The Evolution of Financial Services, the Black Community in America, and DEI
Against the backdrop of increasingly widespread DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives, Black professionals account for only 13% of the U.S. financial services workforce, and only 8% of C-suite executives are Black. Christopher Johnson, President of Global Financial Services at Pitney Bowes, drawing on his own experience, points out that systemic barriers still exist and proposes four concrete actions: increasing participation rates, reforming credit assessment, shifting to skills-based hiring, and cultivating the next generation of Black leaders, urging the industry to open dialogue to catalyze change.
Editor's note:Christopher Johnson is president of Global Financial Services at Pitney Bowes, headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
When I lean forward and introduce myself as "Christopher," a flicker of surprise often crosses the other person's face; when they realize the white man standing beside me is not the Christopher they've been emailing, they do a double take; and when we sit down to begin the meeting and they reassess my credentials and seniority, an uncomfortable awkwardness fills the air.
I've seen this scenario countless times. Yet it's not entirely unexpected—Black employees account for only13%of all workers in the financial industry. Furthermore, Black representation in C-suite executive roles at U.S. companies isonly 8%. So why should I be surprised when people look shocked as I introduce myself as "president"?
Although many companies have tried to address inequality in recent years through newly established "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion" (DEI) programs, the underrepresentation of all minority groups in the financial services industry remains significant.
This issue is doubly significant to me: on one hand, I am a Black man fortunate enough to have risen to senior financial positions at global shipping and mailing company Pitney Bowes (and previously at companies like GE Capital); on the other, I am the father of two children who wonder whether they too can find opportunities in this industry. As it stands, I cannot give them a definitive yes.
I am fortunate. To be sure, as a Black man in finance, I have faced visible obstacles, but one factor has benefited me immensely—the objective, results-oriented side of the business. Numbers are my strength, so my performance opened doors for me, giving me access to senior executives who became important mentors.
The Glass Ceiling
Growing up, my grandmother often told me: aim for the moon, because even if you miss, you'll land among the stars. That saying has carried me through my entire career.
Although objective performance earned me attention, I quickly found myself facing a "glass ceiling." I gradually realized that in the U.S., I was excluded from certain positions not due to lack of qualifications, but because of race. So I chose to work overseas and tried even harder to prove that even when knocked down, I was willing to get back up and fight harder.
My mentors invested their time, energy, and money in me, and most importantly, they opened up their networks to me, providing connections that minorities in the financial services industry often find difficult to obtain. Without my mentors' investment, I would never have held the title of "president." That's all there is to it.
A question I often ask myself is: how do we get more minorities into the financial services industry? Here are some actions that might help change the status quo:
1) Increase participation rates first
We can cite simple methods such as blind resume reviews, implementing diversity quotas, or recruiting directly from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). However, there are still segments of the Black community in the U.S. that lack access to higher education, which immediately closes the door to the financial services industry for them. Therefore, we first need to address some of the systemic issues oppressing Black communities.
2) Find better (and fairer) ways to assess credit
Most Black Americans live in urban areas, which means they are less likely to own a home or a car—the two primary means of building personal credit. Without accumulated personal credit, Black Americans cannot access the loan capital they need and are immediately disadvantaged in a system not designed to be fair. As financial leaders, we need to rethink what constitutes "good credit" and evaluate loan applications from a broader perspective rather than relying solely on a credit score.
3) Focus on skills, not pedigree
Beyond reassessing how we evaluate credit, we can also examine how we recruit and evaluate employees. In recent years, I've been pleased to see a clear shift toward skills-based hiring and promotion. We discuss core competencies and certifications internally, rather than past work experience. All institutions should begin hiring based on skills, rather than whether a resume lists a top-tier Wall Street internship.
4) Invest time in developing the next generation of Black leaders
Finally, each of us has a responsibility to invest time in supporting the next generation of Black leaders. I hope to double the current 8% of Black C-suite executives within the next five years. We can achieve this by becoming accustomed to hiring people who may not look like us. Through mentorship, sponsorship, and allyship, we can encourage participation and give a voice to minorities who otherwise have no seat at the table.
I don't have all the answers, but I believe that to build a more inclusive and diverse financial industry, the first step is to start conversations with leaders, peers, family, and friends, planting seeds of discomfort about a system that automatically disadvantages and excludes many. We need people to feel uncomfortable, because that is where change is born.