Johnson Controls Gains International Honor as Winner of 1999 British Diversity Award
1 December 1999
Johnson Controls Gains International Honor as Winner of 1999 British Diversity Award
Company earns highest recognition
for supporting minority initiatives
PLYMOUTH, Mich., Nov. 30 -- Johnson Controls has
been honored as winner of the Nelson Mandela International Award for Good
Diversity Practice in the 1999 British Diversity Awards program. The
recognition is given annually to an international organization for supporting
diversity management; minority business development; positive cultural
awareness; and promotion of harmony, mutual respect and cultural appreciation.
The British Diversity Awards program, a national initiative in the United
Kingdom, was founded in 1995. It is sponsored by the New Impact Journal, a
publication that focuses on U.K. business diversity, enterprise and
achievement. Among the organizations eligible for the awards are businesses,
government agencies and charitable groups that successfully train, recruit,
promote and develop women, minorities and individuals with disabilities.
Johnson Controls received the Mandela International Award for its strong
commitment to supporting and doing business with minority-owned companies, and
its support of diversity within its organization.
"We're pleased to have won this prestigious award, which honors our
company for promoting diversity and equal opportunity in our organization,
with our suppliers and within communities around the world," said Rande Somma,
president of marketing and development for Johnson Controls. "We're proud to
lead in this area because it's not only the right thing to do -- it's a
business strategy that works."
The Nelson Mandela International Award debuted this year. It is named to
honor the life and work of the former president of South Africa and the
African National Congress. The award symbolizes Mandela's achievements in
promoting diversity and setting standards for others to follow. He served as
South Africa's president from 1994 to 1999, and retired from public life in
June.
The award was presented to Johnson Controls officials at the British
Diversity Awards ceremony on Friday, November 19 in London by Joan
Armatrading, a popular U.K. recording artist. More than 450 British business
and government leaders attended the event.
Elaine Sihera, the founder of the awards program and publisher of the New
Impact Journal, said, "Johnson Controls was simply the best nominee for this
first year. The judges were most impressed by the meticulous and strategic way
the company ensured true diversity, in both the inclusion of their suppliers
and in developing their own work force diversely. In fact, they were so
outstanding, they easily received nine 'number one' votes from all nine
judges."
Johnson Controls, a major, global manufacturer of automotive interior
systems, has a formal program to recruit and develop minority-owned suppliers.
In 1999, the company purchased more than $235 million in goods and services
from 62 minority-owned firms in the United States, a figure that's expected to
grow to $317 million in 2000.
During the past few months, Johnson Controls has received other honors for
its minority efforts. Earlier this month, Ford Motor Company recognized the
company with its 1999 Corporate Citizenship Award, which salutes firms
committed to the development of minority businesses and communities. In
September, Johnson Controls gained Corporation of the Year recognition from
the Michigan Minority Business Development Corporation (MMBDC) for the third
time in the past four years. MMBDC, a voluntary organization with more than
1,000 members, works to create links between major automotive companies and
minority businesses.
Johnson Controls' recent activities in support of minority-owned firms
illustrate its record of achievement. The company has integrated "minority
business development" as a key component of its strategic business plan.
Purchases from minority-owned companies are targeted to grow each year.
Johnson Controls requires its vendors to develop and implement their own
minority business development programs.
The company also has developed a variety of successful partnerships in
support of minority businesses, including two new joint-venture operations in
Michigan. It helped 14 key suppliers form joint ventures and strategic
alliances with minority firms to supply seat heaters, trim covers, seat backs,
prototypes, metal stampings, welded assemblies, injection-molded plastic,
felt/fiber coatings and logistics/warehousing services.
Other minority supplier development efforts by Johnson Controls include:
* Sponsorship of educational fellowships for the past two years at
Dartmouth College for officials from minority-owned firms;
* Trade shows and other events to encourage companies to purchase goods
and services from minority firms;
* Ongoing mentoring and training of minority suppliers;
* The launch of a private web site on the Internet that helps Johnson
Controls employees, customers and suppliers link-up with minority suppliers;
and
* Assistance to Ford in designing its new, on-line minority reporting
system for "tier-two" suppliers.
With its employees, Johnson Controls implemented diversity training
programs, created a minority development policy statement, and integrated
minority sourcing activities into purchasing managers' duties. The company
currently employs people from more than 60 cultures, and operates facilities
in 28 countries worldwide.
Johnson Controls also participates in student-mentoring programs, and
regularly recruits new employees at professional job fairs sponsored by the
National Society of Black Accountants, the National Society of Black
Engineers, The Society of Women Engineers, the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People, the National Urban League, and the Hispanic
Center.
"At Johnson Controls, we recognize that the minority market is growing
rapidly, and that our minority initiatives are designed to support people who
will buy the vehicles that we supply," said Larry Alles, vice president of
purchasing - worldwide.
The Plymouth, Michigan-based automotive business of Johnson Controls --
which employs more than 65,000 people at 275 facilities worldwide -- achieved
US$12.1 billion in sales for the 1999 fiscal year. For model-year 2000, the
company supplied interior products for more than 22 million vehicles.
Johnson Controls, Inc. is a global leader in automotive systems and
facility management and control. In the automotive market, it is a major
supplier of seating and interior systems, and batteries. For non-residential
facilities, Johnson Controls provides building control systems and services,
energy management and integrated facility management. Johnson Controls,
founded in 1885, has headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Its sales for 1999
totaled US$16.1 billion.
/CONTACT: David Roznowski of Johnson Controls, Inc., 734-254-5632/
/Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/473547.html or fax,
800-758-5804, ext. 473547/
/Web site: http://www.johnsoncontrols.com/