Mary Ellen Rodgers oversees growth

Mary Ellen Rodgers oversees growth

Mary Ellen Rodgers.

Editor’s note: Each issue of the Influential Women enewsletter will feature profiles of the Business Journal’s reigning 50 Most Influential Women in West Michigan. The profile first appeared in the event program.

It's hard to sum up Mary Ellen Rodgers’ influence locally and on the national stage through her work at Deloitte LLP.

Not only does she oversee all workplace services operations in the U.S. and India offices for Deloitte, but she also has direct responsibility for more than 2,900 Deloitte employees across more than 100 offices and holds a significant portion of the entire U.S. operations and assets under her care.

Gender gap

Rodgers is a dynamic leader and role model who mentors the next generation of professionals, provides visibility to the issues facing women and minorities in the workforce and champions change in business and social environments.

In the early ’90s, Rodgers created a new national culture of diversity and inclusion at Deloitte, by establishing the case for diversity and setting the foundation for the firm to eliminate its gender-turnover gap and enjoy a 500-percent increase in women partners, principals and directors.

Growth

The third woman in more than 100 years to be appointed to office managing partner in 2000, Rodgers tripled revenues and increased client satisfaction scores for the Grand Rapids office.

She continues to shape national strategic direction and leads the design and implementation of Deloitte’s Next Generation Workplace initiative that is creating more open, collaborative and productive work environments.

In the community

Rodgers has also held positions of responsibility for several community organizations: founding member of Huntington Bank’s Women’s Initiative Advisory Board, first female board chair for the YMCA of Greater Grand Rapids and ArtPrize board and finance committee member.