It is certainly an exciting time to be part of the Cox Automotive family of companies! Cox Automotive is transforming the way the world buys, sells, and owns cars. We believe that to stay true to that mission, we must employ a Diversity & Inclusion strategy that resonates with our employees, customers, communities, and suppliers.
To that end, our global Diversity & Inclusion strategy focuses on attracting, retaining, developing, and advancing diverse talent; developing, offering and promoting products and services that reflect the evolving needs of our current and future customers; engaging with, contributing to, and strengthening the diverse communities we reach through corporate social responsibility programs; and, partnering with diverse suppliers to develop mutually sustainable relationships resulting in economic development for the communities we serve.
We believe in walking the talk when it comes to living Diversity & Inclusion as a core value. We are on a transformative journey to ensure that Diversity & Inclusion is embedded into everything we do….every day! We have made a conscious effort to lead from the top with a company-wide Diversity & Inclusion Council tasked with helping to shape (and drive) the overall D&I strategy for the organization. Led by the Chief People Officer and President, this is a working council truly representative of our employee population, comprised of diverse leaders from all levels and numerous functions across the business.
“In today’s hyper-competitive marketplace, leveraging our people is critical to our growth and sustainability,” Cox Automotive President Sandy Schwartz explained to the Diversity Council. “Our Diversity Council plays a key role in helping the rest of the organization understand how diversity and inclusion support our business.”
The Council meets quarterly, and actively engages insight and perspectives from other employees across the enterprise to ensure that we are truly exhibiting thought leadership in this space.
We believe that Diversity & Inclusion drives innovation. Our industry is deeply rooted in innovation, so sustaining our competitive advantage hinges upon our ability to leverage the unique perspectives, backgrounds, and skillsets of our employees. As such, we encourage employees to participate in innovation summits, hackathons, and various events throughout the year designed to capture the invaluable benefits of the diversity of thought amongst our global workforce.
We believe in creating and cultivating a sustainable culture of inclusion. We are committed to ensuring that our leaders are adequately prepared to be Diversity Change Agents. To that end, we make significant investments in training and development so that our leaders understand the importance of leading inclusively, managing inclusively, and acting inclusively. Our ambition is to be an admired diversity leader, employer of choice, and great place to work. So we continue to look at innovative ways to maintain a culture where Diversity & Inclusion thrives – including a focus on an agile work environment with workspaces and job designs that meet the needs of the individual employee and the business.
“This is an all-of-the-above diversity and inclusion strategy,” explains Sandy Schwartz. “We lead by example as individuals, as teams, and as a company within our industry.”
