Women Of Excellence: Gloria Johnson Goins
Chief Diversity Officer, The Home Depot
Terri Thornton
July 1, 2008
sponsored by:
A
lot of little girls dream of being ballerinas, models or businesswomen. Not Gloria
Johnson Goins.
"I thought growing up I was going to be a judge," she says. A federal judge, to be exact. Her older brother had his heart set on the law, so that's what she wanted, too. "I realized the law was a vehicle to help people improve their lives. That's my passion; that's what gets me up in the morning."
Goins started at a Miami law firm, and then entered the telecommunications field. A friend at Cingular Wireless (now AT&T) gave her the choice of two positions: Washington D.C. lobbyist or VP of diversity. "For some reason I didn't know what diversity was. It was very intriguing to me."
Goins took the diversity position, and loved it. But when The Home Depot offered her the opportunity to get the company more connected to the community, she couldn't refuse.
Paul Raines, Home Depot's executive VP of stores, says Goins does an incredible job. "She's our compass to keep us pointed in the right direction," Raines says. "It's a far better place to work thanks to her leadership." He also notes that she is extremely well known both internally and outside the company. "I'll be in the most far out-of-the-way markets and people will tell me, ‘Say hello to Gloria Johnson Goins for me.' "
The economy has posed many challenges for retailers, including Home Depot, in the past 10 years. "The world has changed and the things that made us successful won't necessarily make us successful in the future," Goins says. She believes some of that change is for the better, as the company reaches out to what it calls "emerging domestic markets" – women (who make 81 percent of home improvement decisions); people of color; people with disabilities; and the gay and lesbian community.
"
To attract the market you must be the market," Goins believes. "We want to be sure that as an international retailer, we are reflective and inclusive of the market."
Goins' mentors include Georgia Supreme Court Justice Robert Benham, a long-time friend and advisor who appointed her to the Supreme Court's Commission on Equality. Goins' father, a Bahamian immigrant with a sixth-grade education and a strong work ethic, also had a profound effect on her. He wouldn't accept grades from his children that were less than a B, and he held down a half dozen jobs at once to keep the family going.
"Every single night he would say, ‘Gloria, I want you to get your education so you don't have to work as hard as I do.' " She took his advice to heart; today she holds both a law degree and an MBA. As if that weren't enough to mark her as an overachiever, she has held positions on 14 nonprofit boards over the years. Atlanta, she says, is a great place to pursue your dreams. "It is a powerful place for women in business. Women here are open, passionate and collaborative."
The reason for this unique geographic style? "It's a combination of Southern charm and Northern aggression that makes us women who get stuff done, but can still love and support each other."
Return to the Women Of Excellence index page.
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