WashingtonExec recently sat down with Kimberly Highsmith, executive director of DEI and HR compliance for ManTech, to discuss how the company observed Black History Month.
WashingtonExec: What initiatives were underway at ManTech to recognize Black History Month?
Highsmith: ManTech’s Black Professional Network (BPN) ERG planned and implemented ManTech’s observance of Black History Month with a number of events. The BPN continued ManTech’s regular TED Talk series and encouraged open dialogue on each talk.
We also welcomed speakers from the Montford Point Marine Association, a group founded to honor the first black troops to desegregate the U.S. Marine Corps. One of the first Montford Pointers, 98-year-young Ambassador Theodore Britton Jr., spoke to ManTech employees about his time in the Marines and the association.
Just recently, ManTech’s BPN hosted a tour of Douglass High School, Loudoun County Virginia’s first and only black high school until desegregation. ManTech will end the month with a Black History Month panel of ManTech employees discussing how to build the foundation for future success.
WashingtonExec: How do these initiatives fit into your company’s overall DEI mission/goals?
Highsmith: ManTech’s core values have always focused on DEI and a people-centric culture that drives our mission of Securing the Future. At ManTech we recognize that all people are diverse and each one is valued for the uniqueness they bring to the work environment.
ManTech leverages this uniqueness to be a Best Place to Work. Celebrating the different dimensions of diversity is just one signal to ManTech’s workforce that they are valued, and that they all belong.
WashingtonExec: Why are these initiatives important to your company, workforce and the industry as a whole?
Highsmith: As a national defense employer, ManTech recognizes diversity as an advantage – to our clients, to this great nation and our company, as well. Our people work collaboratively to keep our country safe and secure, and we value each employee’s commitment to that mission.
Of note, our team of nearly 10,000 people appreciate one another, for their similarities and differences.
This shared mindset leads to greater collaboration and innovation in solving our nation’s toughest challenges. Not surprisingly, at ManTech this deeply ingrained commitment to DEI drives strong engagement, growing retention and higher productivity.