By Erin Mitchell Richeson, Vice President of Inclusion and Diversity, Kimberly-Clark
Companies have worked for decades to hire diverse talent and build more diverse workplaces, focusing on the hiring and promotion of women and minorities as a means to create a more inclusive company culture.
In the early 2000’s, diversity and inclusion initiatives led by Chief Diversity Officers started to take root, and today, many Millennials and Gen Z now expect diversity and inclusion programs to be on the same level as environmental and CSR programs.
Kimberly-Clark like many other companies is working hard to attract and retain diverse talent and grow the representation of women and people of color in senior management positions.
In late 2019, Kimberly-Clark was exploring the barriers that prevent true equity in the workplace. With strategy rework underway, the world was met with unimaginable pain following the deaths of Breonna Taylor, Atatiana Jefferson and Ahmaud Arbery. From disbelief came determination: diversity actions alone would not be enough.
We recognized that long-term, sustainable impact could only be achieved by making inclusion the foundation for everything we do.
We started by changing the name of company’s programs and even the team’s titles to Inclusion and Diversity. It seems like a small change. However, by putting inclusion first, we wanted to show a commitment to empower authenticity, mitigate bias and cultivate an ‘upstander’ mentality to stand up for and appreciate one another.
For a short time, as global demand increased amidst the backdrop of a global pandemic, the physical health and safety of our people required our full attention to ensure continued access to our essential products.
The events of June 2020 brought everything back into focus and served as a crucible for this short body of work. The protests, marches and unrest all over the world that followed the murder of George Floyd kicked off a series of conversations inside Kimberly-Clark, examining the topics of racism, discrimination, bias and our commitment for a truly inclusive culture. These global conversations were candid, sometimes raw and personal, and they tested our values and beliefs.
By leading with inclusion, we were better prepared in this moment to listen to each other and truly understand the need for a workplace reality for our employees that match our values and aspirations. And to make it work, we must approach our interactions with others with these realities in mind – at work, in our communities and with our consumers.
One of Kimberly-Clark’s strengths is its employee resource groups. These groups include networks for those of African, Hispanic, Latino, and Asian ancestry, women and LGBTQ+ as well as groups for parents, caregivers, people with disabilities, military veterans and new employees.
Last year, Kimberly-Clark held a series of programs and workshops for employees to share experiences and deepen understanding of racism and bias. The honest dialogue, feedback and engagement from sessions like the one pictured have informed the future direction of Kimberly-Clark’s I&D program.
These groups continue to amplify Global Caring Conversations across the company to provide a safe outlet for employees to have open and honest conversations to better understand each other and the challenges we all face in today’s world.
The work is just beginning. The key is believing that inclusion is a choice, and one that makes Kimberly-Clark’s winning culture stronger and fosters the full potential of each person. By embedding inclusion into our culture, we create a culture and environment that values every voice to innovate in new ways and make decisions faster.
Inclusion also creates the opportunity for the future growth of society and our company. Kimberly-Clark’s ability to gather insights, foster innovation and deliver essential products hinges on having people that can understand our brands as well as the culture, context and mindset of all consumers.
Ultimately, by building a more inclusive global organization that applies its diverse experiences and passions to our trusted brands, we will make life better for people all around the world.
