Black Excellence Series: “We have to look at the culture and the business landscape and say, how are we contributing to it being a better world.”

Springer Nature actively celebrates and promotes diversity across the entire business. With this commitment, Springer Nature recognizes that Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) are essential to achieving its mission of opening doors to discovery, enabling everyone to contribute their best and thrive. One of the core pillars that underpins the DEI mission are the Springer Nature Employee Networks. The employee networks promote a culture where communities of people connect and empower one another to thrive professionally and share their unique perspectives for the benefit of the organisation as a whole.

Celeste Warren is the Vice President of global diversity and inclusion at Merck, one of the leading pharma companies worldwide. She understands what it takes to have an inclusive setting for the workforce. “You want a diverse workforce, so you have to create an inclusive environment around our employees so they’re able to feel energized, they’re able to feel empowered so they are able to do what we want them to do,”she says. Here you can watch Celeste discuss diversity in science, medicine and her journey of rising up in the ranks of a major multinational corporation.

This discussion is part of a speaker series hosted by the Black Employee Network at Springer Nature. The series aims to highlight Black contributions to STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) a history that has not been widely recognized. It will cover career paths, role models and mentorship, and diversity in STEM.

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About Celeste Warren

Celeste Warren is Vice President, Global Diversity and Inclusion Center of Excellence.  As the leader for Merck’s Global Diversity and Inclusion Center of Excellence, she is responsible for working with Merck’s global leaders to advance and embed diversity and inclusion throughout the organization to enhance the employee experience and maximize business performance.

Ms. Warren joined Merck in 1997 and has held numerous positions of increasing responsibility within its Human Resources organization.

Prior to joining Merck in 1997, Celeste worked for nine years in Human Resources at Kraft Foods, Inc. and General Foods. 

She has been honored with many awards, including:

• Black Enterprise’s “Top Executives in Global Diversity and Inclusion”
• Savoy Magazine’s “Most Influential Women in Corporate America”
• Women’s eNews’ “21 Leaders for the 21st Century”
• Diversity Global Magazine’s “Influential Women in Global Diversity” 
• Diversity Woman Magazine’s: “Elite100” List

She serves on the boards of RWJBarnabas Health Systems and “All In Together” and Merck’s Political Action Committee.  She is on the Advisory Council of OneTen.  She is also a member of CNBC’s Workforce Executive Council and World 50’s Inclusion and Diversity Impact Community. 

Celeste’s articles on diversity, equity and inclusion have been featured in numerous national and global publications and she has had the opportunity to speak at various events across the world.

Celeste attended the University of Kentucky where she earned her B.S. degree. She received her master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University. 

She is the wife of John Warren and the mother of two children, Christina-Celeste and John Steven, Jr.