In 2007, however, she jumped at the chance to helm the Bolsa de Valores—the Dominican Republic’s capital markets exchange—and, during her first year, oversaw an 821 percent increase in trades. By this past spring, the exchange had already posted more than $10 billion in trades—a 500 percent rise over the same period in 2007. As a result, Estrella Mordan was recently named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. Diversity Woman spoke with Estrella Mordan about how she is changing the island’s business culture—as well as coping with some culture shock.

Diversity Woman: What kind of ambitions did you have growing up? Did you always want to be in business?
Darys Estrella Mordan: My parents always told me that I could do anything I wanted. My dad was a radio producer, and my mother ran a candy business from our home: she supplied candy to all the supermarkets in Santo Domingo. I wasn’t so much interested in business, but when I was a little girl I would think, “I want to wear a suit, be the boss.” If I told you I knew exactly what I wanted to do, I’d be lying.

DW: How did you land in finance?
DEM: When I was graduating from Vassar, Deltec was looking for a recent grad fluent in Spanish. I didn’t know what a bond or a stock was, but during my interview they were asking me questions about inflation and devaluation—and growing up in Latin America, you don’t have to be an economist to know what that means. They made me an offer for their Latin American desk because they knew they could train me in finance.

DW: Even so, you entered a pretty tough arena. What helped you move up so fast?
DEM: I have the kind of personality where I don’t get intimidated easily. I was 25 and meeting with the financial minister of Brazil or [President] Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. There I was, in meetings with all these guys who could be my grandfathers. Having that exposure so early was huge, but I was able to rise to that occasion, to show that I could be a leader.

DW: How did the position with the exchange come about?
DEM: I was a founding member of DOWS [Dominicans on Wall Street] and was president for two terms. I wanted us to have an annual trip to the DR—have meetings with presidential candidates and top business people—to better relations. We’d make suggestions—just humble opinions as people with international experience—and that’s how I got to know the movers and shakers in the DR. So when this position became available, they thought of me. It wasn’t an easy decision to quit Goldman Sachs—I loved it there—and move my family, but at the same time it was easy. The challenge of helping to build this exchange really attracted me.

DW: The DR-CAFTA [Dominican Republic-Central American Free Trade Agreement], implemented in 2007, reduced tariffs and increased the need for business transparency. But how do you want to affect the exchange yourself?
DEM: One main priority is to increase the volume of transactions coming through the exchange. Before, volume was going outside the exchange—people would make transactions on the phone and there was no transparency that way. A lot of companies here are owned by families, and they’re not used to giving up control. My dream is to have equities listed. We still need to do a lot more promotion, too. I’m always on TV or in the paper, just trying to promote the market culture, which didn’t exist here before.

DW: How is the business culture different in the DR compared to Wall Street?
DEM: At Goldman Sachs, if I had a problem, it was solved in 30 seconds. Here, we don’t have the same resources or personnel, and we’re dealing with things like the electricity going off five or six times a day. The generator kicks in automatically, but I remember one time, we were doing some trades, and the generator didn’t come on, so I called maintenance, saying, “I can’t function without electricity. You look for somebody to fix it now!” It took them 10 minutes. It happened only once, but that was one too many times.

DW: How does the business community there treat a woman in your position?
DEM: There are very few executive women. When I came here, some people already knew me, but being U.S. educated and having the Wall Street background really helped. People listened to me. I am convinced that if I had always stayed here, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

DW: How have your U.S.-born husband and three kids adjusted?
DEM: They’re happy now. My older son, who’s 11 now, was mad at me for a while—he didn’t understand why I had to take him away from his friends. My little one, now three, was two years old when we got here, so he doesn’t know any different—he actually acts Dominican, which is funny. The culture here celebrates boys being more aggressive—a girl is supposed to behave a certain way. But, I tell my eight-year-old daughter, “You could be president of this country if you wanted.” DW

Katrina Brown Hunt is a Diversity Woman contributing writer.

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Are men and women’s leadership styles really all that different? Much has been written in business literature over the past 20 years about the differences in the way the genders lead. Research shows that women have a more collaborative, intuitive, nurturing, and empathetic style, while men prefer a more top-down, fact-based, linear, and task-oriented approach.

Until recently, there hasn’t been enough of a sampling to test this assumption. But more and more women have moved into leadership positions, and as they become managers, the differences in style show up.

I believe that the differences can, in large part, be attributed to the way we socialize girls and boys. Even though some attitudes around gender roles are fading, the vestiges remain strong enough to affect perceptions and behavior. Men are “supposed” to be strong and assertive, whereas woman “should” be softer and gentler.

In focus groups with women, I often hear them say they are caught in a catch-22. If they are perceived as too assertive or direct, they are branded with the b word. If they are not assertive enough, they are labeled weak leaders. In our society, it is still hard for women to be considered both “nice” and “competent.” By the same standards, studies show that if men are viewed as nurturing and empathic, they are thought to be weak leaders as well.

Further, there are some nuances to the biases around women of color. According to a Catalyst Survey, Advancing African American Women in the Workplace: What Managers Need to Know, African-American women are labeled aggressive, angry, and defensive even before they might be tapped for leadership. Asian women are often viewed in Western culture as passive and therefore not leadership material. Latino women are seen either as too “sexy” or as not particularly interested in advancing.

Given that the barriers involve complex issues deeply rooted in centuries-old norms, how can we embrace an inclusive mind-set about men’s and women’s different leadership styles, appreciate and accept the differences, and find ways to leverage them?

Here are five simple, but challenging, recommendations.

• Understand the differences in the perceptions of Caucasian, African-American, Asian, and Latino women and how those perceptions can impact the ability of women to break into leadership positions.

• Understand that a good leader has both traditionally male and traditionally female leadership qualities. It is not an either-or. The styles are complementary.

• Be conscious of your own biases about gender roles and do the work necessary to change your thinking and behavior.

• Know your own leadership style and learn to adapt it to fit different situations. Sometimes leaders need to be direct and firm. At other times, empathy and compassion are most needed.

• Be yourself. Situational adaptation does not mean losing the strength of your natural style. By knowing your style, you can work at making it even better.

Mary-Frances Winters is the president and CEO of the Winters Group, Inc.

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We’re at our keyboards way too much, and, let’s face it, the lure of the Internet is irresistible. How do you minimize your computer time and stay focused on tasks? Leo Babauta, creator of zenhabits.net offers these suggestions:

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To keep pace in today’s breakneck business world, you must join the apps revolution. Whether you are rocking an iPhone or a Droid or a Blackberry, you’ll find thousands of apps tailored to your needs. Here are some of DW’s favorites.

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Jamaican-born Jackie Glenn sees diversity and inclusion as critical to the success of global companies. That’s why at EMC, the world’s leading developer and provider of information infrastructure technology and solutions, she’s infusing these two elements into the very fabric of the company’s business. Diversity Woman spoke with Glenn about her work and the passion that keeps her pushing for positive change.

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So you got a job offer. Congratulations! But it’s not yet time to celebrate. You first must negotiate the terms of your compensation. Negotiation is expected; the salary offered is usually only in the midrange, at most. When an offer is first made, don’t accept—or counter—just yet. Thank the interviewer and express your interest in the job and the company, but ask for some time to consider the details.

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Dear DW,

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Not so long ago, merely mentioning that companies should take diversity and inclusion into account when hiring would raise eyebrows. But that started to change in 1987, when the Hudson Institute’s landmark Workforce 2000 study forecasted that the American workforce would become much more diverse in the new millennium—and companies that couldn’t adapt would risk losing their competitive edge.

The Hudson report was right on the money, and that trend is only continuing. In fact, experts say women and people of color constitute 70 percent of new entrants to the workforce.

Many organizations have responded by creating a new executive position—chief diversity officer—with the sole responsibility of promoting workforce diversity. Just a decade ago, this position was almost unheard of, but today, approximately one in five Fortune 1000 companies have diversity managers. These CDOs are implementing comprehensive programs to help their company boost diverse recruitment, help those employees advance, implement diversity training, and even forge relationships with diverse vendors. Experts say these efforts help build morale, reduce employee turnover, and build stronger relationships with customers in diverse communities—and ultimately boosting a company’s success.

Because women have often come up against barriers themselves, it’s no surprise that some of them have become the country’s most influential diversity leaders. And they’re making progress from every conceivable angle—some are CDOs in Fortune 500 companies, some have launched their own training and consultancy firms, and still others are working within the nonprofit sector.

We salute the following dynamic women who are leading the charge by changing the way we think, interact, work, and do business, each and every day.

Lenora Billings-Harris, consultant, international speaker, and author of The Diversity Advantage: A Guide to Making Diversity Work (Greensboro, North Carolina)

Lenora Billings-Harris founded her own corporate training firm 22 years ago—but it was during a single, powerful moment in South Africa that she discovered her true calling.

“I was presenting a customer service workshop in Johannesburg two months before Nelson Mandela was elected, and the tension in the country was palpable,” she remembers. “After the workshop, a woman who had been standing in the back of the room came up to me, gave me a bear hug, and started crying. She said, ‘I’m an Afrikaner. My husband, brothers, and sons are looking for ammunition to kill every black person they see. When I saw that you were the speaker, I couldn’t think of a reason to stay in this room. But now I know my real reason for being here today was to experience your presence, and I must go home and convince my family to put down their guns and work for peace.’”

Since that time, Billings-Harris has helped scores of Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations embrace diversity and build healthier, happier workplace She helps organizations develop comprehensive diversity strategies, and has spoken on the topic to groups throughout the U.S. and around the world. Wherever she goes, audiences love her humorous, light-hearted approach: She’s been known to use characters from The Wizard of Oz as a teaching metaphor, for example. As she says, “The topic is serious, but I make it really fun and upbeat so people can go on that journey without feeling judged.”

Lee Gardenswartz & Anita Rowe, founders of Gardenswartz & Rowe (Los Angeles, California)

Pioneers in diversity and inclusion training, Lee Gardenswartz and Anita Rowe met when they were both schoolteachers for the Los Angeles Unified School District. When mandatory integration swept into the district in the 1970s, the two joined a federally-funded project to help with the transition—an experience that prompted them redirect their life’s work. In 1980, the duo left teaching and launched their own diversity and inclusion training firm.

Gardenswartz and Rowe did seminal research in the field and developed comprehensive programs that incorporated communication, decision making, team building, and change management. They arrived on the scene just in time, as some well-intentioned companies had tried to develop diversity programs on their own, with poor results. “When some of these places would tell us what they’d done, we’d just shudder,” Rowe says. In fact, some companies’ efforts were so misguided, they found themselves in lawsuits.

Because they wanted to help—but couldn’t be everywhere— Gardenswartz and Rowe authored several practical, tool-driven books, including Managing Diversity: A Complete Desk Reference & Planning Guide. “Our objective was to help people create kinder, healthier spaces in which to work,” Lee says. “We knew things were happening that weren’t good, and we wanted to give information.”

Gardenswartz and Rowe continue to train some of the country’s premier organizations including Boeing, Disneyland, Harvard Medical School, the Internal Revenue Service, Starbucks, and UCLA Medical Center.

Redia Anderson Banks, chief diversity officer, Deloitte & Touche USA, LLP (Houston, Texas)

Because her father was in the Air Force, Redia Anderson Banks grew up surrounded by people with different backgrounds. So when she began working in human resources, she noticed something. “There were sometimes misunderstandings based on cultural differences, and people didn’t quite recognize it,” she says. Anderson Banks found ways to build bridges—and built herself a rewarding career in the process.

Today, she spearheads diversity initiatives at Deloitte & Touche, a leading financial consultancy and Big Four accounting firm. An impressive 40 percent of the company’s new hires are minorities and, once they’re in the door, employees are encouraged to join a Business Resource Group to boost their business skills and networking opportunities. (There are groups for Asian, Black, Hispanic, women, and gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender employees, as well as for those who are parents.) Meanwhile, promising minority managers can enter the company’s Breakthrough Leadership program to build skills and advance up the ladder. In just its second year, that program turned out six graduates who then became partners, principles, or directors.

Anderson Banks is also proud of the company’s Women’s Initiative, designed to retain women employees and help them rise into leadership positions. In fact, Deloitte & Touche has the highest percentage of women partners, principals, and directors amongst the Big Four.

“We’re creating an environment where people want to join us, and want to bring their friends and colleagues to come work here,” Anderson Banks says. “For us, diversity is all about helping our business grow and become more profitable.”

Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army (retired), and founder and president of Educational Achievement Services (Las Vegas, Nevada)

Raised by immigrant parents in a small barrio in Texas, Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch overcame poverty and discrimination to graduate from college and then join the U.S. Army, eventually becoming the highest-ranking Hispanic woman in the Combat Support Field. But when the Army offered her a coveted command post—having chosen from 26,000 candidates—she stunned everyone by turning it down.

Instead, wanting to honor her mother’s deathbed wish that she help others, she founded Educational Achievement Services, Inc., to empower the next generation of Hispanic leaders via talks and workshops. A passionate public speaker, Castillo Kickbusch has already reached more than a million children, parents, and educators in 43 states. “We have to show children that they have options, and who better to tell them than someone who has been in their shoes?” she asks.

Castillo Kickbusch is also in heavy demand as a speaker on diversity and leadership for clients such as Boeing, Dell, Ford, Lockheed-Martin, the National Football League, the Department of the Treasury, and the Drug Enforcement Agency. For her efforts, she’s received many awards, including the prestigious Hispanic Heritage Foundation Award for leadership.

Margaret Regan, CEO, Future Work Institute (Brooklyn, New York)

As the first woman executive at Con Edison years ago, Margaret Regan learned firsthand what it feels like to be the only woman amongst men. In that position,. she spearheaded an effort to hire hundreds of people from economically-disadvantaged neighborhoods to help families end the poverty cycle.

Her interest in gender and race issues eventually lead her to found the Future Work Institute, an innovative full-service diversity consulting firm affiliated with Towers Perrin that starts by giving organizations a peek into their future.

“We give our clients a very strong picture of the workplace, workforce, and marketplace over the next ten years,” Regan says. “We research those trends for every industry. For the pharmaceutical industry, for example, we have tremendous research on how different cultures look at health and healing.” Organizations such as American Express, the New York Stock Exchange, and the United Nations have hired the Future Work Institute, which offers a comprehensive change process—from behavior skills training to 360 assessments on diversity—and uses fun, interactive, up-to-the-minute tools.

Amy S. Tolbert, Ph.D., principal, Effective Creative Change in Organizations (ECCO) International and author of Reversing the Ostrich Approach to Diversity: Pulling Your Head Out of the Sand (Minneapolis, Minnesota)

While in graduate school, Amy Tolbert, Ph.D. had a light bulb moment. Working as part of an ethnically diverse research team, she noticed that the group members would all sit in the same meeting and come out with completely different understandings of what had occurred. Mystified—and intrigued—she decided to focus her doctoral research on Human Resources with a multicultural focus. As she says, “Experiencing things through a different set of eyes changed my field. It changed my life. It changed everything.”

In 1989, Dr. Tolbert founded ECCO, which applies solid research in intercultural communication to create diversity strategies for organizations like 3M, Best Buy, the Mayo Clinic, and Radisson Hotel Systems. Each client’s progress is measured and tracked over time, helping to ensure success.

“Research shows that multicultural teams are more susceptible to conflict in the beginning,” Dr. Tolbert says. “But once you work through the misunderstandings, they are much more adaptable to change.” The organizations ECCO works with seem to agree, with 80 percent of the organization’s business coming from repeat clients.

Gwen Crider, executive director, National Multicultural Institute (Washington, D.C.)

A former executive director at various museums, Gwen Crider helped make the arts-and-culture world friendlier and more inclusive by spearheading diversity strategies for both the Association of Science–Technology Centers and the Association of Children’s Museums.

Following her successful work with museums, she broadened her influence by joining the National Multicultural Institute, an organization that reaches tens of thousands of people. “Promoting diversity needs to become a shared responsibility across an organization,” she says. “It can’t just be minorities participating, and it takes strong leadership from senior levels. Otherwise, it’s not taken seriously and it doesn’t become imbedded within the culture.”

The National Multicultural Institute offers in-depth training workshops and private consultation, as well publications on diversity and inclusion to clients ranging from the American Cancer Society, to Lockheed Martin Corporation, to the Department of State.

Belinda Grant-Anderson, vice president, Workforce Development & Diversity, AT&T (San Antonio, Texas)

A former engineer consultant for AT&T, Belinda Grant-Anderson eventually migrated into Human Resources, armed with a plan to help the company attract top talent and work inclusiveness into the company’s very fabric. “Having a diverse workforce gives you a competitive advantage,” she says. “People are the most important part of a company, and you have to make them feel that their contributions are valued.”

To do that, AT&T has set—and met—specific goals to ensure its commitment goes beyond mere lip service. Diversity goals have been incorporated into the company’s Leadership Development Program, for example, a program for recent college graduates that offers mentoring, networking opportunities, and training workshops. “Our target is that half of all participants be women and half be people of color,” Grant-Anderson says.

And these efforts have certainly borne fruit. Currently, 42 percent of AT&T managers are women, eclipsing the average of most Fortune 500 companies, and 28 percent are people of color.

Tammy Edwards, director, Inclusion and Diversity, Sprint (Overland Park, Kansas)

At the start of her career, Tammy Edwards was an intern with Sprint through the INROADS program, which places talented minority youth in business. So years later, when she had an opportunity to get involved in Sprint’s diversity and inclusion efforts, she jumped at the chance. “Diversity and inclusion is a business imperative,” she says. “And we look at it holistically—from an employee, customer, supplier, and community standpoint.”

Edwards is especially proud of Sprint’s employee resource groups—including African-American, Hispanic, Gay and Lesbian, and Asian/Pacific American groups—which have worked tirelessly to help the company recruit, retain, and mentor talent from their respective communities. The company has garnered numerous diversity awards and has been included in the  Diversity Inc. Top 50 list four years in a row.

Marilyn Tam, business and diversity consultant and author of How to Use What You’ve Got to Get What You Want (Santa Barbara, California)

Having grown up in a traditional Chinese family in Hong Kong, Marilyn Tam wasn’t prepared for the reception she’d receive in the United States as a young college student. “It was hurtful when people refused to serve me at restaurants or didn’t allow me to rent housing because of the way I looked,” she says. “And as I started looking for work, I encountered more prejudice—based on gender as well as color—so I became sensitized and interested in making a positive difference.”

That she certainly has. As president of Reebok Apparel and Retail Group, for example, she brought the ratio of women and minorities to parity with the general population throughout the ranks. Fifty percent of managers reporting to her were women, including several African-American, Asian, Hispanic, and foreign nationals.

Following a distinguished corporate career—she was also CEO of Aveda and vice president of Nike—Tam struck out on her own as a trainer, consultant, and speaker on leadership and diversity. In that role, she helps Fortune 500 companies, governments, and nonprofit organizations alike develop winning strategies for embracing and leveraging diversity to achieve success.

Ana Duarte McCarthy, Chief Diversity Officer, Citigroup (New York, New York)

With an academic background in psychology and multicultural counseling, Ana Duarte McCarthy began her career by creating a university program to help economically challenged kids get into college. “I found that supporting equity and fairness was something that I felt very strongly about,” she says.

She eventually brought her passion for fairness to Citi, which has made promoting diversity a core component of its management practices. “For us, it’s imperative that employees feel valued and respected, and that’s why I come to work everyday,” McCarthy says. “We’re in 100 countries, and in some of the places where our employees work and live, there are social challenges that may make them feel inhibited. So when they come to work, it needs to be a pretty terrific place.”

All businesses and managers at Citi are required to draw up annual diversity plans—and track and report their progress. As a result, the company has launched several exciting programs, from a Citi Women’s Initiative to support the advancement of women employees, to an Employee Network program that includes African Heritage, Asian Heritage, Hispanic, Pride, Working Parents, and Women’s groups.

As a result, the company has received numerous recognitions, including consistent placement on Working Mother magazine’s “100 Best Companies for Working Mothers” list and a 100 percent ranking on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index.

Geri Thomas, executive, Global Diversity & Inclusion, Bank of America  (Atlanta, Georgia)

Geri Thomas ensures that at Bank of America, one of the world’s largest financial institutions, diversity is incorporated into the very heart of its business operations—and keeps business leaders engaged and accountable. Executives actively participate in conferences and diversity recruiting, and the company’s diversity efforts are measured just like any other business initiative would be.

Besides awarding scholarships to multicultural students, Bank of America partners with professional organizations like the National Black MBA Association, historically black colleges and universities, and others to attract the best and brightest. As a result, Bank of America has set the bar for recruitment diversity, with 55 percent of its new hires being people of color. The company is also committed to using diverse vendors and is one of only a handful of companies that track its use of gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender suppliers.

Theresa Alvillar-Speake, director, Office of Minority Economic Impact, U.S. Department of Energy (Washington, D.C.)

In 2001, Theresa Alvillar-Speake was appointed by President Bush to head the Department of Energy’s Office of Minority Impact, becoming the first Hispanic ever to hold that position. Her position, in turn, has allowed her to have a positive impact on minority communities far and wide. She advises the Secretary of Energy on how the country’s energy policies affect minority communities and businesses, and makes recommendations in their best interests.

A passionate advocate of minority business development since the 1970s, Alvillar-Speake also helps direct the Department of Energy’s policies and programs around small disadvantaged businesses and civil rights, and spearheads the agency’s support to minority educational institutions and banks, building an infrastructure of opportunities along the way. But her work isn’t all outward-looking. Alvillar-Speake is also responsible for promoting diversity and inclusion within the Department of Energy itself, giving women, people of color, and others ample opportunity to join the agency and rise through the ranks, as she has.

T. Hudson Williams, vice president, Diversity & Multicultural Initiatives, Time Warner, Inc.  (New York, New York)

Named to The Network Journal’s “40 Under Forty” list in 2007, which recognizes outstanding young minority executives, T. Hudson Williams had already produced impressive results as corporate diversity director for Toyota before rolling up her sleeves to do her magic at Time Warner.

As Time Warner’s vice president of Diversity & Multicultural Initiatives, Hudson Williams works with corporate and divisional leaders throughout the company to promote a culture of inclusion that’s unusually broad. In addition to actively recruiting a diverse workforce and setting up Affinity Groups to support employees once onboard, the company has taken steps to infuse female, multiethnic, and gay and lesbian points of view into the magazines, television shows, and films it produces.

Deborah Dagit, executive director, Diversity & Work Environment, Merck & Co., Inc.  (Whitehouse Station, New Jersey)

A pioneering advocate for people with disabilities, Deborah Dagit played an instrumental role in the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. (Born with osteogenesis imperfecta, or brittle bone disease, Dagit herself is four feet tall and walks using a cane.) She’s also responsible for placing hundreds of people with disabilities into long-term employment through Bridge-to-Jobs, an organization she founded. Dagit’s approach and successes have made her one of the most sought-after spokespersons on diversity.

Now in charge of diversity initiatives at Merck—one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies—her fighting spirit has led to breakthrough programs that have put that organization on the leading edge. She launched the company’s Diversity Worldwide Business Strategy team, for example, which developed a diversity assessment tool that can be customized for offices in the U.S. and in various countries.

Meanwhile, Merck is doing its part to enlarge the pool of talented minority students who choose biomedical research careers. The company, for example, made a 10-year, $20 million commitment to the United Negro College Fund for scholarships and internships.

Avid Modjtabai, director, Human Resources and Diversity, Wells Fargo  (San Francisco, California)

Named one of 25 Women to Watch by US Banker, Avid Modjtabai has shown that a large, established financial services firm can be every bit as innovative as a tech start-up. Her company, Wells Fargo, was committed to diversity long before the notion became popular—and Modjtabai, a native of Iran, has taken the company up a rung.

Wells Fargo recently rolled out a Diverse Leaders seminar for African Americans, Asian Americans, and Latinos, for example. Such initiatives have translated into concrete results: 51 percent of the company’s officers and managers are women, and 22 percent are minorities.The bank has also become a leader in marketing to diverse communities, with 22 percent of its advertising budget dedicated to advertising targeted to people of color, people with disabilities, and the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender community.

As a result of its forward-thinking initiatives, Wells Fargo has captured dozens of diversity awards from organizations such as Diversity Inc., the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, and the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.

Rohini Anand, chief diversity officer, Sodexho  (Gaithersburg, Maryland)

A renowned expert on diversity and inclusion, Rohini Anand is a former vice president of the National MultiCultural Institute, where she crafted diversity initiatives for clients in the U.S and around the world. The author of several texts on diversity, including Customizing Diversity Training Using Case Vignettes, her expertise has made her a popular speaker on diversity on national television and at conferences around the country.

Anand’s talents are now being put to use at Sodexho, the country’s leading provider of food and facilities management, where she has launched Employee Network Groups and created a diversity scorecard that links each manager’s diversity achievements to their annual compensation. More than 2,500 managers have attended the company’s Diversity Learning Labs, which include “Muslims in the Workplace” and “Generations in the Workplace.” And in 2006, the company reached beyond its own walls to host its first annual Diversity Business Roundtable, which provided diversity benchmarking and training to 32 clients.

Mae Douglas, senior vice president and chief people officer, Cox Communications  (Atlanta, Georgia)

Mae Douglas has gotten accolades for instituting a number of effective diversity initiatives at Cox Communications, one of the country’s largest cable providers. She heads up the company’s Diversity Council, comprising 15 high-level executives, which sets goals and metrics for measuring progress to ensure Cox is continually raising the bar. Thanks to Douglas’s efforts, the company has received numerous honors, including being named the best cable operator for women by the Women in Cable Telecommunications (WICT) Foundation.

Besides offering companywide diversity training and leadership initiatives within the company, Cox partners with many like-minded organizations that are working for positive change, such as the National Association of Multi-Ethnicity in Communications, the Emma L. Bowen Foundation (which opens minority students’ access to jobs in media), and Cable Positive (an AIDS awareness organization).

Magda Yrizarry, vice president, Workplace Culture Diversity and Compliance, Verizon Communications  (New York, New York)

As one of her family’s first generation to become professionals, Magda Yrizarry has dedicated her career to helping Hispanics and other minorities break barriers and reach their potential.  In fact, she was honored by the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce for her extensive outreach to the Hispanic business community.

At telecommunications giant Verizon, she has helped hone an assertive diversity strategy that includes mandatory diversity training for all employees. The company is committed to recruiting and advancing a broad workforce, and its efforts show—27 percent of the company’s board of directors and 39 percent of its managers are people of color, while 43 percent of women managers who are promoted are women of color. But Verizon doesn’t just track its raw numbers. The company also measures employees’ sense of belonging by using an index developed based on responses to an employee opinion survey to ensure that all of its workers feel welcome and valued.

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Diversity Woman: How did you get into diversity as a field?

Rohini Anand: Coming to the United States from India, I experienced what it was to be a “minority” for the first time. That had a powerful impact on me and brought me to this work. My PhD at the University of Michigan was on identity formation and cross-cultural issues. It became important to me to help level the playing field for underrepresented groups. When I was interviewed at Sodexo, the CEO’s commitment and passion for diversity issues sealed the deal for me to get involved as a manager in this area.

DW: What characterizes Sodexoís approach to diversity?

RA: The company maintains a comprehensive, top-down, bottom-up, middle-out strategy that begins with senior-level commitment and role modeling, and extends to grassroots involvement through councils, network groups, and a distributed leadership model. That’s all coupled with measurement and accountability on diversity that’s linked to executive compensation. Even if the company does not have a strong financial year, bonuses are paid out for good work on diversity issues.

DW: What directions are you taking the company in?

RA: We’re focusing on enhancing diversity globally. It is a whole different ball game when you go outside the United States. We’re also driving the commitment to diversity deeper into the middle- management ranks. And we’re continuing to develop the pipeline for women and minorities from entry-level positions all the way up to senior management.

DW: What are you most proud of in your career?

RA: Making diversity a part of our business strategy and helping to increase the representation of women and minorities into the double digits. We’re particularly pleased about that during a time of economic downturn, when most companies’ engagement scores have gone down.

DW: What are your biggest challenges?

RA: It’s difficult to change organizational culture in a geographically dispersed organization. We’re talking about 40,000 locations. The service industry is also not the first choice for many people of color, so overcoming that barrier and attracting candidates have taken some work.

DW: Any advice for people working in diversity?

RA: Understand the business you’re in and figure out how diversity and inclusion can enhance the bottom line. Such efforts can’t be a human resources initiative; they can’t be separate from corporate strategy. This is about engaging the entire organization on issues related to diversity. You also need to hone your influencing and strategic thinking skills.  DW

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The Shouter - Thinks everyone is hearing challenged.

The Secret Talker – Covers the receiver and looks as though she’s delivering information for the CIA.

The Corporate Cliché Meister - This person uses buzzwords & clichés to impress those around her. “This would really connect the dots and help us build synergies for all of our stockholders. I just hope we don’t get any pushback.”

The Useless Call Maker - Makes useless calls…one after the other. You’ll find her at the airport making astute comments such as, “Hi, we haven’t left yet. Ok, bye.” Or “Hi, we just landed. Ok, see you.”

The Crazy Talker - The hands free-user. You see and hear her walking and talking loudly, head bobbing up and down, but there’s no one around.

The I Don’t CARE Where I Am or Who You Are… - This cell phone user makes and takes any and all calls anywhere she pleases.  Funeral? Restaurant? As it rings, she quickly (and insincerely) says, “Sorry about that.”

The Cell Phone Driver - Drive or talk. You can’t do two things well at the same time.

The Considerate Cell Phone User - This RARE person has a high regard for others and their personal space. When she makes or takes a phone call, she removes herself from the table or whatever area she’s in and takes or makes the call in a private area so as not to disturb anyone.

Related posts:

1. Smart Phone Etiquette