Jackie Glenn

Jackie Glenn 
Global Chief Diversity Officer
EMC Corp.
Hopkinton, Mass.

When Jacqueline Glenn arrived in the United States from Jamaica at the age of 21, along with her 10 siblings, her accent came with her. “I had a really thick, thick accent and I had to learn to deal with doctors, nurses, family members and patients while juggling my job duties. It was a defining moment for me,” Glenn recalls of her position as a unit clerk at a Boston hospital. That position launched her career path. “I learned that I loved working with people.”

“The lady with the accent,” as she became known, spent 14 years at the Boston hospital, rising to a human resources generalist before transitioning to human resources manager at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care in 1996. In 2000, she joined EMC Corp. as director of Human Resources Operations for the Sales and Marketing Division and in 2007 was named to her current role as global chief diversity officer, charged with leading EMC’s diversity and inclusion strategy for its 53,000 employees. She earned a bachelor’s degree in health care administration from Emmanuel College and a master’s in human resources management from Lesley University.

Glenn’s bluntness and candor are legend. “It is better to be respected than liked,” she avers. “Sometimes, I have to deliver hard messages to management, and speak to employees truthfully.” But just as her accent has softened over the years, so has her approach. “I have mastered the art of speaking the truth in love and sandwiching it with care and compassion. I want to make sure that people hear the message, but that it doesn’t tear down their spirit,” she confesses.

She grows animated at the thought of indulging in all of her guilty pleasures simultaneously and confesses: “After a day of shopping, I’ll go the spa, watch a movie and eat popcorn, while having my feet massaged.”