DUBLIN, Ohio, Aug. 23, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Cardinal
Health (NYSE: CAH) announced today a comprehensive talent strategy
to increase representation of diverse employees at the manager
level and above by 2030. This commitment is specifically aimed at
increasing the company's global leadership representation of women,
as well as African American and Black, Asian, Latinx, Indigenous
and all other ethnically diverse groups in leadership roles in the
U.S.
"Diversity, equity and inclusion are business imperatives," said
Mike Kaufmann, CEO of Cardinal
Health. "When the voices at our table are diverse and reflect the
communities we serve, the choices we pursue and the decisions and
policies we make are more inclusive, creative, and best position
our company for long-term sustainable growth. We believe that an
employee population with diversity of talent, experiences and ideas
drives more innovation – innovation that enables us to meet our
customers' changing needs today and tomorrow."
Through this commitment and specific goals, the Cardinal Health
workforce makeup will change in the following ways by 2030:
- In the U.S., increased representation of African American
and Black employees at the manager level and above to
11% (up from 5%).
- In the U.S., increased representation of Asian, Latinx,
Indigenous and all other ethnically diverse groups at the
manager level and above to 23% (up from 17%).
- Globally, increased representation of women at the
manager level and above to 48% (up from 40%).
"Creating a workplace that is truly diverse, inclusive and
equitable takes focused, thoughtful planning, and it doesn't happen
overnight," said Ola Snow, Chief
Human Resources Officer (CHRO) at Cardinal Health. "We are proud to
have devoted many years to building a strong foundation, and are
excited to continue refining our recruiting, development,
succession and retention practices to help ensure equitable access
and opportunity."
Establishing these representation goals is part of the Cardinal
Health commitment to ensuring inclusion, representation, and equity
across all levels of the company. To achieve these goals, the
company will focus on attracting, developing, and retaining diverse
talent, from entry-level to senior leadership positions.
"To build a diverse pipeline of tomorrow's leaders, we must
develop and advance women and ethnic minorities," said Devray
Kirkland, Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) at Cardinal Health. "We are
expanding our existing differentiated development programs, and
creating new offerings, to bring an equity lens to our development
practices and help more effectively advance underrepresented
talent."
Differentiated development programs provide professional growth
opportunities, as well as increased access and awareness for women
and ethnic minorities. Cardinal Health launched its first such
program for women in fiscal year FY2010 and added programs for
African American and Black employees in FY2021. This year (FY2022),
the company will:
- Partner with Korn Ferry, a
world-class, industry leader in leadership development, to create a
program to enhance the development of high potential and
high-performing ethnically diverse talent at the manager and
director levels, and help historically underrepresented talent to
advance successfully into the first levels of leadership. It is a
six-month, cohort-based program that will include both the
participants and their direct managers to accelerate the readiness
of participants for senior roles.
- Expand our "Aspiring Leaders" program, currently in a pilot
phase in the U.S. and designed for underrepresented supply chain
leaders not yet at the manager level. This program, focused on
helping participants grow their leadership skills, has been
developed in partnership with Franklin
Covey to address what McKinsey & Company calls the
"broken rung" in the talent pipeline.
- Furthering our desire to address the "broken rung," we will
expand the participation of minority women in the leadership
programming of Women for Economic and Leadership Development (WELD)
– Ohio chapter. The in-depth WELD
program is designed to prepare women for their first promotion to
management and to build confidence in those assuming a management
role for the first time.
The company will also focus on developing diverse junior talent
through its existing summer internship program and EMERGE, a
three-year rotational development program for young professionals
launching their careers.
Notably, the Human Resources & Compensation Committee of the
Cardinal Health Board of Directors recently approved expanding
diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) metrics in the company's
FY2022 annual incentive plan at the director level and above, and
performance proration of our long-term equity plan at the SVP level
and above, with a portion of payouts aligned to progress toward
long-term representation goals over each program's relevant
performance periods. These incentives extend well beyond the
executive team, reinforcing the cultural commitment within the
company's leadership team.
"Increasing representation, equity and access is foundational to
who we are and everything we do," Snow continued. "We believe it
will have a positive impact on our employees, our business, our
customers and the communities where we work and live."
About Cardinal Health
Cardinal Health is a
distributor of pharmaceuticals, a global manufacturer and
distributor of medical and laboratory products, and a provider of
performance and data solutions for health care facilities. With 50
years in business, operations in more than 35 countries and
approximately 44,000 employees globally, Cardinal Health is
essential to care. Information about Cardinal Health is available
at cardinalhealth.com.
Cautions concerning forward-looking statements
This
release contains forward-looking statements addressing
expectations, prospects, estimates and other matters with respect
to Cardinal Health's diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I)
strategy that are dependent on future events or developments. These
statements may be identified by words such as "expect,"
"anticipate," "aim," "intend," "plan," "believe," "will," "should,"
"could," "would," "positioned," "project," "continue," "likely,"
"commit to" or other words or expressions of similar meaning,
although not all forward-looking statements contain such terms.
Actual results may differ materially from those projected,
anticipated or implied in forward-looking statements due to a
variety of factors, including the risks and uncertainties described
in our Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K reports and exhibits to
those reports. Forward-looking statements in this release may
include, without limitation, statements regarding: (i) strategies
for implementing Cardinal Health's DE&I plans, targets and
goals; (ii) Cardinal Health's commitments to programs and policies;
and (iii) expectations and priorities for Cardinal Health's
initiatives. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date
this document is first published. Except to the extent required by
applicable law, Cardinal Health undertakes no obligation to update
or revise any forward-looking statement. Forward-looking statements
are aspirational and not guarantees or promises that goals, targets
or projections will be met, and no assurance can be given that any
commitment, expectation, initiative or plan in this release can or
will be achieved or completed. Investors are cautioned not to place
undue reliance on any forward-looking statements.
Contacts
Media: Andrew
Stern, andrew.stern@cardinalhealth.com and (614) 339-4678;
Investors: Kevin Moran,
kevin.moran@cardinalhealth.com and (614) 757-7942.
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SOURCE Cardinal Health