Leslie Saunders

Leslie is a great visionary with the heart of a true social justice advocate to help foster greater understanding around the complexity of working with others in our multicultural world. It has always been an amazing experience to work for her and with her as we strived to educate others while increasing our own knowledge and experience of what needs to happen so that we can all appreciate, value and celebrate each other's differences and similarities and go forward together.

I have known Leslie for many years and we have worked together on a major diversity project - she was the successful candidate from a very competitive group of presented candidates. She is wise, deeply perceptive, open to new ideas, and committed to inclusion for companies, customers and stakeholders. Leslie understands the value-add of diversity and the fresh perspectives that are generated. She values the processes through which diversity is achieved as much as the values the outcomes. Additionally, Leslie is a people person who is just plain fun to be with. She leads complex initiatives through persuasion. She is also an articulate communicator and a strong networker. I learn something new every time I talk with Leslie.

Leslie is the ultimate thought leader on diversity and inclusion. She has an incredible gift of connecting unique people, resources, and ideas that result in proactive, transformational approaches to diversity and inclusion. She is a true visionary at integrating diversity and inclusion into the DNA of an organization - or community - and a pioneer in the field. She is a mentor with passion, and has the ability to unleash the talent that surrounds her, fostering innovation and a can-do, get-it-done, attitude.

Leslie is a creative, innovative thinker that understands and effectively communicates the importance and necessity of a multicultural/diverse community and workforce. She is a strategic leader that guides and works with clients, teams/projects/employees with insight, understanding and empathy. Goal oriented and mission driven she brings integrity and knowledge to any project she undertakes. It has been a pleasure knowing and working with Leslie over the years and I look forward to her continued success.

I have had the opportunity to work for and with Leslie on two different occasions (at the Greater Cleveland Roundtable & Memphis Diversity Institute). They were among the best professional experiences I've ever had. Leslie is truly one of the most creative and innovative individuals I've had the privilege to know, particularly in the areas of program design and development around organizational/community diversity and inclusion. She is a thought-leader and thought-partner of the highest caliber, and an expert in the area of human relations. She is a phenomenal speaker, trainer, teacher, and mentor. As importantly, she brings a sense of humor, integrity and grace to all her endeavors. I owe much of my career development and success to her guidance, wisdom and encouragement.

Our goal was to make sure that our culture was diversity friendly throughout the Company and everyone, including me, was held accountable. We wanted a workplace environment where everyone feels like a respected and valued member of the Coca-Cola Enterprises family. Improvement, progress an establishing new standards of excellence are what it is all about. In that spirit, we utilized the talents and expertise of a nationally respected diversity consultant, Ms. Leslie Saunders of the Greater Cleveland Ohio Roundtable, to put in place a major employee outreach effort to solicit employee points of view and opinions to help us create a more responsive environment.

Leslie's work is all about empowering others to embrace their own leadership and build inclusive and mutually-beneficial relationships and environments. Leslie is a brilliant woman, a visionary and a prolific writer. She has the ability to simplify. This is especially helpful to those who aren't able to balance both the strategic and tactical. She is exceptionally successful with external relations. She tells the organization's story in a way that helps donors, media, potential collaborators/partners see the importance, value and relevance of the organization's mission to the future. Leslie helps them make it their priority. When Leslie worked with Girl Scouts of the USA as a staff member, she designed the first materials we ever had for helping Girl Scout council CEOs and boards identify the work they needed to do in creating pluralistic and inclusive organizations. These materials were so ahead of their time that they remain the gold standard. Having been a non-profit CEO in the Mid-Western, Mid-Southern and Mid-Eastern regions of the country, Leslie knows every aspect of running an organization- from raising funds to managing them, from hiring staff to talent management, from board recruitment to governance success. Leslie's leadership style is both inspirational and aspirational because she is tireless, unstoppable and kind. I add this last descriptor as it is my experience that a leader without kindness is not a leader. Leslie gets people excited and gets them on board. She is spectacular at helping people get to the finish line with the work- again whether it is raising funds, engaging others in partnerships and collaborations or developing, implementing and evaluating program plans.