New York, New York, April 20, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) introduces its newest awards program, The Equity Honors, as part of its inaugural Minority Business Economic Forum (the Forum) held May 11-13, 2022, with Honorary Chair, John W. Rogers, Jr., Chairman and Co-CEO of Ariel Investments.
The Equity Honors will be presented to corporate chief officers who have been recognized by their peers and our community as the true leaders at the vanguard of economic equity and minority business integration. They are the bold ones, breaking open old circles of influence and opportunity to usher in talent, perspectives, and expertise that have been too long ignored. They are the visionaries, creating the conditions for minority businesses to fully realize their vast, untapped impact on the American economy and quality of life. And they are unshakable, the living blueprints for upending the status quo and making the kinds of changes that change everything.
Nominations were accepted in the following categories during the month of March 2022: CEO, COO, CFO, CIO, CMO, CDO, and CPO of the Year (or equivalent position). The 2022 Equity Honor Nominees include:
- Craig Arnold, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Eaton Corporation
- Daryl Bible, Chief Financial Officer, Truist
- Melody Birmingham, Senior Vice President & Chief Procurement Officer, Duke Energy
- Rogerio Branco, Executive Vice President and Chief Supply Chain Officer, Eaton Corporation
- Gordon Brooks, Chief Procurement Officer, Eli Lilly and Company
- Mark Crawford, Senior Vice President & Global, Head of Diversity Equity & Inclusion, BP America, Inc.
- Leonardo (Len) DeCandia, Chief Procurement Officer, President, Johnson & Johnson Services, Inc., Johnson & Johnson
- Nedra Dickson, Global Supplier Inclusion & Diversity Client Lead, Accenture
- Brian Downer, Chief Procurement Officer & Executive Vice President, Truist
- Reuben Essandoh, Director, Supplier Diversity, Capital One Financial Corp.
- James Farley, President and Chief Executive Officer, Ford Motor Company
- Karen Fichuk, Chief Executive Officer, Randstad USA
- Clint Grimes, Chief Procurement Officer, Capital One Financial Corp.
- Cheryl Harris, Senior Vice President Sourcing and Procurement Solutions, Allstate
- Brett Hart, President, United Airlines
- Monica Jackson, Vice President, Global Inclusion & Diversity, Eaton Corporation
- Chad Johnson, Vice President, Chief Procurement Officer, Humana, Inc.
- Rachel Kutz, Vice President, Consumer Supply Chain & Global Logistics, AT&T Inc.
- Rob Lidster, Chief Procurement Officer, Haier US Solutions Inc
- Ana Elena Marziano, Chief Procurement Officer, Procter & Gamble Company
- Wendy McSweeney, Executive Vice President, Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer, Truist
- Gregory Michel, Head of Procurement, National Basketball Association
- Lissa Miller, Chief Supplier Diversity Officer, Truist
- Jennifer Moceri, Vice President, Global Procurement & Chief Procurement Officer, Google, Inc.
- Curt Morgan, Chief Executive Officer, Vistra Energy
- Drew Otoo, Senior Vice President, Global Vaccines, Merck Human Health, Merck
- Paris Pavlou, Executive Director Global Purchasing and Manufacturing Services, General Motors Company, LLC
- Hemant Porwal, Executive Vice President, Supply Chain & Operations, Wesco Anixter
- Jonas Prising, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, ManpowerGroup
- Christena Pyle, Chief Equity Officer, Dentsu
- Ric Schneider, Vice President, Chief Procurement Officer, Abbott Laboratories, Inc.
- Phil Seidler, Senior Vice President Supply Chain, Vistra Energy
- Todd Stohlmeyer, Global Lead Procurement and Transportation, Cargill
- Taryn Thompson, Chief Procurement Officer, Bank of America Corporation
- Anthony (Tony) Tomczak, Vice President, Corporate Services & Chief Procurement Officer, DTE Energy Company
- Susanna Webber, Chief Procurement Officer & Senior Vice President, Merck & Co., Inc
Nominees will join NMSDC at the Forum to be honored at The Equity Honors Awards Reception and Ceremony on May 12, 2022, with winners announced between 6:30-7:30PM CT, streaming live for free to the NMSDC’s network. Interviews can be scheduled onsite with nominees from 4:00-5:00PM CT on May 12, 2022 or by phone prior to the Forum.
For more information about The Equity Honors, please visit https://www.theforum.nmsdc.org/equity-honors. And for more information about the Forum, please visit www.theforum.nmsdc.org.
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About NMSDC
Founded in 1972, NMSDC is the longest-operating business growth engine for the broadest group of systematically excluded communities of color (Asian, Black, Hispanic and Native American), and our impact goes far beyond supply chain. It’s about upward mobility for the emerging majority of Americans, an equal shot at participating in the American experiment of free-market capitalism and entrepreneurship. Our work is about correcting the unequal access to wealth-building opportunities. For more information, please visit www.nmsdc.org.
