#155 Building Diverse Data Teams with Tracy Daniels, Chief Data Officer at Truist

Sep 18, 2023

Tracy Daniels, Chief Data Officer at Truist, boasts over 25 years in banking and tech. In this discussion, she highlights the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in building effective data teams. Tracy shares strategies for creating inclusive workplaces that value all voices, balancing extroverts and introverts in communication. She emphasizes measuring DEI success through concrete metrics and maintaining accountability. Personal anecdotes drive home the necessity for ongoing learning and advocacy in fostering diverse data environments.

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INSIGHT

Diversity vs. Inclusion

Diversity is about representation from different groups and perspectives.
Inclusion is creating an environment where everyone feels valued, heard, and productive.

ANECDOTE

Truist's DEI Approach

Truist's DEI approach aligns with its purpose of building better lives and communities.
They focus on increasing representation of women and people of color by 15-20%.

ADVICE

Consequences of Poor DEI

Failing at DEI can lead to non-inclusive products and missed customer opportunities.
Lack of DEI can also cause organizations to miss out on talented problem solvers.

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In data science, the push for unbiased machine learning models is evident. So much effort is made into ensuring the products we create are done thoughtfully and correctly, but are we investing the same effort in ensuring our teams, the very architects of these models, are diverse and inclusive? Bias in data can lead to skewed results, and similarly, a lack of diversity in teams can result in narrow perspectives. As we prioritize building diversity and inclusion into our data, it's equally crucial to embed these principles within our teams. So, who is best equipped to guide us in integrating DEI from a data perspective?

Tracy Daniels is the Chief Data Officer for Truist Financial Corporation. She leads the team responsible for Truist’s enterprise data capabilities, including strategy, governance, data platform delivery, client, master & reference data, and the centers of excellence for business intelligence visualization and artificial intelligence & machine learning. She is also

the executive sponsor for Truist’s Enterprise Technology & Operations Diversity Council. Daniels joined Truist in 2018. She has more than 25 years of banking and technology experience leading high performing technology portfolio, development, infrastructure and global operations organizations. Tracy enjoys participating in civic and philanthropic endeavors including serving on the Georgia State University Foundation Board of Trustees. She has been recognized as a National 2013 WOC STEM Rising Star award recipient, the 2017 Working Mother magazine Mother of the Year recipient, and a 2021 Women In Technology (WIT) Women of the Year in STEAM finalist.

In the episode Tracy and Richie discuss Truist's approach to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and its alignment with the company's purpose and values, the distinction between diversity and inclusion, the positive outcomes of implementing DEI correctly, the importance of not missing opportunities both externally with customers and internally with talent, the significance of aligning diversity programs with business metrics and hiring to promote DEI, considerations for job advertisements that appeal to a diverse audience, and much more.

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