Worcester Business Journal Special Editions

Worcester Business Journal 29 D I V E R S I T Y & I N C L U S I O N F O C U S I n February 2020, Webster Five's Don Doyle signed the CEO Act!on for Diversity & Inclusion pledge. By signing this commitment, Don joined a growing coalition of CEO's pledging to advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We're pleased to sit down with him for a Q&A on what steps Webster Five is taking to address diversity, equity, and inclusion and how those actions impact the bank's employees, customers, and communities it serves. Why did you sign the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion Pledge in February? By signing this pledge, I reaffirmed my commitment to take action and foster a workplace that embraces diversity, inclusion and belonging. In joining this sig- natory group of more than 1000 CEOs I am able to learn, share and collaborate with my peers to affect real change. It also provides me additional unique per- spectives on how to lead inclusively. What is Webster Five doing to support its diverse local communities? Through the Webster Five Foundation we provide grants to local nonprofit organizations that support improving access to education, social services and community development. Since its inception, the Foundation has donated more than $2M. In addition, our employees have the opportunity to participate in a paid Volunteer Time-Off program donating their time and talents to nonprofit causes they are passionate about. Webster Five recognized a need among our area's growing immigrant populations, some of which pool their money to help one another purchase a home. We launched this Pool Financing Program to spe- cifically serve low-to-moderate income communities. It was born from being culturally aware and wanting to help. What steps is Webster Five taking to foster a more diverse and inclusive culture? Webster Five's Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Committee focuses on advancing DEI initiatives throughout the organization. The Committee conduct- ed a bank-wide DEI Pulse Survey. The results set benchmarks and sparked initia- tives that included holding skip-level meetings to deepen our understanding of the challenges our employees face. I serve as a co-chair of the DEI Committee and to ensure we are dedicating resources to this important issue, created a Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion position. We are truly fortunate to have our head of HR, Terri Flynn in this role. Under her leadership, Webster Five conducts annual DEI training for all employees incorporating diversity awareness, workplace inclusion, and unconscious bias. We have also partnered with a consultant to help us conduct sessions from our boardroom to our front line discussing foster- ing diversity, equity and inclusion through learning dialogue. How are you creating opportunities to listen and learn from each other? We hold quarterly all-employee partnership meetings, where we come together as a team to share what we've accomplished, what we're working on, and cele- brate each other. Prior to the meetings, we ask employees to submit questions and topics they would like to talk about. I opened our last partnership meeting after the killing of George Floyd by denouncing racism because I believe this needs to be stated unequivocally. We continued the dialogue and had a candid, challenging, and personal conversation during our next DEI Committee meet- ing. Since I became CEO, one of my first initiatives was to begin holding casual lunches with small groups of employees. Employees know it is a safe space for expressing themselves. We have honest conversations about what's working, what's not, and what I can do to help make Webster Five a better workplace. All of Webster Five senior leadership team does the same. During October, Global Diversity Awareness Month, the DEI Committee has invited all employees to join in a selfie activity, we're posting on our social channels what diversity and inclu- sion in the workplace means to us as individuals. We continually look for new opportunities to listen and learn from each other. AFFECTING CHANGE: A Diversity & Inclusion Q&A with Webster Five CEO Donald Doyle W At Webster Five, we give businesses like Chizoma's the tools they need to thrive. As a business owner you can count on us. Now and in the future. Visit web5.com or call 800.696.9401 WEBSTER • DUDLEY • OXFORD • AUBURN • WORCESTER • SHREWSBURY Member FDIC Member DIF NMLS #523049 "If I didn't have the relationship I have with the bank I'm with now, I probably wouldn't have received my PPP loan." CHIZOMA NOSIKE Owner, Acclaim Home Health Care CUSTOMER SINCE 2019 WE'RE DOING OUR PART SO THAT SMALL BUSINESSES CAN DO THEIRS. Special Sponsored Section

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