El Paso, Texas. (Source: Shutterstock)
As organizations come out with statements expressing their support of the importance of diversity within their organizations, some C-Suite leaders are taking real, actionable steps to strategically move the diversity and inclusion needle.
Case in point, Teachers Federal Credit Union, located in El Paso, Texas, reached out to Credit Union Strategic Planning, which provides business planning services for credit unions with a focus on community development, to help elevate its diversity, equity and inclusion efforts to "a strategic and actionable level so it becomes engrained in the credit union's culture."
TFCU, which has $730 million in assets, sought out this expert guidance "to prioritize its DEI efforts" and in turn generate superior organizational decisions, according to a statement by CEO Max Villaronga.
"We believe that a diversity of perspectives and ideas leads to more optimal decision making," Villaronga said. "Strategically, it is valuable to embrace various types of diversity to deliver better decision making outcomes. The ongoing nature of the engagement is related to the reality that cultural transformation takes a lot of time."
Ronaldo Hardy As they looked for the right DEI partner, Villaronga said they chose CU Strategic Planning based on the reputation of its chief diversity officer and co-owner, Ronaldo Hardy, who is well known as a DEI thought leader.
"[Hardy] genuinely cares and understands DEI which fit what we were trying to do," Villaronga said in an announcement.
And the feeling is mutual. Hardy said he sees a real opportunity for change in the credit union industry through this partnership.
"We are truly grateful TFCU and Max see DEI as a top priority," Hardy said. "I'm gratified that organizations, like TFCU, are developing intentionality around their efforts toward diversity, equity and inclusion. I'm honored and humbled they selected me and CU Strategic Planning to help the credit union along its DEI journey."
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Heather Nevitt
Heather D. Nevitt is the Editor-in-Chief of Corporate Counsel and Global Leaders in Law.
