Our Words, Our Deeds and Our Culture

Recently I said I aspire to make General Motors the most inclusive company in the world. One step in this direction is the creation of an Inclusion Advisory Board made up of internal and external leaders that I will chair. 

The board is designed to be gender balanced and has membership with a diversity of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, and national origin. The board will guide our work to improve diversity and inclusion in our company.

Today I am pleased to announce the 11 individuals who will join me on the board:

• Tonya Allen, president and CEO, Skillman Foundation, and social justice advocate
• Dennis Archer Jr., CEO, Ignition Media Group and president, Archer Corporate Services
• Kim Brycz, senior vice president, Global Human Resources, General Motors
• Craig Buchholz, senior vice president, Global Communications, General Motors
• Arden Hoffman, chief people officer, Cruise
• Todd Ingersoll, president, Ingersoll Automotive of Danbury, and GM Minority Dealer Advisory Council member
• Gerald Johnson, executive vice president, Global Manufacturing, General Motors
• Telva McGruder, Employee Resource Group at-large member, General Motors
• Mark Reuss, president, General Motors
• Dhivya Suryadevara, executive vice president and chief financial officer, General Motors, and
• Matt Tsien, executive vice president and chief technology officer, General Motors.

I want to thank everyone who has agreed to participate. Our first official meeting will be held next month, where we will focus on action plans that support these guiding principles:

OUR WORDS

• We believe that everyone has the responsibility to speak up in the presence of bias and injustice in our world. We will listen and engage in conversations that elevate our collective understanding and inform our actions to address inequality.
• We will not be silent. We will leverage the voice of GM and our brands to contribute to the dialogue condemning injustice and driving inclusion.

OUR DEEDS

• Our words will be supported by actions. We will build on current alliances and establish new ones to advocate for and achieve equality in social justice, education, health care, and economic opportunities for blacks and other marginalized groups.
• We believe our partners should reflect our values. Therefore, those who represent us, do business with us, or choose to align with us, must take action to demonstrate the same level of commitment.

OUR CULTURE

• We will hold ourselves accountable to set the example for diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We will create a safe environment where difference and diversity is respected, valued, and reflected in how we recruit, hire, develop and promote.   
• We will ensure a more transparent workplace environment that is safe, respectful, free from fear and promotes and delivers real and measurable outcomes.

We have a lot of work to do as an advisory board and as a company. I continue to be inspired by the stories that have been shared with me, and the commitment I have received from the GM team to advance our company on this journey and make our world a better and more equitable place for everyone. Together, we will do this.