Challenger’s Commitment

At Challenger, Gray & Christmas, we are committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. We strive to build a company that is truly diverse, not only to introduce different ideas and unique perspectives, but also because it inspires innovation. It reflects the diversity of our clients and customers at a time when they need the empathy and connection that a plethora of backgrounds and experiences offer.

Challenger is an ally for racial, age, gender, LGBTQ+, religious, and neuro differences that shape and color our world. Challenger works to create a sense of belonging in all our team members and anyone who partners with us.

Racial Justice

“People fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don’t know each other; they don’t know each other because they have not communicated with each other.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Cornell College, 1962.

Excerpts of a letter to staff from our CEO John Challenger on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, 2021

“I hope that inside our own community, and amongst our colleagues and friends, we will strive to work together in ways that unify us. Inside these walls, let’s make our company culture one where we respect and embrace our differences, where we empathize with each other’s individual circumstances, and where we build each other up by working together to resolve our conflicts.

Since 2005, Martin Luther King Jr. Day has been a holiday here at Challenger, Gray & Christmas. We decided to make this day a company holiday after I read a Martin Luther King biography. It struck me then that Martin Luther King dedicated his life to defending the fundamental principle that makes our country unique in human history. We believe that all people have a right to the same freedoms. We all want to live in a country where we will be accepted by others as individuals and not by some false category.

Despite the pandemic and the division, real potential exists now for our society to become one in which our children ‘will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.’ ‘Color of skin’ or race is a dimension of diversity just as ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age and religion are dimensions of diversity. Let’s make this the first principle of how we treat each other here at Challenger, Gray & Christmas.”

Following the death of George Floyd and the racial justice protests that occurred during the summer of 2020, Challenger initiated ongoing webinars led by Sharon E. Jones, a Harvard-trained attorney, co-founder of the Black Women Lawyers Association of Chicago among other accolades, and expert in the field of diversity and inclusion, to augment our diversity policy already in place.

Challenger is a proud member of the National Association of African Americans in Human Resources (NAAAHR).

We have a growing partnership with Diversity Woman and its founder Dr. Sheila Robinson.

Challenger is providing coaching support and solutions.

Related: Our Andrea Grant to Coach at 2021 Diversity Women’s Leadership Conference

Challenger research on racial justice and the workplace.

Ability Diversity

In 2021, the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) hosted a number of events for its 100^th anniversary. Challenger partnered with the organization by being a sponsor for the organization’s “Centennial Conversations.” The AFB has spent the last century building a more inclusive world.

In 2015, Challenger was a proud sponsor of the Special Olympic World Games held that year in Los Angeles. Our CEO John Challenger attended the opening ceremony.

Read more about Challenger’s involvement in the 2015 Special Olympics.