Global Business and Diversity

As a business leadership organization, G.L.I.P. strives to encourage inclusion and diversity.  It is part of our mission to help individuals and corporations recognize the importance of embracing foreign talent and global commerce as a sustainable business strategy.  Each year, G.L.I.P. hosts a panel discussion or lecture from influential leaders.

Click here to view our upcoming event on International Business and Cultural Norms of China

2013 Events:

-March 13: At the March kick-off of G.L.I.P.'s International Business & Cultural Norms Luncheon Series, we are proud to host a panel of two Indian executives who will share their story, their experiences working both in the U.S. and in India - Lousville's fastest growing immigration population.

Vidya Ravichandran, Founder & President,GlowTouch Technologies
Responsible for driving the company’s global expansion efforts and has helped the company penetrate new markets and expand its service portfolio. She oversees the company’s overall growth efforts out of the Louisville-based headquarters and provides strategic guidance to GlowTouch’s 1,000+ member team. Vidya works closely with the sales, marketing and production – both in Louisville and Mangalore, India.

Nishat Grover, Director of Treasury,Yum! Brands, Inc.
Responsible for Yum’s short term global liquidity management, treasury operations, cash management, foreign exchange trading and short term investments/borrowings. Nishat has been with Yum for over 14 years and has over 21 years of experience in the areas of audit, finance and treasury. Prior to that, he was a consultant at Arthur Andersen. Nishat has worked in Germany, UAE, and India.
 

2012- Past Events:

-October 9: G.L.I.P. along with GLI's Talent Attraction Forum (TAF) and the Louisville Society for Human Resource Management (LSHRM) partnered for a special event presentation at The Olmsted. John Kurnick (Yum! Brands), Anna Langford (AAF International), Lina Paskevicius (Cartus Group), and Neil Punwani (Brown Forman) shared their insight and experience regarding hiring and recruiting international professionals, revealing interesting facts and pointing out important issues.

The panel remarked repeatedly how important G.L.I.P. is for welcoming new international professionals and especially their families, who usually need more time to adapt to the new country, since they are not immediately surrounded by a network of new colleagues. For over 3 years now, G.L.I.P. helped to make new talent from abroad feeling "at home" in Louisville, thus helping companies to retain their valuable new international employees. Click here to view the video.

 2011- Past Events:

-June 21: Greater Louisville Inc. with program partner G.L.I.P. held a panel discussion focusing on Global and International Business as part of the Business at Breakfast series.  Panelists including Vidya Ravichandran, President, Glow Touch Technologies; Zack Scott, President, UPS Ohio Valley District and Kevin Lynch, Chief Operating Officer, AAF International, offered valuable insight to an audience of over 150 to help businesses become more profitable and productive in the global marketplace. Click here to view the video.

-August 10: G.L.I.P. with partners Talent Attraction Forum (TAF) and Hispanic Latino Business Council (HLBC) held a panel discussion on "Leveraging Diverse Talent in the Workplace".  Attendees learned from a panel of experts about different strategies utilized to foster diversity when seeking professional talent.  Panelists included: Ralph de Chabert, Chief Diversity Officer, Brown-Forman; Lillian Hunt, HR

Manager- Legal, HR Compliance & Leadership Programs, GEAppliances & Lighting; A.J. Hubbard, Director of Diversity andInclusion, Humana; Tom Volta, VP Human Resources, UPS; James Fripp,Sr. Director of Global Diversity & Inclusion, Yum Brands!, Inc.

-November: G.L.I.P. grant made panel discussion featuring immigrant entrepreneurs possible.
Throughout November, WFPL news presented a series of radio stories honoring andcelebrating immigrant entrepreneurs in our community. The five-part seriesculminated with a public forum in WFPL’s  performance studio. See more here.

You can revisitthe individual interviews at these links:

• Yung Nuyen, co-founder of VINE (Victim Information and Notification Everyday) and CEO of IVS accessible voting system.
• Eddie Maamry, proprietor of the now-closed Road to Morocco.
• Kadiatu Jalloh, owner of Maa Sha-Allah West African Restaurant.
• Papa Gueye, owner of the African Millennium Market on Bardstown Road.
• Cedric Francois, MD/PhD, Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer/President of Apellis Pharmaceuticals.

2010 - Past Events: 

-April 12: 11th President of India Formal Banquet:  During this prestigious and historic visit to Louisville, President Kalam shared the story of his presidency, his vision for transforming India into a fully developed global power by the year 2020, and the impact of that transformation on the rest of the world.

-July 15: Business at Breakfast : "Global Business - Expanding Markets and International Expansion". click for video - Moderator Julie Kredens, host of WFPL Radio’s “State of Affairs” program led panelists: Ted Nixon, Chairman/CEO, D.D Williamson, Chris Carmicle, President, Brown Jordan International, and David Flanery, SVP, CFO & Interim President of International, Papa John’s International on a discussion as to how their enterprises have created new opportunities in response to challenging environments. Hosted by Greater Louisville Inc., G.L.I.P. and Presenting Sponsor Stoll Keenon Ogden at the Louisville Marriott Downtown.

-October 21: G.L.I.P., HLBC and Gold Sponsor UPS partnered to host a special event and welcomed a special guest. "UPS: A World Within Our Reach" featured keynote speaker: Griselda Hernandez, North Latin America Operations Manager for UPS. Guests had the rare opportunity to see the inside of the UPS Aircraft Hangar, network with local and international professionals and executives, learn about the local impact of UPS’s Worldport and its global reach, and sample ethnic food.