Michael Valencia

PDI-J The Emerging World of Employment: The Time is Now to Hire People with Disabilities

About Michael Valencia

Michael Valencia is the Senior Manager in the Office of and Supplier Diversity for Medtronic Incorporated located in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  A diversity professional, he is responsible for putting strategies in place to promote an inclusive work environment, increase the recruitment and retention of a diverse workforce, and positively brand Medtronic in diverse communities through brand image and employment advertising.  Mr. Valencia is also responsible for assessing and reporting the results of those efforts.  Mr. Valencia joined Medtronic in February 2004.  Medtronic is the global leader in medical technology – alleviating pain, restoring health and extending life for millions of people around the world. Medtronic provides medical professionals with products and therapies to improve the lives of nearly six million patients a year.  Primary products include those for heart and vascular disease, neurological disorders, chronic pain, spinal disorders, diabetes, urologic and digestive system disorders, and ear, nose and throat disorders. Today, every five seconds another person, somewhere in the world, is alive or living a fuller life as a result of a Medtronic product or therapy.  Revenue in fiscal year 2009 was $14.5 Billion.

Prior to joining Medtronic, Mr. Valencia served as the Executive Director for the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) headquartered in Los Angeles, California.  Reporting to a twelve member Board of Directors, Mr. Valencia supervised a staff of ten who were responsible for fundraising, event planning, and member and business development.  Under his guidance as Executive Director, a three-year strategic plan was developed and implemented, and the amount of scholarships awarded tripled to three-quarter of a million dollars.

Previously, Mr. Valencia was the Workforce Diversity & Affirmative Action Programs Manager for TRW Space and Electronics in Redondo Beach, California.  He managed diversity programs for both the Electronics & Technology, and the Space and Technology Divisions.  TRW Space and Electronics was the leader in state-of-the-art electronics for space applications, and accounted for $1.9 billion in sales. 

Mr. Valencia holds the designation of Professional in Human Resources (PHR) from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).  Mr. Valencia received a Masters of Business Administration from California State University, Long Beach, and acquired an undergraduate degree in Graphic Communications from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. 

Mr. Valencia devotes his time promoting higher education and mentoring youth.  He recently served as a member of the Board of Directors for the National Society of Hispanic MBAs (NSHMBA).