in untapped markets. As a community engagement leader, I was able to build meaningful relationships and uncover new client opportunities by understanding needs through a broad, intersectional cultural lens, developing solutions that meet people where they are while building the company brand and influence in the community. Just these couple of examples demonstrate how my dimensions of diversity and cultural competency have served me well in driving business results. This is the power of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion for businesses! Now, take a moment to imagine how your company can leverage Diversity, Equity & Inclusion to accelerate your business goals. Focus on the work, not the destination, and you will enjoy success! Additionally, diverse teams are more tapped into different experiences, which gives your organization more options and greater flexibility. They are more effective at identifying new opportunities and tend to be more innovative, resourceful and better at ideation and driving growth. Moving Forward with Diversity, Equity & Inclusion At Old National, our heightened Diversity, Equity & Inclusion efforts over the last two years have helped define our culture and drive our positive results. We continue to believe our approach to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion is a competitive advantage and a differentiator to our business success. As a leader of this work, I firmly believe that focusing on Diversity, Equity & Inclusion never comes at the expense of success. Rather, a strategically implemented Diversity, Equity & Inclusion approach in your business will propel you to greater heights by providing you access to new partnerships, relationships and new clients. My 20+ year career in financial services in roles in wealth management, commercial lending as well as community engagement and corporate philanthropy uniquely shapes my perspective on the power of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in business. In my previous client-facing roles, my lived experience coupled with deep industry expertise opened new business opportunities DIGITAL EXTRA Whether you have never done any Diversity, Equity & Inclusion work or you’ve had dedicated staff for years, the IBA has created a new Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Roadmap that will help you find your on-ramp and get you where you want to be. From answering questions about how these programs can improve your bottom line, to concrete ideas on how to get started and deeper dives that can take your programming and services to the next level, there are ideas for banks of every size. Thank you to the bankers from nine IBA-member banks who formed the IBA Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee to create this resource. Corliss Garner Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer Old National Bank, Evansville Corliss.Garner@OldNational.com Corliss has been with Old National since 2022 and is a member of the IBA Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee. She was named to then-Chicago Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson’s Transition Committee serving on the Human Rights, Equity, & Inclusion Subcommittee in 2023 and was listed as one of Chicago’s 2023 Business Leaders of Color by Chicago United. 11 JULY/AUGUST 2024
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