Four takeaways from inaugural Belk College Dean’s Leadership Series.

Monday, October 5, 2020

Charlotte-based business leaders Latesha Byrd ‘12, CEO and founder, Byrd Career Consulting; Mike Freno, president and head of investments, Barings; Omar Jorge Peña, CEO, Compare Foods; and Craig Parkin, senior managing director, TIAA, participated in the inaugural installment of the virtual Dean’s Leadership Series on Monday, Sept. 28. They discussed “Leading on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.” Watch the full segment on YouTube, but here are four takeaways from the event:

1. D&I should be a core business function

“I would say [diversity, equity and inclusion] starts from within the organization. It’s definitely driven at the top of the organization, but also when you think about promotion, that can be for really all employees. I think that D&I should be looked at as a core business function the same way we put resources, energy and time into our marketing and accounting operations. It can’t be solved overnight.”
Latesha Byrd

2. Leaders must be open-minded  

“We have to create the environment and the safe place in an organization to have these bold moments. Providing leaders and managers with the tools to do this. It starts from the top with leadership to encourage those conversations.”
– Craig Parkin

3. Create a change of culture

Omar G. Jorge Peña, said if everyone doesn’t know the rules, then it’s not a fair game. He has worked to change the culture of managers from being a boss to being an educator. “Your job is to be a teacher, to guide your supervisees and give them the tools and understanding,” he added.

4. Keep employees up to date about diversity and inclusion efforts

“Start the conversation in smaller groups to better develop a level of sincerity and patience for employees’ feelings and show that it is a priority. As long as people are operating from a level of sincerity that we're all trying to understand, and we all want to see what life is like through a different lens, you build that trust. And we're building muscles that most firms, and ours included, don't have.”
– Mike Freno

The Dean’s Leadership Series aims to give back to the Charlotte business community and celebrate the college’s 50th anniversary. 

The next Dean’s Leadership Series will be on Wednesday, Oct. 15, focusing on the Implications of COVID-19 for Commercial Real Estate.