Global Ascent
Fred Smith is the Chief Executive Officer at Global Ascent Consulting. He has over 25 years of experience in management consulting, human resources, diversity management, compliance and training. His experience with a variety of clients and sectors provides Fred with the broad background to tailor solutions that deliver results. As a recognized leader in the field of diversity and inclusion, Fred has served in a variety of senior leadership roles including:
• Chief Diversity Officer for 60,000 employee retail organization in US and Mexico
• Senior Management Consultant for three leading global diversity and inclusion consulting organizations: Korn Ferry/Global Novations, ProGroup and Virtcom Consulting
In these roles, Fred has provided strategic advice and solutions on talent management, compliance, and outreach to business units, boards, and C-suite leadership. Recognizing a need for a developmental approach to understanding diversity and inclusion and implementing best practices, Fred designed a suite of strategic, multi-level courses that can customized to support specific organizational values and goals. Course levels are Compliance and Awareness, Workforce and Culture, and Leadership and Economic Value.
Fred earned a BS in Secondary Education from Texas A&M University, PHR Certification from Rice University and has attended the Babson School for Business Executive Leadership Program and the Center for Creative Leadership Executive Program. He is also Program Director at the University of Houston Learning Skills For Life.