Compañía, an initiative of La Paz Chattanooga, will host its March Networking event in collaboration with Unum, the event’s presenting sponsor, today. Unum will present a panel discussion, with various employees of their organization acting as panelists.
"The topic for this luncheon and panel discussion is the diversity efforts of Unum, and how the implementation of this in the company’s culture has had a positive impact," officials said.
“While we should acknowledge that having a workforce that reflects the community is the right thing to do, more companies are recognizing the business value of a diverse workforce,” said Wade Hinton, vice president of Inclusion & Diversity at Unum. "It’s also important to appreciate that building a diverse workforce and creating an inclusive environment is a journey. Progress is made when inclusion and diversity become priorities. Like any journey, there is always room for improvement – key parts of growth are ensuring employees have a sense of belonging and not feeling limited or excluded from opportunities to contribute and learn.”
Panelists for the event include Lisa Iglesias, executive vice president & general counsel; Zory Harter, assistant vice president of Benefits Operations and Ana Diaz-Torres, benefits counselor at Unum.
“Companies can only go so far with even the best talent. To succeed, businesses must also show a commitment to continual innovation,” said Angela Garcia, director of business development at La Paz Chattanooga. “Among the better ways to generate new ideas is to tap into diversity, which leads to inclusion and a positive outcome for not only the community, but internally in the workplace.”
"Compañía, La Paz’s business and workforce development arm, works towards diversity and collaboration in the professional community. By providing Latino professionals a platform on which to foster community and inherently contribute diversity, it actively promotes inclusion in leadership roles and a collaborative culture," officials said.
The panel discussion and luncheon is open to the public; the registration fee is $10 for Compañía members and $15 for non members.