"Experience tells us that the most diverse companies -- companies ruled by a hierarchy of imagination and filled with women and men of all ages, races and backgrounds -- are the most successful over time," Laing says. "Xerox fosters an inclusive environment where diversity is not just celebrated and valued, but seen as a business imperative."
Laing has dramatically changed the demographic makeup of Xerox's supplies delivery unit since he became senior vice president in 1999. He has almost doubled the number of women employed as managers, principal scientists and engineers. Today, nearly 25 percent of the unit's managers are women. To feed the pipeline, Laing prepares women in lower-level positions for management roles and supports women who choose to work part-time, providing them with challenging assignments that keep their careers on track.
The supplies delivery unit -- the global specialties chemical business within Xerox -- is responsible for managing the company's entire supply chain, from raw materials to finished goods. Laing's team designs, develops and manufactures materials and components used to make xerographic images, including black and color toner, photoreceptors, fuser rolls and print cartridges. Laing supervises some 2,000 people in eight countries around the world.
Laing received a B.S. in math and chemistry from the University of Toronto, a Ph.D. in chemical physics from the University of Chicago, and an M.B.A. from the University of Rochester. He holds 13 U.S. patents and has authored 19 scientific publications. In 1988, he won the Xerox President's Achievement Award.
The Regional Award for Contributions to Diversity, given to commemorate the ACS Women Chemists Committee's 75th anniversary celebration, recognizes individuals who have stimulated or fostered diversity in the chemical workplace.