Human Capital Gets Greater Attention at Davos 

Over the past five years, one of the major shifts in the conversation in Davos has been the greater emphasis on human capital – talent – and its critical importance not just to the success of organizations but to the broader economy. There is a mismatch between the high unemployment afflicting so much of the developed and developing world and business’ increasing demand for talent.
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By John Veihmeyer, Chairman and CEO, KPMG Americas, USA

Davos provides an opportunity for companies to see where they can have an impact, and what their responsibility is from a social standpoint to be part of the solution. From my perspective there are a lot of companies doing very positive things – all of us need to look for opportunities to drive greater collaboration – where the sum of the parts is greater than any of us could do individually.


In any conversation about talent, one of the critical dimensions is diversity. In media interviews and other discussions I’m having, I emphasize that diversity is a strategic imperative for KPMG and for most companies. We all recognize that while we’ve made good progress on diversity – it’s still not enough and it’s not fast enough.


For KPMG diversity is integral to our strategic priorities – it’s not a separate initiative off to the side. For us to achieve the kind of growth we want, to be kind of employer of choice we want to be, and to have the professionalism and focus on quality that we must have as an organization – diversity must remain a central focus across the board.

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