By Camille Chang Gilmore, vice president of Human Resources and global chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, Boston Scientific
As first seen in the Historically Black Colleges and Universities edition of United States Black Engineer Magazine.
At Boston Scientific, our ability to drive innovation and fulfill our mission requires fast iteration, creative problem-solving and diverse perspectives. As a core value, diversity is essential to our ability to advance science for life -- for people of every background, color and creed. Since 2014, we have strategically partnered with historically black college and university (HBCU) engineering schools to support scholarships, research and advisory board partnerships. By investing in HBCUs, we are bringing some of the best minds in science and engineering to our teams and building a sustainable pipeline of diverse talent for the future.
We are proud to be ranked by US Black Engineer & Information Technology magazine as a top industry supporter for HBCUs for the second consecutive year. Our ranking reflects our commitment to developing future leaders. We are a long-standing sponsor of career events that support Black and HBCU students, including those held by Advancement of Minority Interest in Engineering, Career Communications Group and the National Society of Black Engineers. As a result, we have extended on-the-spot job offers to more than 200 engineering and science students and provided numerous scholarship opportunities.
Doing our part
Over the last year, the global pandemic, polarizing political environment, and racial and economic uncertainties have cast a harsh spotlight on the depth of the inequities that exist in our workplaces, our communities and in our health care systems. At Boston Scientific, we are taking action to drive positive change, including:
- Deepening our diversity programs with initiatives aimed at eliminating bias, racism and other forms of discrimination in our workplace and creating clearer pathways to leadership for women, Black, and Latinx and Hispanic talent.
- Expanding efforts to address and combat health inequities through Close the Gap, which provides community education, health care professional education, and serves as an advocate for increased representation of women and people of color in clinical trials.
- Committing $3.5 million over a two-and-a-half-year period to support a multi-faceted, long-term strategy to combat systemic racism, inequity and injustice in our workplace and in the communities where we live and work. This includes expanding our relationships with Black-owned businesses, providing scholarship opportunities to health care students of color and supporting racial equity in public policy.
While we are making progress, there is still more work to be done. We look forward to deepening our partnership with HBCUs. Together, we will continue to raise the bar and be an important catalyst for meaningful change.