Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) announced it has appointed Lisa Collins as its new Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). Collins will direct employee initiatives across North America.
“I am overjoyed to become a member of the DEI team,” Collins enthusiastically shared in a statement.
According to WBD, Collins’ duties will encompass the creation and deployment of in-house DEI programs. These will include designing targeted programs for individual business units, focusing on recruitment, retention, career advancement, performance management, leadership development, and employee engagement. She is also expected to work closely with regional executives to further integrate DEI into WBD’s operational facets, and guide the expansion of WBD’s Business Resource Groups.
Black Women in DEI
Deadline reports that Collins’ appointment follows the departure of Karen Horne. Horne was previously the Senior Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for North America. Horne’s tenure ended in June when the company decided to let her go as part of a broader restructuring initiative within the division.
Horne’s departure along with the exit of three other Black women working in DEI raised alarms earlier this year.
It was announced on June 20 by Variety that Disney’s chief diversity officer and senior vice president Latondra Newton would be exiting her role. She’d been in her DEI role over six years.
Newton’s exit was followed by a report on June 28 from Variety that Netflix’s first-ever head of inclusion Vernā Myers would be leaving her role at the end of September.
Then on June 30 Warner Bros. announced it had laid off Horne and Jeanell English would be leaving her role as executive vice president of impact and inclusion at the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.
About Lisa Collins
Before accepting her new role, Collins gained significant experience working in human resources (HR) and culture building at WBD. She also served as the Head of People and Culture Partners for Production at WBD. Her team provided HR support to the company’s global production cast and crew. Collins’ past roles also include the director of production HR at Netflix, and holding HR leadership positions at Warner Bros. Entertainment and NBCUniversal.