Check Your Blind Spots National Tour Unites Louisville

Mayor Greg Fischer today announced the city will welcome the CEO Action Check Your Blind Spots unconscious bias tour Monday, April 22 – Friday, April 26, 2019. The national bus tour is made possible by CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion, the largest CEO-driven business commitment to improve diversity and inclusion within the workplace in the country.

Greater Louisville Inc., the Metro Chamber of Commerce and Lean Into Louisville, the Mayor’s initiative to confront the history and legacy of all forms of discrimination and inequality, partnered to bring the tour to Louisville.

“At a time when our country is experiencing a division, it’s important that we always be the change we want to see to bring a more diverse and inclusive community together,” said the Mayor. “We’re excited that CEO Action is partnering with Lean Into Louisville and many of our major employers and local universities to help us learn about our unconscious biases and show support for collaboration over competition.”

The tour is intended to help people recognize, acknowledge, and therefore minimize, any potential blind spots he or she might have but wasn’t aware of previously.

“While CEO Action’s Check Your Blind Spots tour addresses the importance of unconscious bias, it is also an opportunity to rediscover the common humanity that we all share. From helping CEOs drive change in the workplace to supporting communities across the country like Louisville to courageously face our society’s very real, difficult issues and find those connections through meaningful conversation is an honor,” said Shannon Schuyler, Principal, Chief Purpose Officer & Responsible Business Leader at PwC.

Through innovative tour activities that use virtual reality, gaming technology and more, attendees will have an introspective look at unconscious biases people face on a daily basis to better understand different perspectives and experiences.

Highly interactive tour activities include:

• Look Through a Different Lens: Via gamification and a digital viewfinder, participants watch an interaction between co-workers setting up a work-related event and then, identify moments when unconscious biases are demonstrated.
• Face Yourself, Face Reality: In front of a mirror, participants watch as their reflection fades away to reveal a different person staring back at them. Through this touchscreen experience, each new reflection shares a series of biases they’ve experienced.
• I Act On pledge: Attendees (and you) can join thousands nationwide in committing to checking our blind spots and changing our behaviors through the I Act On pledge.

Equally important, the tour is a jumpstart to create a meaningful conversation about how to be more inclusive in local workplaces and beyond and allows students, local businesses and community to join thousands nationwide in committing to action through the I Act On pledge.

In Louisville, five CEOs (Humana, Bruce Broussard; Kindred Healthcare, Ben Breier; Papa John’s, Steve Richie; University of Louisville, Dr. Neeli Bendapudi; Yum! Brands, Greg Creed) have already signed the CEO Pledge committing their organizations to cultivate a trusting environment where all ideas are welcomed and employees feel comfortable and empowered to discuss diversity and inclusion.

Additionally, CEOs from global companies that have a Louisville presence have signed the CEO Pledge, including Ford, EY, Genentech, JPMorgan Chase and UPS.

Mayor Fischer and Bellarmine University President Dr. Susan Donovan will sign the Pledge when Bellarmine University hosts the bus on Wednesday, April 24.

Louisville is the first city in the country to host the bus for a full work week.

Tour highlights:

• Monday, April 22, 2019: Humana will host the bus for its employees at its corporate campus in downtown Louisville. (Employees only)
• Tuesday, April 23, 2019: The University of Louisville will host the bus for a full day of interaction with its students and general public. (Open to the public, 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m., Gottschalk Hall, 2301 S Third St.)
  • Greater Louisville Inc. (GLI) kicks off its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Series with Shannon Schuyler, PwC’s Chief Purpose Officer and Responsible Business Leader, and Presidents of the PwC Charitable Foundation, Inc. The series, presented by Papa John’s in partnership with the University of Louisville, will give the regional business community the platform to evaluate, expand and strengthen their companies’ policies, procedures and knowledge around diversity, equity and inclusion. The event will take place at UofL’s Swain Activities Center 7:30-9:30 a.m. Registration is $15 and can be purchased at registration@greaterlouisville.com
• Wednesday, April 24, 2019: Mayor Fischer will join the local business community, faith leaders and students to tour the bus at Bellarmine University and participate in a Conversation Café hosted by The Big Table. (Open to the public, 11:30 a.m.-6 p.m., 2001 Newburg Road)
• Thursday, April 25, 2019: Yum! Brands will host the bus at its corporate campus for its employees. (Employees only)
• Friday, April 26, 2019: Papa John’s will host the bus at its corporate headquarters for its employees. (Employees only)