D a AbramsD.A. Abrams is a Diversity & Inclusion Strategist helping clients leverage Diversity & Inclusion for positive business and social impact. In addition, D.A. is the immediate past Chief Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) Officer for the United States TennisAssociation (USTA), a position he assumed in February 2012. There, he focuses on developing and innovating the USTA's D&I initiatives on the national, regional, and grass-roots levels. As a best-selling author and Certified Association Executive (CAE), Abrams utilized a six-prong approach, while advocating D&I as one of the USTA's core values. The Association continues to embrace the D&I Strategic Approach to diversifying tennis for the good of the sport, which Abrams launched in 2013. Currently, the USTA is operating under the third iteration of the "All Hands on Deck - Plan of Attack". A major component of the plan is the "Cross Cultural Dexterity Training" program, which serves to uncover unconscious bias, increase understanding of the negative impact of exclusionary behavior, and the power of intentional inclusion. He also developed a company-wide scorecard to measure the achievements of the USTA's D&I objectives, as well as identify "Areas of Opportunity." In 2013, Abrams launched a company-wide internship program. The program was implemented to provide diverse college-age students the opportunity to live the USTA experience for ten weeks. He was also responsible for overseeing and cultivating the USTA's 7 Business Resource Groups (BRGs). Under his leadership, the USTA has made significant contributions to the business of the organization, including enhanced partner benefits and a greater parental leave policy for both mothers and fathers. Under his leadership as CDIO, the USTA has heightened its Supplier Diversity efforts, with year-end spend with diverse suppliers surpassing 14%; developed 7 D&I Engagement Guides supported by an Engaging Diverse Markets: An Application Toolkit. Abrams oversaw and operated the D&I training for all USTA Board of Directors, Council Chairs, Committee Chairs, C-Suite, USTA Staff, as well as the Presidents, Delegates and Executive Directors of all 17 USTA Sections. He served as a member of the Diversity & Inclusion Committee, Hispanic Engagement Advisory Committee, and was chair of the D&I Advisory Group at the USTA. All served to implement positive cultural change and address various areas of opportunity within the organization. In addition, Abrams was the chair of the USTA's Accreditation Review Committee. External to the USTA, he chaired the Diversity & Inclusion Sports Consortium, and continues to serve board treasurer of the National Association of Asian American Professionals. Abrams is also an Advisory Board member of Diversity MBA. Abrams has been involved professionally in tennis since 1989 and has worked with the USTA in various capacities since 1993. In 1997, he became the first African-American to serve as the executive director of a regional/sectional office, assuming the post for the USTA Missouri Valley Section. After returning to the national office in 2000, he was hired as the executive director of USTA Eastern in 2006, making him the first person ever to pilot two different USTA sections. In 2000, he was named one of Tennis Industry Magazine's "Top 40 under 40" tennis executives. And in 2017, he was inducted into the USTA Middle States Section Hall of Fame. And, in 2018, he was inducted into the Black Tennis Hall of Fame. Feel free to connect with D.A. Abrams: Via email: DA@DIAGGlobal.com and/or DAAbrams21@gmail.com Phone: 914-338-8459 LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/DAAbrams1 Twitter: @DAAbrams1 Read More Read Less