Ford Motor Company was honored as one of the "40 Best Companies for Diversity" by Black Enterprise magazine, a leading source of business news for African-American entrepreneurs, managers and corporate executives. The awards luncheon was held on Monday, June 12 at the W New York Hotel in New York.
Felicia Fields, Ford vice president, Human Resources, accepted the award on Ford's behalf.
"The greatest benefit of diversity is to our customers and our work force," said Fields. "But it's also nice to receive external recognition from respected organizations such as Black Enterprise."
The second annual survey polled more than 1,000 of the largest publicly traded U.S. companies to identify the leading firms in four key areas of diversity: corporate procurement, corporate board participation, senior management representation and total work force.
Ford was cited in the July 2006 issue of Black Enterprise for being "one of the first companies to reflect the multicultural face of the country" and assembling "a labor force made up of roughly 25% minorities (18.4% are African-American)." The July 2006 issue hits newsstands June 27.
"The BE 40 Best Companies for Diversity truly understand how critically valuable a diverse work force and inclusive business practices are to the success of their operations," said Butch Graves, president and CEO, Black Enterprise. "These companies are setting the standard for corporate America, and it is our sincere hope that other companies will follow their lead and build businesses that are more reflective of the society in which we live."
Ford made a separate list of BE's "10 Best Companies in Marketing Diversity," earning a five-star Advertising Diversity Rating. This selection recognizes a comprehensive spending commitment by companies in the areas of advertising, promotions, community outreach and scholarships.
Ford also earned a place on the list of the "10 Best Companies in Senior Management Diversity." The editors note the number of ethnic minorities among Ford's senior executives -- particularly African Americans -- including Darryl Hazel, Ford Motor Company senior vice president and president of Ford Customer Service Division and BE's reigning Corporate Executive of the Year. Other African-American Ford executives include Tony Brown, senior vice president, Global Purchasing and Joe Laymon, group vice president, Corporate Human Resources and Labor Affairs, the highest-ranking African American among the major auto manufacturers.
The diversity commitment at Ford is well-established in the supplier and dealer aspects of the business. Ford has the largest number of ethnic minority-owned dealerships among the domestic manufacturers. In fact, more than half of all African-American dealers in the United States are Ford dealers generating 2005 sales of $5.2 billion. Ford founded its minority dealer development program in 1969.
On the supplier front, Ford spent more than $3.7 billion in 2005 among nearly 300 minority suppliers, which is equivalent to 8.5 percent of all goods and services purchased by Ford in the United States. This level ranks Ford as one of the largest customers of certified minority-owned businesses.