Michele C. Meyer-Shipp, Esq., SHRM-SCP

Former Chief People & Culture Officer, Major League Baseball

Michele Meyer-Shipp most recently served as the first highest ranking woman at Major League Baseball in the role of Chief People & Culture Officer. In that role, Meyer-Shipp led MLB’s Human Resources (H.R.); Office Operations and
Facilities; and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion teams. Her efforts supported the Central League Office, 30 Major League Clubs, and 120 Minor League Clubs. She served as a strategic advisor to Club Owners and their senior leadership teams on a wide range of issues relating to human resources, talent strategy, diversity and culture. During her tenure, she launched and deployed a new diversity strategy across the league and began a transformation of the central office H.R. department.

Meyer-Shipp’s track record of serving as a strategic advisor on people and culture related matters spans over 20 years. Before joining MLB, Meyer-Shipp served as Principal and Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer for KPMG. In this role, she led the National Inclusion and Diversity team, and was a member of the H.R. Leadership Team. Meyer-Shipp worked with KPMG’s senior leaders to advance the firm’s strategy and objectives as related to the recruitment, retention, development, and advancement of a diverse workforce. As a leader, she also role modeled engaging with others to inspire broad perspectives, drive innovative client solutions, and foster a welcoming and inclusive culture. She also served as a coach and mentor to employees across the firm.

Prior to KPMG, Meyer-Shipp served as Global Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer at the law firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP where, in addition to serving a diversity and inclusion strategist and advisor to the partnership, she served as a coach and advisor to underrepresented attorneys as they navigated their careers. From 2010 to 2017, Meyer-Shipp served as Employment Counsel at Prudential Financial Inc. and was later appointed Global Chief Diversity Officer responsible for leading and furthering the company’s diversity and inclusion efforts. Prior to her employment at Prudential, Meyer-Shipp served in gubernatorial appointments as General Counsel of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, and as Director of the New Jersey Division of Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action. She also served as Employment Counsel, then as Northeast Regional Diversity Lead, at Merrill Lynch. In each of these roles, she was tasked with driving strategies relating to employment best practices, providing subject matter expertise to leaders, and supporting the growth and development of employees.

Meyer-Shipp started her career in private practice as an employment litigator at the law firms of Lowenstein Sandler LLP and Collier, Jacob & Mills, P.C., after serving as a law clerk for the first Black judge to serve in New Jersey’s highest state court, Justice James H. Coleman, Jr. of the New Jersey Supreme Court. It is in her early career years as an attorney where Meyer-Shipp first began working as a strategic advisor to all type of clients across industries and sectors as they navigated issues relating to talent management and culture, employee relations, dispute resolution and contract negotiations.

Meyer-Shipp is a sought-a1er speaker, thought leader, and strategist. Meyer-Shipp has served as a Yahoo! Finance News Contributor and has been featured in top media outlets including the New York Times, USA Today, The Economist, Forbes, Fortune, Business Insider, CNN, The Wall Street Journal, Savoy Magazine, CORE Magazine, Working Mother Magazine, Diversity Woman Magazine, Quartz, Inc., and more. She was recently featured in Black Enterprise’s “Portraits of Power” series spotlighting exceptional women leaders. In recognition of her professional accomplishments, Meyer-Shipp has received numerous awards and accolades including:

  • 2021 The Network Journal, 25 Influential Black Women in Business Award
  • 2021 Sports Diversity Council, Power 50 Award
  • 2021 National Diversity Council, Top 50 HR Professionals Award
  • 2021 Core Magazine, 100 Most Influential Black Today
  • 2021,DiversityFirst 2021 Top HR Professionals
  • 2020, Business Insider’s 38 Power Players of Consulting
  • 2020, Rutgers Law School, Martin Luther King Jr. Champions of Social Justice & Equality Award
  • 2019, Black Enterprise, Top Executive in Corporate Diversity
  • 2019, Seton Hall Law School, Exemplary Service Award
  • 2017, The Forum on Workplace Inclusion, Winds of Change Award
  • 2017, Diversity MBA as a Top 100 Under 50 Executive Leader
  • 2016, Rutgers University induction, Rutgers African American Alumni Alliance Hall of Fame
  • 2013-2016, Black Enterprise, Top Executive in Corporate Diversity

 

Meyer-Shipp serves on the Boards of the Fritz Pollard Alliance and Players for the Planet. Given her passion for bringing forward the next generation, Meyer-Shipp also serves as a Council Member for the Rutgers University Office of Student Affairs Executive Advisory Council and for the Seton Hall University School of Law Diversity Advisory Council. She is a frequent guest lecturer at the Rutgers University School of Business. Prior Board service includes: National Organization on Disability, GLSEN, and the Women Presidents’ Organization.

Meyer-Shipp is an alum of the Wharton School Global Strategic Leadership Program, she completed her undergraduate studies at Rutgers University, and earned her Juris Doctor of Law from Seton Hall University. Meyer-Shipp resides in New Jersey with her husband and three sons. She loves to spend time with family, play golf, and travel.