In a new episode of the Financial Planning Podcast, a veteran diversity consultant explains how a major industry vendor is trying to help remove barriers against historically excluded groups.
Sales enablement firm Seismic, which works with Ameriprise and Advisor Group as part of a client list spanning four out of the five largest wealth managers, appointed Donna DeBerry its vice president of inclusion in February. DeBerry brought 30 years of experience in diversity and inclusion roles with financial firms such as J.P. Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers, along with tenures at Starbucks, Nike, the NBA, the NFL, AARP and other stops.
In the podcast, FP Chief Correspondent Tobias Salinger asks DeBerry five questions about the industry’s commitment to recruiting and retaining advisors, clients and professionals who are Black, Latino or other minorities and Seismic’s plans for making an impact through its business.
Seismic
1. You’ve worked with many kinds of firms, including some very big names in the financial services. How and why are financial institutions changing in their leadership and practices?
2. Historically the financial services have excluded Black Americans, Latinos and other minorities. How can industries like wealth management ensure there’s greater access to capital?
3. You joined Seismic earlier this year as the vice president of global inclusion. How do you approach the challenge of that title and the weight of all the factors that go into it?
4. What are Seismic’s plans, and what’s your strategy for implementing them now that you have been in the role for six months?
5. How has this conversation changed in the past year with the coronavirus and the protests after the murder of George Floyd? How do you measure success?
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