JP Morgan Makes Diversity Push for Clients and Staff

JP Morgan Wealth Management is to step up its drive to serve more Black and Latinx clients and to help recruit more staff from these communities.

The company will hire 300 additional Black and Latinx advisors by 2025, it said in a statement issued last week.

The move builds on the firm’s $30 billion commitment to advance racial equality. The strategy will include partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and initiatives to promote internal mobility.

Advisors will have access to a development program lasting 2-3 years. The training will provide about 270 candidates with the investment knowledge, mentorship, and coaching needed to become a successful financial advisor. Nearly 80% of the participants are women or minorities.

The firm’s diverse hiring plan puts great emphasis on supporting Black and Latinx careers over time.

“It is not enough bringing a diverse workforce through the door, you need to have a whole support team that makes them feel like they belong and can build a career,” said Christopher Thompson, head of diverse advisor experience at JPMorgan Wealth Management.

“A lack of networking and mentorship opportunities reduces the chances of making real progress regarding diverse talent.”

Meanwhile, the firm is also targeting an improvement of its delivery of products to better serve women, Black and Latinx investors and other under-represented groups. A dedicated team will spearhead new research and lead the development of experiences, tools and investment products designed with the needs and preferences of diverse clients in mind.

“There is a huge segment of the population that is not participating in investing,” said Jeanne Sun, general manager of inclusive investing. “The entire industry has not been able to earn the trust, understand the needs and provide the right solutions for women and people of color.

“The data is staggering and we need not only to set goals but also measurable objectives to tackle this issue and help close the wealth gap.”

In recent months, financial companies have been exploring how to address inequality and diversity issues within their workforces and the communities they serve.

Truist Financial Corporation laid out plans to improve the diversity of its workforce over the next three years in its most recent corporate social responsibility report, published in September.

Consultancy giant Willis Towers Watson published a report in October outlining the importance of diversity within asset management companies, identifying eight action points for improvement.