DS News - HSBC

74 of Minority and Women Inclusion at FHFA. "It comes down to engagement. Diversity and inclusion makes us all better, given that we're all different and we're all diverse in some way. You could be a white, middle-aged male, but you could also be from a rural demographic, which is very different from a white, middle-aged male who is from an urban environment and who thinks differently from the rural person. at's not even getting into race or gender, because you're comparing apples to apples—it's geographical diversity." "Being diverse and inclusive tends to direct resources towards individuals and communities that have had barriers to economic activity or access or participation," said Michael Ruiz, Director of Supplier Diversity, Fannie Mae. "By going down that road, you're putting resources into communities that have traditionally been underserved, and you are positively impacting the ability of the individuals that make up those communities to lead productive and happier lives. Building a sustainable community is all about having the resources with which to live in said community and to educate one's families. You can't do that without the economic underpinnings." DIVERSIFYING THE PIPELINE "It's more of a conversation about expectations as we do not have targets or quotas in place," said Stephanie Roemer, Director, Workforce Diversity, Freddie Mac. "When it comes to both hiring and promoting, it is your obligation to ensure that internal and external talent pipelines are diverse. By doing so, you are increasing opportunities to diversify the workforce at all levels." Many of those we interviewed touched upon this notion of "the pipeline," suggesting that D&I hiring initiatives should be more about ensuring access and working to recruit from a broad and diverse pool of talent rather than trying to tick boxes off from one subcategory or another arbitrarily. "Our clients have a desire and an expectation to do business with companies where the employees reflect the individual differences of the communities in which they serve," Cummings said. "Making sure we're aligned, understand, and have language capabilities is going to help our clients better understand the financial services we provide." "When I think of diversity, it doesn't only represent the standard differences we talk about regarding race, culture, gender, sexual orientation, and so on," said Adam Saab, EVP and COO, LoanCare. "It's also about including people with varying backgrounds. If we want to move the mortgage industry forward, we have to think of innovative ways to do that. I've had great success with people from industries outside of mortgage, bringing them in and applying their prior experience to new ways of doing the work." "I entered the industry by chance," Saab continued. "A guest from a large bank came into the bar I was tending, recognized my ability to relate with people, and thought I might be a good fit. Six months later, I was working for a large bank as a loss mitigator. If that person had thought, 'We are only looking for someone with mortgage experience,' and hadn't recognized that people from other industries have things to offer, then I wouldn't be here talking with you today. If you only hire the same kind of people you already have, you're going to miss out on new ideas and innovative ways to move the industry forward." One of the diversity challenges many companies are facing right now concerns the generation gap as the industry works to both better serve and effectively recruit from the millennial and younger generations, bringing them into a workforce that has often trended older. "e employees that we're hiring now are younger, just out of college, more millennial, and diversity and inclusion is important to them," Dillard explained. "ey value that feeling of community at work, that feeling like you're accepted for who you are, that you can be your authentic self at work and be valued because you're different. Everybody doesn't have to be the same. at is the table stakes when it comes to hiring these days. We have to up our game, so we have an industry that's exciting and appeals to the new worker." "Our goal is to have a good mix of legacy employees who have been here for a while and fresh faces from varying backgrounds," Saab said. "We are strongly focused on getting people fresh out of high school or college via intern programs. Our industry has a lot of really good folks who've been here for decades, but how do you relate to the new generation of homeowners who are coming up? It's sometimes hard for someone that grew up in a time before digital communication to fully grasp the millennial generation's desire for all-digital communication." "You've got a large sector of baby boomers who are your customer base. You may alienate those clients if you try to force everyone into automation," Cummings said. "So how do you provide services that are going to be appealing and acceptable to all generations of your client base? And how do you have the employees who are going to be able to assist those particular clients? I have two millennials myself, and if you don't text them, you're not going to hear from them." "Understanding and embracing diversity and inclusion is a critical component in not only recruiting and retaining the best talent but also in being well positioned to serve your client base." —Kathy Cummings, SVP, Home Ownership and Solutions and Affordable Housing Programs, Bank of America

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