Jedi master Obi-Wan Kenobi knew Luke Skywalker was the rebellion’s best new hope, and he took his mentorship of the young Jedi very seriously. Executive leaders must do the same—take an active role in cultivating high-level talent to help them master the (work)force.
Synchrony Bank, for one, is focused on developing leadership diversity through its Advancing Diverse Talent (ADT) Leadership Institute, an initiative designed to retain, develop, and promote top talent at all levels, including leadership.
One of the institute’s most successful programs, the ADT fellows initiative, nurtures the next generation of SVPs by connecting execs with up-and-comers from diverse backgrounds.
“We had an executive leadership team, all direct reports to the CEO, that signed up and were willing to take on a sponsee individual and really carry that on,” said Synchrony’s Michael Matthews, chief diversity, inclusion, and corporate responsibility officer.
Sponsorship was an important distinction for Matthews and his people-team colleagues when it came to developing the program in 2020. The fellows, he found, needed more than just mentorship.
“The piece that was missing was getting access to the opportunity to compete—getting seen, getting their foot in the door,” he said.
While mentorship is still core to the bank’s leadership development, sponsorship ensures executive sponsors don’t just advise, but advocate for sponsees.
Sponsorship: Mentorship, and then some. The institute’s program connects fellows—those with executive-level capacity and promotability—with a sponsor who helps them develop the skills required to become a senior VP. Sponsors make sure executives hiring for senior roles know about the fellows: their stories, qualifications, and unique experiences.
Synchrony’s SVP for product optimization, Enrique Przeticky, has worked at the company for more than two decades, leading several teams during his tenure. But he said that the fellows program and his sponsor helped him actually “break the ceiling” into an SVP role.
The Buenos Aires native worked with Curtis Howse, executive VP and CEO of Synchrony’s home and auto platform, on improving his corporate leadership.
“This is much different from a mentor,” Przeticky said. “The sponsor does not only provide advice and suggestions, but this is the one advocating for me.”
During regular meetings, Przeticky and Howse, who is Black, exchanged notes and tips about executive presence, communication, and personal branding. The two were also able to connect over their shared personal experiences growing at the company as leaders from diverse backgrounds.
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During the nine-month fellows program, Przeticky built key relationships with other fellows and the bank’s executive leadership team, all while honing his leadership skills with Howse.
When the bank created a new SVP role for product integration, Przeticky was ready and top-of-mind for the executives who were naming candidates. But that wouldn’t have been the case without the fellows program and Howse’s advocacy “in those places where decisions are made,” Przeticky said.
Mentorship is foundational. Sponsorship may be what sets the ADT fellows program apart from others, but without mentorship, there can be no sponsorship. Susan Harmeling, a professor at University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business, said that this rapport-building is vital to growing diverse talent in the workplace.
“Mentorship is extremely important for diverse hires,” Harmeling said. “What’s interesting about mentorship and the DE&I context is it goes both ways.”
Companies interested in growing the diversity of their talent pool need this type of program so that “very homogeneous” (100% or close to 100% white and male) execs can better lead a diverse workforce, and so hires with diverse backgrounds will be motivated to work for and stay with the company.
Do or do not. There is no try. Harmeling said programs that produce real, vulnerable relationships between those at the top and up-and-comers will also produce leaders that reflect a diverse workforce.
“It’s just very important to really get to know people and get to know them pretty fully before you can sincerely and genuinely champion them for a position,” she said.
More than just diverse promotions, Claudine Hoverson, Synchrony’s SVP and chief talent officer, said the bank’s leadership development programs are a vital retention tool, especially in today’s talent market.
“It has to align with your business strategy. You have to have a business case and think about this as a business objective,” she said of leadership development programs. “If you treat it that way, then the outcomes will be supported.”—AD
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