New York, October 12, 2021 – Patsy Doerr, the CEO of The Association of Junior Leagues International, delivered the keynote speech at the 8th Annual Executive Women’s Day presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina at the SAS Championship, sharing her three-pronged approach to creating a more inclusive future.

Ms. Doerr explained that the foundation of the three prongs is grounded in diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging. Organizations start creating these more inclusive environments by welcoming change. Then, there must be a focus on investing in women and other historically underrepresented groups. And third, cultivating and retaining wellbeing across the entire employee lifecycle.

Ms. Doerr was also featured on the related podcast, which provided a deeper dive into the content and conversation from the live event. In her interview with host Jackie Ferguson from The Diversity Movement, she spoke about how many organizations overspend time on “diversity” and miss the concept of “belonging”. She said, “Diversity is a fact. Inclusion is the action. Belonging is the outcome. Belonging is when you feel like you can bring your full self to work, and you are valued and heard.”

They went on to discuss the importance of investing in women. “We have to continue to invest and not lose the focus on gender,” said Ms. Doerr. “If we stay at the pace we are on now, we won’t make the progress we need to for another 100 years.”