Beginning in 2011, the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index (CEI) will start scoring corporations on their firm-wide external engagement with the LGBT community, including their supplier diversity programs' utilization of certified LGBT suppliers.
To help corporations prepare for the next CEI, the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce® (NGLCC) will host a spring series of Ask the Experts teleconference calls on supplier diversity—all geared toward corporate supplier diversity and LGBT employee resource group representatives.
The series, Ask the Experts: LGBT Supplier Diversity—How to Build the Business Case for Inclusion and Make the Connection—will feature experts from the NGLCC's corporate partners. These corporate professionals will offer insight into how corporations can build the business case internally for LGBT inclusion in their companies' supplier diversity programs, internal implementation of these programs, how companies can expand existing programs to be fully inclusive, and how corporations can reach and engage certified LGBT business enterprises.
The first call, which was moderated by Theresa Harrison, chair of the NGLCC's Procurement Council and director of supplier diversity at Ernst & Young, took place May 13, and featured experts Susan Martinez, corporate supplier development and diversity manager at Intel, and Rondu Vincent, supplier diversity manager at Pfizer.
The next call, scheduled for May 18 from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. EDT, will be moderated by Carol Attak, U.S. supplier diversity program coordinator at Accenture, and will feature a panel of experts including Robin Billups, supplier diversity manager at U.S. Bank, Piero Ruffini, director of strategic sourcing at HBO, and Brian Tippens, director of global supplier diversity at Hewlett-Packard.
On May 26, the NGLCC will host a teleconference call geared toward corporate representatives in the legal industry.
To learn more about a session or to participate in an upcoming Ask the Experts call, RSVP to corporaterelations@nglcc.org or 202-234-9181. When sending an RSVP, be sure to indicate which call you would like to attend, and include your name, title and company. Call-in information will be sent upon receipt of RSVPs.
