Roberto Carmona

EXECUTIVE DIVERSITY CONSULTANT | 42 | BERWYN

Growing up there was no real sense of Hispanic identity for me at the time. The Martinezes, Alvarezes and Carmonas were no different than the Asburys, Smiths or Sanders. I didn't notice it until I got to fifth grade. I had always been part of the "A" students, always part of that special group where the teachers treated you great. But I must have messed up a test somewhere, and I got put into a class with all the Martinezes and the Gonzalezes. There the teachers weren't nice anymore.

I graduated high school with a 1.4 GPA. I'd gone to community college before getting into NIU. The day after I got accepted to Harvard's MBA program on a full scholarship I took out my high school yearbook, I put it on the floor and yelled "I got into Harvard!"

Never take anything for granted; a Harvard degree can only go so far. I've gotten in good with presidents and CEOs because I flew out to their headquarters with packages of fresh tortillas from Little Village. I've made million-dollar deals on a cell phone while riding the back of a CTA bus -- you never know who's on the bus with you.

The mayor protects the city's immigrants. He places value on them, he sees they are hardworking and not a threat and he cares about every good test score. He knows that every time a company comes with jobs they'll see in us a work force that can fill those jobs.

If we get the Olympics, if it's managed right I think it can create some job opportunities and allow for a global perspective. It would bring civic pride like when the Sox won the World Series or we hosted the World Cup.

Chicago in 2027? If we invest in education we'll have a dynamic multilingual work force and Chicago will be a global city like Rome or Tokyo -- that's contingent on having the educational infrastructure for our youth. The Cubs will still be trying to win a World Series and Mayor Daley's son might be mayor by then.