Disney Name New Chief Diversity Officer
Disney announced today that Latondra Newton was appointed as senior vice president and chief diversity officer for The Walt Disney Company. She will work closely with all segments of the Disney company to build on the company’s commitment to an inclusive and welcoming environment. Previously, Newton worked with Toyota for 25 years where she served as group vice president, Social Innovation, and chief diversity officer of Toyota Motor North America, and project general manager of the corporate citizen division of Toyota Motor Corporation. She worked on inclusion and diversity within the Toyota company as well as environment sustainability and shared impact functions. She also led the Toyota Mobility Foundation in 2014 that assisted in the advance in freedom of mobility for more people around the world.
In 2000 Newton was named a Rising Star Under 35 by Automotive News and as one of the 100 Leading Women in the North American Automotive Industry in 2010. She is also a member of the Manufacturing Institute’s Board of Directors where she is an advocate for women’s careers in the manufacturing industry.
The Walt Disney Company has made moves on diversity and inclusion, something that has been recognized by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation in recent months. The Foundation has designated Disney as a Best Place to Work for LGBT Equality for 11 years in a row. The California Bar Foundation awarded Disney’s Legal department with the “2016 Leading the Change Diversity Award–Corporate Counsel” and the Bridge Builder Award by Asian Americans Advancing Justice which recognized Disney’s “exceptional efforts to encourage community empowerment and diversity.”
Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer Jayne Parker said:
“Diversity and inclusion are critical to who we are as a company… When we have a multitude of voices, ideas, and sensibilities, we produce more engaging, more memorable, and more relatable experiences for all of the audiences we serve.”
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