Synchrony Highlights Workforce Diversity Progress, North Star to Advance Equity

Gaby M. Rojas on Jun 2, 2023

Synchrony released its Diversity Report, highlighting its progress around its data-driven approach to hiring and developing diverse talent.

“Synchrony is committed to advancing equity, diversity and inclusion which is why we made it a strategic business imperative,” says Brian Doubles, President and CEO of Synchrony. “In 2020, we looked at our data and realized we hadn’t made nearly enough progress. That’s when we changed our approach. We rethought the way we hire and advance diverse talent. We evolved how we measure outcomes and hold ourselves accountable for progress.”

Cultivating an equitable, diverse, and inclusive culture for all

The report details the company’s vision for progress towards a more equitable and inclusive future which include:

Evolve the workforce to reflect the diversity of Synchrony’s communities, with 50 percent gender diversity across all groups globally. In the U.S., the company is striving for ethnic representation commensurate with the U.S. Census. Synchrony also aspires to continue to maintain its 100 percent pay equity.
Nurture a culture of inclusion with 75 percent of all employees participating across the company’s Diversity Networks.
Increase access to education in underserved communities. This includes providing educational support and training for 2,000 underserved students as part of the Synchrony Foundation’s Education as an Equalizer initiative.

Additional highlights from Synchrony’s Diversity Report include:

Advancing Diverse Talent – Core to Synchrony’s approach is a focus on equity backed by data and analytics, which inform its strategies to hire, develop and advance underrepresented talent. As a result, the company has put more focus on increasing Black, Hispanic and gender employee representation at the vice president level and above and redesigned its leadership programs. During the last three years (between Jan. 2020 and Dec. 2022):
- At the vice president level, 27 percent of hires were Black and Hispanic, 19 percent of promotions were Black and Hispanic, and 40 percent of hires and 51 percent of promotions were women.
- At the senior and executive vice president level, 46 percent of hires were Black and Hispanic, 27 percent of promotions were Black and Hispanic, and 38 percent of hires and 48 percent of promotions were women.

Investing in Equity – Synchrony committed $100 million in Ariel Alternatives’ Project Black to scale minority-owned businesses to become leading Fortune 500 suppliers. The company also strengthened its own supplier diversity program, achieving a 200 percent increase in the number of 2022 proposal submissions by diverse suppliers.
Education as an Equalizer – The Synchrony Foundation increases access to higher education, skills training and financial education for underserved communities and its own workforce. Through the company’s five-year $50 million commitment, Synchrony has developed partnerships with and donated more than $11 million to more than 40 nonprofits and academic institutions globally since 2020 to support scholarships, mentorships, financial education and leadership experiences.

Synchrony’s Global Diversity Experience

During last week’s Synchrony Global Diversity Experience, Brian Doubles and Michael Matthews, Synchrony’s chief diversity, inclusion and corporate responsibility officer, discussed the company’s progress in growing diverse representation, building an inclusive culture that drives innovation and increasing opportunities for underserved communities.

“We lead with equity in everything we do,” Matthews says. “Our focus will remain steadfast on driving systemic, actionable change within our workforce and in our communities. We still have a long road ahead, but we are energized by the progress made, the momentum we built and the commitment we have to continue.”

Hundreds of employees participated in the three-day event with the company’s Board members, executives and Diversity Network leaders in Chicago, and thousands more joined from more than 20 Synchrony locations around the globe and virtually from their homes. This year’s theme highlighted the need to see, feel and do “more” to drive meaningful and continuous, lasting change.

Synchrony hosted thought-provoking keynote and panel discussions, including conversations with DJ Casto, Synchrony’s chief human resources officer and Arianna Huffington, founder and CEO of Thrive Global; Michelle MiJung Kim, social justice activist and author of The Wake Up: Closing the Gap Between Good Intentions and Real Change; Francisco Cantú, writer and author of The Line Becomes a River; and Javier Zamora, poet and author of the memoir Solito, along with diverse Synchrony leaders.

Employees also volunteered in community service projects to support their local communities. Students from the nonprofit buildOn kicked off a volunteer event where Synchrony employees assembled 10,000 kits (which include financial education resources) for elementary and college students. In addition, Synchrony donated 10,000 soccer balls to local Chicago nonprofits.
Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/9126452-synchrony-diversity-report-2022/