Wells Fargo CEO Blames Diversity Lack On ‘Limited Pool of Black Talent To Recruit From’ – AfroTech

Wells Fargo is back at it again with their antics when it comes to the bank’s stance on diversity.

According to NBC News, Wells Fargo & Co-Chief Executive Charles Scharf infuriated some of his Black employees in a Zoom meeting when he doubled down on why the bank has had trouble reaching diversity goals.

Per Reuters, two participants shared  his response to the bank’s lack of diversity is because “there was not enough qualified minority talent.” Not only did he express such a horrible take during the Zoom meeting, but Scharf also reiterated himself in the company-wide memo on June 18 following the nationwide protests that erupted after the police murdered George Floyd.

“While it might sound like an excuse the unfortunate reality is that there is a very limited pool of Black talent to recruit from,” said Scharf in the memo, seen by Reuters.

Several Black senior executives across corporate America were frustrated by Scharf’s claims on the talent shortage, calling the refrain a huge reason companies struggle to diversify leadership ranks although they expressed intentions to do so.

“If people say they can’t find the talent, they either aren’t looking hard enough or don’t want to find it,” said Ken Bacon, a former mortgage industry executive who is on the boards of Welltower Inc., Comcast Corp, and Ally Financial. “There is an amazing amount of Black talent out there.”

We couldn’t agree more. if you’re still a Wells Fargo customer, it may be time to move to another bank.