Inclusion, Diversity & Equity

A Culture of Possibilities

We are the makers of possible. And we welcome diverse people with the imagination and drive to help us reinvent the future of health.

Our associates embody our Purpose and values, foster our culture of inclusion and innovation, and contribute diverse ideas and perspectives to our organization. Across the globe, our associates are driven by a passion and commitment to improve the health and well-being of our global society by reinventing the future of healthcare through transformative solutions.

Attracting and Securing the Right Talent for BD

Embracing continuous improvement and altering our approach to hiring requires a growth mindset — and growth mindset, by definition, means learning and growing every day. That’s the core of #HireDifferently.

Everyone at BD plays a role in attracting talent by building our brand, from associate engagement and interactions to the stories shared with family and friends. After all, recruiting, hiring and supporting talent is all about making and maintaining connections.

We understand the advantages that diversity of experience and perspective can bring to help us advance the world of health. Our #HireDifferently initiative enables us to bring diverse perspectives to the table to fuel the innovation that’s needed to solve complex health challenges. Differences in leadership style and work experience are what make us a stronger team.

#HireDifferently also encourages the use of panel interviews comprised of diverse BD associates – including diversity of thought, experiences and skills. Panel interviews provide a more robust opportunity to discern candidates’ strengths and potential through a broader lens of perspectives.

This approach also allows us to identify where a candidate can make their strongest contributions within BD. Additionally, it supports the career development and aspirations of our existing BD associates to make, find and explore opportunities for internal growth.

The First of Many Talent Successes in Columbus, NE

The BD WAY guides the decisions our associates make and governs how we lead ourselves at work every day. Being bold, strategic and exercising the courage to try unconventional approaches to solve complex problems is how we win as one BD.

In that spirit and operating with a growth mindset, a cross-collaborative team, spanning multiple disciplines at our Columbus, Nebraska facilities, partnered to develop the English as a Second Language (ESL) Program – providing career opportunities for non-English, Spanish-speaking people from the local communities and creating a robust talent pipeline to successfully fill open roles.

“The ‘war for talent’ is real, particularly in Columbus where the unemployment rate is extremely low,” shared Shawna Hilbert, Associate Director - HR. “A significant part of the area’s population are transplants from Spanish-speaking countries. Once we identified positions where English was not a requirement for success, we knew we had the opportunity to create value for our sites, BD, and most importantly, our new associates.”

As part of the program, candidates interviewed in their native language and human resources, quality and safety procedures, and training materials were translated into Spanish. This created a foundation of understanding and sense of inclusion and belonging on day one. Additionally, onsite English classes were offered to Spanish-speaking associates and facility leaders participated in Spanish classes – all to remove barriers, facilitate effective communication and enable a more efficient onboarding experience.

“At BD, we welcome and empower people with different backgrounds and various abilities to contribute fully and be equitably rewarded for their contributions,” said Edmundo Ramirez Lara, OPEX Leader. “Through our ESL program, we’ve successfully onboarded approximately 150 new associates with low turnover. I’m excited to continue our inclusion and diversity journey - advancing our associates while advancing the world of health™.”

Leadership in Gender Diversity and Career Equity earn BD Silver Professional Mission Award from Society of Women Engineers

The value we place on ensuring that our organization reflects the people and patient communities we serve, allows us to see the potential in the brightest minds and open doors of opportunity for female leaders across all spectrums of their career – the women who will help us reinvent the future of healthcare and further extend our MedTech leadership.

To that end, the BD Women’s Initiative Network (WIN) Associate Resource Group (ARG) and its subgroup, WIN+STEM focuses on empowering, elevating and promoting equality for females in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) – traditionally male-dominated disciplines. This work is supported by partnering with the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), a non-profit organization committed to honoring and promoting the contributions of women at all stages of their careers.

For our ongoing commitment and efforts, BD’s WIN+STEM received its fourth consecutive SWE Professional Mission award for demonstrated leadership and dedication to continuous improvement and growth, professional excellence, advocacy, and diversity and inclusion.

Key efforts that helped secure this prestigious award were focused in the areas of globalization and outreach:

Globalization

Expanding the reach, impact and opportunities for women engineers and technologists across the globe, is critically important to creating inclusive workplaces. This year, WIN+STEM leaders and more than 50 global chapters provided SWE memberships to hundreds of BD associates around the world and became a SWE Global Champion and co-founding member of the European Corporate Council.

Outreach

WIN+STEM global chapters hosted more than 15 outreach events. Some highlights include:

A virtual “Take Your Child to Work Day” providing children of BD associates with work kits, including an age-appropriate career book and activity, allowing children to obtain real-world insights into their parents’ careers and the work they do every day.
Volunteering with Girls Who Code for 6 - 8th grade students, aiding the girls in developing adventure games using a block-based visual programming language called Scratch.

At BD, we’re driven by our values and committed to building a culture where female talent is accepted, appreciated and fully enabled to advance their careers and thrive.

BD Helps Hometown Health Clinic Expand Comprehensive Women’s Health Program

Community health is one of the four pillars in our environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy, Together We Advance.

Through this work, we collaborate with communities and NGOs throughout the world to invest our resources to do what’s right – especially when it comes to serving the most vulnerable. While many of these social investments focus on programs that are national or international in scope, we also focus philanthropic dollars on local programs that seek to strengthen communities where our associates live and work.

A great example is our long-term partnership with the BVMI Healthcare Center in Bergen County, N.J., where our U.S. headquarters is located. At BVMI, a team of more than 75 volunteer healthcare professionals provides quality care to a diverse population of more than 1,200 patients – many of whom may not otherwise have healthcare access. BD has donated more than $715,000 to BVMI over the past 11 years.

“Long-term partners can be hard to come by in the nonprofit world. When a major donor stands by you and really listens to your needs, it’s special. For the last 11 years, BD’s support to BVMI has spanned our operations, fundraising events, Women’s Health Initiative, and Diabetes Prevention, Care and Education Program,” said Amanda Missey, BVMI’s President and CEO. “They even donate medical supplies to us. Not a day goes by that we don’t think of BD’s generosity as we serve our patients.”

Community Health Centers like BVMI are a perfect match to our philanthropic giving strategy, which focuses on advancing health equity and supporting our communities.

Coming Out and Speaking Up Shape Gender Transition Guidelines

Ash Miranda is living his authentic truth now, but he says he spent the majority of his life not feeling real, feeling like a statue when he saw his reflection. An instructor in the Customer Education Department, Ash shared his story about coming out as transgender at BD. He says he received support from his manager, who showed empathy and compassion, and shared resources that BD offers. That is when he joined the OPEN ARG and started working with BD team members to review and update the company’s Gender Transition Guidelines.

“There should be flexibility in the language of our guidelines and policies, accounting for new forms of expression, identity and simply living authentically,” Ash said.

Ash says the goal of updating the guidelines was to ensure future associates feel supported through their journeys, know that they belong and are welcome to fully express their true selves at work.

In updating the guidelines, Ash credits the open mindedness and sincerity of senior leadership and other associates for their willingness to listen, learn and understand different experiences and ideas, as well as work toward better working conditions. He says the company’s culture is constantly changing with the times and always takes into consideration other perspectives, and that gives him a huge amount of hope and happiness.

“I choose to stay here because we have this strong community, and we’re able to be seen and heard and understood as best as possible,” Ash closed.

When Advancing the World of Health^™ Inspires a Career Choice

Mya Daily-Haddix’s career inspiration was forged from a diagnosis her 18-month-old niece received – Hypoplastic Left Heart. Sitting bedside night after night observing home health nurses tend to her niece’s care lit a spark and passion in Mya. One that she carried out by first attending nursing school, and then attending paramedic school.

“I’ve been a nurse for 23 years. It’s a little unusual for people to start in nursing and then become a paramedic, but it had a purpose in my life. Being a labor and delivery nurse and then working critical care for years taught me a lot and I enjoyed providing care. The skills I gained in both roles are completely transferrable to the work I do at BD,” explained Mya. She has been with the company for eight years.

Empowered by growth mindset and speak up culture

As a Senior Clinical Manager within BD’s Medication Delivery Solutions (MDS) business, Mya oversees a team of 15 clinicians who serve as nurse educators – teaching hospital and care setting nurses about different BD products and solutions. During the past year, due to the company’s focus on empowering a growth mindset and innovative thinking, she was able to speak up and share an idea she had with senior leaders. Something that would open the aperture to new talent pools for clinical training resources.

“We typically hire those with only nursing backgrounds. But we were challenged with training on a newly-acquired product that required a significant number of resources. That’s when I thought outside of what we have always done and considered that phlebotomists and paramedics have deep knowledge of IVs and the lab draw process too, which makes them great candidates for this area of clinical training,” explained Mya.

BD offers an inclusive culture and myriad opportunities

When it comes to her tenure with BD, she easily calls out why she remains inspired to work here: the respect and support she receives – both professionally and personally.

“I am valued at BD. I’ve worked at several large care environments in the past, but I know BD values my skills, experience, and perspective. I also have a wife to whom I’ve been married for 16 years. BD is an extremely inclusive environment, which I appreciate,” said Mya. “The company not only supports my lifestyle, but also really values the perspective that nurses can bring to the business.”