Toya Lynn Spencer

SENIOR MANAGER, DIVERSITY and INCLUSION
ABERCROMBIE & FITCH
NEW ALBANY, OHIO
AGE: 38

Abercrombie & Fitch has been home to Toya Lynn Spencer since 1998, a year after earning a master’s degree in corporate communications from Duquesne University. In the 13 years that she has been employed by the Columbus, Ohio, international retailer, she has worked in key departments, including merchandising, quality assurance and human resources. She believes that all of her previous responsibilities within the company prepared her for her current position as senior manager of diversity and inclusion, to which she was promoted last August. In her primary responsibility, global diversity and inclusion training, she determines the curriculum and manages the implantation of training as well as conducts training for the corporate office, stores, distribution center and all areas of the business.

A member of the company’s Executive Diversity Council, Spencer led a first-ever initiative for working parents. Observing a surge in the number of younger employees who were getting married and having children, she secured a $10,000 budget to provide family friendly programming. In another first, Spencer is in charge of creating an international diversity training platform to support the company’s aggressive international expansion plan for all of its stores. In February of this year, she traveled to Europe to facilitate training with store managers, human resources managers and district managers from five different countries, and to conduct interviews with them to make sure that they were consistent with the company’s message of diversity.

Spencer acknowledges that her faith in God, diligence, passion and vision have enabled her to have a long career with Abercrombie & Fitch and is elated that she is being honored for her work. “I am excited that I am representing Abercrombie & Fitch,” she says. “It is important to me that people see that there are [African-Americans] that are contributing, adding value and positively impacting the company’s culture.”

FUN FACTS

Favorite singer: Jill Scott
Favorite author: Bruce Wilkinson
Last movie: “Hanna”