Executive MBA alumna chosen as AACSB Influential Leader

Carolynn Johnson, CEO of DiversityInc, has been selected as an honoree for AACSB's 2022 Class of Influential Leaders. Johnson completed her Executive MBA at Rutgers Business School.

The annual AACSB Influential Leaders program recognizes graduates of AACSB-accredited schools who create lasting impact in their communities, industries, and the world.

The 2022 honorees include advocates from business, academia, the nonprofit sector, and government who educate and empower others to create welcoming, inclusive spaces for all. Together, they represent one facet of business education’s efforts to elevate diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) in the workforce and society.

DiversityInc is a data platform and media ecosystem known as the preeminent source of diversity management data and best practices. Since becoming the company’s CEO, Johnson has been ensuring that women of color not only have a seat at the table but a voice in the room.

In February 2020, Johnson spoke with students at The Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania) as part of its Leading Diversity@Wharton lecture series. That summer, she also participated in a virtual fireside chat hosted by the Rutgers Center for Women in Business that addressed racial injustice, allyship and the power of individuals to use their platforms to act as positive disruptors for change. Johnson is a founding member of the center’s board.

Johnson believes that every single person has power; whether you’re a CEO, a coordinator, a college intern, you have power because you have influence. 

“We haven’t gotten where we are with quick fixes," Johnson said. "It takes carefully thought-out and implemented strategies that are tested, iterative, and consciously measured to create the type of lasting change that will build a workforce which reflects our society and the values that create winning corporate cultures.”