It is up to the leaders in financial firms to make diversity a priority for the management and hiring of staff, according to advisors who attended a recent all-day diversity summit in New York City.
Bringing diversity to the firm cannot be just another task to check off a list, said the participants of the summit, which was sponsored by the CFP Board’s Center for Financial Planning.
That recommendation was among the ideas for action that the advisors and financial professionals who attended the summit developed at the end of the day. After listening to several speakers and panels on diversity issues, the attendees broke into groups of five or six people to talk about what they learned and what they need to do.
“What is different about this conference is that the stage has been set. Everyone is thinking about [the issues] and everyone is feeling about it [because] there is a lot of emotion around diversity discussions,” said Catalina Camoscio, vice president of recruiting and development for Prudential, after one of the sessions.
The breakout groups are going to be “conversations around problem solving and about what we are prepared to commit to in order to advance the ball,” she said.
Another conclusion reached by a group was that hiring professionals should realize compensation strategies that rely on commissions do not work for those without financial resources to fall back on while they build business.
Those entering the field need to pick a mentor to help advance them within a firm, and firms need to establish mentorship programs to help employees, the advisors said.
Financial planners should take advantage of the CFP board mentoring program, connect with NextGen financial planners and learn to connect with more diverse candidates, the panels said.
Firms should be intentional and genuine in the diversity efforts and work to make new diverse hires included at every step of their careers, participants said. The firms need to set measurable goals and members of the firm need to make sure management meets its goals, the advisors said.
Structures also need to be in place to make sure new minority employees feel comfortable and rewarded so that they stay with a firm once they are hired.