Edward B. Stead
General Counsel
Blockbuster, Inc.’s mission is to help people transform ordinary nights into “blockbuster” evenings by being the complete source for movies and games. Along the way, the company has achieved blockbuster growth and diversity results. Founded 20 years ago, Blockbuster has grown from a single video store to more than 9,100 stores throughout the United States and its territories, with over 2,600 stores in 24 additional countries.
(L to R): Veta Richardson, MCCA; Edward B. Stead, Blockbuster, Inc.; and William L. Hawthorne III, Federated Department Stores
Edward B. Stead, the company’s executive vice president and general counsel, leads a diverse department. Overall, 66 percent of the department’s lawyers are women and 19 percent are minorities. Of those reporting directly to Stead, 75 percent are women and 25 percent are minorities. “Blockbuster is committed to diversity, both company-wide and in our law department. There are many ways to define diversity, but at Blockbuster it simply means valuing differences. As such, it is not a project with a start and an end. It’s a corporate value that must be continually developed, embraced, and incorporated into the way all of our employees do business,” says Stead.
Blockbuster strives to align its business practices with the diversity of its customer base. Diversity is a guiding force in selecting real estate and new store sites, developing products, establishing vendor relationships, recruiting and retaining employees, reaching into local communities, communicating with key stakeholders, and conducting business internationally. Not only do more than 600 of its stores focus on minority customer bases, Blockbuster has also incorporated diversity into its online services, with an extensive web-based catalog of foreign films.
Internally, the company’s Diversity Executive Council meets regularly to review progress as it relates to inclusiveness throughout the organization. The company’s many diversity accomplishments include increased representation of minorities and women at senior levels, offering training and recruitment programs in conjunction with the National Urban League, and increasing business with women- and minority-owned businesses.
Blockbuster attorneys are encouraged to attend and speak at events geared toward women and minorities, such as the Texas Minority Counsel Program.
Blockbuster has been a premier sponsor of major minority film festivals, including the American Black Film Festival (formerly the Acapulco Black Film Festival) and the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival. It has also received recognition for its employment and advancement practices. In 2003, The Black Collegian named Blockbuster to its list of “Top Diversity Employers,” and in 2002, Hispanic Magazine recognized Blockbuster as one of the top 100 companies providing the most opportunities to Hispanics. Additionally, the company forged relationships with many national groups, including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), and the National Urban League. Blockbuster is also a Texas-certified mother-friendly workplace.
From the November/December 2005 issue of Diversity & The Bar®