I am pleased to announce that, after completing a rigorous process, Adrian Thompson, Ph.D., (he/him) has been selected as the very first Chief Equity Officer for DES. He begins this role April 4, and he will report directly to me.
Adrian comes to us from the Department of Corrections (DOC), where he has served since 2018 – most recently as the Equity and Inclusion Administrator since January 2021. He holds doctorate and master’s degrees in clinical psychology from Howard University and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from West Virginia University. He has extensive professional and clinical experience with a focus in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
While at DOC, Adrian led the creation of the agency’s equity, diversity, inclusion and respect (EDIR) strategic plan. As a member of the executive strategy team, he advised agency leadership in the effort to build an equitable and inclusive workplace.
He guided practical and actionable efforts to achieve sustainable impacts across the entire organization, and he led the EDIR team in their work to strengthen allyship and engage stakeholders to enhance organizational culture, policies and processes. He created an environment of enhanced accountability by reviewing data and processes and by applying an equity lens, specifically surrounding recruitment, hiring, workforce utilization and promotions for staff.
Adrian is also the co-founder and chief mentor for Young Doctors DC, a multigenerational medical mentoring program with the goal to increase Black male presence in the medical field.
Adrian brings a unique skillset to the role of Chief Equity Officer through both his professional and clinical experience. I believe those skills will help him engage DES employees at every level in ways that are insightful and very meaningful. I learned through his references and colleagues that Adrian also brings a lot of heart and passion for this work – and for helping people in general. That will make him a great addition to our Leadership Team and to the agency.
Adrian shared his excitement about joining DES with me earlier this week.
“I am super excited to embark on this journey with an organization whose mission is to strengthen the business of government. Equity and inclusion must be embedded in the culture of an organization in order for all of its staff and customers to duly experience better outcomes.”
He couldn’t be more right on. DES’ work around diversity, equity and inclusion is still fairly new – and in some ways fragmented. As this agency’s first DEI lead, there are many opportunities to bring cohesion and consistency. As an agency and as individuals, we will accept our responsibility and seize every opportunity to dismantle policies, procedures systems and practices that perpetuate inequity. The right leader in this role will help us do just that, and I believe Adrian is the right leader for this work.
Adrian is originally from Florida. He has also lived in Washington D.C., where he met his wife, Kai. He has two kids: Zora, 7, and Malik, 2. He also has an 8-year-old French bulldog named Kale. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time mentoring youth and increasing community engagement.
I’d like to offer a special thanks to those who helped throughout the hiring process. Their efforts resulted in a strong pool of candidates and an outstanding selection.
- Jason Marquiss, Chief Operations Officer
- Cindy Guertin-Anderson, Assistant Director for the Workforce Support & Development Division
- Shalini Joshi, Chief Information Officer
- Jaime Rossman, Assistant Director for the Contracts & Procurement Division and LT liaison to the DEI Council
- Alisha Ghanie, Contracts & Procurement Business Operations Manager
- Steve Camerer, Human Resources Recruiter
- Michael Heidemann, Enterprise Risk Management Torts Claim Investigator
- RaShelle Davis, Governor's Office
- Michaela Doelman, Employment Security Department
- Erin Nielsen Lopez, Department of Financial Institutions
- Elisa Young, City of Seattle
Please help me welcome Adrian to the DES team!
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