Walmart to Sponsor Round-table Discussion & Networking Event: NHCC Journey to Excellence Hispanic Leadership Pipeline Workshop on May 19th, 2012

WASHINGTON and DALLAS, May 18, 2012  /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Participants in the National Hispanic Corporate Council Corporate Executive Development Program (NHCC-CEDP) have reached out to Hispanic youth to hold an "NHCC Journey to Excellence Hispanic Leadership Pipeline" Workshop on Saturday, May 19, from 1:00-3:00 pm at Southern Methodist University (SMU) Cox School of Business in Dallas.  This two hour workshop, sponsored by Walmart, will bring together 17 high potential Latino executives who've just completed the NHCC Corporate Executive Development Program at SMU and 15 highly qualified college school students from Paul Quinn College, Dallas County Community College and SMU to address challenges that affect the Hispanic leadership pipeline.

Facts:

• Census data revealed that Hispanics are the largest minority group and fastest growing segment of the American population.  Yet they have the highest high school dropout rates and lowest college attendance of all major ethnic groups.  Source: PDI International – Executive Development 2009
• Recent research demonstrates that Hispanic or Latino leaders reach middle management faster than other groups, but struggle to make the transition to executive positions.  Despite being the fastest growing talent pool in the U.S., Latinos represent a tiny fraction of "C-level" executives in corporate America.  This represents a fundamental problem not only for corporations seeking to serve the fast-growing Latino market, but also for the country's economic prosperity, as a critical and valuable talent segment remains untapped for key leadership positions. Source: PDI International – Executive Development 2009

"If you ask anyone in their career if they were able to make it on their own, the answer would always be 'no'," said Roger Cude, Walmart's senior vice president of Global Talent Management. "Everyone who has enjoyed success in their career can easily name people who came into their lives and helped them along the way.  One way to ensure the quality of our future leaders is to make sure our current leaders are engaged in building the future of all types of organizations. We're proud to support the CEDP because we know the interaction and shared learning that happens between the executives and students is irreplaceable when it comes to building the confidence and skills it will take to become the leaders of tomorrow."

Key topics and ideas will be presented at the workshop through a roundtable panel discussion.  Together, leaders and students will become inspired in addressing opportunity areas in becoming high-performing Hispanic leaders and removing barriers to create a win-win situation for future Hispanic leaders and their organizations.

"The NHCC continues to provide corporate America with resources and solutions as we work to address today's challenges in the marketplace," said Pat Martinez, President and CEO of the NHCC. "I am pleased to have the opportunity to play a role in increasing the Hispanic talent pipeline by connecting our Latino corporate executives with college bound students seeking to know 'How do I get to where you are now?' These students and program executives will have the opportunity to dialogue about this and much more. Today's Hispanic students need role models and we are connecting them with a group of leaders in the marketplace that are taking time to guide those that will be part of tomorrow's workforce.  Part of our responsibilities as leaders is to give back to the community and mentoring our youth is an exceptional way to move it forward."

"One of the leadership program's main purposes is to invigorate participants' involvement, as high potential corporate executives, in developing the Hispanic leadership pipeline," said Frank Lloyd, Associate Dean, Executive Education, SMU Cox.  "Fortunately, through its involvement with the Dallas HYI, SMU has a ready-made avenue for them to do so.  The CEDP is working—for the participants and for the on-coming generation of potential Hispanic leaders."

In 2009, SMU received the Hispanic College Fund's Legacy Award for leadership and investment in a diverse student population.  This marked the first time that an educational institution received this honor, which is typically given to federal agencies. SMU was chosen for its exceptional commitment to the recruitment of Hispanic students, the level of support provided to the Hispanic Youth Institute and its community leadership.

About the NHCC-CEDP
The NHCC Corporate Executive Development Program (NHCC-CEDP), in partnership with SMU Cox Executive Education, accelerates the careers of high potential Hispanic managers through an educational experience focused on sustained behavior change that provides knowledge, skills and tools for maximizing strategic relationships within and outside their corporations.  The program will also develop Hispanic executives by supporting ongoing coaching and mentorship of its graduates. For more information visit http://www.nhcchq.org/Executive-Development/default.asp.

About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week at over 10,000 retail units under 69 different banners in 27 countries. With fiscal year 2012 sales of approximately $444 billion, Walmart employs more than 2 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://walmartstores.com, and on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmart. Online merchandise sales are available at http://www.walmart.com and http://www.samsclub.com.

About SMU Cox Executive Education
SMU Cox Executive Education offers innovative and flexible programs that provide relevant and dynamic learning experiences for professionals, managers, and executives.  Programs develop leadership capability, business acumen, strategic thinking and decision making skills that improve performance.  Cox Executive Education works in partnership with client organizations to develop custom learning solutions to strategic business challenges.  These programs consistently win national awards for excellence in academic partnership.  Programs are offered at the SMU campus in the state-of-the-art James M. Collins Executive Education Center, as well as in-house for corporate clients. 

Contact Information: Zuleika Cuevas, cell 202-528-7229, email [email protected]  

SOURCE National Hispanic Corporate Council