As Marriott International (No. 8 on the Fair360, formerly DiversityInc Top 50 Companies) list prepares to celebrate International Women’s Day, Marriott’s Executive Vice President and Global Chief Commercial Officer, Stephanie Linnartz, was named to the inaugural Great Place to Work for All Leadership Awards list.
The award recognizes leaders responsible for business and workplace strategy that delivers better business results while creating a great workplace for all. Honorees were selected from the 2017 and 2018 FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For lists and the Best Workplaces for Women 2017 list.
“I’m honored to represent Marriott and to be named a leader in helping to make our company a great workplace for everyone,” said Linnartz. “Marriott has long recognized that providing opportunities to create a diverse and inclusive environment strengthens our culture and community and drives competitiveness.”
At a series of events around the world, Marriott International and its associates will be celebrating International Women’s Day. At its headquarters, the company will host two Alice S. Marriott Leadership sessions. Launched in 2014, the series honors one of the company’s founders and focuses on providing leadership development through speakers, training and mentorship. The events at Marriott’s headquarters in Bethesda, Maryland will feature Rebecca Shambaugh, thought leader and author of It’s Not a Glass Ceiling, It’s a Sticky Floor and Liz Hannah, the accomplished screenwriter of the Academy Award-nominated film “The Post.”
In San Francisco and in conjunction with its participation at the Great Place to Work for All Summit, the company will host a celebratory concert featuring multi-platinum artist Colbie Caillat as well as an Alice S. Marriott Leadership session led by Muriel Maignana-Wilkins, executive coach and leadership expert who will share ideas for mastering leadership. In other locations around the world, associates will participate in events including career talks, networking sessions, book club meetings and volunteer activities focused on celebrating and empowering women for the more than 700,000 people who wear a Marriott badge. Some of the many activities will be chronicled on social channels and tagged #IWD2018 and #WomenofMarriott.
“While it’s important to recognize International Women’s Day, it’s even more important to create a culture that empowers everyone to grow and succeed,” said David Rodriguez, Executive Vice President & Global Chief Human Resources Officer, Marriott International. “That’s not a one-day effort it’s 365 days a year, for many years. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished, but there is always more to do. We will continue to make strides by listening to each other and through mutual encouragement and support.”
Marriott has a long-standing history of valuing diversity and inclusion. Marriott was the first hospitality company to establish a formal diversity and inclusion program nearly 30 years ago. Marriott established a Women’s Leadership Development Initiative in 1999 that is intended to increase the presence of women in the highest levels of management and in other key decision-making positions. Currently, eight women lead Marriott International divisions with revenue greater than $100 million, and women comprise 50 percent of the company’s executive leadership team.
The company’s support for women also extends to its communities, owners and supply chain. Women-owned businesses, for example, make up the company’s largest spend with diverse groups, accounting for nearly 50 percent of the company’s total diverse spend. In 2017, Marriott spent $352 million with over 3,500 women-owned businesses globally. Marriott works with long-term partners such as Women’s Business Enterprise National Council and WEConnect to support and engage with women-owned businesses around the world. Additionally, by 2020, Marriott plans to have 20 percent of its existing global portfolio owned by diverse owners, including women.
Diversity and inclusion continues to be fundamental to Marriott’s core values and strategic business goals. Last November, Marriott launched its sustainability and social impact platform, Serve 360: Doing Good in Every Direction, which seeks to build upon the company’s decades-long history of support for its communities and the environment. The following are part of Marriott’s Serve 360 initiatives and goals to empower women:
- By 2025, invest at least $5 million to increase and deepen programs and partnerships that develop hospitality skills and opportunity among youth, diverse populations, women, people with disabilities, veterans and refugees.
- Having achieved gender representation parity for the company’s executive leadership team, by 2025, Marriott intends to achieve the same for its entire global leadership team.
Marriott is consistently honored as a top company for diversity and inclusion; honored by the National Association for Female Executives as one of the top corporations for employing executive women; as well as Working Mother 100 Best Companies; and as a top company for supporting women-owned businesses by Women’s Business Enterprise National Council. Marriott has also been named a top company for diversity and inclusion by Latina Style, Fair360, formerly DiversityInc, Asia Society, Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility, Human Rights Campaign and Black Enterprise.
