UMG Names Chief People & Inclusion Officer
• Eric Hutcherson, the former EVP, Chief Human Resources Officer of the National Basketball Association (NBA), has joined Universal Music Group (UMG) as Executive Vice President and Chief People and Inclusion Officer. In this newly created position, Hutcherson will work closely with UMG’s senior management team to align UMG’s talent functions; globally amplify the company’s entrepreneurial-based culture; accelerate diversity and inclusion across all levels and territories; attract, retain and develop talent; accelerate the company’s social justice initiatives and build on the company’s successful track-record of driving innovation by recruiting employees who bring new ideas, perspectives and skillsets.
Hutcherson will serve on UMG’s Executive Management Board and report directly to UMG Chairman & CEO Sir Lucian Grainge, who commented, “Our strength as a company comes from our people and our culture — combining the quality, passion and dedication of our people with our entrepreneurial drive. And that translates into the success of our artists and songwriters. But this new position is a reflection of the fact that, in music, you can’t rest on your past success. You need to improve and grow, and you need to continually become more diverse and inclusive. Eric understands that, and over his career he has built a track record to prove it. I’m thrilled to welcome Eric to UMG and looking forward to working with him as we drive our company to new levels of success.”
Hutcherson said, “I’m thrilled to join UMG. Music is special and uniquely universal; it drives culture in a way that nothing else quite does. Lucian has created a world-class organization that empowers employees to think for themselves, to be creative and break new ground, to take calculated risks, and to value competition and entrepreneurialism. It’s a culture that fundamentally understands that success requires true diversity and real inclusion and continuous improvement.”
Prior to joining the NBA in July 2014, Hutcherson was Managing Director & Chief HR Officer for the U.S. and Canada Division of Marsh, a leading global insurance brokerage firm. Earlier in his career, he served as Asst. Director of Public Relations for the Boston Celtics.
