I, Hubert Allen, personally commit to the following:
Personal Commitment
- I will use my voice and platform as a leader at Abbott to advocate for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in the legal profession, in my organization, and in my community.
- I will serve as an Executive Sponsor of the Legal and Office of Ethics & Compliance (OEC) Diversity Equity & Inclusion Program, engage with DEI program leadership quarterly to review and assess short- and long-term program strategy and evaluate progress.
- I will work to improve transparency across my organization to career-enhancing opportunities, such as participation in leadership or development programs, high impact special projects and leadership openings.
- I will advocate to advance diversity within the law firms with whom we work. I will lead the development of firm-specific DEI goals for strategic law firm partners and will measure and drive progress against the goals. I will also regularly review law firm staffing on our matters with the aim of ensuring that high visibility assignments are equitably distributed.
- I will hold myself, my team, and the Division accountable for meaningful investment in DEI and will measure success.
- I will support Abbott’s participation in the LCLD Fellows and Pathfinder Programs and will actively engage with current participants and alumni annually to learn about their experience and support their career growth and development. I will support Abbott’s participation in similar programs.
Organizational Commitment
- We will foster a diverse and inclusive workplace in which all employees feel like they belong, have growth opportunities, and are valued. Organizationally, DEI will be a core corporate responsibility.
- We will ensure equal growth opportunity across Legal & Compliance by evaluating existing processes and systems – particularly those that affect an individual’s career and/or the quality of work they receive – to understand how they may introduce biases or inequities and advocate for appropriate improvements to mitigate biases and the potential for inequitable treatment.
- We will ensure diversity is a key factor in recruiting, hiring, and developing talent across the Division as well as in the succession planning process for leadership positions.
- We will continue to engage in programs seeking to encourage and support students and attorneys from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in the legal profession.
- We will continue to collaborate with our law firms to ensure that attorneys of diverse backgrounds and experiences are working on our matters. In particular, we will (1) set firm-specific DEI goals and monitor progress against the goals through quarterly meetings with firm leadership, and (2) provide diverse attorneys with substantive responsibilities and opportunities for leadership roles and meaningful client exposure on Abbott cases and matters.
- We will sponsor and support external affinity groups and organizations that promote DEI and assist underrepresented groups advance within the Legal & Compliance Industries.