Commission on Economic Inclusion Presents Best-in-Class Awards; Releases Preliminary Results of Employers Survey on Diversity(TM).

CLEVELAND -- The Commission on Economic Inclusion, a coalition of Northeast Ohio employers committed to making the region's diversity a source of economic strength, has recognized six of its member companies as "Best in Class" for their progress in building and maintaining diverse organizations. The awards were presented at the Commission's 2008 Annual Meeting held May 8 at Corporate College East in Warrensville Heights, Ohio.

In 2007, the Commission's membership increased from 100 to 108 employers. "It's a powerful statement about the Northeast Ohio business community that a growing number of employers recognize the importance of workplace diversity and its relationship to successfully competing in the 21st century global economy," said co-chair of the Commission on Economic Inclusion, Christopher M. Connor, chairman and chief executive officer of The Sherwin-Williams Company.

The employers honored were selected based on preliminary results of the 2007 Greater Cleveland Employers Survey on Diversity[TM], as well as follow-up interviews by the Commission staff. Two organizations--one nonprofit/government organization and one for-profit company--were selected in each of four categories. For the first time since the awards were introduced in 2003, two organizations won in two categories. The 2007 Best-in-Class organizations are:

Board Diversity: Kaiser Permanente and KeyCorp; Senior Management Diversity: NASA John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field and Eaton Corporation; Workforce Diversity: Cuyahoga Community College and Time Warner Cable of Northeast Ohio; and Supplier Diversity: Kaiser Permanente and KeyCorp.

The Commission also presented its first Economic Impact Award to University Hospitals, the City of Cleveland and a coalition of Cleveland building and trade unions for their ground-breaking project-labor agreement (PLA) for all of the UH Vision 2010 construction projects. "This is an important step toward ensuring equitable participation by minorities in the construction industry in University Hospitals' major expansion projects," said Commission Co-chair Brian E. Hall, chairman and chief executive officer of Industrial Transport, Inc. He noted that provisions of the PLA include adoption of the City of Cleveland's minority participation goals and ensuring that all participating minority firms are from Northeast Ohio.

In addition to its role as an advocate for the Vision 2010 PLA, the Commission is working to ensure positive outcomes between Northeast Ohio majority and minority businesses in a variety of industries. According to Commission Executive Director Andrew Jackson: "the key ingredient for success is focused collaboration--between majority companies that can provide access and opportunities--and minority-owned businesses with the capability and capacity to deliver quality goods and services, on time, on schedule, and on budget."

Ralph Alvarez, president and chief operating officer of McDonald's Corporation, was the Commission Annual Meeting keynote speaker. "Diversity is about more than numbers. We compete better when we translate the diversity of ideas, experience, and backgrounds into solutions that meet or exceed our customers' expectations," Alvarez said in his remarks.

Preliminary Results: 2007 Employers Survey on Diversity[TM]:

Results of the preliminary analysis of the 2007 Greater Cleveland Employers Survey on Diversity[TM] also were announced. These are based on data provided by 95 organizations that employ a total of 545,618 individuals, including 185,372 in Northeast Ohio. Responses from nine additional surveys, to be submitted, will be included in the final survey analysis that will be completed in June 2008.

The results below compare preliminary findings from 2007 against 2006 for the aggregate groups--the responses of the 95 organizations that participated in 2007, compared to the 100 organizations included in the 2006 preliminary analysis. Results also show responses for the year-to-year group, which is composed of the 85 organizations that participated both years. Highlights include:

Board Diversity: Minority representation

* Aggregate: Increased from 17 percent to 18.2 percent

* Year-to-year: Increased from 18.5 percent to 19 percent

Senior Management Diversity: Minority representation

* Aggregate: 10 percent (no change)

* Year-to-year: Decreased from 10.9 percent to 10 percent

Policies and Practices: Organizations with diversity management goals and objectives in business or strategic plan

* Aggregate: Increased from 65 percent to 67 percent

* Year-to-year: Increased from 72 percent to 77 percent

Supplier Diversity: Regional minority spend

* Aggregate: Decreased from $436 million to $181 million

* Year-to-year: Decreased from $250 million to $123 million

Supplier Diversity: Total minority spend

* Aggregate: Increased from $2 billion to $2.4 billion

* Year-to-year: Decreased from $1.9 billion to $1.2 billion

About the Commission

The Commission on Economic Inclusion is a program of the Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP). Its mission is "to significantly improve the level of inclusion-the meaningful involvement of minority businesses and individuals-in the economic engines that drive Northeast Ohio." The GCP mobilizes private-sector leadership, expertise and resources to create jobs and wealth and improve the economic vitality of the region. www.commission-inclusion.com.