- Published on LinkedIn on January 8, 2019
Kelley Miller
Vice President, Business Development
When I joined MARS Solutions Group (MARS SG) back in April of 2018, I thought I already had my eyes wide open to the diversity supplier world given the vast network of professionals I had established during my thirteen years in the digital space.
I was also quite embarrassed to hear from a new contact I made with a company that my Linkedin profile doesn’t suggest that I am “all about diversity and inclusion.” She was right!
I attended the 2018 NMSDC’s national conference. WOW, was I amazed at the number of BIG companies like Comcast who approach diversity inclusion as a smart business strategy and not just a means for procuring new contracts. Inclusion is more these days than just “counting belly buttons.”
I knew that in the tech industry there were talents from so many different cultures and backgrounds, but it never dawned on me that in every field there are diverse suppliers with both the resources and the unique strategies and methodologies to cause significant marketplace disruptions on behalf of their clients.
Perhaps the biggest “eureka” moment for me has been learning that diversity is nothing without inclusion, especially regarding people feeling like they have a voice. It’s more than just race, age, gender or sexual preference. All people need to feel like they can be themselves at work.
My head is still spinning from what I have witnessed in my first few months in the diverse supplier world, but what is more exciting is that I have just scratched the surface. Diversity is one thing, but Inclusion needs to be paired with it. When there’s inclusion you don’t have to assimilate.
Therefore, I will end this blog with so much to be grateful for as we head into 2019, and I look forward to sharing more tidbits as I dive deeper into the new business opportunities that D&I (Diversity and Inclusion) programs and partnerships offer us!
