DiversityPlus Magazine Honors Ricoh Exec for Company's Support of Minority and Women-Owned Businesses

MALVERN, Pa., Nov. 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- A key purchasing executive for Ricoh Americas Corporation has been named a 2012 Top 30 Champion of Diversity by DiversityPlus Magazine, one of the nation's leading diversity magazines with an international readership of more than 114,000.

The award was given to Christina Morrow, Senior Manager of Purchasing and Supplier Diversity for Ricoh Americas Corporation. It recognizes leaders who have developed and implemented innovative strategies reflecting best internal and external practices to help increase participation of minority and women-owned businesses (MWBEs) as suppliers in the national and global economies.

"We're committed to our corporate citizenship, which includes forming relationships and partnerships with diverse suppliers. By partnering with minority/women-owned and small businesses, we can work toward achieving our corporate vision while helping these businesses thrive," said Donna Venable, Senior Vice President, Human Resources, Ricoh Americas Corporation and Chair for Ricoh's Corporate Diversity and Corporate Social Responsibility Council. "Furthermore, we're honored by this award as we believe that as a result of these mutually beneficial relationships, Ricoh is able to exceed our customers' expectations, add value to our products and services, meet our business goals and provide economic benefits to the communities in which we do business."

After assuming her current position in 2010, Morrow was tasked with several initiatives designed to:

• Increase Ricoh's supplier diversity spend by 8 percent in the first year;
• Enhance the visibility of Ricoh's diversity program among MWBEs;
• Promote partnership opportunities to MWBEs and small non-minority businesses;
• Increase the program's visibility within Ricoh by leading cross-functional meetings among sales teams responding to customer RFP requirements; and
• Automate and streamline the supplier diversity program to ensure accurate reporting.

As part of these efforts, Morrow collaborated with Human Resources and the Corporate Diversity and Social Responsibility Council on the company's primary focus of promoting and leveraging the business case for diversity and social responsibility, both internally and externally. 

"I'm thrilled with the honor from such a respected publication in our industry," Morrow said. "The award recognizes the significance of our work to increase diversity as well as the support these efforts have received from Ricoh management and employees. We're proud of what we've accomplished and are committed to building on the progress we've made."

| About Ricoh |

Ricoh is a global technology company specializing in office imaging equipment, production print solutions, document management systems and IT services. Headquartered in Tokyo, Ricoh Group operates in more than 200 countries and regions. In the financial year ending March 2012, Ricoh Group had worldwide sales of 1,903 billion yen (approx. 23 billion USD).

The majority of the company's revenue comes from products, solutions and services that improve the interaction between people and information. Ricoh also produces award-winning digital cameras and specialized industrial products. It is known for the quality of its technology, the exceptional standard of its customer service and sustainability initiatives.

Under its corporate tagline, imagine. change. Ricoh helps companies transform the way they work and harness the collective imagination of their employees.

For further information, please visit
www.ricoh.com/about/

© 2012 Ricoh Americas Corporation. All rights reserved. All referenced product names are the trademarks of their respective companies.

Contact:

Linda Montefusco
Ricoh Americas Corporation
(973) 882-2172
[email protected]

Jill Searl
Brodeur Partners
(603) 559-5824
[email protected]

SOURCE Ricoh Americas Corporation