Unlike some executives, Mr. Landel understands that hiring female employees is just the first step of the process.

FORBES: Men at the Women's Forum: Brave Souled CEOs Show Support

Michel Landel, the CEO of SODEXO has come to represent this new paradigm.

FORBES: Men at the Women's Forum: Brave Souled CEOs Show Support

For Mr. Landel, fostering a diverse workforce, with a particular emphasis on gender, is crucial for the success of a company.

FORBES: Men at the Women's Forum: Brave Souled CEOs Show Support

To get that growth, Landel is drawing on Sodexho's overseas experience.

FORBES: At your service

Landel, then general manager for eastern Africa at Sodexho Alliance, hopped on a plane to Nairobi, where he loaded up on a week's supply of frozen meat and fish.

FORBES: At your service

Call it savoir faire or call it hustle, Landel's brand of attention to the customer's needs has made Paris-based Sodexho the world's largest provider of food services to corporate cafeterias, school canteens and hospital rooms.

FORBES: At your service

As the head of a company with close to 400, 000 employees (SODEXO, the world leader in quality of life services, is the twentieth largest employer globally) Mr. Landel proactively pursues diversity and inclusive employment strategies.

FORBES: Men at the Women's Forum: Brave Souled CEOs Show Support