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photo by steed media service
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VP, Corporate Development and Diversity, Pepsico
The buzzwords ‘diversity’ and ‘inclusion’ are not interchangeable cogs
on the multicultural Ferris wheel, asserts Maurice Cox, vice president
of corporate development and diversity. The two terms, however related,
are more like distant cousins and cannot be transposed when discussing
true acceptance of differences.
“There is one thing when you
are diverse and are understanding of all those things that make us
distinct and different,” Cox says. “But it’s quite another when you
practice inclusion. And that is how you include all those differences
each and every day into the workplace. And that’s where the game is
going to be won or loss.”
Cox broached the subject of diversity and inclusion following the Real
Pepsi Challenge panel discussion at Pace University in Lower Manhattan.
Cox, who works to usher in inclusion at soft-drink titan Pepsi, was one
of the panelists who expressed awe and gratitude for the pioneering
black businessmen who overcame nearly insurmountable odds to pave the
way for their successors.
“What these gentlemen were able to do was create a foundation, and
quite frankly, I think they created a foundation that we continue to
build on today. I think they helped us to understand there [were]
incredible business opportunities that we were somehow missing. [And I
believe] they laid it out as clearly as they could,” Cox says. – terry shropshire
For more information, log onto www.pepsico.com.
