Luke Visconti

Luke Visconti
Born United States
Alma mater Rutgers University-New Brunswick
Occupation Business owner, entrepreneur
Organization DiversityInc
Known for Founding DiversityInc
Awards Honorary degrees from Bennett College and New Jersey City University
Website DiversityInc.com

Luke Visconti is an American business executive, entrepreneur, and author focused on issues of diversity and inclusion in the workplace. In 1997, he founded the online publication DiversityInc. The company became known for publishing DiversityInc's annual Top 50 list of the most diverse corporations in the United States.[1] Visconti continues to lead the business operations[2] of DiversityInc Media LLC[3] focused on data analysis, consulting, publishing and events out of Princeton, New Jersey.[2]

Visconti is involved with a number of boards and non-profit organizations, including chairman of the NJCU Foundation Board of Directors,[3] vice chairman of the National Organization on Disability,[4] and a member of the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel.[4] He founded the DiversityInc Foundation in 2006 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which has distributed around $1.5 million to fund scholarships since its inception.[5] Visconti continues to write the "Ask the White Guy" column[6] for DiversityInc,[5][7] and he has been featured as a guest or expert in media outlets such as MSNBC,[8] CNBC[9] NPR,[8] Fast Company,[10] Bloomberg Businessweek,[5] and CNN.[11] Visconti served eight years in the United States military as a naval aviator.[4] Visconti also has an honorary doctorate from New Jersey City University, and in 2015 received an honorary doctorate from Bennett College.[2]

Early life and education

Luke Visconti was born in 1960 in the United States.[12] In 1977 he began attending Rutgers University-New Brunswick in New Jersey, graduating in 1982 with a BS in biology.[4] A veteran of the United States military, he seved in the U.S. Navy in active duty as a naval aviator for eight years, and was in the reserves for a year and a half.[4]

Career with DiversityInc

Main article: DiversityInc

Visconti founded DiversityInc Media[13] in 1997[5] as an online publication.[14][15][14] DiversityInc began publishing the DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity[16] in 1999. The competition requires companies to submit extensive data, and the award is metrics based.[17][18] Visconti developed the survey's methodology, and utilizing the "data collected in the Top 50 process," developed the company's Consulting and Benchmarking practice.[5] In 2002 Visconti oversaw the publication of a print version of the DiverseInc website, published on a bi-monthly basis.[10] As of 2003, the print magazine had a circulation of around 100,000.[10]

Visconti continues to lead the editorial and business operations[2] of DiversityInc Media LLC[3] out of Princeton, New Jersey. The company also produces diversity conference events and operates a benchmarking consulting business.[2] DiversityInc’s benchmarking practice had around 70 corporate clients in 2015.[5] Visconti continues to write the "Ask the White Guy" column for DiversityInc.[5][7] Circulation of DiversityInc was 194,000 as of March 2016.[19]

In the media

Visconti makes periodic press appearances as an expert on diversity issues.[20] In 2003, for example, Bloomberg Businessweek[5] interviewed him about corporate attitudes towards diversity,[16] and Visconti was afterwards interviewed by NPR's Travis Smiley in 2004.[21]

"There are three levels [of diversity awareness among corporations], and the largest [group is at] zero [awareness]. At 20% of companies, they believe in diversity as the right thing to do, and that has nothing to do with business. The right thing to do isn't a compelling reason, for the most part. For 5% of companies, they understand it's the right thing to do for business -- it's a competitive advantage."[16]
— Luke Visconti to Bloomberg Businessweek in 2003.[5]

The New York Times quoted Visconti's opinion in 2007 on the racially-charged rebranding of Uncle Ben's Rice,[13][22] and Visconti appeared as a guest on CNN on March 16, 2008, discussing civil rights and recent homophobic statements by Representative Sally Kern.[23] Advertising Age quoted Visconti on the topic of chief diversity officers in 2009,[24] and he again appeared as a guest on NPR in 2010, discussing issues of race and language with Michel Martin.[7]

In 2010 CNN had Visconti on air to debate a scandal involving a Tea Party member dressed in a KKK robe. Discussing the issue with Columbia University professor Marc Hill,[11] Visconti illicited a degree of controversy in outlets such as Fox News[25] when he concurred that the Tea Party was bigoted.[11] Visconti was featured in Fast Company in August 2013,[10] and both The Atlantic[14] and SFGate quoted him in articles in 2014.[15]

Visconti makes periodic appearances as a speaker, including giving the commencement address at Bennett College in 2015,[26] speaking at the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) annual conference,[27] serving as a keynote speaker at the US Business Leadership Network,[28] and as a keynote speaker at the National Hispanic Corporate Council’s 2016 summit.[29] In March 2013 he led a roundtable discussion at a conference held by the Minority Business Development Agency.[2] As CEO of DiversityInc, he also spoke at Youth Action International's Business Advisory Council, hosted by KPMG. At that point, First Post reported that Visconti had appeared as a guest in media outlets such as FOX, MSNBC,[8] CNBC[9] and NPR.[8] Visconti continues to write the "Ask the White Guy" column for DiversityInc.[5][7]

Boards and philanthropy

Visconti is involved with a number of boards and non-profit organizations. Starting in 2004 he spent close to a decade as a trustee at Bennett College for Women.[4] In 2006[4] he became a member of both the NJCU Foundation Board of Directors[3] and The PhD Project,[4] and he also founded the DiversityInc Foundation in 2006. A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization which helps fund scholarships at various universities using "4 percent of DiversityInc’s gross revenue," from 2006 to 2015, the DiversityInc Foundation distributed around $1,500,000.[5]

He became an overseer at Rutgers University Foundation Board in 2007, and is a former trustee of the university.[4] In June 2007 he was appointed a member of the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel,[4] and he has since "briefed three Chiefs of Naval Operations on issues of diversity and inclusion."[5] The New Jersey City University Foundation, Inc. (NJCU Foundation), an organization which aims to support academic programs without increasing tuition, elected Visconti as chair of their board of directors in August 2013[3] for a three-year term.[3] He became a board member of the National Organization on Disability in March 2015,[4] was elected vice chair in 2016, and is also on the corporate and philanthropy board of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU).[5]

Awards and nominations

The following is an incomplete list of awards and recognitions for Luke Visconti:

Personal life

Visconti is based in the New York City area.[4] He survived and recovered from a stroke in 2014.[12]

Further reading

See also

References

  1. ↑ "AAAA/AAAED Award Recipients". American Association for Access, Equity and Diversity. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Pledger, Marcia (March 15, 2013). "Luke Visconti, CEO of DiversityInc. calls on local corporate procurement officers to increase supplier diversity efforts". The Plain Dealer (Cleveland.com). Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "NJCU Foundation elects Luke Visconti chair of the Board of Directors". Jersey Journal (NJ.com). August 28, 2013. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "Luke Visconti". LinkedIn. Retrieved 2014-07-06.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 "Luke Visconti". Diversityinc.com. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  6. ↑ Visconti, Luke. "Ask the White Guy". Diversityinc.com. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Martin, Michel (November 15, 2010). "Who Are You Calling A Racist?". NPR. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Luke Visconti, CEO of Diversity Inc, speaking at YAI's Business Advisory Council". First Post. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  9. 1 2 Rosenbaum, Eric (April 23, 2014). "The growing case for diversity as a profit source". CNBC. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "At Lunch With Luke Visconti". Fast Company. August 13, 2003. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  11. 1 2 3 "Parking Garage Collapses in New Jersey; BP Has Capped Leak, But Will It Hold?; Conversation With Memphis Tea Party and NAACP; How You Can Protect Yourself From Foreclosure". CNN. July 17, 2010. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  12. 1 2 "Luke Visconti, CEO: I Had a Stroke". diversityinc.com. August 6, 2014. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  13. 1 2 Elliott, Stuart (March 30, 2007). "Uncle Ben, Board Chairman". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  14. 1 2 3 Green, Emma (April 24, 2014). "The Origins of Office Speak". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  15. 1 2 "In social media age, private actions are company business". Miami Herald (SFGate). September 25, 2014. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  16. 1 2 3 "Online Extra: Q&A with Diversity Inc.'s Luke Visconti". Bloomberg Businessweek. May 11, 2003. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  17. ↑ "Top 50 Companies for Diversity". diversityinc.com. 2015. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  18. ↑ "Time Warner Inc. Named on Diversity Inc.'s 12th Annual Top Companies for Diversity List for 3rd Consecutive Year". Time Warner press release. April 26, 2012. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  19. ↑ "Rate Card". Diversityinc.com. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  20. ↑ Deleon, Mariah (February 13, 2015). "A Culturally Diverse Workforce Could Be a Boon to Your Business". Entrepreneur. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  21. ↑ Smiley, Tavis (April 21, 2004). "Diversity Inc.'s Top 50 Companies for Diversity". NPR. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  22. ↑ Newitz, Annalee (March 30, 2007). "Racist or not? 'Uncle Ben' Becomes 'Chairman Ben' on the Web". Wired. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  23. ↑ "CNN & ATL Dig Out from Tornado Damage; Obama's Church Defends Its Pastor; Bill Clinton in New Orleans". CNN. March 16, 2008. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  24. ↑ Parekh, Rupal (February 9, 2009). "For Diversity Officers, No Good Deed Goes Unpunished". Advertising Age. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  25. ↑ "Business Exec Compares Black Tea Partiers to Jewish Concentration Camp Guards". Fox News. July 19, 2010. Retrieved 2016-05-01.
  26. ↑ "Commencement 2015". Bennett.edu. 2015. Retrieved 2016-03-15.
  27. ↑ "Diversity Events: HACU’s Annual Conference, Ernst & Young on Woman Directors [Slideshow]". DiversityInc. February 25, 2013. Retrieved 2016-03-15.
  28. ↑ McCary, Katherine (June 16, 2008). "US Business Leadership Network Announces Keynote Speakers for Annual Conference & Career Fair on October 5-8, 2008" (PDF). Business Leadership Network. Retrieved 2016-03-15.
  29. ↑ "Lunch Keynote Speaker - Luke Visconti". NHCCHQ. April 6, 2016. Retrieved 2016-03-15.

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