Eddie Pate He/Him

Founder, Speaker and Consultant

Fields of expertise:

DEI and DEIB Racial Equity Intersectionality Allyship Leadership development Black History Month Juneteenth Unconscious Bias Empathy in the Workplace Author

Eddie spent 20 years doing I&D work in the corporate world.

He was the Director of Inclusion and Diversity for the Worldwide Operations (WWOPs) organization at Amazon. He was responsible for the development and implementation of Global I&D efforts in the largest organization at Amazon. Eddie was formerly the VP of Diversity and Inclusion at Avanade. He was responsible for developing and implementing all diversity and inclusion efforts globally. Prior to Avanade Eddie was the Founder of Pate Consulting & Associates where he focused on I&D and Leadership development consulting.

Prior to pursuing speaking full-time, Eddie had two roles at Starbucks. He was the Director of Diversity and Inclusion for Starbucks’ Global Diversity team and, prior to a reorganization, Eddie was responsible for all of the diversity efforts Starbucks’ US Business. Prior to joining Starbucks Coffee Company, Eddie was a Director in Microsoft’s Global Diversity & Inclusion Team and was responsible for overseeing implementation of Microsoft’s global diversity initiatives. Prior to joining Microsoft’s Global Diversity and Inclusion Team, Eddie’s career started as the Diversity Manager for Microsoft’s Enterprise and Partner Group reporting to SVP Charles Stevens. Before his corporate journey began, Eddie was a graduate student at the University of Washington, Seattle, where he earned his Ph.D. in sociology focusing on comparative race and ethnic relations/stratification and social psychology.

Before graduate school, Eddie served as the Assistant Director of Admissions and School Relations at Humboldt State University in northern California. Eddie also had a short stint in the NFL, but severe knee injuries cut his career short. Eddie excelled in college sports earning All American and All West Coast honors as a wide receiver. He is currently in Humboldt State University’s Athletic Hall of Fame. Eddie has a BA in Wildlife Management and a MA in Sociology from Humboldt State University. Married for 36 years to Valeri and they have two children, Karley and Arthur. He has a Chihuahua named Captain Fantastic (Fannie for short).

What our clients say about this speaker

Eddie Pate is a transformational Inclusion and Diversity leader committed to enabling individuals and organizations to thrive. Eddie facilitated impactful training and dialogues for Cal Poly Humboldt student-athletes, athletics leadership and coaches, and the entire campus community. As an alumnus and former student-athlete at Humboldt, Eddie authentically connected with his audience by sharing insightful knowledge and experiences and taking the time to listen and learn. I highly recommend Eddie for diversity, inclusion, and equity efforts. Our University looks forward to continued collaboration with Eddie

Stacie Lyans, Interim Executive Director of Development

Eddie's knowledge, skill set and ability to relate the audience to the topic of Inclusion, Diversity and Equity led me to greater insight into how these topics can be practiced, learned upon and taught in my daily work. I was able to see small ways that I could make changes in hopes of greater outcomes. Eddie is relatable and engaging in his presentations and gives the listener ideas and tools to grow upon their engagement with ID&E work. I found his presentation to be highly valuable

Andrea Webb, Assistance Athletic Director for Compliance & Student Success, member of the SEA committee

Eddie is exemplary at what he does within DEI. His energy, passion and ability to make a connection with everyone he crosses paths with is inspiring. Whether he is talking one-on-one or presenting a training with hundreds of participants, he is able to make people feel seen and heard while meeting each of them wherever they may be in their journey and then brings them along with him. He is also able to take a complex topic and make it relatable to his audience which encourages open and honest dialogue as well as increases open-mindedness and curiosity. I feel privileged to have been able to partner with Eddie this past year on building out a DEI learning curriculum. Not only does the quality of his work speak for itself but I continue to grow as a DEI practitioner because of Eddie’s guidance and coaching.

Jessica Hellyer, Sr. PM, DEI Learning Amazon Web Services TA

Eddie ignited a powerful conversation internally about the importance of inclusive leadership and provided actionable steps for all. He took the time to understand our company and incorporated our values and strategy into his keynote which resonated with our team.

Meghan Hornberger, Director, Internal Audit and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

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Talks & Presentations

Combatting Unconscious Bias in Talent Acquisition

This training is designed to create overall awareness of Unconscious bias using Talent Acquitisit

With

Eddie Pate He/Him

Founder, Speaker and Consultant

Lifecycle approach to ID&E strategy—the best way to have long term, sustained success

This training/discussion is designed to illuminate a comprehensive approach to conceptualizing, c

With

Eddie Pate He/Him

Founder, Speaker and Consultant