May 2014


www.hamptonroadsmessenger.com


Cox Communications Ranked 18 on 2014 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity


Cox Communications


was recognized as one of the DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity for the ninth time at


a


reception last night. For the last eight years, Cox has ranked in the top 25, with a ranking of No. 18 this year, up from No. 22 in 2013.


The are determined


rankings by


an


objective methodology that calculates factors such as Talent Pipeline, Equitable Talent Development (including


to mentorship and philanthropy), Leadership


and Supplier Diversity. The empirical data for the rankings is provided by a 300-question survey filled out by personnel at participating


the companies.


Survey participation is free to any company with at least 1,000 U.S. workers.


"Diversity and


inclusion has been at the core of Cox Communications' mission and values for more than 50 years, " said Pat Communications


president,


Esser, Cox who


also leads the company's Corporate Diversity and Inclusion Council. "I'm proud of the work we continue to do to foster diversity with our people, customers, suppliers and in the community."


Cox's inclusion on these


prestigious lists can be attributed to the comprehensive approach it takes to diversity, which includes ensuring the


Success FROM PAGE 1


Cohen gained extensive expertise in the government


arena through his certification in SBA’s 8(a) business development program. Recognized


as leading


expert in document conversion and management, he expanded his private sector client base with federal agencies, including Homeland Security, the State


Department, from Department the 8(a) in 2012, he again repositioned of


Defense, Social Security and NASA, among many others. As he approached graduation


program the


company by relocating its office to Fredericksburg’s newly designated city-wide SBA HUBZone, becoming its first HUBZone certified firm.


Despite the company’s


contracting success, Cohen faced more obstacles after expanding too fast into a new document shredding venture. A high overhead led to heavy debt which ultimately impacted the core document scanning business due to decreased investment in sales and marketing. After several years of declining sales, Cohen sold the document shredding business and restructured two major contracts to strengthen cash flow and once again turned around the company.


contracting


company is not only inclusive in hiring and retaining employees, but also in its supplier relationships, community outreach and the products and services it offers.


dedicated


"Few companies have the diversity-and-inclusion


leadership of Cox Communications President Pat Esser," said Luke Visconti, CEO of DiversityInc. "This year, rising four spots, Cox enhanced its diversity recruiting strategy."


The Hampton Roads Messenger 3


DI Board Endorses Restructuring, Seeks Feedback From Schools


New Structure Could Be Approved As Early As August


The Division I Board of Directors is one step closer to approving a new governance system in August.


The board endorsed the


restructuring process, which is aimed at allowing the division to be more nimble,


streamlined and responsive


to needs – particularly the needs of student-athletes – during its meeting Thursday in Indianapolis. The Steering Committee on Governance, made up of university presidents, drafted the restructuring plan.


“The model we sent to the


commitments CEO/


Commitment,


membership today is not a final product,” said Wake Forest President Nathan Hatch, chair of the board and the steering committee. “Some aspects of the model remain under discussion, and we hope the membership will provide us further input.”


would still be led by a Board of Directors composed primarily


Under the proposal, the division of


university presidents. However, new voices would be added: the chair of the Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee; the chair of a new group tentatively


called the Council; a


Senior Woman Administrator; and the most senior Division I member of the Faculty Athletics Representatives Association’s executive The council


chair would always


be an athletics director, giving that constituency an automatic spot on the board.


The Board would focus chiefly on oversight and strategic issues, while leaving much of the day-to-day policy and legislative responsibility to the council.


The council, composed of at least


60 percent athletics directors, would have 38 members: one from each conference plus two voting student- athletes and four commissioners (one from the five highest profile Football Bowl Subdivision


conferences, one


Since 2005, ILM’s sales have increased more than threefold, reaching $2.6 million with 29 employees in 2011.


ILM launched the economic


revitalization of a key business district in downtown Fredericksburg when it relocated to the city’s new HUBZone last year. Utilizing a SBA 504 loan in collaboration with local real estate and Technology Zone tax credits and a façade improvement grant, Cohen redeveloped a dormant service station into a modern office space.


Cohen has been active


numerous throughout


in


business organizations his career, including


Rotary, the Fredericksburg Technology Council, The Association of Work Process Improvement, Entrepreneurs Organization, the Association of


Imaging Management, and Information the Fredericksburg


Triathlon Club and his church. The company has actively supported the Fredericksburg Academy and the Community Foundation.


Been there, done that, bought


the T-shirt. Jason Cohen and ILM Corporation have faced adversity head on and learned many entrepreneur- ial lessons along the way. Today ILM Corporation is positioned for sustained growth with a seasoned leader who is better prepared to face every challenge ahead.


from the remaining FBS conferences, one from the Football Championship Subdivision conferences


from the remaining conferences). The council would be the final voice on


shared-governance decisions. The steering committee suggests


creating three bodies that would assist the council in its work and comprise the


“working level” determine of I: an academics-focused


Division group, a


championships-focused group and a legislative would


group. Council members implementation


details, including what other groups are needed, how the groups will be populated and reporting lines. The steering committee also emphasized the need for a nomination process that is competency-based and diverse.


In order to allow the five highest-resource


conferences (the rule-making and one committee.


Atlantic Coast Conference, Big 12 Conference, Big


Ten Conference,


Pac-12 Conference and Southeastern Conference) to address their unique challenges, the model would grant them autonomy to make rules on specific matters affecting the interests of student-athletes.


The university presidents who serve on the steering


that committee


continue to seek more clarity and specificity about these proposed areas of autonomy. While retaining the concepts


in the “actionable”


were included category, the


board decided that the process it had identified as “actionable” - requiring the conferences other than the highest- profile five to take a separate vote – would not be included in the proposal.


The steering committee is


seeking more feedback on the how the remaining 27 conferences would want to apply decisions made by the 65 schools in the five highest-profile conferences.


Areas in which the membership


generally agrees on autonomy for the five conferences include:


•


financial aid, including full cost of attendance guarantees;


and scholarship


• insurance, including policies that protect future earnings;


• academic support, particularly for at-risk student-athletes; and


• other support, such as travel for families, free tickets to athletics events, and expenses associated with


practice and competition


(such as parking). The steering committee continues


to discuss other areas that could be included in the areas of autonomy, including the creation of mandatory time away from athletics for student- athletes; eliminating rules that prohibit student-athletes


careers outside of athletics while still competing


(for example,


from pursuing making


music and art or writing a book); recruiting; transfer issues; and athletics department personnel.


The board will seek feedback on some questions raised by members of governance bodies in recent days, including: the process by which items decided by the full division could become part of the list of autonomous areas; the voting, interpretation and enforcement


processes within the


five highest-profile conferences; and the core structure that separates not only the five highest-profile conferences into their own group but also continues a separation of the next five conferences (the American Athletic


USA, Mid-American


Conference, Conference- Conference,


Mountain West Conference and Sun Belt Conference) from the remaining 22.


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