Toyota Named One of DiversityInc's Top 50 Companies for Diversity

[nhparrot]

Toyota Named One of DiversityInc's Top 50 Companies for Diversity

04/18/2006 New York, NY
April 18, 2006 - New York, NY - Toyota today was named one of DiversityInc's Top 50 Companies for Diversity, finishing 29th overall in the magazine's sixth annual survey.

Toyota's 2006 entry represented its first participation in the Top 50 Survey, described by DiversityInc as "the only valid, empirical and objective way to assess corporate-diversity success." A total of 256 companies participated in the 200-question survey. Submissions were evaluated in areas including Human Capital, CEO Commitment, Corporate Communications and Supplier Diversity.

Toyota's recognition in the Top 50 Survey comes just five years after launching its 21st Century Diversity Strategy, which set tangible diversity targets in areas including employment, procurement and dealer development. With the help of the industry's only external diversity advisory board, a seven-member board chaired by former Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman, Toyota has made strong progress, including more than doubling its annual spending with ethnic and diverse suppliers. In addition, people of color now represent 30 percent of Toyota's employment.

The DiversityInc Top 50 survey marks Toyota's latest recognition for its efforts in diversity and inclusion. Other recent honors include:
- Induction into the Billion Dollar Roundtable, in recognition of over $1 billion in annual spending with certified ethnic and women-owned suppliers
- "Corporation of the Year" award from the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NSMDC)
- "The Distinguished Supplier Diversity Award" from the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA)

Commenting on the DiversityInc survey, Pat Pineda, group vice president at Toyota Motor North America, said, "At Toyota we consider diversity and inclusion to be a top priority and we are honored to be recognized by DiversityInc. The Toyota team remains committed to ensuring that these principles are instilled in every aspect of our business, including employment, procurement, and dealer development."

"As a Top 50 company, Toyota demonstrated strong unbiased recruitment and retention as well as excellence in communications and supplier diversity," said Luke Visconti, partner and cofounder of DiversityInc. "It is a commitment to these management practices that have earned Toyota the recognition on the Top 50 list."

About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) established operations in North America in 1957 and currently operates 14 manufacturing plants including two under construction. There are more than 1,700 Toyota, Lexus and Scion dealerships in North America which sell more than 2.5 million vehicles a year. Toyota directly employs over 38,000 in North America and its investment here is currently valued at more than $16.8 billion, including sales and manufacturing operations, research and development, financial services and design. Toyota's annual purchasing of parts, materials, goods and services from North American suppliers totals more than $28 billion. According to a 2005 Center for Automotive Research study, Toyota, along with its dealers and suppliers, has generated nearly 400,000 U.S. jobs, including jobs created through spending by direct, dealer and suppliers employees.

Toyota produces 10 vehicles in North America, including the Avalon, Camry, Corolla, Matrix, Sienna, Solara, Sequoia, Tacoma, Tundra and the Lexus RX 330. By 2008, Toyota will have the annual capacity to build about 2 million cars and trucks, 1.44 million engines and 600,000 automatic transmissions in North America.

About DiversityInc Magazine
DiversityInc is published by Allegiant Media, a privately owned company with no outside investors. Launched in 2002 as an extension of DiversityInc.com, DiversityInc magazine is the nation's leading source of information for cutting-edge knowledge of the business case for diversity. DiversityInc magazine offers readers more in-depth articles and substantive analysis, building on the company's history as the premier expert on reporting and analyzing diversity issues and their impact on U.S. business and society.