Ford Motor Company has a history of diversity and inclusiveness, dating back to its early days when Henry Ford was among the first to establish a company with employees who represented the communities it served.
At Ford, we have made diversity and inclusion a priority of our Company. We believe that building and supporting a culture of respect is a business imperative that enables all of our employees to do their best work. Diversity and inclusion play a key role in creating an effective, collaborative culture and help us work as a unified team to most effectively improve our business.
We integrate our diversity strategy into our business based on five focus areas: leading the way, supporting our diverse workforce, fostering a respectful and inclusive environment, work/life integration and strengthening our external partnerships. Examples of our efforts in these focus areas include the following:
- Ford currently supports 10 Employee Resource Groups that help foster diversity. These groups represent ethnic groups – including African-Americans, Hispanics, Asian-Indians, Chinese and Middle Eastern employees – as well as other employee groups such as employees dealing with disabilities, working parents, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered employees, female professionals and employees of multiple religious faiths. In addition to supporting our employees, these Resource Groups organize significant community volunteer activity and provide us with an opportunity to better understand the consumer needs and wants of individuals of diverse backgrounds. Though these groups are based in the United States, many have chapters around the world.
- Ford's leadership ensures that the importance of diversity and inclusion is communicated in ongoing forums, such as town hall meetings and newsletters. As a part of these efforts, we have held an annual Diversity and Worklife Summit since 1999. The goals of the Summit are to share information and best practices about diversity and worklife; promote dialogue on diversity, inclusion and worklife; celebrate successes; and recognize employees who have contributed to the Company's success in building a diverse and inclusive culture that drives business results. At the 2006–2007 Summit, Ford affiliates in Europe, Asia Pacific, Africa, South America, Mexico, Canada and the United States were recognized for their efforts in leading and cultivating a diverse and inclusive workplace and community. Among the awards received were Taiwan's Ministry of Labor Commission's "Most Friendly Workplace Award," presented by the Premier on March 8, 2007, and the 2006 China Charity Federation's "Model Company for Outstanding Corporate Citizenship in China.
