CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion, the largest coalition to advance diversity and inclusion within the workplace, announced three key actions at its second annual CEO Closed-Door Session.

“The bold actions announced today will help leaders draw on our collective power to drive change,” said Tim Ryan, US Chairman and Senior Partner of PwC and chair of the CEO Action steering committee. “Together, we have made progress, but we must continue to challenge ourselves in new ways to foster more open, inclusive and diverse workplaces and communities.”

CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion brings together more than 500 CEOs and presidents of America’s leading businesses, academic institutions, and nonprofits representing 12 million employees. The three actions announced today include:

● Launching the new “Check Your Blind Spots” unconscious bias mobile tour with experiential elements and online resources to give people the opportunity to learn about and explore ways to mitigate unconscious bias in their everyday lives. The tour will make 100 stops across the country and engage one million people.

In August, Consumers Energy held a one-day Diversity and Inclusion Summit in Lansing, MI.  More than 200 leaders from Michigan-based corporations, universities, civic organizations, and state and local municipalities attended the event.

CEOs included Tim Ryan and Career Communications Group, Inc. CEO Tyrone Taborn, who is photographed in front of the “Check Your Blind Spots” mobile bus.

The mobile tour, which is hosted by CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion, is designed to help facilitate open and honest conversations in university communities and workplaces.

The two other actions announced today include:

● Initiating the “I Act On” pledge, in conjunction with the unconscious bias mobile tour, individuals can commit to action through a personal pledge to mitigate any personal unconscious biases and act on driving more inclusive behaviors in their everyday lives. Individuals can also take the pledge via ceoaction.com/pledge.

● Hosting a “Day of Understanding”, the largest mass dialogue focused on tackling key diversity and inclusion issues such as race, gender and age. More than 150 signatories will come together to take a bold action and host a day of candid conversations within each of their
respective companies in order to further embrace differences in our organizations.

In addition to discussing the new actions, CEOs and presidents will collaborate during working sessions and hear from employees about their real-life experiences at signatory companies.

The coalition will also release “Beyond the Bottom Line”, a five-part landmark series featuring conversations between CEOs and their employees, unpacking diversity and inclusion issues confronting the workplace today hosted on the Huffington Post’s Purpose + Profit platform, and sponsored by PwC.

With research showing that 78 percent of Americans want companies to address important social justice issues , the actions outlined at the second annual Closed-Door Session will help the coalition’s more than 500 signatories, representing 48 industries and 12 million employees, glean ideas and opportunities to drive additional progress within their companies and organizations around diversity and inclusion.

Executive Leadership Council President and CEO Skip Spriggs said “CEO Action leaders know the value, the need and the power of inclusive leadership.

“The actions announced today will lead to more open and candid conversations about race in the workplace, unconscious bias education and training, and an elevated level of employee engagement on race and other key diversity and inclusion issues that are important to employees and communities across industries, sectors and geographies,” Spriggs said.

The commitment outlines actions that participating organizations pledge to take to cultivate a workplace where diverse perspectives and experiences are welcomed and respected, employees feel comfortable and encouraged to discuss diversity and inclusion, and where successful and well-known—and unsuccessful—actions can be shared across organizations.

For more information on the actions announced today and the CEO Closed-Door Session, visit ceoaction.com.