The Role of Company Commitments to Giving Back in Attracting and Engaging Employees

  • Value of corporate social responsibility to employees and prospective employees
  • Incorporating philanthropy and sustainability into business strategy
  • How Kellogg Company’s culture of giving back supports recruitment, retention and engagement
  • Key learnings for companies on engaging employees by giving back

Melissa Howell
Chief Human Resources Officer
Kellogg’s

Melissa Howell has been Senior Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer, Kellogg Company, since June 2016. She is a member of Kellogg Company’s executive committee. Prior to joining Kellogg, Ms. Howell was Chief Human Resources Officer for Rockford, Michigan‐based Wolverine since 2014. Prior to Wolverine, Ms. Howell spent 24 years with General Motors where she led a team of 2,800 Human Resources professionals worldwide, supporting a global business at one of the top automotive companies in the world, and also among the largest public corporations. Ms. Howell joined General Motors as a Labor Relations Representative at its Ypsilanti, Michigan, assembly plant in 1990. Over the following years, Ms. Howell served in a series of key human resources leadership roles in Europe, Asia and U.S. leading teams on six continents across an array of functional areas. She was promoted to Executive Director of North American Human Resources in 2011 and subsequently promoted to Senior Vice President of Global Human Resources. Ms. Howell received a Master of Arts degree in Industrial Relations from Wayne State University and a Bachelor’s degree in Employee Relations from Michigan State University. Ms. Howell serves on the Board of Directors of Autism Alliance of Michigan and is a member of the School of Human Resources and Labor Relations Advisory Board at Michigan State University.