a well-trained member
of the team intimately aware of the
business status and strategies as well as
an employee with keen insight into
working with high-performing execu-
tives. As to diversity, it isn’t so much
the age, race or gender of these TAs,
but the unique personality, skills and
approach that each one brings to the
job that makes a difference.
Teamwork
Andrew Carnegie once said that team-
work is the “fuel that allows common
people to attain uncommon results.”
According to Diversity Program manager
Tara Mancinelli, the nearly 4,000
employees who comprise LM Systems
Integration-Owego are great examples
of how, given the right environment,
dedicated and innovative teams can
form to deliver some of the most
powerful and important systems
integration products worldwide.
It’s noteworthy that an eighth of
LM Owego’s employees are located in
Canada, where about half of those
workers speak French as their first
language. LM Owego also has opera-
tions in the United Kingdom where the
majority of the workforce is comprised
of local nationals. This certainly makes
for a geographically and culturally
diverse employee population from
which high performance work teams
July/August 2005 19
Lockheed Martin Electronic Systems

are forged to win business Programs with long performance the box, we were able to
every year. At the core of mak- periods are helped by processes reach out in a new direction
ing this complex organization and take a different
perform is a solid sense of that ensure technology and approach that helped us
leadership, a willingness to knowledge transfer. We use training, succeed,” said Steve Ramsey,
communicate, a belief in executive vice president for
process, and an inclination to mentoring and formal process Helicopter Systems. “We
encourage participation. standards excellence to transfer looked for the right people
Another illustration of who were the right fit,
complex teaming in a diverse knowledge and skills from without having any preset
employee environment that employee team to employee team. determinations. Each
allowed Lockheed Martin to be employee brought a unique
a contender on the U.S. presi- Mentoring is, at its core, a tool of perspective to our business,
dential helicopter bid is a diversity. and continues to help us
successful program in the create innovative solutions
United Kingdom managed by LM Part of that U.K. maritime helicopter for our customer, and customer focus is
Owego. In 1991, LM Owego competed program involved moving 150 always our key priority. The more
for and won a helicopter integration Americans and their families to Britain inclusive we are, the more we can ben-
bid to provide 40 maritime helicopters during the first year. Teamed with a efit from our intellectual capital and
to the United Kingdom’s Ministry similar number of British employees, deliver the best product to the cus-
of Defense. LM Owego won this the group overcame cultural and skill tomer,” he emphasized.
bid even though it didn’t make mix boundaries that could have caused
helicopters and wasn’t a British the program to fail. Through teamwork Product
company. and good communications, an environ-
A different aspect of how diversity has
By teaming with Westland, a ment of trust and respect developed. shaped the business and employees in
British helicopter firm, LM Owego Ultimately, working relationships were LM Systems Integration-Owego is the
used its systems integration skills— so solid that many of the American spectrum of products developed and
honed by performing well on an employees and their families extended produced by the business. Drawing
American helicopter program for more their work assignments, some for more talent out of each business area makes
than 20 years—to be a serious con- than 10 years. for a very diverse team, in addition to
tender for the Royal Navy program. “These close partnerships and the
helping recruit employees who are
In addition, LM Owego built a set of resulting business success allowed attracted to such a broad business base.
subcontractor relationships in Britain Lockheed Martin to be in an excellent “If you really want to be a company
and Europe that made it a viable com- position to use our partner’s platform that brings about the best ideas, the
petitor for this U.K. proposal. After to bid into and win the presidential best information, the best performing
winning, the company worked hard for helicopter opportunity 12 years later,” teams, diversity is the kind of attitude
another decade, delivering 40 helicopters Meyer emphasized. that will help you do that,” said Jeff
on time, at contract performance, and “Thanks to the ability of our
Bantle, vice president of Multi-Mission
at budget. diverse population to think outside of
Solutions.

20 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005


An automated package
processing system operating
at a U.S. Postal Service
Processing and Distribution
Center serving
metropolitan Chicago.
By the end of 2004, LM Owego
employees worldwide had delivered 14
common cockpits ahead of schedule on
the U.S. Navy’s MH-60 multi-mission
helicopter program, bringing the overall
number of cockpits delivered on the
program to 81. In 2004, Bantle’s team
also completed major operation and
development testing on the same MH-
60 program, prepared the rollout of a
newly re-designated A-10C aircraft for
the U.S. Air Force which will keep the
“Warthog” flying through 2028, and fin-
ished the last of 57 installations of
Lockheed Martin’s direct infrared coun-
termeasures systems for the Navy.
The Subsystems Solutions busi-
ness at Owego provides further illus-
tration of how diversity impacts prod-
ucts and customer service. Employees
in this business achieved significant
intelligent electronic warfare mile-
stones in its Soothsayer project in the
United Kingdom; co-developed the
technology that powers Royal Mail’s
award-winning SmartStamp™ online
postage service targeting small and
home office users throughout the
United Kingdom; and maintained its
superior record of applying innovative
technology to make operations more
efficient for its U.S. Postal Service
customer.
All of these complex programs are
only possible in an environment that
encourages teaming and cooperation—
wherein employees communicate and
feel as if what they have to say and
what they bring to the team is valued.
Knowledge Transfer
A third vantage point for how diversity
in the workplace directly impacts a
customer is to consider how changing
demographics drive success or failure.
Globalization, an aging workforce, and
shifting demographics in the labor pool
are trends transforming how LM Owego
works—but more importantly, trans-
forming how the business unit continues
to serve customers despite changes in
personnel. Providing customers with
consistently high performance can be
difficult to achieve when employees
retire and new staff is hired.
Companies need to ensure that long-
term programs can be sustained and
that critical knowledge and quality
standards are maintained.
“This fact was never more true
than now for us,” said John
Zimmerman, LM Owego’s HR vice
president. “Because of our recent
success, we’re aggressively growing
our population. By the end of 2005,
more than a quarter of our employees
will have less than two years’ experi-
ence at the company. Implementing
programs that encourage reliable
knowledge transfer is vital; to survive,
we have integrated diversity initiatives
into our workplace.”
LM Owego’s B-2 program, which
employees have been working on
since 1984, demonstrates how pro-
grams with long performance periods
are helped by processes that ensure
technology and knowledge transfer.
“We use training, mentoring and formal
process standards excellence to transfer
Profiles in Diversity Journal
Special Feature Lockheed Martin
knowledge and skills from employee
team to employee team as we continue
to perform well and enhance customer
satisfaction. Mentoring is at its core—
a tool of diversity,” Meyer said.
Supplier Diversity
Supplier diversity and outreach
programs that encourage an inclusive
subcontracting environment are also
essential components in LM Owego’s
business objectives. At Owego,
Lockheed Martin pursues opportunities
to use firms representing small,
women-owned, disadvantaged, and
HUBZoned businesses for procure-
ment. Recognized for its leadership in
supplier diversity and mentoring, LM
Owego’s world-class subcontracting
program placed more than $147.8 million
of business with diverse suppliers for
services on multiple key 2004 programs.
Customer Satisfaction
In the end, the final measurement of
any business is satisfied customers.
Customer satisfaction metrics for LM
Owego have continued to climb
annually during the past five years,
from a solid position of a high
“satisfied” ranking to the highest “very
satisfied” category.
Contractor Performance Assessment
Reports, which are used in a defense
industry system that rates customer
satisfaction, are strong for Lockheed
Martin’s businesses in Owego. “This is
a very competitive world, so this excellent
customer recognition would not be
possible without the best efforts of
every one of our employees, partners
and teammates,” Meyer said.
“Understanding our customer enables
us to deliver better value and provide
the business solutions that exceed their
expectations. To do this, we need a
workforce and standards that mirror
the diversity of our customers. Without
this common understanding, we
cannot provide insight to their values,
PDJ
priorities and business needs.”
July/August 2005 21
Bridging the divide between high-potential
underprivileged students and the technical
disciplines is critical to expanding LM’s
prospective source of engineering
and IT talent.
 High School Project Helps Students
Cross Digital Divide
The Lockheed Martin Math and
Science Academy, sponsored by
the LM Information Technology
business unit, uses a special
curriculum coordinated through
local educational institutions
to prepare promising under-
privileged students in the
technical disciplines.
together. Lockheed Martin had long
been a supporter of the University of
Maryland in nearby College Park. The
deans of its Clark School of
Engineering and the College of
Computer, Mathematical and Physical
Sciences were eager to recruit promising
students from Prince George’s for their
academic programs.
Through an associate in the com-
munity, Gooden had heard that
Potomac High School, located in
Community College, and the deans of
both University of Maryland colleges
for a meeting in June 2002 at College
Park, and the plan came together.
Everyone wanted to see it succeed.
The venture was named the
Lockheed Martin Math and Science
Academy, to be established as a
continuing program to support up to
20 high-potential Potomac students
from their freshman year through
college graduation. The project

I
“ t’s all coming together!” That’s how Oxon Hill adjacent to Southeast D.C., tackled the challenges of nurturing the
Linda Gooden envisioned a new was working to make a difference in students through financial support to
diversity project that would partner the lives of its students. The school the school, mentoring, and college
her company, LM Information had recently redesigned its curriculum tuition assistance at Prince George’s
Technology, with two higher to reflect a series of ‘career pathways’. Community College and, later, at the
educational institutions to benefit Coursework was engineered to University of Maryland.
students of a high school in a Maryland prepare students for the change- Fine tuning the project involved
suburb of Washington, D.C. dominated technology of the 21st scores of details over a year of
The president of the corporation’s century, but Potomac sorely needed presentations, preparations and organ-
burgeoning IT business unit in corporate sponsorship to further ization. In August 2003, with the help
Seabrook, MD, was returning one develop the program for students with of the Community College’s founda-
evening from a meeting at Prince potential in math and science. Enter tion, Lockheed Martin established an
George’s Community College, where Lockheed Martin. endowment based on annual funding.
she served on the school’s Foundation As a member of the corporation’s The endowment will fund student
Board. The college had impressed her Executive Diversity Council, Linda tuition and fees for enrollment in math
with its growing information technology Gooden was keenly aware that the and science programs. LM Information
program and its efforts to reach out to company’s future depended on Technology made an annual
the youth of Prince George’s County. attracting a wider distribution of funding commitment of $20,000,
The school is the institution of choice college hires if it would ever meet its and that was matched by the
for most college-bound students in a engineering requirements in coming LM Corporation Foundation. At that
county that is 62.7 percent African decades. Creating an all-encompassing level, Gooden’s team estimated that
American. atmosphere of inclusiveness through- in 2009 the program could be fully
Gooden began to put the pieces out the corporation was the key. operational and community college
Bridging the digital divide tuitions could be paid.
between high-potential Willie Callahan, one of Gooden’s
Lockheed Martin presents its first check to underprivileged students and young African-American high-potential
the Prince George’s Community College the technical disciplines IT professionals who’d been promoted
Foundation in September 2003, establishing would be critical if the corpo- to a new staff position as director of
a scholarship fund for Potomac High School ration ever hoped to expand diversity, got the task of making the
math and science students. From left: its prospective source of engi- Potomac program a success. Callahan
Willie Callahan, diversity director of LM neering and IT talent. enlisted the support of the company’s
Information Technology (LMIT); Sandra L. Gooden engaged the technical staff to prepare surplus
Nelson, principal of Potomac High School; Potomac principal, the presi- computer hardware for donation to
Linda Gooden, president of LMIT; and dent of Prince George’s the school. A Lockheed Martin team
Dr. Ronald A. Williams, Prince George’s
Community College president.
Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005 23
Lockheed Martin Information & Technology Services
transported the near-new com-
puters to the school’s computer
lab, installed them, loaded soft-
ware, and ensured they worked
in a network environment. The
lab was ready for the 2003-2004
school year. The company con-
tinues to maintain the system,
and will be refreshing it every
two to three years.
For the 2003-2004 academic
year, more than 150 Potomac
High School students participat-
ed in academic and career develop-
ment activities focused in math and
science, far exceeding the originally
targeted 20 students.
During the fall of that first year,
Academy students participated in six
Saturday sessions to enhance their
math and reading skills. In the spring,
students again participated in six
Saturday sessions focused on math
using investment club activities as
reinforcement. Then, last summer they
participated in a component devoted
to the study of geometry and physics.
These sessions were coordinated by
the University of Maryland School of
Engineering’s Center for Minorities in
Science and Engineering.
Throughout its second year, the
program continued to blossom at
Potomac. Lockheed Martin added to
the curriculum biannual visits to its
Seabrook headquarters facility where
students spend a day working with
technical staff at LM’s Enterprise
Solution Center. There students are
exposed to LM’s NexGen lab, where
commercial off-the-shelf hardware
and software are being tested and
integrated into solutions for the
company’s government customers.
Potomac High School administers
all academic work that leads to col-
lege entry. Each year, the school
selects 20 ninth-grade students into
the Academy. Students qualify for the
program based on desire, previous
24 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
Its first year, more than 150
students participated in
the LM Math and Science
Academy, far exceeding
the originally targeted 20
students.
grades, recommendations from faculty,
and aptitude for math and science. To
remain in the program, students agree
to maintain an overall 2.8 grade point
average and maintain clean academic
and police records. Since many
Lockheed Martin projects require
clearances, this stipulation is stressed
to students.
Under Callahan’s guidance, the
company also committed to providing
students in the program with mentors
from LMIT staff for guidance and
counsel and a link to the job market.
In school year 2005-2006, Gooden’s
organization will begin offering
students personal mentoring and
shadowing opportunities.
After graduation from high
school and continuing through their
college years, Academy students are
offered the opportunity of summer
employment within LM Information
Technology, which maintains a work-
force of about 3,500 employees in the
Washington D.C. area—about one-
third of its worldwide personnel base.
Beginning in the fall of 2007,
Prince George’s Community College
will enroll the selected Academy students
in one of four academic tracks: math,
computer science, engineering, or
engineering technology. The Lockheed
Martin scholarship provides in-state
tuition for two years, enabling the stu-
dents to acquire an associate’s degree
and matriculate into the University of
Maryland. Coursework at the
University is directed toward a
degree in engineering or comput-
er science, disciplines sorely
needed in technology-driven
companies such as Lockheed
Martin. Beginning in 2009, the
company’s endowment will pay
in-state tuition for the students
continuing in these disciplines for
the final two years to pursue a
bachelor’s degree.
Once they have completed
their degree requirements, LM Math
and Science Academy graduates will
be given employment opportunities
within Lockheed Martin and prime
consideration for entry into the com-
pany’s renowned Leadership
Development Program, putting them
on a fast track to advancement.
Today the LM Math and Science
Academy program represents an
important step toward helping
Potomac High School meet its com-
mitment to prepare all students for the
change- and technology-driven econ-
omy of the 21st century. Beyond help-
ing just one high school, however, the
program also fulfills objectives for
every other partner and participant:
• The Academy enables Prince
George’s County to provide quality
education for those students whose
future has been clouded by a mis-
match between their potential and
the resources available to them.
• The community college and the
university get to receive and educate
students in technical disciplines.
• Lockheed Martin derives a potential
pipeline of a diverse population of
engineering and computer systems
talent to meet the company’s long-
range employment goals.
• And, of course, the students who
take advantage of the program will
be prepared to enter the workforce
 Special Feature Lockheed Martin

Willie Callahan, then diversity director

for LM Information Technology, leads a
team of company employees installing
computer equipment in Potomac High
School’s new Math and Science
Academy laboratory.

with skills that will ensure them a
bright, meaningful future.
The LM Math and Science
Academy has been made possible due
to a dream—along with the dogged
determination—of Linda Gooden and
her company; and LM Information
Technology has assumed an important
Beyond helping just one high school, however,
the program also fulfills objectives for every other
partner and participant.
Together with teachers and
parents, the company is helping
young men and women learn how to

PDJ
role in educating children for the be accountable, to be productive, and to
future. achieve success.

Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005 25

The Virtual Career Center gives all
employees the opportunity and the
flexibility to work on their careers
anywhere, anytime.
 Career Initiative ‘Grabs’ Talent
at LM Integrated Systems & Solutions
Group dialogue sessions, an
interactive online career center,
and a portfolio of career
development strategies
provide opportunities for all
employees to increase their
understanding of career options
and take hold of their future.
A room full of Lockheed Martin
employees considers what
Shawn Jones should do to
‘unstick’ his career. Jones, a mid-level
systems engineer, has had a lot of
experience on big projects, but doesn’t
want to take what some might consider
the next step: becoming a people
manager.
Suggestions from the group pour
out. Has Jones considered becoming a
subject matter expert or expanding his
current responsibilities? Has he talked
to other senior non-management
employees to find out what they do
and how they might have confronted
a similar problem?
Does he have a mentor in the
organization, someone he could turn
to for advice? What’s behind his con-
cern about becoming a manager? Is it
simply a ‘fear factor’ that could be
overcome with the right set of
preparatory experiences?
Jones is a fictitious character—an
example created to help spur discus-
sion—yet the employee sessions to
consider his career are very real.
They’re part of a new company initia-
Melissa Mong, Lockheed Martin
software engineer, appreciates access
to the Virtual Career Center because
it provides a framework for skills
development and is easy to navigate
and use.
tive called Grab Hold of Your Career.
In addition to the group dialogue
sessions that provide opportunities for
all employees to get involved and
increase their understanding of career
options, it includes an interactive
online career center and a portfolio of
career development strategies, includ-
ing mentoring.
“The new initiative is designed to
leverage the diverse talents and abili-
ties of all employees by empowering
them to take responsibility for their
own careers,” said Cynthia Smith, vice
president, Human Resources, for
Lockheed Martin’s Integrated Systems
& Solutions business area. “The initia-
tive goes hand-in-hand with the com-
pany’s pursuit of workforce diversity
and an inclusive and supportive work
environment.”
The Grab Hold of Your Career
diversity dialogues initiative has two
main components: the group dia-
logue about career development con-
ducted by company leaders with their
direct reports, and one-on-one career
discussions that each company leader
has with their direct reports on specific
career aspirations and plans.
Group Dialogue Sessions
The open group sessions are a focal
point for the Grab Hold of Your
Career initiative, for it is here that the
interplay of background and experi-
ence is most visible. “When you bring
an entire function together, you can
really see the interplay,” notes
Christine Rinaldi, the lead for career
development programs who spear-
headed the Grab Hold of Your Career
initiative, which is now fully imple-
mented at LM Integrated Systems &
Solutions business area.
“A group typically will include
people from various cultural and
Profiles in Diversity Journal
experiential backgrounds,” said
Rinaldi. “The way a lead systems engi-
neer who has been with the company
for 16 years views the world is going
to be different than the outlook of a
recently-hired technical analyst who is
early in her career. Gender, cultural
and ethnic backgrounds, education
and experience are some of the many
factors that will influence perspec-
tives, and yet in the total chemistry of
ideas, each employee is gaining new
insights from the others. That’s what
makes the process involving and
worthwhile.”
Leaders are provided with toolkits
to help them facilitate the group dia-
logue. The toolkit consists of compre-
hensive career development charts,
facilitator talking points and handouts
that help define career development,
offer comments from executive man-
agement about its importance, and
provide a model for development
planning for employees to follow.
Real-life scenarios—including that
of systems engineer Shawn Jones and
his mid-career concerns—are also
included as well as a guide for
employees that takes them through
the steps of career planning. In addi-
tion, a training video featuring a
prominent executive facilitating the
group dialogue was produced to pre-
pare all leaders to conduct meaningful
career dialogues.
“The group dialogue is a great
opportunity for everyone, regardless
of what discipline you work in or
what level you are in the company,”
said Loretta Best-Harris, a Lockheed
Martin systems engineering senior
manager. “During these sessions, you
can take a pulse of where you are in
your career in the grand scheme of
where you want to be.”
July/August 2005 27
Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems and Solutions
One-on-One Sessions
At the conclusion of the group dia-
logues, every leader is expected to
extend invitations to each of his/her
direct reports to engage in one-on-one
career discussions. Employees who
accept this invitation have the oppor-
tunity to discuss their goals and estab-
lish specific career development plans
with their leaders.
The approach of giving each
individual employee the opportunity to
shape their career opens the way to a
more inclusive organization, says
Rinaldi. “There is no better way to
foster an inclusive work community,
leverage the strengths of all employees,
and ensure business success than to
empower each person to grab hold of
her or his career,” she states.
The individual career discussion
sessions invariably require thoughtful-
ness on the part of both manager and
employee, particularly when it may
involve confronting potentially difficult
questions. A toolkit designed to help
employees and leaders prepare for
these discussions is available at
Lockheed Martin’s Virtual Career Center
online. It includes career path informa-
tion and development guidance, as well
as talking points and guidelines for the
discussions themselves. Managers can
take the time to preview typical ques-
tions and suggested answers before a
session to ponder some of the possible
“hard” questions—such as, what if the
employee’s career goals don’t seem to
fit into the department’s functional
goals? Or, what if the employee’s career
goals seem unrealistic in terms of time?
In addition to career discussions,
the diversity discussions that the com-
pany requires leaders to hold each
year with employees are checkpoints
in the company’s tracking of progress
28 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
in building an inclusive work
environment.
Help for managers in conducting
the group sessions and individual
employee dialogues is available at an
online ‘Leaderlink’ Web site, where
managers can access toolkits and
other diversity information. The site
prominently features the corporation’s
diversity vision statement:
Lockheed Martin Corporation
is committed to creating one
company, one-team, all-inclusive,
where diversity contributes to
mission success.
Virtual Career Center
Web support for the Grab Hold
of Your Career initiative also takes
the form of a Virtual Career Center
accessible to all employees via the
company’s intranet home page. With
Lockheed Martin employees scattered
across the United States as well as the
globe, the Virtual Career Center gives
all employees the opportunity and the
flexibility to work on their careers
anywhere, anytime. In addition to the
toolkits that help employees prepare
for the individual diversity dialogue
with their manager, the center
includes comprehensive career tools
for employees to assess where they
are in terms of their career develop-
ment and better determine where he
or she needs to be.
The online center features a broad
array of practical and thought-provoking
information. There is a segment on
clarifying personal and work values
and another on how to identify goals
and set a career action plan. There are
even sample career paths showing the
routes various people in the organiza-
tion have taken to reach their current
levels of success—a caption reminds
employees that “Not all roads that lead
to Rome lead to a great leadership
position, but a lot of them do, if we
pay attention to the milestones along
the way.”
“The Web site provides resources
to help all employees generate
effective and realistic career goals and
plans,” said Melissa Mong, an LM
software engineer. “It provides a
framework for technical, leadership
and people skills development, and is
easy to navigate and use.”
The training aspects of the site are
comprehensive—from guidelines on
how to be a leader and how to be a
technical specialist; to suggested
resources for Web-based professional
training and virtual classrooms;
to recommendations of books and
development activities; as well as
advice and tips for developing the
skills and approaches needed to meet
professional and personal objectives.
“Career development has always
been a priority for me,” said Steve
Dyas, LM senior systems engineer.
“After discovering the vast career
planning resources online, I’m confi-
dent my company has made it one of
their priorities as well.”
“The exciting thing about the
online center—and, indeed, our entire
Grab Hold of Your Career initiative—
is that it is all-inclusive,” said Myrtis
Brame, director of diversity for the
LM Integrated Systems & Solutions
business area. “Everyone can take part
and as a result everyone benefits. The
individual can learn and grow and, as
they reach out to achieve their career
goals, at the same time the company
grows by becoming a more inclusive
organization.”

Mentoring offers the opportunity to
convey the importance of the tacit
Developing Talent or soft skills of leadership
Through Mentoring
A finishing component of
the Grab Hold of Your
Career initiative is mentoring
engagements, which Lockheed Martin
sees as vital to the success of its business.
The intent is to bring together all of
the company’s mentoring initiatives
under a single umbrella designed to
pique employee interest and provide
the resources and skills for employees
to engage in constructive mentoring
relationships.
Mike Thomas, company vice pres-
ident and general manager and an
executive champion of mentoring,
looks at it this way: “We are a people
business, and our success relies on the
interaction between people. We all
need to weave mentoring into our
daily work lives. All of us should be
getting to know people and getting
them to know us. If we do this, we
will connect the organization from top
to bottom and become more success-
ful as a business.”
Grab Hold of Your Career mentor-
ing applies a common approach to
one-on-one mentoring programs
across the organization. The company
views mentoring as an excellent way
to enhance employee development,
transfer organizational knowledge,
and bolster employees’ engagement in
their work and commitment to the
company.
Quarterly workshops are designed
to provide skills and information for
current mentors and their proteges as
well as individuals interested in initiat-
ing their own mentoring relationships.
Employees are encouraged to take
advantage of the workshops and to
consider talking with their manager or
someone they admire. They are
advised to think about what they want
to discuss and some objectives for the
conversation; the process may well
establish a relationship they can work
with on a regular basis. In turn, man-
agers are encouraged to facilitate
mentoring for employees unsure of
whom to approach for mentoring by
suggesting people inside or outside
the employee’s environment.
After Stephanie Herr, a software
applications engineer, decided that a
mentoring relationship would benefit
her career, she found and worked with
her mentor, Chris D’Ascenzo, director
of Business Development, to mutually
established goals and objectives.
“My mentoring relationship with
Chris has provided me with an expert
to gain knowledge from, opportunities
outside of my work environment, and
someone to talk to about professional
matters and school work,” says
Stephanie. “During our mentoring
sessions, we have discussed many dif-
ferent issues. He’s really been able to
help me focus on my career develop-
ment, where I want to be and what I
have to do to get there. He also has
helped me to gain a better under-
standing into different areas of the
business, which has broadened my
experiences at Lockheed Martin.”
Mentoring is beneficial to both the
mentor and mentored employee. “I
learned a lot about the issues that
Stephanie and her peer group
encounter that I would not necessarily
have been aware of but that help me
be a better leader,” says Chris, adding,
“One of the fulfilling things about
being in the mentor role is that you
Profiles in Diversity Journal
Special Feature Lockheed Martin
can add some dimensions and
perspective to professional
issues for someone else’s
growth.”
Mentoring offers the opportu-
nity for employees to appreciate what
isn’t covered in technical training
courses yet can be just as vital to their
career success—understanding rela-
tionships. Auretha Baldwin, an engi-
neering manager and a strong advo-
cate of mentoring put it this way:
“Mentoring offers the opportunity to
convey the importance of the tacit or
soft skills of leadership.”
Support for Diversity Means
Support for the Business
While Lockheed Martin’s Grab Hold of
Your Career initiative offers opportu-
nities for individual fulfillment in
many ways and goes a long way
towards fostering a sense of participa-
tion by employees and managers in
building careers, it is also very much in
the company’s best business interests.
Lockheed Martin Chairman,
President and CEO Bob Stevens
explains that the company has
embarked on a course to build a fully
inclusive and supportive work
environment, and for good reason.
“Besides being the right thing to do, it
makes good business sense. With a
shift in demographics occurring as
many in the workforce approach
retirement, we need to keep our
experienced skills base for as long
as possible while attracting and retain-
ing the best talent from an increasing-
ly diverse world,” says Stevens. “This
allows us to effectively foster both
innovation and institutional knowl-
edge to assure our long-term success.”
PDJ
July/August 2005 29
 Affinity groups are not just for those
with special interests or a specific culture.

Lockheed Martin's role

in the Hubble Space Telescope
program began in the
1970s when the company
was selected as the prime
integration contractor.
Today, Lockheed Martin
Space Systems
Company provides
a range of Hubble Space
Telescope-related
service and support
functions for NASA.
Affinity Groups: An LM Space Systems
Company Best Practice
It’s not unusual for employees
who share ethnic or cultural ties
to meet for support and growth;
however, the groups at
Lockheed Martin Space Systems
Company may also include
employees ‘outside’ the
group’s experiential focus, and
even ‘meet’ in cyberspace
rather than at local events.
W hat do a design engineer in
Sunnyvale, CA, an industrial
security representative in
Denver, CO, and a technical trainer in
Harlingen, TX, have in common? Each
belongs to an affinity group at LM
Space Systems Company. With
approximately 1,000 employees
involved, the company’s nearly a
dozen groups center around cultural
and other common interests, such as
Asian and Pacific Islander, Hispanic or
Black heritage, disabilities and gender.
Vanessa Williams, workforce
diversity manager for the 18,000-
employee company based in Denver,
notes that the affinity groups “not only
address the specific needs of their
membership, but also do an excellent
job of helping other employees learn
about their cultures.” In addition, the
groups are an important resource for
“employee recruiting and retention,
community relations, and internal
focus groups for topics such as gener-
ational differences and employee
communications.”
Generation to Generation
Mentors
“An affinity group creates a sense of
belonging,” says design engineer
Sophey Phuong Tiet, who is a
member of the Asian American &
Pacific Islander American Leadership
and Mentoring Association (ALMA) in
Sunnyvale. “For people who are away
from their native country, they come
together culturally. You don’t feel
isolated,” says Tiet, who emigrated
from Vietnam to the U.S. at the age of
seven.
Tiet, who specializes in circuit
logic for high-performance govern-
ment systems, joined ALMA in 2001
during her first year at the company.
Through ALMA, Tiet met other Asian
Americans who served as “older
generation to younger generation”
mentors. “They had been in the work-
ing world and, being Asian and being
older, had gone before me, showing
me that it’s possible to succeed. One
Asian woman who is a senior
engineer was one of our advisors.
Seeing a minority female who had
done well for herself influenced me by
just having exposure and access to her.”
Tiet views fostering innovation as
an important contribution that affinity
groups make to the company’s
culture. “Everyone has different ways
of doing things. If you have multiple ideas,
you can come up with one great idea.”
Having been involved in the
ALMA affinity group for several years,
Tiet now has a leadership role as a
member of the mentoring committee.
Those who had established the organ-
ization “stepped out and let us take
charge, but they are always in the back-
ground helping us and guiding us.”
Internally, the group hosts
networking sessions and panel discus-
sions featuring company leaders;
activities are geared to the entire
employee population to give non-
Asians an opportunity for cultural
awareness. Externally, ALMA repre-
sents the company in the community,
Profiles in Diversity Journal
participating in public television
fundraising telethons and local cultural
festivals. ALMA also joins forces with
affinity groups from other companies
—such as Hewlett Packard in
Cupertino, CA—for networking seminars.
Notes Williams, “Within ALMA are
so many different cultures. I’m proud
of them because they had to work
through a lot more issues than some
others. Once pulled together, they
have been very creative and innova-
tive. This goes to show that there’s
strength in differences and brilliance
in unity.”
A Product of What They Have
Put In Place
When M.B.A. student Kwasinda
Curtis received Lockheed Martin’s
Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship in
January 2004, he did not know that he
would join the company eight months
later. However, he was hoping.
“I had always wanted to join the
company,” he says. Before receiving
the scholarship he had submitted his
resumé “over and over—I just kept
pushing it on them.”
The scholarship program operated
by the Black Effectiveness Support
Team (BEST) affinity group in Denver
“put me in contact with a lot of people,
and it brought to light the different
types of people who work here,” he
says. He again submitted his resumé,
and landed a job with the company in
August 2004 as an industrial security
representative. “My background is a
little different,” says Curtis, who holds
a bachelor’s degree in finance and
completed his M.B.A. in June.
“Industrial security is a good way to
get my foot in the door at a great
company. I’m learning aspects of
business I didn’t know existed.”
July/August 2005 31
Lockheed Martin Space Systems

Curtis credits BEST for “When we had Gary Karp, a

helping him feel connected former jazz guitarist now in
within the company. There’s strength in differences a wheelchair, down here
“Without BEST, I wouldn’t talking about life on wheels
have the employee network I and brilliance in unity. last year, I became very
have now,” he says. “I would interested,” says Crow. “Quite
be limited to the individuals honestly, I felt like we hadn’t
who are in my department. It done enough about it.”
allows me to establish a per-
sonal relationship—that’s People Out There to Help
what makes work much more feasi- The Value in Having a Voice LM Space Systems’ affinity groups are
ble.” Donald Crow, who provides qualifica- formed and operated at the grass roots
Curtis, who learned of the schol- tion and certification training to the level in coordination with the company’s
arship opportunity from a BEST workforce at the company’s southwest Workforce Diversity Office. The
volunteer at a local recreation center, Texas plant, joined Space Pro- company provides funding and facilities
now represents the company as a fessionals Empowering Employees for employee events and community
BEST member in the community. with Disabilities (SPEED) not because activities.
“BEST allows me to reach out and let he is disabled, but because he is not. Each group has an executive host,
people in the community know that Crow explains, “I think one of the who serves as a link to the company’s
they can be a part of this company. In things you need to do is get us non- senior management. “This serves to
my neighborhood, BEST allows me to disabled people involved because we get the executives more involved and
say, ‘Hey, this is where I’m at, and this can stir things up.” As a result, Crow is a great way for the executives to get
is available to you as well. Lockheed has helped the Harlingen facility go exposed to different cultures within
Martin has opened its doors to you.’” beyond the letter of the law in ensur- the company,” notes Williams.
Curtis explains that besides ing access for disabled persons. “Our As an example of the involvement
serving as role models and mentors, facility is disabled-friendly, where of the company’s executives in the
the group “gets involved in events, people can get around safely. We’re affinity groups, Curtis met his mentor,
such as bowlathons and 5k walks, to ready to go,” says Crow. a human relations director, through
uplift our community and raise aware- “The very first issue I think dis- BEST. “It’s very rare that, as someone
ness about Lockheed Martin. If I abled people face in the workplace— who just walked in the door,” says
wasn’t part of an organization, it and one reason I’m proud to be part Curtis, “you can have such a great
would be difficult to reach out and let of SPEED—is attitude,” he says. “Too relationship with a person in a high
people know about opportunities.” many people automatically think a position. It helps to know there are
Coming full circle, this past schol- physical disability means a mental dis- people out there to help.”
arship recipient was a member of the ability. Secondly, they face mechanical Vanessa Williams also says,
selection committee for the 2005 Martin limitations. Getting around many “Affinity groups are not just for those
Luther King Scholarships and a speaker plants can be very difficult.” with special interests or a specific
at the banquet. “The real benefit (of my Crow says, “The big value of culture. They are for other people to
scholarship) came a year later when I SPEED is that it’s a voice. People can become aware of people different
was in a position to speak to those who come to us and say, ‘Here’s a prob- than themselves. Donald Crow is a
have supported BEST and to let them lem; what can we do about it?’ Almost perfect example of this.”
know I’m a product of what they have invariably, it’s been fixed.” In SPEED, Williams sees a model
put in place. At the banquet I got to A virtual affinity group, SPEED is for the creation of additional affinity
stand up and speak on what BEST had open to employees across the compa- groups and the expansion of existing
done for me with the scholarship. I had ny’s nearly 20 U.S. locations. SPEED ones. “I would like to see more
the opportunity to emphasize to the members meet in a monthly telecon- affinity groups operate like SPEED in
new scholarship recipients that they ference. The group hosts activities at a virtual manner, pulling people in
can take the same road.” various company sites, such as the from field sites,” she says.

PDJ
guest speaker presentation that
inspired Crow to join the group.

32 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005

 Special Feature Lockheed Martin

Approximately 1,000 employees participate

in affinity groups throughout Lockheed Martin.

Donald Crow, qualification and certification trainer in

Harlingen, TX, joined the Space Professionals Empowering
Employees with Disabilities (SPEED) Group.
Photo by Russ Underwood

Sophey Tiet, an electrical engineer, belongs to the Asian American

& Pacific Islander American Leadership and Mentoring Association
(ALMA) group in Sunnyvale, CA.

Kwasinda Curtis, an industrial security

representative, belongs to the Black Effectiveness
Support Team (BEST) in Denver, CO.
 Interview May Snowden Starbucks

A Conversation
with May Snowden

M ay Snowden, vice president, Global Diversity at Starbucks, talks about how

burritos and baloney sandwiches contributed to her perspective for helping
create a community gathering place for Starbucks’ partners and customers as
the company “grows big while staying small.”

About D&I at Starbucks

Please define diversity/ inclusion.
At Starbucks we define diversity as “all the ways we differ and are the same” and
inclusion as “applying our collective mixture of differences and similarities in the
pursuit of organizational objectives.”

In today’s marketplace, does Starbucks have any particular

challenges or opportunities?
Our greatest challenge is our growth. We hire over 200 people a day, and
open four stores a day. But because of our age and growth, we have
great opportunities for expanding multicultural marketing initiatives,
supplier diversity initiatives and acquisition and development of
diverse talent. We have one of the lowest, if not the lowest,
turnover rates in our industry.

Has tapping employee diversity yielded any significant

product breakthroughs or profit synergies?
Just this week, a store manager in California told me how his
customers who are deaf have increased a hundredfold because
he has partners (employees) who can sign. Looking at another
aspect of diversity that we call ‘organizational dimensions’, one of
our greatest product innovations, our Frappuccino, came from a
barista (counter person who serves the drinks and makes sure that
we have a welcoming environment within our stores).

How does a young and fast-growing company keep up

with diversity development throughout the organization?
Any strategy to sustain diversity development throughout the organization must first

Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005 35

Interview May Snowden Starbucks

M a y Sn o w de n
COMPANY: Starbucks Coffee Company

TITLE: Vice President, Global Diversity

IN C U R R E N T P O S I T I O N : 1.5 years
EDUC ATION: Early on I wanted to be a teacher—I felt I had a purpose of educating people, teaching by
example, dialogue and that type of thing. So I got my undergraduate degree in business education, but actually never
taught after I did my student teaching. After working awhile, I got my master’s degree in public administration because
I wanted to be versatile. Then I had an opportunity to go on loan for a year working for U.S. Senator Bill Armstrong, from
Colorado; it was a great experience. Afterward, I decided business was going to be my career, and I got my master’s in
business administration.

FIRST JOB: I worked my way through school in most cases, with some assistance through scholarships.
I feel very privileged to have been able to do that. My very first job was as telephone operator working my way through school.

PHILOSOPHY: I think that life is about the paradigms that we have, how we see things. My philosophy is to
always broaden my paradigm, my mindset. I commonly check myself: when I feel that I have done everything that I can
do, and I have engaged everybody that I know to engage about something that I think is a problem, and it doesn’t
change, then I need to change my mind about that problem. I need to see it differently. So it’s really working with the
lenses that I have about situations, people, cultures, and so forth, all within me, to make the change.

W H A T I ' M R E A D I N G : I love to learn about different cultures. But I’m also a person that focuses on life
and experiences and what I’m here for. Right now I’m reading A Purpose Driven Life. It’s a very interesting book, very
engaging, because it helps you to look at those special gifts that you have—we all have those talents and gifts that come
naturally to us—and understanding what those are and how to apply them in your career.

FA M I LY: My best friend and my personal counselor is my husband, Chuck.

INTERESTS: I enjoy exercising, reading, listening to music. My husband and I like to engage with and help
other people. So we go out—whether it’s on the street or wherever—there are so many people who are homeless and
many people don’t really want to talk to them. But my husband is really good with individuals who have had bad situa-
tions and they like to talk with him. He brings me out, and we sit and talk with people and try to help provide things they
need—shoes or coats or whatever. We prefer to do it privately, but we also support other things, like CARE, because it’s
so international; plus our church has a significant outreach and prison ministry.

CHILDHOOD H E R O : My Mother has always been my best ‘shero’. She was one of nine children, and she
didn’t have an opportunity to start first grade until she was 12 years old. It had to be very embarrassing to be in first
grade when she was twelve and everybody else was six. But she was very persistent and went through and got her high
school diploma and her bachelor’s degree in Spanish, then went back and got her master’s in education. She was just an
outstanding school teacher and eventually got her Ph.D. later in life. I’m just amazed at her—how much courage she had,
and stamina, and how she’d stick to things. So when I think of a shero, it’s my Mother.

FAVORITE G A M E : One of the things I’m enjoying right now is playing Uno with my grandkids—ages 3, 5, 6
and 11— who stay with me for a month every summer. I enjoy it because the little ones are learning their colors and
their numbers, and they have so much fun and energy around it.

PERSON I ’ D L I K E T O G E T T O K N O W O V E R L U N C H : Probably Nelson Mandela.

I saw him once at the White House; I was going into President Clinton’s office and he was coming out, and I tell you
there was just a sensation about him that was very noble. I’d love to be able to spend some time with him and just
chat about his experiences and how it felt to be in prison so many years and what kept him being positive. It’s so easy
to get an attitude of defeat or resentment and have a bitter life. He didn’t do that. So I would love to be able to ask him
personally about it.

36 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005


ensure senior leadership awareness,
readiness, visibility, commitment and
accountability. Second come education
and awareness of the employees
throughout the organization. Third is
initiating business unit diversity councils;
these develop the unique action plans
required to implement the overall
strategy and facilitate the implementa-
tion of grassroots affinity groups
(which in turn assist recruiting, retention,
mentoring, development, and serving
as a voice in the enterprise and exter-
nally). Fourth, there must be internal
and external communication of our
results, our stories, our successes and
our challenges. Finally, we need
measurement, accountability and
recognition for high performance. All
of these steps are phased in to build a
Interview
strong foundation to support fast
growth and change.
What are the components of
Starbucks’ approach to the
global workplace?
The President of Starbucks Inter-
national is part of the Global
Diversity Strategy Team, composed of
the CEO, his direct reports, and other
key executive leaders—they own the
execution of the strategy.
Currently, I have been largely
focused on the U.S., but my next step
will be to resource the international
initiatives. We’ll be looking for
resources, including new partners as
well as budget dollars, to support the
initiatives in the international arena.
Profiles in Diversity Journal
May Snowden Starbucks
What usually happens internationally
is that we focus on nationality, what
country people are from, and ensuring
an inclusive environment with the
nationality. And of course, gender
issues are common everywhere.
What is at the heart of
Starbucks’ vision for diversity?
Starbucks built its inclusive environ-
ment foundation on guiding principles
that are very, very powerful. We real-
ly do gather our partners around those
principles and we look at the appro-
priateness of our decisions based on
the six principles. That builds a really
strong foundation to create an inclu-
sive environment once you let all of
your partners and new partners know
how important respect and dignity
July/August 2005 37
Interview May Snowden Starbucks
are, and how important it is to
embrace diversity in the way that we
do business: our focus on the com-
munity, on the environment, on our
customers, on making our product
the very, very best. And then, of
course, while we’re doing all these
things, we want to make profit. When
you build a diversity and inclusion
strategy around the guiding princi-
ples it just helps people identify key
behaviors.
Regarding leadership commit-
ment, what resources are
allocated for diversity?
I have been in my position for 21
months. When I took the position,
there were two direct reports and one
dotted line report; now I have seven
direct reports and four dotted line
reports.
How is Starbucks assuring
global cross-cultural compe-
tencies for its leadership?
Our first step was to establish the
Global Diversity Strategy Team, made
up of the CEO, his direct reports and
four key executive leaders. This lead-
ership council is headed by the CEO.
We are in the process of assessing our
executive leaders to determine their
learning needs and provide informa-
tion for their 2006 action plans. From
the analysis of the assessment, we will
develop a full-day learning event for
all vice presidents and above to be
implemented in 2006. Even interna-
tionally we want the same concept of
having a community gathering place
for our people in general; our objec-
tive is to grow big while staying small.
38 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
How does your company
gauge inclusion of employees?
We include diversity and inclusion
questions in our Partner View Survey,
and do a demographic analysis based
on gender, ethnicity/race, length of
service, job level, job title and age.
Starbucks’ Partner View data, like
Starbucks itself, is unlike any compa-
ny data that I or my team have ever
seen—we have almost none of the tra-
ditional differences by race or gender.
We have exceptionally satisfied part-
ners, regardless of their demographic
makeup.
For employee suggestions, we
also have a Mission Review Team at
each site who monitor and respond
quickly to comments based on our
guiding principles. Broader questions
are referred to my office, and all lead-
ers review summarized quarterly
reports of the Mission Review Teams.
How does Starbucks support
upward development of its
partners toward management
positions?
Through succession discussions,
development planning, training and
development lateral movements.
What is the company’s com-
mitment to minority suppliers?
Supplier diversity is much like talent
acquisition in that it requires a lot of
outreach. It’s important for us, number
one, to be welcoming and be able to
identify those woman-owned and
minority-owned small businesses that
have the capability of fulfilling the
needs our company has. We bring
those organizations together with the
leaders of our business units that have
a need for a vendor or supplier and
offer them access to the opportunities
in our company.
Suppliers doing business through
Starbucks’ Supplier Diversity Program
must meet strict criteria:
• 51% woman- or minority-owned, or
socially or economically disadvantaged
(per U.S. Small Business Association)
• Certified by the National Minority
Supplier Development Council,
National Women Business Owners
Corporation, Women’s Business
Enterprise National Council, Small
Business Administration, or other
government or public agency
• Diversity Program suppliers must
sign an agreement pledging compli-
ance with Starbucks’ Supplier Code
 “I am making
a difference.”

“I am “I am taking care
improving
of you. And people
your life.”
you care about .”

People define our success.

Diverse perspectives and

talents allow us to provide

I am innovative food and

Sodexho facilities management

services that improve the

quality of daily life for

the millions of people we

“I am ensuring serve in the U.S. every day.

your safety.”

“I am a step ahead.”
s i t y and I
ve r
nc l
t e d t o Di

us i on
mit

Com

Food Services, Facilities Management, Vending, Catering, Office Refreshment

Services, Environmental Services, Landscaping & Grounds Management, sodexhoUSA.com • 1-800-SODEXHO
Conferencing, Plant Operations & Management ©Sodexho Member of Sodexho Alliance®
Interview May Snowden Starbucks
of Conduct and Standards—includ-
ing demonstrating commitment to
the welfare, economic improvement
and sustainability of the people and
places that produce products and
services; and adherence to local
laws and international standards
regarding human rights, workplace
safety, and worker compensation
and treatment.
Verification of compliance is
subject to audits, and failure to comply
or to correct situations is grounds for
cancellation of open orders and termi-
nation of the business relationship.
About Her Role
Where does your personal
belief in diversity and inclusion
come from?
I’m about learning, and when you’re
about learning, you engage yourself in
areas where you may not be as com-
fortable. I learned diversity at an early
age because I grew up in Las Cruces,
NM, where Caucasians were the major
population, but the next largest popu-
lation was Mexican Americans. I lived
in a Mexican-American neighbor-
hood, and African Americans were a
very small group, so I learned very
early to interact with Mexican
Americans and Caucasians.
In school, my friends took bean
burritos for lunch, and my mother
made me baloney sandwiches. None
of us wanted to take our lunches to
school, so we traded: I would have
the bean burritos and they would
have the baloney sandwiches. They
were embarrassed for their bean burritos
and I was embarrassed for my baloney
sandwich. It’s really interesting when
you look at cultures and how people
40 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
“MENTORING MEMO”
from May
To anyone who wants to rise in
their organization: be courageous;
be visible; ask clarifying questions
see things they feel are part
of the majority group and
how they want to see them-
to increase understanding;
selves differently.
I’m really glad I grew up demonstrate your competence
in that environment, and I
have kept in good contact through continuous high
with Hispanics in my life,
such as my mentor, Solomon performance; and develop an
Trujillo, who was CEO at US
West when I worked there. I internal and external network
also remember friends in my
neighborhood wanting to through relationship building.
learn English and regret that I
did not learn Spanish; so I’m
doing some self-taught class-
es right now because Spanish
is such a bridge to the concern or recognition I received. My
culture. It all comes from having a pastor helped me identify my purpose
need for learning and exploring and and mission in life and how that can
getting out of my comfort zone and be integrated in my career. My hus-
my little area to broaden my perspective. band gives me a male perspective and
reminds me how history and geogra-
What was your career path? phy influence our paradigms or world
How did you come to be working views. I am also mentored by my
three adult children who give me a
at Starbucks? generation X and Y perspective.
My career path has taken me through In the corporate arena, one of my
several line and staff positions in closest mentors is Solomon Trujillo, a
telecommunications and manufactur- Hispanic male who has led a Fortune
ing industries. My first diversity posi- 500 company, start-ups, and interna-
tion was in telecommunications, tional businesses, and is a director
where I was selected because of my on four boards. His style—working
operational experience and success in hard, being confident, being a high
hiring, retaining and developing a performer and selecting great diverse
high-performance workforce. I was talent—has influenced my career.
recruited by Starbucks for this posi- Another CEO mentor is a white female
tion; I did not seek it out. business owner dedicated to develop-
ing and advancing women and the
Who were/are your mentors, readiness of men in leadership. I have
and are you mentoring anyone? two executive African-American
I have had several mentors in my women who help me with under-
career, including my Mother who standing the culture of Starbucks and
helped me develop my character with how to get things done here. I am
much love and attention. I could now mentoring several people; to
always go to her with any question, whom much is given, much is expected.
Interview May Snowden Starbucks

People Value:
“We have the most
knowledgeable
work force in our
industry. Each partner
participates in an
extensive training
program that facilitates
strong … product
expertise and a
commitment to
customer service. I take
great pride, not in the
number of locations we have opened, but in the
growth and development of our people. We realize
our people are the cornerstone of our success,
and we know that their ideas, commitment and
connection to our customers are truly the
essential elements in the Starbucks experience.”
- Howard Schultz, Chairman, Starbucks

What are your responsibilities and strategies

for advancing diversity and inclusion in your
organization?
I consider myself a business leader and catalyst to help
®
Starbucks effectively address demographic, social and market
realities by: a) tapping into new multicultural markets to
expand market share and establish a strong brand image and
Company Profile corporate reputation while improving customer loyalty and
satisfaction; b) recruiting, developing, promoting and retaining
COMPANY: Starbucks Coffee Company diverse talent to ensure the workplace mirrors the
HEADQUARTERS: Seattle, WA marketplace and the surrounding community; and c) creating
and implementing workplace, procurement, and ‘giving’
WEBSITE: www.starbucks.com
policies and management practices that maximize the potential
B U S I N E S S : Leading retailer, roaster and of our partners, suppliers and the communities we are in.
brand of specialty coffee in the world, with more Our strategy is building cross-culturally competent leadership
than 9,000 retail locations in North America, Latin in a way that will add a measurable difference to organiza-
America, Europe, the Middle East and the Pacific Rim tional performance; maintaining an inclusive environment as
2 0 0 4 R E V E N U E S : $5.3 billion (~ 84% we grow; continuing to increase the diversity mix in our
from company-operated retail stores; 16% specialty talent profile, customer base and supplier base; and finally
operations) delivering and communicating our results. We are working
on improving our representation of people of color in
E M P L O Y E E S : >90,000 partners (employees)
middle and professional management.
worldwide. Named one of the best places to work
for African-American women by Essence Magazine
May, 2005 How have you modeled diversity and inclusion in your
CUSTOMERS: >9,500 coffeehouse in 35 own team selection, management or development?
countries (including the U.S.) w/potential for 30,000 I insist on a diverse slate of potential hires. I currently have
stores worldwide (15,000 in the U.S. and 15,000 100% women, 60% white and 40% people of color (and two
outside of the U.S.) vacancies) on my team. All of my team members are provided
development budget and are integrated in the work of devel-
S U P P L I E R S : Starbucks has >80 certified

PDJ
minority- and woman-owned business enterprise oping tools and helping to execute diversity and inclusion
suppliers—$114 million of business in 2004 initiatives.

42 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005

 Is Your Culture Aligned with Diversity?
By Peter Linkow

Linkow describes diversity as behaviors that require a hospitable environment.

Before launching a diversity initiative, each organization must determine whether its
culture offers an environment conducive to diversity; if not, either the culture or the
diversity strategy or both must be changed.

D iversity is a series of behav-

iors—modes of thinking, act-
ing, and working—that, like
orchids, thrive only in a hospitable
environment. Since culture is a pri-
mary determinant of the environment
in an organization, before embarking
on a diversity initiative (or at least
early in the voyage) an organization
must determine whether its culture
offers an environment that is con-
ducive to diversity. If not, either the
culture or the diversity strategy or
both must be changed.
What is a diversity culture?
Marvin Bower, former managing
director of McKinsey and Company,
aptly defined culture as “the way we
do things around here.”1 More for-
mally, culture is the values and beliefs
that most members of an organization
share. Beliefs are assumptions about
what is true, while values are assump-
tions about what is worthwhile or
desirable.
An organization with a true cul-
ture of diversity and inclusion has
clear values and beliefs that foster
desirable diversity behavior. It relent-
lessly manages every aspect of its
work environment to support those
values and beliefs.
Fifty organizations recognized for their
diversity initiatives shared seven core diversity
values and beliefs:
1. Competitive advantage. Organizations that achieve a
significant level of diversity will enjoy a competitive
advantage in the marketplace.
2. Psychological safety.Employees should be free from harass-
ment, discrimination, and intolerance, and free to speak up
without fear of reprisal.
3. Value differences/foster inclusion.All differences should be
respected and valued. An organization will achieve superior
outcomes when it effectively embraces a wide range of
different cultures, perspectives, thought processes,
assumptions and beliefs.
All recruitment, employment,
4. Advancement through merit.
development, promotion and compensation decisions
should be made purely on the basis of objective merit.
The practices and
5. Reflect customers and communities.
demographics of the organization should mirror the practices
and demographics of its customers and communities.
All suppliers throughout the value chain
6. Value chain diversity.
should demonstrate diversity success.
Taking action in the interest of diversity is
7. The right thing.
morally correct.

44 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005

 Figure 1: How Culture Shapes Behavior
Cultural media
Values and beliefs must be transmit-
ted before they can affect behavior.
Three primary mechanisms transmit
culture throughout the organization
and affect individual and group
behavior: heroes; myths and artifacts;
and rites and rituals.
Heroes transmit the culture and
affect behavior by modeling behav-
iors that succeed in an organization.
They personify the fundamental val-
ues and beliefs the organization
seeks. One senior leader became a
hero when he uncharacteristically
overruled a manager to enable a
high-performing employee to take
advantage of a flexible work option.
Myths communicate the history of
the organization through words.
Occasionally fictitious, they empha-
size the organization’s critical values
and beliefs. One story frequently
retold at a leading company depicts a
team, composed of white men, con-
verging on a client site only to find
Profiles in Diversity Journal
that group composed of people of
color. The client leader told the com-
pany’s team to come back when they
could more adequately reflect the
makeup of the client organization.
Artifacts are objects—like buildings,
tools, and written materials—that
communicate the history of the organ-
ization. At IBM, for example, a policy
letter on equal opportunity, written in
1953 by Thomas J. Watson, Jr., former
Chairman and CEO, is a frequently
cited, highly revered document.
July/August 2005 45
 Rites and rituals express values and
beliefs through action. They describe
the work environment and how work
gets done. Rites and rituals have been
described as the ‘dance of culture’.
For example, a company that has a
carefully defined process for objec-
tively evaluating every employee and
that adheres invariably to that process
sends a strong message about merit.
Strength of the culture
Strong cultures have a greater impact
on behavior than weak cultures. Vijay
Sathe 2, professor at the Drucker
School of Management, says two
features of the culture help determine
its strength:
• Extent of sharing. Organizations
with values that are more widely
shared among their members have
stronger cultures. To foster commit-
ment to shared values, IBM created
its values over a period of 72 hours
through a highly inclusive, on-line,
commitment-building process called
a ‘values jam’, which was open to
all 319,000 employees; “tens of
thousands” participated in the
process.
• Clarity of ordering. In strong
cultures, members have more clarity
about the relative importance of
various values and beliefs. IBM CEO
Sam Palmisano has been unequivo-
cally clear and focused about values
priorities at IBM: dedication to every
client’s success; innovation that mat-
ters, for the company and for the
world; trust and personal responsi-
bility in all relationships.
Management system variables
Culture is not the only organizational
variable that affects behavior (Figure 1).
Management system variables that
work in concert with culture to shape
behavior include formal management
processes (e.g., measurement, plan-
ning, and budgeting); leadership com-
mitment and style; human resources
policies and processes (e.g., perform-
ance management and total rewards);
and organizational structure.
An initiative to support diversity
values and beliefs might not have the
desired effect on behavior if it is contra-
dicted by management system vari-
ables. For example, if the performance
management process is inconsistently
applied, advancement through merit is
unlikely. Behavior also shapes the
culture in a never-ending chicken-and-
egg process.

Front-Runners in Sports Issue 4th Annual Women Worth Watching Issue

Profiles of major U.S. sports organizations and interviews with Special anniversary issue of PDJ celebrating the success and
diversity leaders in: Major League Baseball, NASCAR, U.S. Tennis, personalities of over 60 leading women executives nominated
NFL, NBA, PGA Tour, World Team Tennis, U.S. Olympic Committee by their colleagues, peers, and mentors for distinctive
• Advertising closing date is September 20, 2005 achievements in their spheres of influence.
• Advertising closing date is Oct 15, 2005
Both issues will serve as resources for:
• Diversity and inclusiveness officers and their teams—for upward and downward presentation of business case issues
• HR and Personnel Department officers—to use in orienting and guiding employees and managers
• Business educators, MBA programs, or internship directors—as case studies of accomplishment in the face of challenges
• Business consultants and trainers—for illustration of principles and messages
• Career counselors and coaches of women/minorities aspiring to leadership positions in their fields—for encouragement and guiding principles
• Entrepreneurs—for motivation, guidance and training

It would be our pleasure to work with you to

• feature your D&I team / particular initiatives in upcoming issues
Call or email publisher Jim Rector
• consider nominations for Front-Runners of 2006; 800-573-2867
• include any supporting ad or corporate commentary profiles@diversityjournal.com
• announce items of interest to the diversity community.

46 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005

 Figure 2: Diversity Culture Matrix
The refractive effect culture has
on management systems variables is
analogous to the experience of reach-
ing into water for a bar of soap and
not finding it where it appeared to be:
variables are altered as they are fil-
tered through the culture before they
affect behavior. Beware—culture may
divert the impact of management
actions away from the behaviors you
thought you were getting.
Matrix for evaluating
cultural alignment
The diversity culture matrix tool
(Figure 2) helps to determine whether
your culture is ready for diversity. The
48 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
tool is useful whether the organization
is embarking on a new diversity strategy,
or not achieving desired results from
an ongoing strategy.
The matrix includes five steps:
describe the current culture; establish
core diversity values and beliefs;
correlate core values and beliefs with
the current culture; determine the
strength of the current culture; and
analyze the results and identify targets
for cultural change.
Top management should be
involved in the culture assessment and
change process. At best, top manage-
ment should complete the tool with
the guidance of an experienced facili-
tator; at minimum, top management
must agree upon core diversity values,
sign off on the targets for cultural
change, and champion the cultural
change process.
Step 1: Describe the current
culture
For each of the cultural media—
heroes, myths and artifacts, and rites
and rituals—identify as many cur-
rent examples as possible from the
organization. This can be done
through small-group brainstorming
or by interviewing. Ideally, partici-
pants should represent all levels and
functions of the organization. Do
not be concerned about which
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It’s what drives us.

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 Figure 3: Diversity Culture Matrix for “Cyblex”
category an example fits; for example,
many myths are about heroes.
Step 2: Establish core diversity
values and beliefs
Many organizations have already
defined their diversity values and
beliefs or will want to create their
own. In any case, top management
should have final approval. Values
Step 4: Determine the strength
and beliefs should be collectively
exhaustive—no other values and
beliefs should be required to fully
describe diversity. They should also
be mutually exclusive: to the greatest
degree possible, they should not
overlap with each other.
Step 3: Correlate core values and
beliefs with the current culture
For each current culture example,
50 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
determine whether it is highly Step 5: Identify targets for
correlated, correlated, or negatively cultural change
correlated with each core value or
Identifying targets for cultural
belief by placing the appropriate
change is a relatively simple matter
symbol in the square. If there is no
once the other steps have been
relationship, leave the box blank.
completed. By reading down each
For easy visualization of results, you
core value or belief, you can deter-
can use symbols rather than numbers,
mine the correlation between the
as in the sample figures.
core value / belief and the current
value. Then, the strength of the
of the current culture culture can be established. If the
correlation is negative or nonexistent,
For each core value or belief, deter-
or the strength of the culture is low
mine whether the extent of sharing
for a particular value or belief, that
and clarity of ordering indicates a
value should become a target for
strong, moderate, or weak culture.
cultural change.
(Use the same symbols you used for
Step 3.)
Figure 3 illustrates how a company
can use the diversity culture matrix to
identify its targets.
 ‘Cyblex’ is a hypothetical medium-
sized technology company that makes
automated language translation
systems, most of which are purchased
by women. Cyblex is strong on diver-
sity as a competitive advantage, even
including diversity among its business
goals. There are strong corporate mes-
sages about the value of mirroring
customers—not apparently shared by
employees. Although there are exam-
ples of heroic individuals, the culture
at Cyblex does not convey psychological
safety. Valuing differences and foster-
ing inclusion are somewhat ambigu-
ous, while merit and doing the right
thing appear to be strong in the
culture. There is no message at all
about value chain diversity. Cyblex
should first strengthen safety and valuing
differences and inclusion, then
enhance value chain diversity.
Ultimately, the need for a cultural
change is a judgment call. Step 5,
identifying targets for cultural change,
is most effective when done as a
group. The critical question to address
is, “What does the diversity culture
matrix communicate to you?” A
seasoned facilitator can help lead the
group to a consensus on interpreta-
tion and priorities for action.
Getting Started
To initiate development of a culture of
diversity, leaders may want to make a
few bold changes to symbolize the
new culture. For example, one senior
leader unequivocally rebuked an
employee for making a racially
derogatory remark; by the end of that
afternoon, the whole company had
received a strong message on psycho-
logical safety. Another leader delivered
the diversity business case to every
employee, a handful at a time; e-mails
back to HR indicated that employees
52 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
An initiative to support the seven core
diversity values and beliefs might not have
the desired effect on behavior if it is
contradicted by management system variables.
At minimum, top management must agree
upon core diversity values, sign off on the
targets for cultural change, and champion
the cultural change process.
had gotten the message about diversity 3Harrison M. Trice and Janice M. Beyer. “Using Six
as a competitive advantage. Use the Organizational Rites to Change Culture,” in Gaining
Control of the Corporate Culture, Killman, Saxton, Serpa,
organization’s particular management and Associates, editors (San Francisco, CA: Josey-Bass,
system variables—organizational 1985), p. 371.
structure, formal management
processes, leadership commitment / Peter Linkow is president of WFD
style, and HR policies / practices—to Consulting in Newton, Massachusetts,
move the culture toward diversity and where he focuses on work-life and
check for a consistent message across diversity strategy.
systems.
In the long run, implementing a
diversity culture often requires signifi-
cant cultural change and must be
implemented like any transformation3.
A
Changing and then maintaining a
culture is by no means easy or certain.
PDJ
Nevertheless, cultural development is
essential to diversity success.
Albany Interntional Corp.
NOTES:
1373 Broadway
1Terrence E. Deal and Allen A. Kennedy.
Albany, NY 12204
Corporate Cultures: The Rites and Rituals of Corporate Life
www.albint.com
(Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1982), p.4.
2Vijay Sathe. Culture and Related Corporate Realities
We are an AA/EOE/M/F/V/D employer.
(Homewood, IL: Richard D. Irwin, Inc., 1985), p.15.
Researchers Find Gender and
Parenting Skew Job Evaluations
Psychologist Kathleen Fuegen at Ohio
State University and her colleagues
investigated how a worker’s gender
and parental status might influence
managers’ assessments of job
competence for hiring and promotion.
T wo sets of undergraduates
(from Midwestern and Eastern
colleges) were asked to review
“resumes” of male and female job
applicants depicted as either single or
married with two young children; par-
ticipants rated the workers for poten-
tial hire and also for advancement
based on a range of specific skills.
Citing the current sociological
literature, Fuegen notes that “in the
#/-&/24!",%
United States the ideal worker is one
who enters the workforce in young
adulthood, works 40 or more hours
per week, is always available to the
employer, works consistently for 40 or
more years, and does not take time
off for raising children.” She says the
standard perception of the ideal
worker is one who is ‘unencum-
bered’, and that many of the traits
considered necessary for being a
good parent are “contrary to those
needed to be successful in the work-
place” (e.g., independence, competi-
tiveness, dominance, and availability).
The study revealed that parental
status alone or in combination with
gender colored the evaluations of
Profiles in Diversity Journal
applicants, the standards for hiring,
and promotion decisions. Parents
were judged as less assertive and less
committed to the workplace than
non-parents; fathers were held to sig-
nificantly more lenient performance
and time commitment standards than
mothers and childless men. Further-
more, women tended to be held to
somewhat higher standards if they
were parents than if they were not
PDJ
parents (i.e., less likely to be hired
and promoted).
To explore the implications, of this study, read
"Mothers and Fathers in the Workplace: How Gender
and Parental Status Influence Judgments of Job-
Related Competence" by Fuegen, Biernat, Haines, &
Deaux : Journal of Social Issues. Vol. 60, No. 4, 2004,
pp. 737-754.
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˜`]Ê
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ۈÈÌÊ}iœÀ}ˆ>«œÜiÀ°Vœ“°
July/August 2005 53
 Reaching a World
of Opportunity
By Catalyst

Global experience is becoming a more critical requirement

for those who aspire to senior leadership positions.

I n today’s global marketplace, get-

ting international experience is an
increasingly crucial factor for
career success. But women often face
“glass borders” that prevent them from
being selected for global assignments
and gaining this experience.
Stereotyping such as “customers out-
side of the United States won’t do
business with women” causes man-
agers to be wary about tapping
women for global roles, and may
make women themselves more hesi-
tant to accept such assignments.
Women also face assumptions about
their willingness to relocate that often
don’t match reality.*
Organizations need to debunk
these myths and provide their women
with global assignments to give them
the experience they need to advance
and develop in the increasingly global
business environment. And individual
women who are considering global
assignments need to pursue, evaluate,
and prepare for these opportunities.
Both men and women seeking women are not willing to relocate. For “Global assignments are a
global experience can take steps to women who are considering a global
advance this career objective: assignment now or in the future, con-
versations with supervisors, mentors,
great opportunity, but be
1. Express interest in global human resources professionals, and
opportunities. other decision-makers about global sure they fit your life-cycle
Catalyst’s study, Passport to opportunities are critical. The discus-
Opportunity: U.S. Women in Global sion can touch on timing, the type of stage.”
Business, demonstrates that one of the assignment (e.g., frequent flyer, expa- – WOMAN, FORMER EXPATRIATE,
CONSUMER PRODUCTS
chief barriers to women in global triate, global team), prerequisites, and
business is the assumption that how to pursue global opportunities.

54 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005

 “The timing was right
because I knew enough
about the company to
contribute, but it was
early enough in my
career that
I have also learned
a lot about doing
business worldwide.”
– WOMAN, EXPATRIATE,
TECHNOLOGY
“If offered an expatriate
assignment, you should
take it. It’s a wonderful
opportunity.”
– WOMAN, FORMER EXPATRIATE,
FINANCIAL SERVICES
“Be open to the
experience. Accept that
there will be some
hurdles because of your
gender, but don’t let
them stop you.”
– WOMAN, EXPATRIATE,
CONSUMER PRODUCTS
“The experience is
invaluable. I worked in
two different production
facilities and at head-
quarters. It’s nothing like
moving geographically
and working in
another culture.”
– WOMAN, EXPATRIATE,
CONSUMER PRODUCTS
56 Profiles in Diversity Journal July/August 2005
2. Evaluate the best time for a
global assignment.
Consider your personal situation as
well as the optimal time for your
career. The vast majority of expatriates
in Catalyst’s study, both men and
women, say that the timing was about
right for their assignments.
On the personal front, women can
assess their current and future mobili-
ty by the age of children, significant
other’s career, and the health of family
members. Expatriates with children
say the best times are when children
are young and adaptable or after high
school when they have moved out.
Consult with partners and family mem-
bers about their willingness to move
overseas well in advance of a reloca-
tion opportunity.
Career-wise, global managers
want enough experience to succeed
and gain host country nationals’
respect, but they need that experience
early enough in their careers to lever-
age it for future advancement opportu-
nities. Individuals can also discuss
ideal career timing with their supervi-
sors and mentors, or others who are
currently global managers.
3. Keep up with global
business issues.
Understanding the global business
context will help individuals prepare
for a future global management role.
For example, regularly read The
Financial Times or The Economist.
Also, broach discussions with higher-
ups and current global managers
about the impact of globalization on
your organization.
4. Consider the range of ways
to gain global experience.
Expatriate assignments are not the
only way to develop global business
experience. Short-term assignments,
global teams or task forces, and
frequent flyer assignments are other
options—either as complements to or
substitutes for expatriation. Determine
with supervisors and mentors what
‘counts’ as global experience in your
organization and field.
5. Assess readiness and
suitability for global
management roles.
Human resources professionals and
global managers agree that ‘soft skills’,
such as flexibility and listening skills,
are critical to success in cross-cultural
interactions. There are numerous self-
assessment tools that evaluate
strengths and weaknesses for global
assignments generally, or gauge the
ability to adjust to specific cultures.
Tailored assessment tools are available
for family members through global
relocation organizations.
6. Recognize how valuable
you are.
With a shortage of global talent,
women in particular have negotiating
leverage. Don’t be afraid to ask for the
position that you want and the support
you’ll need.
7. Just do it!
Overwhelmingly, women expatriates
recommend global assignments for
other women. Catalyst finds women to
be as satisfied and successful as men;
both groups describe the experience
PDJ
as both personally and professionally
rewarding.
With offices in New York, San Jose, and Toronto,
Catalyst is the leading research and advisory
organization working with businesses and the
professions to build inclusive environments and
expand opportunities for women at work.
For more information about gaining global
experience, or to purchase your copy of Passport
to Opportunity: U.S. Women in Global Business,
visit www.catalystwomen.org. You may also sign
up to receive our issue-specific newsletter,
Perspective, and our monthly email updates at
news@catalystwomen.org.
* Also see “Global Issues for Women,” summarizing the
Dell Women’s Global Summit findings, in the PDJ
March/April 2005 issue. Editor.
 The Drive for Diversity and
Inclusion starts right here.

A s a proud sponsor of NASCAR’s “Drive for Diversity” initiative,

®

Waste Management is racing toward the same goals as you are.

From Bill Lester behind the wheel of his Number 22 Waste Management
Toyota Tundra to our constant efforts to recruit and support a diverse
workforce, we are truly committed to speeding past today’s conventions
of diversity and inclusion.
Waste Management salutes the many other workplaces that are on the
same track as we are. By working together, we already find ourselves on
the road to a more diverse, inclusive tomorrow.
From everyday collection to environmental protection,
Think Green. Think Waste Management.
®

NASCAR® is a registered trademark of the

National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, Inc. www.wm.com
©2004 Waste Management, Inc.
When you bring out the best in every individual,
you can achieve great things together.

When you join Lockheed Martin, you become part of a team that’s dedicated to providing everyone with the
opportunity to succeed. This spirit of inclusion is the foundation of our success. We believe in an environment
that welcomes, respects, and leverages our differences into one competitive strength. It’s all about giving our best
every day. And eliminating the barriers that might stand in the way of innovative solutions. Lockheed Martin. One
company. One team. Where diversity contributes to mission success.