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Sustainability advocate and MGM board member McKinney-James contributes to energy leadership book
Howard Stutz, CDC Gaming Reports · June 23, 2019 at 7:00 pm. Click here to read the full article.
Joyce Hayes Giles, one of the five authors of The Energy Within Us and publisher Elizabeth Ann Atkins sat down with FOX59 to discuss trailblazing women during the book’s release at the 42nd Annual American Association of Blacks in Energy in Indianapolis, IN, on May 1, 2019. Click here to watch the discussion.
For Immediate Release
April 2019
NEW BOOK: FIVE FEMALE EXECUTIVES SHATTER THE BLACK AND GLASS CEILINGS
Each Woman Shares Her Story About Diversifying Leadership in the Energy Industry
DETROIT — When climbing the corporate ladder, African American women face two obstacles: the glass ceiling and the black ceiling. These barriers can be especially daunting in industries that have few women and people of color in executive leadership positions.
The energy industry — which includes companies that provide electricity and natural gas to homes and buildings — has traditionally lacked diversity in its corporate suites.
Now five female executives are sharing how they ascended to executive positions at a time when the industry’s leadership was all white and all male.
The Energy Within Us: An Illuminating Perspective From Five Trailblazers by Joyce Hayes Giles, Carolyn Green, Telisa Toliver, Rose McKinney-James, and Hilda Pinnix-Ragland will be released on May 1, 2019 by Atkins & Greenspan Publishing. Hardcover, paperback and ebook versions will be available at online stores.
The authors will debut their book at the American Association of Blacks in Energy (AABE) national conference in Indianapolis, Indiana. Book sales will fund scholarships for black female students pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM).
“Our stories demonstrate that we shattered both the black and the glass ceilings,” says Joyce Hayes Giles, an energy industry executive with more than 35 years of experience who retired as Assistant to the Chairman and Senior Vice President of Public Affairs for DTE Energy in Detroit. “Now our mission is to show other women that it is possible and how we did it. We also want to encourage corporate America to continue hiring and promoting women and people of color into executive leadership positions.”
Each woman wrote her own story, chronicling how as children they had no role models of black female executives, but rose through education, integrity, and hard work to blaze new trails in the energy industry.
"The Energy Within Us is not just a book that chronicles the professional experiences of five very talented black professional women,” says Ronald C. Parker, Former President/CEO of The Executive Leadership Council and Senior Vice President of Human Resources at PepsiCo, “but a narrative of courageous leadership that forever disrupted the old boys’ culture in the energy sector. Truly, a must read."
The co-authors met through involvement with AABE.
Joyce Hayes Giles is an energy industry executive with more than 35 years of experience transforming organizations’ customer and philanthropic performance. She retired as Assistant to the Chairman and Senior Vice President of Public Affairs for DTE Energy in Detroit. She also served as Chief Ethics Officer and Ombudsman for employee-related issues. Her many civic endeavors included serving on the Detroit Board of Education and she was named a 2018 Detroit Urban League Distinguished Warrior.
Carolyn Green is Managing Partner of EnerGreen Capital Management, which she founded in 2009 to invest in late-venture and early-growth-stage companies involved in the energy and environmental industries. Prior to founding EnerGreen, she was a Vice President with Sunoco, Inc., the Philadelphia-based oil refiner/marketer.
Telisa Toliver is General Manager of Chevron Pipeline and Power, has led many commercial functions throughout the energy value chain, and has been a strong advocate for the inclusion of African Americans and women in the energy industry.
Rose McKinney-James, Managing Principal of McKinney-James & Associates, is a seasoned small business leader, clean energy advocate, and independent corporate director with a long history in public service, non-profit volunteerism, and private sector corporate social responsibility.
Hilda Pinnix-Ragland is the CFO of AHK Global Resources and is also an independent corporate director. Most recently, she served as a senior executive of corporate public affairs at Duke Energy with national and international responsibilities. Her experience expands into financial, operations, and utility regulations. She founded the HPR STEM Academy, now in its fifth year, which serves girls going from elementary to middle school.
Read what people are saying about the book at www.theenergywithinus.com.
The Energy Within Us is available for pre-order at TwoSistersWriting.com/Store.
The authors are available for media interviews, speaking engagements, and book signings. For review copies and more information, please contact Catherine Greenspan at 775-200-6523 or catherine@twosisterswriting.com.
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