Graciela Meibar – Chief Diversity Officer, Mattel

Mattel’s first Chief Diversity Officer says inclusion can improve retention, grow your customer base and boost sales. Here’s how.

By Taylor Mallory

Black, white, Asian, Hispanic, man, woman. Check each box and you’ve got diversity, right? Not anymore. Smart companies realize that diversity isn’t that simple, and that it’s much more powerful when tied to business strategy, not just HR compliance.

“When it’s part of your strategy, not just lip service or a nice thing to do, it can improve retention and grow your consumer base,” says Graciela Meibar, the first diversity officer for the 65-year old, $5.9 billion company that brought us Barbie and Hot Wheels. In her six years in the role, she has developed the company’s diversity and inclusion strategy, continually assessing company culture and looking for ways to improve the business by tapping into groups the company hasn’t always understood how to cater to. “It’s not just about workforce representation. It’s also about figuring out which groups we need to address better, ways to further our business in all the countries in which we operate by having people with the right experiences and perspectives on our team.” For instance, the internal Employee Resource Group she established helped drive the development, naming and marketing of So In Style, the first Barbie line inspired by, and for African-American children. Meibar says that the doll line has been really well received by moms, dads and girls in the African American community. “The So In Style dolls really filled a hole in the marketplace and consumers response to the line has been very positive.”

And there’s never been a more important time to increase your market share – or to focus on retention, she tells PINK. “When I say diversity, I also mean inclusion. That’s important. Diversity is the mix of people; inclusion is how we make that mix work. Making sure everyone feels included – like they’re valued, is the biggest challenge we’re going to have coming out of this recession. The job market will grow. There will be more competition for employees.” So how is she doing that? Continually assessing the company’s culture around gender and people of color, communicating leadership’s commitment to diversity, establishing employee networking groups and establishing formal guidelines and procedures “so everyone is clear what we’re trying to do.”

Here, Meibar talks to PINK about mentoring, growing up in Cuba and the best movie she’s seen this year.

PINK: What have been the secrets to your professional success?

Graciela Meibar: My ability to be flexible, which allowed me to be open to very different opportunities where I had a lot to learn but had the opportunity to grow. I came to work for Mattel and worked in the international division. Then I worked for the company’s Latin American division. But I knew just because I hadn’t done anything in this area didn’t mean I wouldn’t be able to do it. Six years ago, I had the chance to take on this role to head Diversity and Inclusion. Yes, I’m diverse personally, but I’d never imagined having a career in that. I found my ultimate passion by being open to a new possibility.

PINK: What is the best business advice you’ve ever received?

G.M.: To be a mentor. For 15 years, I had a mentor at Mattel; a fantastic woman named Astrid. We’re still great friends, but she retired in 1998. A year later, I was meeting with a colleague and she asked if I ever saw Astrid. I said, “I have lunch with her and am in touch. But I miss her! I miss having that person I can go to when people are driving me crazy, and I just need some help.” My colleague said, “You don’t get it, do you?” She told me I needed to become that mentor. That was an “ah-ha” moment. I had relied on my mentor all this time, and now it was my turn to provide that support to others. I became a mentor for other women, and now I have quite a few – men and women, from inside and outside Mattel. They’re not all formal relationships, but my door is always open. The numbers keep growing, but I never say no. Sometimes it’s overwhelming, but it’s my responsibility. Maybe it’s a word of encouragement one day and a reality check another time. But they need me.

PINK: What’s your leadership style?

G.M.: I make decisions very easily, but only when I need to. I’m a delegator. I like to empower my people. But in a crisis, when a decision really needs to be made, I step up and do it. But I make a conscious effort to give others opportunity to grow. That’s how I learned. My former boss always challenged me to do more and more, but she was always there for me when I needed help. That’s how I tend to lead. It’s about engaging people and making sure they feel motivated, and that they have all the available information.

PINK: How do you motivate your team?

G.M.: By sharing the praise and making sure the team feels part of the success. And a lot of communication and openness. Sometimes an idea comes from an employee who you hadn’t thought of. Keeping an open environment allows them to innovate – and be engaged.

PINK: What do you do to relax and rejuvenate yourself?

G.M.: I love classical music. I have season tickets to the Los Angeles philharmonic, and I like nothing more than going there on Friday nights. And I love to read and watch movies. The best movie I’ve seen lately is Up in the Air. It’s a reality check for a lot of people. The lesson is that there are moments in your life that you think will always be important, but that’s not always the case. It’s about connecting with others on a human level. My favorite book of all time is To Kill a Mockingbird.

PINK: What’s one thing most people don’t know about you?

G.M.: Most people look at me and see a city girl, but I’m a country girl at heart. I grew up on a farm in Cuba. My family came to the U.S. in 1970. Imagine being a 12-year-old girl who’s lived her life on a farm with her mom, dad and two brothers moving to LA. We were kids so it was a big adjustment – learning the language and adapting to a whole new environment. I remember walking into a department store for the first time and just seeing the abundance of everything. I also realized that while there was abundance here, it cost money. Everything in the world was available to you, but you had to work hard for it. But I think the bigger challenge was for my parents. As a child I never appreciated that. As an adult, I realized how hard it was to adjust.

PINK: What is one personal goal you haven’t yet achieved?

G.M.: To be appointed an ambassador in Latin America. When Cuba is free, I’d like to be its ambassador. I haven’t done anything in politics yet, but I majored in international relations.

PINK: What is your workplace pet peeve?

G.M.: People who are self-centered and cruel. That’s where my tolerance and inclusive perspective sometimes fails. And people who don’t laugh enough about themselves. Many years ago, I heard a Miss Universe contestant say, “I take my job very seriously, but I don’t take myself seriously.” We all need to remember that.