The Georgia Tech Scheller College of Business hosted its annual Diversity and Inclusion symposium on February 13, 2020. This year’s focus was on creating impact and driving growth in business through diversity and inclusion.
Moderated by Scheller College’s Dean Maryam Alavi, a discussion panel of industry experts discussed how companies are intensifying efforts to ensure leaders embody and embrace the power of differences in order to increase performance and drive growth. Panel experts included Emma Hind, Director of Global Revenue Strategy Enablement at InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), Nicole Jones, Global Innovation Leader for Delta Air Lines, and Dr. Nicole Cabrera Salazar, Founder & CEO of Movement Consulting. A variety of issues were addressed during the panel discussion including how to define success in the area of diversity and inclusion and what impact do communication skills have on the success of these initiatives.
PANEL EXPERTS
Emma Hind is in her 20th year with IHG, leading the enablement of the global revenue strategy at IHG as they transform the traditional ways of selling hotel rooms to allow guests to customize their experience. After engaging within and outside the workplace on diversity & inclusion initiatives, Hind became a founding leader in the IHG employee resource group (ERG) pilot program and was the initial Chair of IHG Out & Open formed in 2015 after a decade of employee-led representation within the Atlanta LGBTQ+ community. She now helps develop new ERGs at IHG and is focused on driving the commercial value of ERGs for the company.
Nicole Jones is Global Innovation Leader for Delta Air Lines, overseeing The Hangar, Delta’s global innovation center. Her team explores innovation and ideas that harness research, design, and technology to improve Delta’s customer experience and operational performance. Jones joined Delta in 2012 as General Manager of Delta Sky Media™, where she established and managed Delta’s global media publishing platform, including the launch of the Delta Studio™ in-flight entertainment platform. She has a B.S. from Spelman College and an MBA from Goizueta Business School.
Dr. Cabrera Salazar is an astronomer and mentor who is passionate about social justice in science and technology and helping minority scientists uncover their full potential. After creating multiple initiatives in graduate school for marginalized students, she moved away from research to focus on integrating the STEM community through her company, Movement Consulting. The company partners with universities, research institutions, and tech companies who are committed to supporting marginalized scientists but may not know where to start. Nicole has a B.S. in Physic from Georgia Tech and a Ph.D. from Georgia State University.
Dean Maryam Alavi is a recipient of accolades for her achievements in diversity and inclusion. Dr. Alavi was most recently honored with the 2019 Diversity Champion Faculty Award by Georgia Tech in recognition of her continuous efforts in creating diverse, inclusive, and equitable communities at both Scheller College of Business and Georgia Tech.
A prominent educator and researcher in digital innovation and strategic IT applications, Dr. Alavi has authored numerous published papers and served on the editorial boards of several prestigious business and technology journals. She has extensive experience in leadership development and organizational capability building for a digital age and has worked with organizations including KIA Motors, Lockheed Martin, Marriott, Sodexo, Southern Company, the American College of Physicians, and the World Bank.
In recognition of her professional achievements, Dr. Alavi received the distinguished Association of Information Systems Fellows Award and was named 2017 Woman of the Year for mid-size and educational institutions by the Women in Technology Foundation of Georgia.