Business North Carolina’s “Diversity: It Makes Sense” Roundtable Features Smith Anderson Chief Diversity Officer Taylor Dewberry

Business North Carolina (BNC) magazine gathered a panel of esteemed leaders in the realm of diversity and inclusion for a roundtable discussion on how businesses can weave D&I into the fabric of their enterprises, including Taylor Dewberry, who is Smith Anderson’s chief diversity officer and assists in overseeing the firm’s policies, practices and strategies that support D&I within the firm.

Joining Taylor for the discussion were executives from Reynolds American; the State Employees Credit Union; Fidelity Investments; Robeson Community College; and BASF Agricultural Solutions North America, who concurred that increased diversity leads to improved recruiting and retention and stronger relationships - something that Smith Anderson knows firsthand.

As Taylor noted during the discussion, Smith Anderson achieved Mansfield Certification this year, a "huge milestone" that signifies the firm considered at least 30 percent of candidates for recruitment and advancement opportunities from historically underrepresented groups.

Taylor also touched upon how crucial D&I is to business clients and customers.

“People are looking for teams that look like them, or teams that have people who can bring different perspective,” Taylor said. Additionally, she emphasized the significance of employers focusing on creating a sense of belonging in their inclusion efforts, noting that it helps employees feel more invested in their workplaces.

Along with her role as chief diversity officer, Taylor is an attorney in Smith Anderson’s Employment, Labor and Human Resources practice group. Her practice focuses on employment-related counseling and defending employers against claims involving discrimination, wrongful discharge, retaliation, harassment and civil rights claims. She has represented clients in state and federal courts and agencies throughout North Carolina.

A PDF of the full discussion can be viewed here and a video excerpt can be viewed below.