Cisco’s online Multicultural Multigenerational Tool Kit shows employees how to work effectively with people from other cultures and age groups.

Talented women do well at this information technology and networking company, which just introduced its Inclusive Advocacy program for high-potential employees. Multicultural women enrolled in the program are partnered with senior executives from other business units and global regions for a full year of coaching and professional opportunities—and often walk away with promotions and plum assignments. The message that success is within reach for everyone is reinforced at the annual Diversity and Leadership Symposium, at which senior executives describe their own journeys as multicultural employees. Diversity awareness training is required for all hiring managers, but the Executive Talent Insertion program is specifically designed to attract a wide slate of experienced candidates to top jobs in engineering, finance, sales and operations, with a focus on female and minority professionals. Staffers who want to develop the skills they need to advance can rely on quarterly leadership events that are held by the 11 employee networks as well as ongoing initiatives such as the Achieve development program for African-American employees. Other standouts include five workshops on career development from the Asian-American Network.

Multicultural Women 13%
Chairman & CEO John Chambers
Chief Diversity Officer Marilyn Nagel

At Cisco, multicultural women represent…
4% of corporate executives
4% of senior managers
6% of the top earners
20% of the company hires
11% of the company losses
17% of participants in mentoring programs
13% of participants in career counseling programs

*Denotes a member of the Top 5 Best Companies for Multicultural Women