United States | News & Politics

Stolen from Yahoo who borrowed it from Fortune:

After Trump announced sweeping changes to DEI in January, many executives and companies were left reeling.

Capuano says he met with his executive leadership team in Bethesda, Md., where they decided to take a week to research and process before meeting again. The CEO then flew to Los Angeles for the Americas Lodging Investment Summit. While there, he was inundated with questions about Marriott’s approach to DEI in the future.

Rather than stay silent, Capuano recalled many conversations with his mentor and former chairman Bill Marriott, and decided to speak.

“The winds blow, but there are some fundamental truths for those 98 years," Capuano said. “We welcome all to our hotels and we create opportunities for all—and fundamentally those will never change. The words might change, but that’s who we are as a company.”

Capuano says he went back to his hotel that night hoping he had said the right thing.

Capuano’s message was simple, but it didn’t go unnoticed by associates. He was overwhelmed by how his employees responded.

“Within 24 hours, I had 40,000 emails from Marriott associates around the world, saying ‘thank you,’” he said. Many expressed appreciation to work for a company whose values aligned with their own.

Marriott is among Fortune’s Best Companies to Work For that are sticking up for DEI policies right now. Others on the list include Delta and Cisco.