Diversity and equal opportunities

Integrating diverse talent is instrumental to encouraging innovation and obtaining better results since diversity itself better represents our customers.

Our 6-year-old Equality and Inclusion Initiative is driven by the Equality and Inclusion Advisory Board. Consequentially, 1,015 executive positions are now held by women. This program uses specific metrics to follow up on its efficiency in each and every vice presidency of the Company, placing special emphasis on:

• Policies and procedures for talent attraction, development, and training.
• Cultural transformation aimed at reinforcing awareness and knowledge.
• Training and development, highlighting our Special Certificate Program for Female Executives, offered by the Panamericana University, where our fifth generation graduated in 2014, and the Taking the Stage course, given by women in executive positions.

The Company uses a pay band system that rewards the individual performance of each associate who are evaluated each year based on successful behaviors and results.

In positions having equal responsibilities, there are no distinctions in pay due to gender, age, religion, sexual preference, or political ideology.

The Gender Equality Model of the Company has been assessed since 2009 by the National Institute of Women in Mexico, granting us recertification for 2014.

Noteworthy is the Women in Retail program in Mexico, seeking to develop self-management, leadership, and commitment skills and an outstanding attitude in women who participate for a period of 3 years; this program is part of their development plan. Participants obtain comprehensive development, through experience, exposure, education and mentoring. Women in Retail has proven to be a key piece in the acceleration of talent development by using tools such as meetings, conferences, lectures and dialogues with leaders, among others.

In Central America the Women Leaders Group is a program aimed at empowering women in leadership positions and supporting home offices; 196 associates graduated from such program. With the participation obtained this year, we achieved approximately 90% coverage of leadership positions at stores. This program will be strengthened next year so that these same women may continue their career path, starting with mentoring circles.