Diversity In Action

Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina is deep into diversity

Enterprise-wide diversity training was introduced this year, and newly formed affinity groups for women and African Americans are already busily at work

Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) established its diversity council in 2003. Leaders throughout the organization met to define the company’s business case for diversity: “leveraging individual differences as competitive advantages,” says Fara Palumbo, SVP of HR. The committee went on to form a diversity office and work out initiatives for leadership training.

“This year we’re doing enterprise-wide training,” reports Kim Drumgo, chief diversity official. “Our entire workforce will go through diversity awareness training.”

BCBSNC has recently implemented employee networks, as well. The first two, the African American black employee network and the women’s employee network, are already busily at work.

“We’ve seen a really concerted effort from our African American network to communicate about things like black history month,” Drumgo notes, while the women’s network hosted a “women in technology” event. “We’re hoping to use technology to increase the networking among our employees.”

In fact, the cultural awareness movement began with technology, in the company’s applications development group. “We have a large mix of ethnic backgrounds there,” Drumgo explains. “Employees were encouraged to share their cultural celebrations with each other. There was such an interest that celebrations such as Diwali and black history month were expanded into annual events involving the whole information services group.”

Because of its already diverse nature, the IS department, which numbers 594 and growing, quickly developed its own diversity structure, says Robin Miller, director of talent acquisition. It includes various recruiting programs at HBCUs and other schools and a mentoring program for interns and new hires. “We’ve been expanding our IS organization, so there’s a need for new talent,” Miller explains. She cites a specific need for programming and testing in the Siebel language.

“Out of the fifty or so people we hired into IS already this year, a third are female and half are minorities,” Miller says.

On the job, BCBSNC provides flexible work arrangements, according to Latisha Hamilton-Williams, director of workforce strategies. An increasing number of its people work from home or utilize a compressed workweek.

The company also offers onsite backup childcare and a program of continuous care for its employees’ new babies in order to help moms return from maternity leave. This is very much in keeping with the BCBSNC tradition, Miller notes, as the company was the first Blue Cross plan to provide dependent benefits. “In 1933 we covered the very first ‘Blue Cross’ baby!” she says.

D/C