Conference/Symposium
2017 NAEYC Annual Conference
Date:
–
Time:
All Day
Georgia World Congress Center
285 Andrew Young International Blvd NW
Atlanta GA
Atlanta GA
Opening Keynote Address:
Steve Pemberton is Senior Executive at Walgreens Boots Alliance, the first global pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing enterprise in the world, employing 370,000 people in 25 countries. Prior to that he served as Chief Diversity Officer for Walgreens, becoming the first person to hold that position in the historic company’s 114 year history. He is widely considered a subject matter expert on matters of diversity and inclusion and its importance to the sustainability of organizations and the communities they serve.
Pemberton is responsible for overseeing the company’s global efforts to create and maintain a diverse and inclusive environment that reflects the culture, people and perspectives of the nations in which it does business while mirroring its current and future customers and communities. He and his team are specifically focused on the following areas: strategic diversity management, global diversity councils and business resource groups, disability initiatives, supplier diversity and compliance objectives. He has also served as a valued internal consultant to Marketing, Community Affairs, Government Affairs, Legal and Merchandising functions.
Under Pemberton’s leadership, Walgreens reached record levels of performance on nearly every measure of diversity and inclusion from representation to supplier diversity spend. An extended part of his responsibilities has been to serve as a public ambassador for the company on matters of employing people with disabilities. In that capacity, he has frequently represented Walgreens’ employment model at the White House and on Capitol Hill. In 2015, he was appointed by United States Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez to serve on an Advisory Committee for the Competitive Integrated Employment of People with Disabilities.
Prior to assuming his role at Walgreens, Pemberton was Chief Diversity Officer and VicePresident of Diversity and Inclusion at Monster.com, the leading global online careers property where he had end-to-end management responsibilities for the Diversity and Inclusion business unit which focused on helping employers diversify their workforce. It was during his tenure at Monster that Pemberton coined the term ‘Next Practices’, to reflect the need for a stronger alignment between diversity and inclusion and driving shareholder value.
One of America’s most inspiring executives, he brings a deep personal understanding of human differences and the human experience to his position. Pemberton was a ward of the state for much of his childhood, an experience he chronicled in his 2012 best-selling memoir, A Chance in the World (Thomas Nelson). His extraordinary life journey, featured in People Magazine, has been translated into multiple languages and continues to inspire audiences across the world; the movie adaption of his life is currently underway. Pemberton’s tireless advocacy for the disenfranchised has earned him numerous accolades. His dedication to public service and personal and professional achievement have also earned him Honorary Doctorates from Winston-Salem State University (2014) and Boston College (2015). In 2015, Pemberton was awarded the prestigious Horizon Award by the United States Congress, presented to individuals from the private sector who have contributed to expanding opportunities for all Americans through their own personal contributions, and who have set exceptional examples for young people through their successes in life.
A graduate of Boston College, he is a Bostonian by birth and a Chicagoan by choice. Steve Pemberton resides on several non-profit boards including UCAN, Bernie’s Book Bank and The United States Business Leadership Network. He and his wife Tonya are the proud parents of three children.
Steve Pemberton is Senior Executive at Walgreens Boots Alliance, the first global pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing enterprise in the world, employing 370,000 people in 25 countries. Prior to that he served as Chief Diversity Officer for Walgreens, becoming the first person to hold that position in the historic company’s 114 year history. He is widely considered a subject matter expert on matters of diversity and inclusion and its importance to the sustainability of organizations and the communities they serve.
Pemberton is responsible for overseeing the company’s global efforts to create and maintain a diverse and inclusive environment that reflects the culture, people and perspectives of the nations in which it does business while mirroring its current and future customers and communities. He and his team are specifically focused on the following areas: strategic diversity management, global diversity councils and business resource groups, disability initiatives, supplier diversity and compliance objectives. He has also served as a valued internal consultant to Marketing, Community Affairs, Government Affairs, Legal and Merchandising functions.
Under Pemberton’s leadership, Walgreens reached record levels of performance on nearly every measure of diversity and inclusion from representation to supplier diversity spend. An extended part of his responsibilities has been to serve as a public ambassador for the company on matters of employing people with disabilities. In that capacity, he has frequently represented Walgreens’ employment model at the White House and on Capitol Hill. In 2015, he was appointed by United States Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez to serve on an Advisory Committee for the Competitive Integrated Employment of People with Disabilities.
Prior to assuming his role at Walgreens, Pemberton was Chief Diversity Officer and VicePresident of Diversity and Inclusion at Monster.com, the leading global online careers property where he had end-to-end management responsibilities for the Diversity and Inclusion business unit which focused on helping employers diversify their workforce. It was during his tenure at Monster that Pemberton coined the term ‘Next Practices’, to reflect the need for a stronger alignment between diversity and inclusion and driving shareholder value.
One of America’s most inspiring executives, he brings a deep personal understanding of human differences and the human experience to his position. Pemberton was a ward of the state for much of his childhood, an experience he chronicled in his 2012 best-selling memoir, A Chance in the World (Thomas Nelson). His extraordinary life journey, featured in People Magazine, has been translated into multiple languages and continues to inspire audiences across the world; the movie adaption of his life is currently underway. Pemberton’s tireless advocacy for the disenfranchised has earned him numerous accolades. His dedication to public service and personal and professional achievement have also earned him Honorary Doctorates from Winston-Salem State University (2014) and Boston College (2015). In 2015, Pemberton was awarded the prestigious Horizon Award by the United States Congress, presented to individuals from the private sector who have contributed to expanding opportunities for all Americans through their own personal contributions, and who have set exceptional examples for young people through their successes in life.
A graduate of Boston College, he is a Bostonian by birth and a Chicagoan by choice. Steve Pemberton resides on several non-profit boards including UCAN, Bernie’s Book Bank and The United States Business Leadership Network. He and his wife Tonya are the proud parents of three children.