Yvette R. Smith is a diversity and inclusion strategist with over 15 years of experience developing and implementing diversity programs. She currently serves as the Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Prudential Financial, where she developed a multi-year diversity strategy and led initiatives that increased female and minority hires. Previously, she was the Senior Manager of Diversity and Inclusion at Avis Budget Group, where she established their first diversity office and diversity strategy aligned with business goals. She has expertise in areas such as talent development, communication, training, and project management.

1. Yvette R. Smith
973-508-3338
y ronnet t a@ver i zon. n e t
Diversity and inclusion strategist, program manager and innovator
Profile
 Exceptional creative and analytical ability to align strategy with business and organizational needs, develop focused initiatives and provide tactical, grassroots solutions.
 Consistent success leading diversity and inclusion programs at all organizational levels.
 Strong negotiation and stakeholder relations skills.
 Recognized diversity and inclusion, EEO and affirmative action consulting expertise.
 Comprehensive project management/reengineering skills including HR processes.
Competencies
 Diversity and inclusion program management
 Business value proposition development
 Talent development
 C-suite communication
 Employee relations and investigations
 EEO and affirmative action
 Cross-functional partnering
 Cultural training design and delivery
 Sponsorship/event planning and management
 Project management
 Diversity development strategy
Experience
Prudential Financial, Newark, NJ March 2014 to Present
Director, Diversity and Inclusion
 Provide strategies, marketplace research, tools and solutions on diversity and inclusion for this leading 30,000+ employee global financial services institution.
 Developed a multi-year strategy for the CFO’s organization based on the organization’s three-pillar strategy (people, market and community) and aligned with the organization’s business objectives.
 Leverage internal and external trends to develop realistic and attainable goals and collaborate with leaders in corporate social responsibility, procurement, marketing, training and development and staffing to define and drive a holistic approach.
 Lead change management efforts to build internal awareness around diversity and inclusion and facilitate training to all levels of staff.
 Created a diversity and inclusion communication and branding strategy, including the development of content for intranet and external social media sites.
 Recommended an enhanced approach with affinity organizations to help attract talent to the organization resulting in a 50% increase in hires.
 Sourced five qualified senior level executives through internal and external networking, resulting in a vice presidential hire.
 Contributed to organization-wide 14% increase in female hires and 8% increase in minority hires at director level and above through enhanced recruiting processes.
 Leverage seven existing business resource groups to increase employee engagement and business impact.

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 Participate in events with external organizations to demonstrate the organization’s commitment to diversity and inclusion.
Avis Budget Group, Parsippany, NJ January 2001 to March 2014
Senior Manager, Diversity and Inclusion August 2011 to March 2014
 Acted as chief diversity strategist for this global provider of vehicle rental services with 30,000 employees and operations in 175 countries.
 Originated the diversity and inclusion vision, mission and structure leading to the establishment of the organization’s first diversity and inclusion office.
 Developed and implemented multi-year strategy focused on all stakeholders (employees, customers, communities and suppliers) and aligned with business goals and objectives.
 Collaborated with key cross-functional HR leaders and senior executives to drive diversity and inclusion strategy as part of the achievement of business initiatives.
 Cultivated relationships with best-in-class diversity organizations such as AT&T, Verizon, JP Morgan Chase and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
 Secured keynote speaker engagements for several executives on venues including Larry King’s In View series and Hiring America. Helped achieve recognition as a military friendly employer.
 Led the change management initiative to comply with upcoming veteran and disability regulations.
Manager, Affirmative Action October 2007 to August 2011
 Led the affirmative action department including budget responsibilities and served as subject matter expert for affirmative action and equal employment opportunity matters.
 Built sustainable partnerships with senior business leaders and leveraged those relationships to design win/win solutions that ensured affirmative action compliance and aligned with existing business needs.
 Successfully represented the organization during compliance reviews and achieved 100% positive closures at desk audit.
 Analyzed internal/external workforce data and developed initiatives to ensure compliance with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance programs for 100+ affirmative action plans nationally.
 Cultivated relationships with affinity organizations to identify best practices and drive diversity and inclusion efforts.
 Facilitated affirmative action and equal employment opportunity training for all levels of employees.
 Partnered with talent acquisition and compensation to create greater competitive advantages.
 Retooled the affirmative action leader role and supporting processes resulting in savings of over $150,000 to the HR budget.
 Led several teams in ad-hoc projects including employee engagement, redesign of the 600- person headquarters building and compliance improvement within all areas of risk.
 Managed and developed junior-level staff.

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Senior Specialist, Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity December 2005 to October 2007
 Managed the full cycle of the affirmative action plan preparation process.
 Prepared affirmative action plans and responded to charges of employment discrimination filed against the organization, including charges filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and other state/local federal employment practices agencies.
 Achieved 98% “no probable cause” determinations of charges.
 Represented the organization in mediations, fact-finding conferences and other legal proceedings.
 Provided case status reports to senior management summarizing charges of employment discrimination and opined on various high-exposure issues.
 Partnered with senior leaders in legal, operations and the HR community to provide comprehensive guidance on eliminating discrimination and harassment in the workplace.
Equal Employment Opportunity Representative, Avis Budget Group December 2003 to December 2005
 Managed employee complaint hotline and conducted sensitive and complex investigations into allegations of discrimination and harassment.
 Prepared responses to charges of employment discrimination.
 Counseled operations management and human resources community on employee relations issues and recommended resolutions up to and including termination of employment.
Staff Auditor, Cendant Corporate Office, Parsippany, NJ January 2001 to December 2003
 Performed financial statement audits, operational audits and special projects for retail and car rental operations.
 Prepared work papers to document tests, results and audit findings.
 Drafted audit report comments and made recommendations to improve internal controls and operations.
Education
MBA, Human Resources Management, Farleigh Dickinson University, Madison, NJ
BA, Psychology, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ
Affiliations/Accomplishments/Training
Society for Human Resource Management, member
Cornell ILR coursework
Equal Employment Advisory Council coursework