By Brian Grim
On Thursday evening, I had the honor of delivering the keynote at the 25th annual Diwali celebration at American Airlines HQ in Dallas. I focused on the value of religious freedom to economies and the competitive edge that American Airlines has as a top faith-friendly workplace.
I also participated on the panel “Global Harmony at Work: Fostering Cultural Exchanges in Corporate Setting” featuring American Airlines VP Om Maniyar, McKesson’s Winston Lam and Equinix’s Mahendra Jha, moderated by Charles Sucur, Director of Corporate Security Technology at American Airlines.
The event — attended by hundreds — was organized by the airline’s Indian Employee Business Resource Group (EBRG), which was also celebrating it’s 25th anniversary.
According to Soniya Hiremath, president of the DFW I-EBRG, the colorful event “showed how Diwali, the festival of lights, illuminates our workplaces with joy, camaraderie, and cultural significance. Celebrating Diwali at work fosters inclusivity, strengthens bonds, and enriches the understanding of diverse traditions.”
The event centered on educating American Airlines team members on the importance of EBRGs, being allies of other EBRGs, while bringing the cultural contributions of Indian team members and the I-EBRG to the workplace.
Senior American Airline leaders participating included VPs Kimberly Cisek, Om Maniyar, Chief Technology Officer Anchal Gupta, Chief Diversity Officer Cedric Rockamore, Senior Diversity Director Millicent Washington Rone ( MBA, ITIL) and many more!