Strategies to Address Inequality for Economic Growth

By 2053, Black wealth could fall to zero if current trends continue. This isn't just a number—it’s a stark reminder of systemic inequities and the urgency of collective action. But here’s the thing: statistics like this don’t tell the full story. They don’t account for the power we hold to shift the narrative. As leaders, innovators, and culture-makers, we must embrace wealth equity as a core strategy. Here’s how we can start rewriting the script: 1️⃣ Build Financial Resilience Through Ownership: Ownership—whether it’s businesses, real estate, or intellectual property—is one of the fastest paths to generational wealth. Minority-owned small businesses, for example, often overlook opportunities like supplier diversity programs or university procurement partnerships. Tapping into these underutilized resources can accelerate growth. 2️⃣ Invest In Community-Centric Innovation: Many of the apps, services, and products we rely on don’t center our lived experiences. Imagine if our $1.8 trillion in buying power was directed toward solutions built for us, by us. It’s time to create platforms that reflect our values and needs, not just consume them. 3️⃣ Prioritize Financial Literacy and Intentional Spending: Knowledge is power. From understanding the compounding effect of investments to teaching the next generation how to save and build credit, we must normalize financial conversations. Similarly, supporting Black-owned businesses should be an everyday practice—not just a seasonal one. 4️⃣ Collaborate and Scale Thoughtfully: Sometimes, intentional smallness is the path to big impact. Entrepreneurs, for example, don’t need to scale at the expense of sustainability. We can focus on profitable, community-centered growth without being pressured into rapid expansion. This isn’t just about avoiding a financial cliff—it’s about building a future where our contributions are valued, our stories are told, and our wealth is sustained. So, let’s not wait for solutions to come from elsewhere. Let’s lead. Let’s invest in ourselves, our communities, and our collective power. What steps are you taking today to shift this trajectory? I’d love to hear your perspective.

📈 Have you considered how diversity could be the key to your company's next breakthrough? 🔍 Consider this: A quarter of the world's assets, totaling $20 trillion, are ESG-managed. The global pandemic propelled ESG to the forefront, highlighting the vulnerability of supply chains, labor markets, and financial systems. These factors also reveal the need to advance the social component of ESG. In our rapidly evolving business landscape, the call for leadership diversity has never been more urgent. It promotes inclusive decision-making, innovation, and sustainable performance. Despite progress, less than 20% of corporate boards worldwide include women, and people of color hold just 12.5% of board seats at Fortune 500 companies. Diversity gaps on corporate boards are also found in the underrepresentation of individuals with disabilities. Disability:IN and American Association of People with Disabilities' 2022 DEI Disability Equality Index report shows that a mere 6% of S&P 500 companies have someone on their corporate board who openly identifies as having a disability. While more work needs to be done to address various demographic factors associated with diverse representation on boards, research also shows gaps in business strategy and international experience. According to Spierings (2022), only 67.5% of board members report having business strategy experience, and less than 15% have international experience. 🌐 By embracing a wider spectrum of perspectives, businesses can not only perform better but also contribute to a more equitable society. It is not just about good practice; it is about setting a foundation for sustainable and equitable growth. 🌟 Exciting News! 🌟 ➡️ In our newly published book chapter, "Achieving Societal Equality by Building Inclusive Corporate Boards," https://lnkd.in/gR3Vz3hR Yolanda Caldwell (she, her, hers) and Tissa Richards and I shed light on the critical gaps in corporate board diversity. But we don't just highlight the issues—we offer an actionable framework and strategies to address diversity gaps, foster inclusivity on existing boards, and prepare future board candidates for successful board service. By integrating the ESG framework and social psychology theory, we offer tools for improved decision-making and problem-solving. Our work underscores the critical need for broader diversity for sustainable, equitable business practices and charts a course for future research on inclusive corporate governance for stronger business performance and a positive societal impact. #DiversityInLeadership #CorporateGovernance #Innovation #SustainableBusiness #ESG #esgstrategy #genderdiversity #boarddiversity #socialequality This chapter can also be found in the book "Inclusive Leadership: Equity and Belonging in Our Communities" https://a.co/d/g8l7FIo published by EmeraldPublishing which is part of the International Leadership Association's Building Leadership Bridges series

A Lesson from Credit Suisse—I Watched It Happen. “Businesses don’t fail because they embrace diversity. They fail because they refuse to evolve.” As Global Head of Social Sustainability at Credit Suisse, I fought to push DEI beyond risk management into a commercial strategy—one that drove profitability, resilience, and long-term growth. Not just the right thing to do, but critical for business survival. If businesses were truly rational, Blockbuster would’ve bought Netflix, Kodak would’ve embraced digital photography, and Sears would still exist. But time and again, we see resistance to change—until it’s too late. I saw this at Credit Suisse. Leadership resisted change. Diversity of thought was limited. Decisions prioritized short-term survival over sustainability. I left because the firm wasn’t walking the talk. Less than a year later, Credit Suisse collapsed. Where Leadership Failed If they had promoted all 8 of us Black MDs to the Executive Board (EXB), they wouldn’t have lost billions like the team in place at the time. Collectively, we had 150+ years of experience spanning: ✔ Sustainability & Risk Management ✔ Sales, Trading & New Business Development ✔ Client Advisory, Operations & IT ✔ HR & Every Critical Function In-Between We understood risk, markets, and structural gaps. Instead of elevating seasoned, high-performing talent, they doubled down on the same leadership—straight into collapse. So Why Do Companies Act Against Their Own Best Interest? 1️⃣ Short-Term Thinking Over LT Strategy Companies live and die by quarterly earnings. Even when data supports DEI/Social Sustainability (“S”) as long-term profitability drivers, short-term pressures prevail. 2️⃣ Fear of Discomfort & Disruption DEI/“S” forces companies to confront inequities, shift power, and rethink access. Real change is uncomfortable. 3️⃣ Leadership Blind Spots Many executives operate in echo chambers. The status quo becomes the norm—until the bottom line suffers. 4️⃣ Weaponized Narratives & Culture Wars Some companies retreat from DEI not because it’s bad for business—but because they fear backlash. The irony? Customers and employees overwhelmingly support inclusive businesses. 5️⃣ Arrogance & Resistance to Change Market leaders ignore warning signs, dismiss disruptors, and assume past success guarantees future dominance—until it doesn’t. The Data Is Clear—Social Sustainability Drives Profit When Target faced a slump in 2016, what pulled them out? Diversity in leadership, supplier partnerships, and an intentional strategy to reach broader markets. Representation wasn’t just optics—it was business expansion. And it worked. “Businesses don’t fail because they embrace diversity. They fail because they refuse to evolve.” Thoughts? Marie Roker-Jones Tanyette Colon Erin Gallagher Allison Byers Samantha Katz Corrales Cachola Krishawna Goins Sharonda D. Leland Peyser #SocialSustainability #FutureOfBusiness #DiversityDrivesProfit #CorporateAccountability

Strengthening America's Supply Chain: The Critical Role of Minority Business Enterprises The newly released report, "Ways in Which Minority Business Enterprises Can Meet Gaps in the U.S. Supply Chain," exposes a critical gap in our economic landscape: the underutilization of Minority Business Enterprises (MBEs). These businesses represent nearly 20% of manufacturing and services firms in supply chain industries, yet account for only 6.3% of payrolls, highlighting a significant missed opportunity for both economic growth and supply chain resilience. 👁️ The Challenge: MBEs face significant barriers, including limited representation in high-growth sectors like advanced manufacturing (only 10% of firms). 💪 The Solution: The report identifies targeted strategies to bridge this gap, including: 💪 Expanding corporate supply chain diversity initiatives Fostering entrepreneurship in advanced industries 💪 Leveraging federal investments, such as the CHIPS Act, to ensure MBE participation 💥 Addressing barriers like capital access, workforce readiness, and network disparities is crucial. 💥 By fostering public-private partnerships and implementing innovation-driven policies, we can empower MBEs to drive economic inclusion and strengthen our supply chains. Want to be part of the solution? Dive deeper into the data and discover how we can collectively empower MBEs to thrive. Download the full report now! [Link to Report] #SupplyChain #MBE #EconomicGrowth #EconomicOpportunity #SupplyChainResilience

"US Congress has passed 3 landmark #investment bills...directing more than $2 trillion in investment to bolster physical #infrastructure, promote #innovation & economic competitiveness, & shore up the domestic industrial base. This suite of #legislation also aims to redress long-standing inequalities by laying a stronger foundation for sustainable & inclusive #growth...While the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law allocates a majority of its #funding by applying a fixed formula, the #law is distinct from past investments in that roughly 40% of all net new grant funding opportunities are available through competitive application processes. These competitive opportunities encompass more than $180 billion in available grant #money - a resource pool that can empower state & local governments to develop infrastructure strategies that address the needs of all residents, including marginalized communities. These opportunities are further amplified by an additional $80 billion in competitive grants from the the Inflation Reduction Act...In the service of sustainable, inclusive economic growth, state leaders could consider 3 actions: *identifying a broad range of state-specific stakeholders, including those that represent marginalized groups *optimizing funding by providing targeted support to critical stakeholders as they pursue competitive grant opportunities *considering proactive steps to promote #transparency at each stage of the infrastructure investment journey." excerpts by Henry Feldman Danielle Hinton, PhD Adi Kumar Nehal Mehta Kunal Modi McKinsey & Company #InspiredByYou in this report: https://lnkd.in/ehXNJNUZ "For state & local governments, it's crucial to acknowledge and bolster the contributions of #women in #business. Their accomplishments shape their immediate communities and set the tone for broader economic growth and stability. To make the environment more inclusive, states and MSAs can: *increase access to funding, including #loans, #grants, and financial #incentives. *introduce or improve support programs that offer #government #supplier #diversity programs, training, counseling, and #networking. *ease tax burdens and actively promote workforce diversity to simplify the business climate. Public campaigns can challenge stereotypes and help women #entrepreneurs thrive...The rankings' differences illustrate women's varying #impact on the #economy, influenced by local conditions, policies, and opportunities." #data excerpts & image in "demographic backgrounders from the inaugural 2023 Wells Fargo #Impact of Women-Owned Businesses" by Ventureneer CoreWoman WIPP Education Institute: https://lnkd.in/eS9ApqKs #investing #finance #banking #assetmanagement #markets #venturecapital #privateequity #smallbusiness #philanthropy #equity #inclusion #sustainability #cultureofmoney

That over 2.1 million people are dying from hunger each year at a minimum due to inequality, and that an estimated 5.6 million people die every year from lack of access to healthcare in poor countries, bothers me deeply. You don’t have to experience poverty or lose a loved one due to hunger to relate to the systemic inequalities that we have created in the world today. Extreme inequality perpetuated through systemic and structural policies that favor the wealthiest and most powerful individuals is violence against humanity. We cannot continue on this path, we must not continue going the wrong way. Today’s session convened by Oxfam International and Coalition for the UN We Need (C4UNWN) at the ongoing HLPF on "Consequences of Inequality in Achieving Agenda 2030 and the Pact for the Future: Global and Regional Perspective" got me thinking about the world we have created—one driven by greed, where wealth & control lie in a few hands instead of being distributed fairly. Listening to the panel of speakers was enlightening and we can all agree that we know what the problem is and we have the solutions to these problems. The question then remains how do we go about solving those issues. I asked a question as ‘’ How can we ensure that the structural policy choices made in our economic systems prioritize the needs of the poorest, women, girls, and racialized groups?’’ I would also love to share some key recommendations given during these talks to address inequalities and achieve SDGs 1. There is need to implement progressive taxation systems. Claw back extreme wealth through fair and progressive taxation systems that redistribute resources and reduce the wealth gap. 2. Invest in Public Services: Allocate resources to powerful, proven public measures such as education, healthcare, and social protection programs that directly benefit marginalized communities. 3. Enhance Social Safety Nets: Strengthen social safety nets to protect the most vulnerable populations from economic shocks and ensure basic human rights are met. 4. Promote Inclusive Economic Policies: Design and implement economic policies that prioritize the needs of the poorest, women, girls, and racialized groups, ensuring their voices are heard and included in decision-making processes. 5. Strengthen International Cooperation: Foster international collaboration to address global inequalities, particularly between developed and developing countries, through fair trade practices, debt relief, and equitable access to resources. 6. Support Youth and Grassroots Movements: Empower and invest in youth and grassroots movements advocating for social and economic reforms, recognizing their vital role in driving change. I have faith that we can create economies where freedom from want is a reality, where everyone not only survives but thrives and hopes. This is the defining choice of our generation, and it is one that must be made now. #HighLevelPolicalForum #LetsEndInwquality #SDG10 #UN