Julius Pryor III

Chair of the Board of Directors

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Julius Pryor helps companies accelerate innovation and drive business results. Having created and led groundbreaking strategies at six global corporations, Julius practically created the role of the modern Chief Diversity Officer. Every time he held the job, it was a newly created position.

He’s held executive roles at Johnson & Johnson (J&J), Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE), Russell Athletic, Abbott, Takeda and Cerner. He was Vice President of Global Diversity at both J&J and CCE. Julius served as Head of Innovation, Diversity & Inclusion at biotech leader Genentech (Roche). He is Chair of the Board of Directors at the Center for Healthcare Innovation, an independent, non-profit research institute dedicated to making healthcare more equitable by leveraging technology, data analytics, and innovative marketplace platforms.

Julius is not a traditional diversity officer. His focus is leveraging foundational principles of DEI to drive revenue, market share, new products and unique services. He builds organizational diversity maturity which drives ideas across lines of demarcation and enables leaders to make better decisions.

Julius learned a great deal about agility, driving outcomes and clarity of mission during his service in the U.S. Navy. He notes that, “The Navy is a requirement driven culture – you can delegate authority, but not responsibility”. He is a U.S. Navy Captain, Surface Warfare Officer and instructor for the Navy Officer Leadership Development Program. He held leadership roles in Atlantic and Pacific fleets including, Unit Commanding Officer, Executive Officer and Fleet Staff Officer. He had the honor of serving on the re-commissioning crew of the historic USS Missouri (BB-63).

Julius is a graduate of Morehouse College and The Williston Northampton School (Easthampton, Massachusetts). He sits on the boards of the Andrew Young Center for Global Leadership, AArete Corporation, and is Board Chair for The Center for Healthcare Innovation.

He was initiated into the legendary Psi Chapter of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity while at Morehouse. Julius is the author of Thriving in a Disruptive World: 6 Critical Concepts for Navigating the 21st Century.