Studies show that employee resource groups (ERGs) can boost employee engagement and representation within an organization. For women in the workplace, having a place for community and connection can be especially valuable, which is why Northwestern Mutual offers eight ERGs for participation and engagement.
Their ERGs aim to connect traditionally underrepresented team members and supportive allies who share a common ethnicity, gender, nationality, identity, or sexual orientation. These nationally award-winning groups help the organization to attract, retain, develop, and advance a diverse and inclusive workforce.
We asked women leaders across three of Northwestern Mutual’s ERGs to detail how they are driving impactful change throughout the organization and in the community.
What’s your role in your ERG?
Antoinette Thomas, experience strategy lead and chair of the Women’s ERG: As the chair of the Women's ERG, I provide leadership and guidance to make sure we are continuing to deliver on our vision, mission and strategic priorities. Each year, we develop priorities that help us create a meaningful member experience and support the organization’s talent attraction, retention, development, and advancement efforts for women.
Tammie Wiley, field events strategy consultant and co-vice chair of the African American ERG: In my role, I get to lead others across our governance board. My role includes overseeing our membership, business impact and professional development committees, along with a unique group that focuses on excellence and success of Black women at Northwestern Mutual.
Christina Gómez, senior project manager and co-vice chair of the Hispanic ERG: My responsibilities include making sure our ERG’s mission and vision are carried out through our events, efforts, and activities to create greater impact for the Hispanic/Latine community and allies. As part of the Hispanic ERG leadership team, we are ensuring our ERG aligns with the diversity and inclusion visions of the company.
The Hispanic and Latine community is very tight knit so it’s important to have the ERG leading efforts and offering a strong voice. It’s also a safe space for our members to be themselves, to bring their authentic selves to work, celebrate who they are, showcase their backgrounds, and ultimately foster employee engagement.
Within your ERG, what key initiatives are you striving toward?
Tammie: The culture that we’ve created for talent at Northwestern Mutual includes a high level of connectedness and closeness. It’s a culture that we know can also be strengthened and widened externally to the community in order to bring even more talent to our organization. As ERG leaders, we've been intentional by bringing the community to our campus and promoting the visibility of Northwestern Mutual. This is what drives me—being able to make a profound impact at a grassroots level and then elevate that to strengthen our talent representation throughout our community and our organization.
Christina: One of our four initiatives is “grow talent,” which focuses on our current talent and growing them professionally in their career. We do this through skill training, goal setting, workshops and networking opportunities. Soon we’ll be launching a podcast series with internal leaders talking about their career journeys. Having leaders share their journeys is important, because it’s empowering to see someone who looks like you in a leadership position.
Antoinette: A big priority for us this year is professional development. How do we make sure that women, especially those in frontline roles or heads down working roles, have time to focus on development opportunities? This also extends to ensuring our people have access to tools or learn how to advocate for themselves. This is an important space for the Women’s ERG as it allows us to play a role in retaining current talent and promoting a sense of belonging, no matter where they're at in their career.
What has your experience been like serving in a leadership role?
Christina: My full-time role involves a lot behind the scenes, such managing technical projects and communications. As the co-vice chair of the Hispanic ERG, I get to connect with people in all different parts of the company, in different roles and leadership levels.
Antoinette: Personally, for me, being a part of the ERG and the leadership team for so long, I see many opportunities for my career and overall, to challenge myself.
As a Black woman, I understand that my experience is going to be different than others, but it also makes me an advocate for women because I know what my experience has been. I’m learning how to use this platform to make sure we're shedding light and creating support for other ERGs and women from an intersectional standpoint as well.
Tammie: It’s been a great way to understand our organization’s priorities and how our ERG contributes to that by supporting diverse talent. And in my role, I’m enabling that through people leadership and people management. I don't get that in my current role as an individual contributor, but as vice chair, I get to manage these four groups of co-chairs, and work with them on actualizing our company and ERG vision.
Having others benefit from my leadership is important to my purpose and career aspirations.
Read more: She Leads: Krista Brookman Is Senior Director of Diversity & Inclusion at Northwestern Mutual
What opportunities do you see for your fellow colleagues who are members of the ERG?
Antoinette: By being involved in the Women’s ERG, there’s the chance to create meaningful relationships within or outside the organization. We offer mentor programs and professional development for our members. Our ERG members strategically partner with nonprofits. For many of us, you have to see something to know it exists. By connecting with the community, we’re showing that Northwestern Mutual is a company that’s committed to investing in the leaders of the future.
Tammie: The African American ERG truly changed how I view my career. I've had amazing mentors and sponsors, and I met them because of the access opportunities provided by this ERG. The people I’ve met through my involvement have connected me with career-defining moments and opportunities to build authentic relationships. ERGs are communities where everyone is welcome and can take part. I find that powerful.
Christina: I've seen the opportunity to lead. Our Hispanic ERG members are thinking strategically and tying it back to Northwestern Mutual’s overarching strategy and goals. At the start of my term, I worked with members of our ERG leadership team to think strategically and develop goals, so they could identify what they hoped to accomplish during their term. That's a skill I had to learn. And now, they're learning it.
As the co-vice chair, I am able to support members of our leadership board, by ensuring they have the resources to be their best and achieve their goals. For those who aren’t yet in people leader positions in their full-time roles, the Hispanic ERG is a chance for them to practice strategic planning and leadership skills.
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