Eddie Pate, Ph.D.

Director Inclusion & Diversity for WWOPs, Amazon

305 - Why IT Is Losing Smart Women - and How Workforce Diversity Can Help

Eddie Pate is Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion at Avanade Inc. He is responsible for developing and implementing all diversity and inclusion efforts at Avanade, a JVC created in partnership by Microsoft and Accenture. Previously, Dr. Pate was Principal and founder of Pate Consulting & Associates. His areas of subject matter expertise are diversity, inclusion, accessibility, and cultural competence.

Earlier, Dr. Pate was the Director of Diversity and Inclusion for Starbucks' Global Diversity team, responsible for driving diversity, inclusion, and accessibility into every aspect of partner (employee) engagement worldwide. Prior to that he was a Director in Microsoft's Global Diversity & Inclusion Team, responsible for overseeing the implementation of Microsoft's global diversity initiative company- wide. He was also responsible for the Leadership Accountability strategy to ensure executive participation & ownership. Before going to graduate school, he served as Assistant Director of Admissions and School Relations at Humboldt State University in northern California. Dr. Pate also had a short stint in the NFL but severe knee injuries cut his career short. He holds a BA in Wildlife Management and an MA in Sociology from Humboldt State University, and a Ph.D. in Sociology from University of Washington.