OREANDA-NEWS. September 24, 2014. Boeing today named Michael C. Ford its vice president of Global Diversity and Employee Rights (GDER), effective October 17.

Ford will be responsible for enhancing the company's diversity and inclusion initiatives and for ensuring compliance with anti-discrimination laws, such as Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) laws in the United States.

"Michael's extensive experience promoting diversity, inclusion and compliance in the public and private sectors will help our ongoing efforts to ensure that Boeing is a workplace that embraces diversity and continues to incorporate it into our business execution," said Tony Parasida, senior vice president of Human Resources and Administration.

Ford comes to Boeing from Hilton Worldwide, where he served as vice president, Global Diversity and Inclusion, since 2010. While there, he promoted a culture of global inclusion by developing diversity and inclusion strategies for the company's 4,200 locations in 93 countries and territories around the world. He also was involved with company efforts to increase diversity recruiting, supplier diversity, and sales and marketing outreach to leading multicultural and LGBT groups.

Previously, Ford held positions relating to diversity and inclusion, EEO compliance and investigations at a wide range of public and private sector organizations, including MBNA America Bank, Marriott International and several agencies within the U.S. government. Ford was named a Washington, DC, Catalyst Award recipient by Uptown Professional magazine in 2014; one of 50 Diversity Champions by Diversity Woman magazine in 2013; and a Top Executive in Diversity by Black Enterprise magazine in 2011.

Ford succeeds Ozzie Pierce, who served as interim vice president of Global Diversity and Employee Rights since April, after the retirement of Joyce Tucker. Pierce will continue to serve in his current role as director of EEO Compliance.