Prudential Financial: You May Not ‘Get’ D&I—But You Have To

Creating a culture of diversity and inclusion means including everyone—personally and professionally. That’s the mindset Prudential Financial leverages to create its business case for diversity, explained Michele C.Meyer-Shipp, Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer of Prudential Financial. “For all of us to succeed we have to be able to market our services to diverse communities,” she said. “You might not get it but you have to.”

Altria: Is Diversity a Zero-Sum Game for White Men?

Diversity and inclusion: What’s in it for white men? That’s the question you as a diversity leader need to answer if you’re going to gain buy-in from your white, male senior leaders, said Nancy Adams, Senior Manager, HR Client Services/Diversity/AAP of Altria. She noted that it’s important to shift the conversation away from race and gender toward discussions about how inclusion benefits white men. “But there’s always a small minority of people who just see the world as a zero-sum game,” she says, and the challenge is getting through to them.

Toyota: Attention Straight, White Men—Diversity Includes You Too

Toyota Financial Services’ diversity leaders work hard to get their D&I message out—and a big catalyst for that effort is visible commitment from the company’s senior executives, such as CEO George Borst, Toyota Financial Services. “I had a man come up to me and say he joined the women’s group because ‘I have three daughters and I would want them to have the opportunities they wouldn’t have had if they had grown up in my day,” recalled Stephen Lewis, Corporate Manager, Diversity and Inclusion, Toyota Financial Services.

Cox Communications: How to Begin Diversity Outreach to White Men?

“Everyone has something to share, something to learn from each other,” said Rhonda Taylor, Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer of Cox Communications. Taylor notes it starts with opening up the dialogue around our differences and creating an atmosphere that allows employees to ask the hard questions and share their personal stories to make a connection.

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Michele C. Meyer-Shipp faced an intriguing dilemma last spring. An attorney then leading the Employment and Labor Law Group at Prudential Financial, she was offered three major opportunities all at the same time.

The first job was as the company’s chief ethics officer. The second was as its chief diversity officer. The third was heading diversity in one of the business units.

After meeting with Chairman and CEO John Strangfeld and senior executives, Meyer-Shipp knew what job to take: chief diversity officer for the entire company. “This was a no-brainer. I never even asked what the salary was,” she says. “I felt their commitment to D&I was very real.”

What impressed her was the passion and commitment of the leadership and their eagerness to evolve their D&I efforts even though Prudential already had a well-established history as a diversity leader—it has had a spot in the DiversityInc Top 50 every year since the list started in 2001.

“The company decided it was time for a refresh and this is very important,” Meyer-Shipp says, noting three foundational pillars: people (creating an inclusive workplace), market (connecting with key customer segments) and community (philanthropy and branding). Her job is to implement this strategy and gain increased collaboration and connectivity throughout the organization to increase employee engagement.

“There is a refocused look at making sure that we’re education managers at the senior-most level on the inclusion piece and on appreciating differences,” she says. “I intend to connect the dots internally so we can do what we do better.”

Why Leave the Law?

Meyer-Shipp’s career has taken an interesting turn after a strong legal career. The daughter of a former military man who worked his way up to bank vice president with just a high-school degree, she grew up in New York.

“We were three girls and I’m the oldest. My middle sister is an OB/GYN. My baby sister is a stay-at-home Air Force wife whose husband just returned from his third tour in Afghanistan,” she says.

“I thought I wanted to be an FBI undercover agent, but it wasn’t for me,” she recalls. A job as a paralegal led to law school and a seven-year stint as a litigator. “I hated the process of litigation—the discovery, the fighting over documents. I’m a people person and I wanted to be proactive,” she says.

She went to work at Merrill Lynch but was let go when Bank of America took over. “I was downsized three days after my divorce was final and a month after I moved into my home with my three young sons,” she recalls. “But I’m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason.”

She had met former New Jersey governor Jon Corzine previously and he offered her a position as general counsel for the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor. She left that position to work for Prudential and was immediately impressed with the company’s culture and values.

“When I got to the law department, I wondered, What does this company do around diversity? I went to the intranet and the website and I found out. The law department had a very active diversity council with best practices and it was acknowledged by John Strangfeld,” she recalls.

She decided to get involved and quickly found herself the chair of the council. Through that position, she met the D&I staff and furthered her interest in diversity management.

“When I decided to pick this job, people said I was foolish to leave the law. They said D&I comes and goes. They said it depends on who wins the election,” she says.

But Meyer-Shipp knew that D&I was where her passion lies and where she could have the most impact. The new strategy was rolled out by her new boss, Sharon Taylor, Senior Vice President, Human Resources and chair of the Prudential Foundation. “It’s a perfect time to take on a new role and implement the strategy,” Meyer-Shipp says.

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Michele C. Meyer-Shipp
Michele C. Meyer-Shipp has been named vice president and chief diversity officer of Prudential Financial, succeeding Emilio Egea, who retired. In her new role, Meyer-Shipp is responsible for leading and directing all diversity-and-inclusion initiatives for the company, and for ensuring ongoing compliance with federal and state equal employment opportunity/affirmative action laws and requirements. Prudential is No. 9 in The 2012 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity.

Meyer-Shipp joined Prudential in April 2010 as vice president and counsel in the Employment and Labor Law group. She has also been general counsel for the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, vice president and diversity manager in Merrill Lynch’s Global Wealth Management division, and director of the state of New Jersey’s Division of Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action. Prior to that, she was a practicing attorney.

Meyer-Shipp is an active member of the Association of Corporate Counsel, the Minority Corporate Counsel Association, Corporate Counsel Women of Color and the National Employment Law Council. She earned a bachelor’s degree at Rutgers School of Criminal Justice and her juris doctor at Seton Hall University School of Law.

R. Fenimore Fisher
R. Fenimore Fisher has been named a deputy commissioner and the chief diversity and EEO officer for the City of New York. He is responsible for the leadership of the Office of Citywide Diversity and Equal Employment Opportunity, and will design and implement strategies to position the city as a world-class leader in diversity and inclusion. Prior to his appointment, Fisher was managing partner of the R. Fenimore Fisher Group, a global D&I and alternative dispute-resolution firm. Fisher previously served as vice president of diversity initiatives and analysis for Walmart and as executive director of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition’s Wall Street Project.

A member of the New Jersey State Bar Association, Fisher serves on the national leadership council for GLSEN (the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network) as well as the corporate advisory council for the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. Fisher holds a bachelor’s degree from Louisiana State University, a Juris Doctor from Ohio Northern University and a labor-mediation certification from Cornell University.

Jennifer “Jae” Pi’ilani Requiro
Jennifer “Jae” Pi’ilani Requiro has been named national manager of diversity and inclusion at Toyota Financial Services. Her responsibilities include diversity-and-inclusion education and executive scorecards, mentoring and Toyota Business Partnering Groups. She also develops strategies to increase market share, capture more multicultural customers and increase partnerships with diverse suppliers. Requiro has a bachelor’s degree from UCLA.

Barbara Frankel
Barbara Frankel, senior vice president and executive editor of DiversityInc, has been named to the newly established global advisory board for WEConnect International, a corporate-led nonprofit that facilitates sustainable economic growth by empowering and connecting women business owners globally. Others named to the 22-person board include Kathleen Matthews, executive vice president and chief global communications and public affairs officer, Marriott International; Julie Oyegun, chief diversity officer, the World Bank Group; and Catherine Rodgers, vice president, Global Opportunties and Business Development, IBM.

Margaret E. Burke
Margaret E. Burke has been admitted into PricewaterhouseCoopers’ partnership. In her ongoing role as U.S. Advisory human-capital leader, Burke oversees the strategic development, direction and implementation of the Advisory practice’s recruitment, development, talent management, rewards and retention programs. Burke holds a bachelor’s degree from Mount Holyoke College. PricewaterhouseCoopers is No. 1 in the DiversityInc Top 50.

Tracy Nolan and Pushpendu Pal
CVS Caremark has appointed Tracy Nolan and Pushpendu Pal to new positions, Nolan to vice president of strategic product delivery and Pal to senior vice president of the information technology division within the company’s prescription benefit management (PBM) business. Nolan, who comes to CVS from WellPoint, is responsible for operationally expanding flagship product offerings and for newly developed products and programs. Pal’s promotion is a reflection of his work in leading the division in delivering stable and robust internal-application services and deploying information technology.

Terrez Thompson
The Coca-Cola Company has promoted Terrez Thompson to vice president of global supplier diversity. She will lead and promote the company’s efforts to maximize procurement opportunities with diverse businesses as suppliers, contractors and subcontractors. Thompson has held a variety of roles in more than 25 years at The Coca-Cola Company, including controller of The Coca-Cola Trading Company. The Coca-Cola Company is No. 46 in the 2012 DiversityInc Top 50.

Kevin Jennings
The Arcus Foundation, a leading global foundation advancing pressing social-justice and conservation issues, has named Kevin Jennings as executive director. Jennings was previously CEO of Be the Change Inc., where  he was instrumental in launching the Opportunity Nation campaign to promote economic opportunity and social mobility in America. Jennings has also served as assistant deputy secretary of education under President Obama and founded the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN). Jennings has a bachelor’s degree from Harvard College and master’s degrees from Columbia University Teacher’s College and New York University’s Stern School of Business.

Jesus Soto Jr.
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) has appointed Jesus Soto Jr. to further solidify the leadership team charged with building the nation’s safest natural-gas delivery system. He will serve as senior vice president of gas transmission, operations, engineering and pipeline integrity. Soto is responsible for overseeing four major functions: public safety and integrity management; project engineering, design and management; gas transmission; and gas system operations.

Richelle Parham
Richelle Parham, chief marketing officer of eBay North America, has been elected to the board of directors of Scripps Networks Interactive. At eBay, Parham directs the company’s core marketing functions. She is also responsible for brand engagement, driving eBay’s seasonal marketing calendar and leading its customer-insights and marketing-analytics functions.

Richard Mark
Richard Mark has been promoted to chairman, president and CEO of Ameren Illinois. Mark’s responsibilities include the company’s natural-gas and electric delivery business, customer service, natural-gas and electric supply, community relations and government relations. Prior to joining Ameren in 2002, he spent five years as COO and six years as president and CEO at St. Mary’s Hospital in East St. Louis, Ill.

Daisy Auger-Dominguez
Daisy Auger-Dominguez joined the Disney/ABC Television Group as vice president of organization and workforce diversity. Auger-Dominguez focuses on helping the company attract, develop and retain diverse talent in support of business objectives, and is responsible for continuing to develop the company’s diversity-and-inclusion strategy, goals and plans. She previously served as a diversity executive at Time Warner and Moody’s Corporation. She has a bachelor’s degree from Bucknell University and a master’s degree from New York University.

Ramona G. Blake
Ramona G. Blake has been appointed director of diversity and inclusion at TIAA-CREF Financial Services. She is responsible for diversity-strategy design and implementation, special initiatives and training in the following areas: marketplace, supplier, workforce and workplace. Previously, Blake was manager of diversity and inclusion at PSEG. She has a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University and a Certified Diversity Professional certificate from Cornell’s ILR School.

Dermot J. O’Brien
Dermot J. O’Brien has been named chief human resources officer and corporate vice president at Automatic Data Processing. In his new role, O’Brien works with ADP’s senior leadership team to develop workforce plans and programs that align with ADP’s overall strategic objectives. His responsibilities include forecasting ADP’s global talent needs; implementing initiatives that effectively attract, develop, deploy and retain a diverse talent population; overseeing succession planning and management development; and improving ADP’s already strong levels of employee engagement. Prior to joining ADP, O’Brien was executive vice president of human resources at TIAA-CREF. A Dublin, Ireland, native, O’Brien has a bachelor’s degree from Pace University. ADP is No. 27 in the 2012 DiversityInc Top 50.

Dr. Antonio Flores
Dr. Antonio Flores, president of the Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities (HACU), invited DiversityInc CEO Luke Visconti to become a member of the organization’s 17-member Corporate & Philanthropic Council. The council’s goal is to provide guidance and assistance to Dr. Flores and the association’s development division and public-affairs office to ensure its mission, programs and events receive support and that its strategic plans are realized. Other council members include: Raymond Arroyo, Aetna; Alma Guajardo-Crossley, General Motors; Jim Fjelstul, Sodexo; Jerry Gattegno, Deloitte; and Angel Herrera, ARAMARK.

Anthony Salcido and Mónica Gil
The Hispanic Scholarship Fund inducted six new members into its Alumni Hall of Fame on Oct. 17 in New York City. The 2012 inductees are: Dr. Yolanda García Romero, professor of history, North Lake College; Mónica Gil, senior vice president, public affairs and government relations, Nielsen Company;  José P. Chan, MIT Sloan Fellow in Innovation and Global Leadership and adjunct professor, Parsons the New School for Design; Cyrus Amado Salazar, equal opportunity manager, U.S. Air Force; and Gilbert and Jacki Cisneros, president and vice president, The Gilbert & Jacki Cisneros Foundation. Additionally, Melanie L. Healey, group president, North America of HSF partner company Procter & Gamble, accepted an honorary recognition on behalf of P&G for contributing more than $4 million to HSF since 1986.

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Egea explained during a DiversityInc event how Prudential’s 2011 acquisitions of AIG Star and AIG Edison insurance companies forced Prudential to adopt a global-diversity mindset as “more than 50 percent of employees now speak Japanese.”

He credited the company’s emphasis on cultural competence with its success in forming common goals/connections with its new Japanese businesses and developing internal messaging that stays true to the core corporate culture and company values on an international scale. (Prudential Financial is No. 9 in the 2012 DiversityInc Top 50.)

The audience of corporate diversity leaders and executives was able to ask Egea questions on global diversity, contribute their best practices for cultural competence and diversity-awareness training and share their real-life success stories.

Executives from Deloitte, Monsanto, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, WellPoint and Kaiser Permanente discussed how a culturally competent workplace can help talent development—and productivity—flourish.

Global Diversity: Best Practices for Cultural Competence

• Build understanding and respect for cultural competence
• Ensure senior leaders are culturally competent
• Leverage resource groups to on-board international hires
• Have a consistent way to assess talent development
• Identify implicit biases, both internally and externally
• Use training and education to increase diversity awareness/sensitivity

Click to read the full Are You Culturally Savvy Enough to Profit in a Global Market? article, available to subscribers at DiversityIncBestPractices.com.

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Prudential Financial’s 2012–2013 “Financial Experience & Behaviors Among Women” report found that women today make up a majority of primary household earners (53 percent), but only 23 percent report self-confidence in making key financial decisions. Only 10 percent of women referred to themselves as “very knowledgeable” about the financial products and services available to them. (Prudential Financial is No. 9 in the 2012 DiversityInc Top 50.)

This means new growth opportunities for those financial-services companies—particularly those companies that leverage resource groups—that are attentive not only to women’s needs but their culturally influenced concerns.

Understanding Women’s Cultural Influencers

Differences in women’s financial experiences and behaviors varied greatly among the different ethnic groups. This indicates that racial/cultural influences play a key role in determining how women approach financial security and planning, explained a panel of economic experts at Prudential Financial’s event in New York. Prudential’s Joan Cleveland, senior vice president of Business Development, participated as a panelist. Watch Prudential’s video highlights from the event.

The study found:

• Asian (33 percent) and Black (31 percent) married women were their household’s highest income earners, compared with only 19 percent of white women. White women were the least likely to be employed full time (33 percent) and were likely to be married (65 percent)
• Latinas, who were most likely to have children (65 percent), were more inclined to put immediate family needs ahead of their own financial stability and planning: 92 percent of Latinas prioritized “not becoming a financial burden to loved ones,” and 73 percent said taking care of extended family was a main concern
• Black women, who were most likely to be single (40 percent) and employed full time (47 percent), prioritized being able to maintain their current lifestyle (94 percent). They were also most concerned with reducing personal debt (87 percent) and starting a small business (49 percent)
• Asian women were the most likely to use a financial professional (47 percent) and tended to place more emphasis on financial security. They had the highest median income ($77,000 vs. $51,000 average) and savings ($58,600 vs. $12,400 average), and 28 percent of live upscale lifestyles
• About one-third of white women had an adviser (36 percent), but 26 percent were most likely to delegate financial decisions to their partner. Having enough money to maintain their lifestyle (93 percent) topped their financial concerns

Resource Groups Provide Solutions

“Women’s lack of confidence is increasing, which we can see as a knowledge gap as well,” explains panelist Deborah Owens, CEO of Owens Media Group and an author, noting that market volatility has increased women’s overall tendency toward risk aversion.

The solution—and likewise the opportunity—then falls to companies “to educate women on financial matters and help them build confidence,” Owens says. It also helps to close the disconnect between immediate concerns and the right choices.

Strengthening the quality of the company-client relationship also should be a concern, say the panelists, as 35 percent of women reported they would leave their adviser if their relationship with their spouse were to end.

“These relationships still are very superficial,” says Cleveland. “Companies need to do more to know women’s needs. Advisers need to speak to women, really advise the women when they speak to the couple.”

DiversityInc Top 50 companies, especially those in The DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for Executive Women list, know that best practices in diversity management, such as resource groups, can help their organization increase their understanding of the marketplace—and ultimately deliver sustainable business results.

Read these DiversityInc articles for more on how to improve your business—and your ability to attract women customers and employees—through diversity management:

Diversity Web Seminar on Resource Groups: Connect With Customers for Top Sales Results

DiversityInc Innovation Fest!: Resource Groups Saved This Pharmaceutical Giant Millions

How Kraft Increased Promotions of Women in Sales by 39%

How ‘Slut’ and ‘Sweetie’ Challenge Gender Equity

Women’s History Month Facts

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But how do these companies use resource groups to reach community groups and schools to find new talent pools? How are they communicating to potential job candidates about the company’s inclusive culture?

DiversityInc asked several corporations for their best talent-acquisition practices to find out. Outtakes of their responses are detailed in “Resource Groups & Recruitment.”

For example, Ernst & Young uses resource groups to gain leadership access by holding formal employee-referral discussions to scout for similar leadership potential and to mentor future candidates.

Read this article for more best practices from ING, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, ADP, Kraft Foods and Prudential Financial.

For more on resource groups and their benefits, watch our resource-groups web seminar.

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Additionally, the University of Texas at Austin and the Points of Light Foundation found that volunteer programs can contribute to employee skill development, improve leadership skills, foster teamwork and add to job satisfaction. Fifty-eight percent use their employee volunteer program for recruiting and retaining employees, and 97 percent of employee-volunteer managers thought employee volunteering provided a way to improve employee teamwork.

For example, Prudential, No. 9 in the 2012 DiversityInc Top 50 and DiversityInc’s Top Company for Community Development in 2011, held a “Breaking the Gala Addiction” competition and asked nonprofits to submit business plans to create revenue-generating ventures that will raise money and reduce their reliance on expensive gala events, grants and donations. The Community Food Bank’s “Grains for Good” project won first place, which included a $75,000 grant from Prudential and three months of project-management assistance from a team of Prudential volunteers.

“They brought in their own marketing people from Prudential who worked with us redesigning the packaging, the bags that these bagel crisps are going to come in, and provided us with a brand new design and even a big poster on an easel we could display at a big event we had a few weeks ago,” says Richard J. Uniacke, director of market development at Community Food Bank of New Jersey.

Additional company success stories in the article are included from PricewaterhouseCoopers (No. 1) and Time Warner (No. 40).

However, before you start giving your employees time off to volunteer, you’ll want to set some guidelines to establish and support their efforts. In this 2,000-word Employee Volunteer Programs article, DiversityInc provides the eight best practices that companies need for a successful employee-volunteer program. Among the top three: firm commitment and communication; recognizing the activity as a valid use of time; and encouraging senior managers to lead by example and volunteer themselves.

Additional best practices detailed in the article include:

• Offering skilled volunteerism as an option for employees
• Helping employees find the right volunteer opportunity
• Providing training
• Giving recognition
• Tapping into experienced employees and retirees

Read the full Employee Volunteer Programs article at DiversityIncBestPractices.com.

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Northrop Grumman (No. 42 in The 2012 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity) and Prudential Financial (No. 9) both utilize their diversity councils to oversee diversity management and drive the success of inclusion programs. It’s one strategy that has helped these companies improve retention, employee engagement, leadership accountability and market outreach.

Each company, however, has realized this success through very different council models. Northrop Grumman follows a more traditional structure, where its council operates as a separate entity of senior-level executives. Prudential follows a more integrated model in which their general executive council aims to tie diversity into everything that the company does.

In this 90-minute diversity-council web seminar, Sylvester Mendoza, corporate director of diversity and inclusion & EEO at Northrop Grumman, and Emilio Egea, vice president of human resources and chief diversity officer at Prudential Financial, discuss with DiversityInc Senior Vice President and Executive Editor Barbara Frankel their diversity-council framework, as well as the diversity-management best practices that have generated significant results.

During the diversity web seminar presentation, readers will learn:

• The difference between internal and external diversity councils and the benefits that each can bring to diversity initiatives
• The importance of CEO commitment and involvement in diversity councils to set firm goals and hold leaders accountable for reaching diversity metrics
• The key characteristics and attributes diversity-council members at Northrop Grumman must have to be selected as diversity leaders, plus the company’s key council goals
• The constituents of Prudential’s “head, hand and heart” diversity model and why it is so critical to the firm’s success in addressing customer needs and building their talent pipeline

Watch this diversity-seminar presentation on DiversityIncBestPractices.com.

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