My pursuit for diversity.

• Author: Steorts, Nancy Harvey
• Position: Board of directors

From the corridors of national and local government to the corporate boardroom, my career has been focused on breaking barriers and creating opportunities.

Despite a nation that has had 42 white male presidents, the government, smaller business, and other institutions have made huge strides in diversification. Although there are extremely well qualified candidates, many corporate boards are still resisting the need for diversification. It is time for corporations to take the lead in producing equity for all Americans at all levels. What better way to accomplish this task than by diversifying their board of directors?

When I first began my career, women and minorities were beginning to make strides as they started to climb the corporate ladder. My own career has mirrored the progress that has occurred over the last several decades. One of my goals has been to help other people raise their aspirations, pursue their goals, and accomplish what their potential allows. Women and minorities across America have made huge gains, but corporate boards have often been something of a fortress. There is little doubt that aspirations exist among women and minorities to sit on corporate boards and that people from all backgrounds have the qualifications to be successful and to be a positive force for the company.

To create more corporate diversity, business leaders must be aware of their policies and practices, both conscious and subconscious. What must be avoided at all costs is to have women and minorities appointed to boards as token measures. Corporations can find brilliant and top-flight people of all backgrounds because of their qualifications rather than because of their race or gender. The addition of these qualified people of diverse backgrounds will add a new dimension to the corporation.

Throughout my career I have always striven to advance the opportunities for minorities and women through initiatives I have helped to implement and through the actual advancement of my own career. I have had several career opportunities where corporate diversity and enhancing opportunities for minorities has been given top priority. These opportunities have included my chairmanship of the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission; my tenure as president on the Dallas Citizen's Council, an organization of Dallas-based corporate CEOs; my chairmanship of the Mayor's Glass Ceiling Commission of Dallas; my appointment to the corporate boards of Mission Management and Trust Co. and to the advisory board of Coors Brewing Co.; as well as to the numerous civic, academic, and not-for profit boards upon which I have served. From this perspective, I will present eight points to be considered to create greater corporate diversity and to enhance the opportunities for minorities.

At the CPSC

While I was chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), I increased the placement of minorities and women to higher levels of management and I initiated programs that led to more procurement allocation for women and minority contractors. When I first voiced the need for greater diversity, I was told there were not qualified minorities or women. I was shocked to learn that there were no women or minorities above a GS-15 level and that the percentage of procurement that went to minority- and women-owned business was .05%. Knowing such a...