MAES National Magazine

With 46,000 employees operating in 90 countries worldwide, DuPont understands that to thrive we must not only cultivate a diverse and inclusive workplace that attracts the best talent but also ensure that our people intimately understand the needs of a global customer base. Respect for People – one of our four Core Values – is the signpost that guides our efforts. We believe it translates to competitive advantage by fostering a diverse and inclusive workforce with equally diverse insight into customer needs. “Diversity and inclusion is not a ‘nice to have’ feature in an organization,” says Marc Doyle, an executive vice president at DuPont. “It is absolutely critical in healthy, high-performing organizations with a future focus.”

Building on a long legacy of promoting diversity and inclusion not only within our employee ranks but also in our communities, DuPont recently received recognition for its efforts and – led by DuPont Chair & CEO Ed Breen – committed to further action.

Catalyst CEO Champion for Change: DuPont CEO Ed Breen recently joined with more than 40 other global business leaders in pledging to continue driving and reporting measurable results in the advancement of gender equality. Catalyst – a global thought leader and partner in accelerating the progress of women at work for more than 50 years – developed the Champions of Change effort.

“As leaders, we must hold ourselves and our teams accountable to make this change happen,” Ed noted in signing the Catalyst pledge. “DuPont,” he added, “can succeed by working together to build a more inclusive workplace culture, not only because it’s the right thing to do, but it’s also the smart thing to do.”

As a Catalyst CEO Champion of Change, Ed committed to:

•Strengthening the diversity and inclusion metrics, policies and practices across DuPont;
•Reviewing and improving the pipeline of women of diverse backgrounds for advancement and empowering them with a strong support system; and
•Identifying and working to reduce any structural barriers or unconscious bias that may exist in our businesses and functions and doing more to continue to build an inclusive workplace culture at DuPont locations across the globe.

With founding member companies involved in the Catalyst CEO Champions for Change initiative representing more than 8.7 million employees, the positive ripple effect from this commitment by Ed and the other business leaders is expected to help to go a long way in building work environments where everyone has a fair chance to succeed.

Executive Leadership Council Fortune 500 CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion™: On June 12, 2017, The Executive Leadership Council launched the F500 (Fortune 500) CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion™ pledgesigned by more than 100 CEOs, including DuPont CEO Ed Breen. The pledge is largest CEO-driven business commitment to date in advancing diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Through this show of support, Ed and his fellow corporate CEOs have committed to advancing diversity and inclusion in the workplace by:

•Continuing to make the workplace a trusting and safe place to have complex and sometimes difficult conversations about diversity and inclusion.
•Implementing and expanding unconscious bias education.
•Openly sharing best practices and learnings among companies on what is and is not working to improve diversity and inclusion.

By implementing these three actions, CEOs, in partnership with The Executive Leadership Council (ELC), will build a more diverse and inclusive workplace. This commitment is driven by a realization that addressing diversity and inclusion is not a competitive issue, but a societal issue that CEOs can play a critical role in addressing. The pledge is meant to be the first step in leveraging the collective power of the business community to advance such an important issue.

US Business Leadership Network® Going for Gold Project: In 2017, DuPont signed on to be part of the USBLN Going for Gold Project. Joining this initiative will provide DuPont with access to subject matter experts and programs to strengthen our disability inclusion initiatives. The access to leading practices and tools will enable DuPont to enhance our existing programs in this important area.

Top Score on Disability Equality Index: The Disability Equality Index (DEI) is a joint initiative of the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) and the US Business Leadership Network (USBLN). It was developed by a diverse group of experts to assess companies on their disability inclusion policies and practices. Companies submit responses on several categories, including: Culture & Leadership, Enterprise–Wide Access, Employment Practices, and Community Engagement & Support Services. In 2016, DuPont received a ‘100’, the highest possible score companies can receive on the index.

DuPont’s commitment to diversity and inclusion is both a Core Value and business strategy for our company. The value of a diverse and inclusive workplace can be seen in every aspect of our business, including talent development and recruitment, customer orientation, corporate strategy, and even our innovation processes. In addition to the new commitments described above, DuPont continues to be recognized as a leading company for its diversity and inclusion commitments. In 2017, DuPont was named to DiversityInc’s “Top Companies for Global Diversity”. We were also named to Working Mother’s 100 Best Companies for the 27th year; to the National Association of Female Executives “Top Companies for Executive Women” for the 9th consecutive year (and 13th in total), and; earned a 100% on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index and earning placement on the Index for the 10th time.

“DuPont strives to embed diversity and inclusion into its business in many ways,” says Benito Cachinero- Sánchez, DuPont Senior Vice President of Human Resources. “We have a Global D&I Leadership Council made up of senior leaders (doing other important roles in the company) who can reinforce D&I at the strategic level across our organizations. In addition, we develop education for employees and leaders, and regularly communicate our commitment to D&I through employee stories and examples. We set goals and objectives and monitor our progress. But, just like our R&D teams, we’re always looking for new ways to innovate — better ways to understand our people and enabling them to flourish.”

To learn more about DuPont’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, please visit: http://www.dupont.com/corporate-functions/careers/why-dupont/articles/diversity.html

Credit: DuPont

There’s more to receiving a Black Engineer of the Year (BEYA) award than being a winner, says Aaron Brundage of Sandia National Laboratories.

“The intent of the award is to provide guidance to young people to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM),” he says. “It gives them a role model.”

Brundage was named a 2013 BEYA Minority in Research Science Emerald Honoree in the category of Most Promising Scientist – Government. “I’m honored to be part of something that is bigger than the award itself,” he said. “At Sandia, I have the privilege of doing world-class research, working with and being mentored by the best minds in the country and using the best facilities in the world.”

BEYA awards recognize the nation’s best and brightest engineers, scientists and technology experts. They are a program of the national Career Communications Group, an advocate for corporate diversity, and part of its STEM achievement program. Brundage will receive his award at the 28th BEYA conference Feb. 6 in Washington, D.C. The event precedes National Engineers Week.

Brundage works in modeling and simulation of energetic materials, penetration mechanics, thermodynamics, and combustion and shock physics. He first came to Sandia as an intern in 2002 while earning his doctorate in mechanical engineering at Purdue University. He also has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from Pennsylvania State University.

Brundage feels strongly about giving back to his community. He serves on the board of directors of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central New Mexico. In 2011, he and his wife founded a nonprofit, Tools for Learning Outreach Services, that provides workshops in partnership with schools and community programs. Their STEM education programs, intended to reach children who are underserved, at-risk or underrepresented in STEM disciplines, provide hands-on activities and opportunities for learning through play.

Brundage also brought STEM to underrepresented youth in the sixth through 12th grades by volunteering for eight summers as an instructor for HMTech, Sandia’s summer science and engineering program, and by teaching ACT courses at the University of New Mexico.

Brundage is a former director and chairman of the New Mexico section of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and is a member of the society’s K-11 Technical Committee on Combustion.

Jeff Isaacson, Sandia’s vice president of Defense Systems & Assessments, said Brundage “is the epitome of the type of researcher we need to deliver innovative solutions to some of our nation’s toughest technical problems.”

“There is more that makes Aaron an exceptional employee — the desire and ability to teach mathematical and scientific concepts to the next generation,” Isaacson said. “Aaron is active in our community promoting STEM at the elementary through post-secondary levels.”

Brundage said role models are most effective when they work directly with youths and offer hands-on experience. “Our job is to share our stories to inspire the next generation and help them understand what they can achieve,” he said.

Sandia National Laboratories is a multi-program laboratory operated by Sandia Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lockheed Martin Corp., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. With main facilities in Albuquerque, N.M., and Livermore, Calif., Sandia has major R&D responsibilities in national security, energy and environmental technologies and economic competitiveness.

-Sandia National Laboratories

GM, Raytheon and Army Graduate First “Shifting Gears” Soldier Auto Technicians
General Motors Chief Diversity Officer addresses the gathering at the graduation of the first Shifting Gears: Automotive Technician
Training Program class Tuesday, October 28, 2014 at Fort Hood, Texas. Created as a
multi-year partnership between GM, Raytheon Company and the U.S. Army, the program
provides and empowers transitioning soldiers with the skills required to secure careers
as GM service technicians. (Photo by Steven Noreyko for General Motors)

GM, Raytheon and Army Graduate First “Shifting Gears” Soldier Auto Technicians
General Motors, Raytheon Company and the U.S. Army participate in the graduation
of the first Shifting Gears: Automotive Technician Training Program class Tuesday, October 28, 2014 at Fort Hood, Texas.
Created as a multi-year partnership between the two companies and the Army, the program provides and empowers transitioning
soldiers with the skills required to secure careers as GM service technicians. (Photo by Steven Noreyko for General Motors)