EXCELLENCE IN WORKPLACE DIVERSITY WINNERS ANNOUNCED
October 29, 2009
Contact: Julie Scott 803-799-4601
julie.scott@scchamber.net
(Columbia, S.C.) – The South Carolina Chamber of
Commerce and the South Carolina Diversity Council recognized the state’s top
companies (large, medium and small) in the field of diversity October 27 at the
5th Annual South Carolina Excellence in Workplace Diversity Awards in Columbia.
In
the small employer category, the 2009 Excellence in Workplace Diversity Award
was presented to Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, which views diversity as a
reflection of its core values. The company focuses on recruiting and retaining
women and minority lawyers through a number of special initiatives, including
mentoring, annual women and minority roundtable discussions, special business
development programs and a formal alternative work schedules policy. Parker Poe
created the Director of Professional Development and Diversity position in 2006,
one of the first law firms in the Southeast to charge a lawyer with this type of
oversight of diversity initiatives.
In
the medium employer category, the 2009 Excellence in Workplace Diversity Award
went to Goodwill Industries of Lower South Carolina. Goodwill Industries of
Lower South Carolina is one of the largest employers in the state of individuals
with disabilities. The company provides ongoing diversity and disability
awareness trainings for employees and the community at no cost.
In
the large employer category, the 2009 Excellence in Workplace Diversity Award
was awarded to Savannah River Nuclear Solutions LLC. SRNS has a Diversity Board
of Directors (DBOD) comprised of 16 internal employees and five external
community business leaders. The board meets three to five times a year to
provide SRNS executive management with internal and external perspectives
concerning general diversity philosophy and best practices.
Other Diversity Award Nominees Included:
|
AnMed Health
Bon Secours St. Francis Health System
Greenville Hospital System University
Medical Center |
Nationwide Insurance Company
U.S. Engine Valve
Wilbur Smith Associates
Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, PLLC |
“These companies honored for their Excellence in Workplace
Diversity understand fostering diversity is a strategic business objective that
benefits everyone,” said Otis B. Rawl Jr., president and chief executive officer
of the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce. “Implementing a comprehensive
diversity program is a long-term commitment and a business imperative for
companies determined to compete in the global marketplace.”
Several criteria are considered in choosing companies for the
Excellence in Workplace Diversity Awards, including ongoing company diversity
initiatives, measurable objectives established to evaluate the success of
diversity initiatives, implementation techniques and roadblocks and how they
were overcome.
The South Carolina Chamber of Commerce, the nation’s first state chamber
Accredited with Distinction by the U.S. Chamber, is the state’s largest
statewide broad-based business and industry trade association representing more
than 6,500 member companies and more than 600,000 member employees, with 90
percent of membership comprised of small businesses. As the unified voice for
business and industry, the Chamber is a catalyst for increasing per capita
income and enhancing the state’s global competitiveness in order to improve the
quality of life for all South Carolinians.