For Michelle Nettles, chief people and culture officer at ManpowerGroup, DE&I is embedded into not only her profession but also her passion for making the world of work balanced for everyone. She has made a steadfast commitment in the last year to focus on mental health across the organization and has worked with her UK-based team to certify internal staff to became first aid specialists. “We are providing care to our workforce when they need it,” Nettles says. “Our goal is reducing the stigma around mental health and allow for that conversation to happen in the workplace or wherever it needs to happen.”

Nettles is also spearheading the launch of a workplace flexibility initiative, especially in making it conducive for women. Setting a company goal to get to 50% of their leadership team being women by 2025, Nettles is working to bolster women’s professional careers as equal partners participating in the workforce. “I envision a point where someone on a Sunday looks at their diary and says, ‘Here is how I can prioritize work around my family needs,’” she says.

"We fundamentally believe that meaningful and sustainable employment can change the world."

With DE&I initiatives sweeping corporate America, Nettles aims to help other companies advance this cause through ManpowerGroup’s “Culture Matters” initiative, which starts with identifying your values and purpose and then understanding how these principles enable your strategy. She believes that embedding value-driven ethics into everyday practice shows company-wide authenticity in work. And finally, she encourages organizations to ensure that leadership is aligned to these beliefs. “You can do a bunch of mechanistic things, but if it’s not baked into your culture, then it is not sustainable,” she explains. “We fundamentally believe that meaningful and sustainable employment can change the world.”

2023 DE&I Influencers List