Otis Announces 'Our Commitment to Change' Social Justice Initiative

Underscores commitment to a 'culture of many voices' that mirrors the diversity of the global communities Otis serves

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Aug 11, 2020, 08:30 ET

FARMINGTON, Conn., Aug. 11, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As society faces the urgent problems of social injustice and entrenched racism, Otis Worldwide Corporation (NYSE: OTIS) today released "Our Commitment to Change," laying out actions the company will take to ensure that Otis is a place where every voice feels welcome, safe and heard. Otis is the world's leading company for elevator and escalator manufacturing, installation and service.

Signed by Otis President and CEO Judy Marks and all members of Otis' Executive Leadership Team, "Our Commitment to Change" was first shared in July with the company's 69,000 colleagues around the world.

"We are proud of our company's long commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion," Marks said. "Yet we also know there is more to be done if we are to become the company we want to be: A best-in-class employer for people of broad perspectives and experiences. A business whose workforce mirrors the diversity of our customers and the communities where we live and work."

"Our Commitment to Change" advances these goals by identifying actions Otis will take – and by building transparency and accountability into the process. Specifically, Otis commits to:

Conduct an independent review of Otis to uncover and eliminate biases affecting any of our colleagues in our hiring, compensation, professional development and other business practices.
Accelerate anti-racism, unconscious bias and inclusion learning for employees at all levels of the organization and throughout their Otis careers.
Create an advisory group, Perspectives on Inclusion, to ensure transparency and hold us accountable for achieving measurable progress toward a diverse, inclusive culture.
Amplify our ongoing commitment to STEM and vocational education, as we join with community and business partners to invest in and build a diverse talent pipeline.
Make social justice and racial equity an integral part of our community giving, volunteerism and external reporting programs.
Promote and expand mental health and well-being benefits, policies and practices to support our colleagues.

Otis has made substantial progress in diversifying its executive and professional ranks under the leadership of Marks, the first woman to lead Otis. Today, more than one-third of the company's executives are women, and 24% of Otis professionals in the United States identify as people of color. In July, Otis became the first company in its industry to join the Paradigm for Parity® coalition, pledging to achieve gender parity in its global executive ranks by 2030. Otis' nearly 50 Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), have played an important role in the company's ability to attract, retain and develop diverse talent – by providing mentoring, mutual support and career guidance to their membership.

"This is our moment to take clear, definitive and actionable steps to change our company and send a strong message about what really matters to us as an organization," said Laurie Havanec, Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer. "We will build on what we do well and identify gaps so we can develop and implement solutions for improvement. There will be difficult conversations and decisions ahead. Only when we are courageous enough to confront these challenges, can we create the kind of workplace, communities and world that we're looking to build."

For more information on "Our Commitment to Change," visit www.otis.com.

About Otis
Built on a legacy of innovation, Otis was founded in 1853 after Elisha Otis invented the elevator safety brake, giving rise to the modern city, transforming how people live and work, and revolutionizing architecture itself. Today, we are the world's leading company for elevator and escalator manufacturing, installation and service. We move 2 billion people a day and maintain more than 2 million customer units worldwide, the industry's largest maintenance portfolio. We can be found in many of the world's most recognizable buildings, as well as the busiest transportation hubs and retail centers – we are everywhere people are on the move. Headquartered in Connecticut, USA, Otis is 69,000 people strong, including 40,000 field professionals, all committed to meeting the diverse needs of our customers and passengers in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. To learn more, visit www.otis.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter @OtisElevatorCo.