February 15, 2023 • 52 mins
Listen as John Hope Bryant chats with Darlene Goins, Executive Vice President and Head of the Banking Inclusion Initiative at Wells Fargo, about her background, making her who she is today, and listen as she explains what she and her team at Wells Fargo are doing to help make communities better.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Building The Good Life with John Hope Bryant is brought
to you by Prudential Financial. My dad was the first
black minister that had been appointed the district superintendent for
the San Diego District. After a short time in Long Beach,
he was appointed to a predominantly white church, which was
unheard of back in the early eighties. And then he
was called by a bishop in Harlem to come out
(00:20):
and revitalize a great church in Harlem. And so he
felt called to do that, and we packed up and
we went across country to Harlem in the mid eighties.
Seeing all of that service to others really made an
impression on me. Hey, Hey, this is John Hope Bryant,
and this is building we are here in a special
(00:41):
podcast with a dear friend of mine, I say, this
lady doesn't walk on the water, but she knows where
the stones are. She's able to tap dance in a
corporate board room and on a dance floor and be
authentic in both places. She happens to be African American,
which she's just really a great leader who happens to
be black. As we say in my neighborhood, she's a
bad sister. That's s I s t A. Okay. On
(01:01):
a serious note, this is now the formal introduction. That
was my friendly introduction. Her name is Darlene Goings. She
is the executive vice president in charge of and head
of the Banking Inclusion Initiatives. I'll tell you what that
means in a moment, but it's a big deal at
Wells Fargo. Wells Fargo is one of the three well
they call it in the government sort of constitutionally relevant institutions.
(01:23):
It's a it's a systemically important institution, which means that
basically the government in the country can't live without it.
It's it's systemically important for the health and safety and
in the lifeblood of the largest economy on the planet,
the United States of America. Wells Fargo has been around
since eighteen fifty two, created by some dudes with some
stage coaches. They're really in the originally in the mail
(01:44):
delivery business. In part they deliver. The mail they're delivering
was gold bars, but anyway, it was they were delivering stuff.
It was faster in the US Postal Service, and they
also helped to create American suppress. This is their history
going back to the eighteen hundreds. Is from California during
the Gold Rush. Uh and it's fair to say it
was an institution that was made up of a dent
of people who didn't look like me. The world has changed,
(02:05):
and so as wells Fargo, and I'm proud to say
that Rose Fargo has changed with the world, in fact,
do a little bit better. I was with the CEO,
Charlie Sharf this morning at the opening of our two
hundred Hope Inside location in uh Georgia here in Greater
Atlanta under the Cab County, and I was noting the
diversity and inclusion numbers. They've doubled them. They've hit their
(02:26):
mark and doubled the diversity and inclusion numbers as minorities
and women. That's just since George Floyd uh so, in
the middle of this storm, they've created a rainbow. And
one of those rainbows and sitting in front of me,
her name is Darlene Goins. Hey, Darlene, Hey, what's up.
See when you when you got a title like this,
executive vice president, Head of Banking Inclusion, you just be
(02:49):
like you can just be relaxed. All my friends stressed out,
they broke. My broke friends stressed out. They they got
stressed in their voice, Darlene is easy's dressed out. I'm
just not broke, Okay, okay, and see and see. Darling
is super smart. Like this is one thing I love
about her. One of the many things she has integrity,
(03:10):
She's authentic. Uh, she she's she doesn't suffer fools, but
she's very gracious about it. But she you don't have
to make an excuse for. And this is my sort
of my new hopeful formula for black folks and minorities
and uh in America, in the world. She's not a
black leader. She's a great leader who happens to be black.
She's just strong and Charlie and the team were smart
(03:34):
to recognize that strength. Um. And that's what I want
to illustrate. The day that we've been making dumb sexy
for too long. We've done down and celebrated it, and
it's time to make smart sexy again. Um, Darling, you've
got a big job. Um. And I jokingly call it.
(03:55):
I called it a head of Black Folk Empowerment, or
you can call it head of Latino empowerment, or head
of women empowerment, or head of Native American Indian empowerment,
or head of poor struggling white rule empowerment because it's
really it's about inclusion. But in all, in all seriousness,
it came in the backdrop, in the environmentally, in the
backdrop of the George Floyd murder um, and so it
(04:19):
does come out in that context and in that regard.
I think the things that I've seen you guys do,
which I want you to talk about, have been extraordinarily
important and extraordinarily relevant to today's time. Tell us a
little bit about your job as you see it. I
want to get into some of the drama, the challenges
(04:40):
that the bank has dealt with as a systemically important institution.
People pick on you, uh, some rightly. So sometimes it's
just picking on you because you're big and you're there,
and as a black person sitting as a black woman
sitting at the in the corporate suite, it can't be
easy to be on both sides of this conversation. But
you do it with grace and style. So tell us
(05:01):
a little bit about your job and then we'll get
we'll go a little deeper. Sure, So, a little over
a year ago, probably about fifteen months ago, we took
a look at the uneven impact of the pandemic on
communities of color um on all levels economically, from a
healthcare perspective, housing, and we felt like as one of
(05:24):
the largest consumer banks in the country, we needed to
do more. And so, you know, I've always had a
passion around financial health and financial empowerment, and so when
I was asked to think about how we could help
bring more people into the mainstream banking system, how we
could increase access to affordable banking products, I came to
(05:49):
the table with a lot of ideas and helped launch
what is now the Banking Inclusion Initiative. So it is
Wells Fargo's tenure commitment to help more people who are
unbanked get access to affordable banking products and also to
get access to financial guidance and advice, yes exactly, amongst others. Yes.
(06:15):
And we also formed a national Unbanked task Force of
leading advocacy organizations where we have the leaders of those organizations.
We have Derrek Johnson from Janet Marghia from unido's US,
Mark Moreal from National Urban League, and they have just
been just true partners along this journey with us. And
(06:38):
so at the end of the day, I mean there
are more than seven million households in the US that
are unbanked, meaning they don't have a bank account with
a bank or a credit union. You guys hear that.
That's amazing number. And the largest economy, most developed economy
in the entire world. Seven many people have no banking
relationship whatsoever. We have another almost forty million they're underbanked. Yes,
(06:59):
and more than off of those unbanked households are black
or African American, Hispanic or Native American. Yeah, as we
were talking about and by the way, for the audience
listening to this, just so you know, the number one
group of for the largest group of poor people in
this country or poor whites, uh, and the number one
group dying in this country or white high school educated
(07:21):
men dying of opioid addiction. But that is triggered by depression,
really a lack of aspiration, a lack of opportunity. And
when we talked about this morning at the opening of
the Hope and Side location um into Cab, we were
talking about how half of African Americans you have forty
main afric Americans, but half of us have a credit
(07:41):
score below six. You think about that. Yes, racism is
real and bias and all the rest of these things
are real. We obsessed about those things. But it just
might be you weren't getting ACTRA as the credit because
your credit stunk. Um. Now, it's not your It wasn't
your creation. That problem was your creation. Because in many ways,
I think this banking inclusion initiative is a continuation of
(08:02):
the Freeman's Banks legacy, just as we're continuing that legacy
from five a bank created by Lincoln teach free slaves
about money, formally enslaved people about about money. Uh. Lincoln
was killed the next month, as as Dr King was
assassinated a hundred years later trying to pursue the Poor
People's Campaign, which was about all races of people, including
(08:23):
poor whites. But it's with African Americans. Is what we
don't know that we don't know. We're not dumb and
we're not stupid. We're brilliant. And when the rules are
published and the Plane told us level i e. Professional sports,
i e. The arts, where we're here here at I
hard right now, whether it's public policy, politicians, rules are published,
plane to this level, we kill it. We succeed. But
(08:44):
banking and capitalism and free enterprise and entrepreneurship. Dude, we
didn't get that real book. So our credit, amongst other things,
is one of the things that suffered because we didn't
understand this game, and it's half of us. It stinks.
And as a result of that, you can't get a
decent auto loan. As I said earlier today Mercedes means
(09:05):
mercies payments. In that environment, you can't get a decent mortgage.
You can't get a small business loan at all. So
you have a brilliant idea, you can't execute on it
now with a small business loan because you need a
seven herd of credit score for that. So sometimes you
can't even went an apartment or get a job, or
get a job. Half of employers require a credit check.
(09:25):
That's why I think financial literacy is a civil rights
issue of his generation. But just to real underscore what
I what I was making about the poor white population.
Whether you go to a five credit score black urban,
black and brown urban neighborhood or a poor white rule neighborhood,
what you see is a check casher next to a
paid a loan lender, next to a rent to own store,
(09:47):
next to a title lender, next to a liquor store
next to a pawn shop, a church down the street,
for sure. Trying to make you feel a little bit
better once a week. Little hooping and hollering gets it
all out of your system if you're black. Um, But
the reality is we're depressed. We're depressed, and we're being
preyed upon. And what I love what you're trying to
do is you cannot have success in any mainstream economy
(10:11):
or any economy without banking the power of banking. We
don't understand banking. I'm glad you're there. Um. People don't
realize that Wells fargoes at two trillion dollar institution. That's
trillion with a T. It is a forty first Fortune
(10:32):
five company in size, so fortunate, biggest companies in the world.
It's the forty one largest. It is, like I said,
one of three systemic banks in this country. And there
are six thousand banks in this country, six thousand banks,
seventy five thousand bank branches. I mean, it's unbelievable. These
numbers are unbelievable. And you know, I think I think
(10:53):
there's like fourteen trillion dollars in all banking assets. If
I got my number right, and there to trion of it.
So in this lady sitting in front of me walking
around humbly chilling, is is in charge of the banking
inclusion initiatives. A week excited about rappers and professional athletes
and people need to be come passing like, oh, Darling,
give me your autograph. Can you know they do that? John? Okay,
(11:19):
I got our home number of office on number. I
got a cell phone number. I got so scary number.
I'm all over life. She showed up the Christmas she
could open the door. I was right there and look
at me under the Christmas Street. I'm all over Darlene
like a cheap suit. I ain't playing Darlene. There's there's
other black women who are excelling. By the way, it
was Fargo, Gigi, uh yeah, a great lady. And Maryland
(11:41):
I just met. We got to know a little bit
more Maryland. And there's there's a number of people even
in the executive uh I call it the executive council.
It's not called that. But in the management team that
Charlie has the CEO, there are African Americans there as well.
There are Aftermarers on the boarder directors. I think there's
three blacks on your board of directors. As I recall, Uh,
(12:05):
so they've they've really have walked the talk from the
top to the bottom. And uh, now let's talk a
little bit about Um, I'm gonna come back to your story,
but I want let's let's talk about the obvious, because
somebody out there is rolling their eyes because we all
want something to to hay, to talk about or whatever.
And as I keep saying, as Saint is a center
(12:25):
that got up, an angel has dirty faces. We're all
angels with dirty faces. There is no perfect. I offered
a friend of mine a plane ticket. They were complaining
about America, how crap it screwed up America. Was okay,
I agree with you. Here's a plane ticket. Take care,
(12:46):
we're in anywhere you like, of finance it. We'll send
your stuff. They're still here. So so so, well's frog
is not perfect, Darlene, did you hear that? You guys
are not perfect? Really? Really? Uh, nobody's perfect? All right,
(13:06):
So intention matters. Um. I was there in uh little
committee in l A when the first crisis hit. Well,
it's far ago about these accounts. What year was at
that's when the news came out? Yeah, and I think
it's been brewing a little bit before that. And and
I did run into local arrogance. I did run into
(13:26):
people who who just wouldn't listen. They weren't they weren't thieves,
they weren't fraudulent. They were trying to get a bonus.
The people that they were trying to incentivize, people who
worked at Wells Fargo to get a bigger bonus because
you could open accounts. It wasn't like a malicious thing.
It was like the way that we're going to measure successes.
You if you're in the branch level, you open more accounts.
So that somebody came up with the unbright idea to
(13:48):
just open get people to open accounts, whether there was
anything in it or not, which gave him more money. Well,
those were dumb people. And those dumb people have been fired.
They're gone. And by the way, that was another bank,
because that was a merger ago. People don't realize that
even though the name of the bank stays the same,
oftentimes you have either a merger changes the texture of
the bank and that team comes in it's a whole new,
(14:09):
different team. I think that was a Northwest team. If
I recall and you also have leadership that changes. It's
like to suggest that that that the bank's not different
is to suggest that that the Biden administration is the
same as the Bush administration is the same as the
Obama administration is the same as I'm not gonna name
that dudes name administration. It's his presidency. But the administration's change,
(14:30):
and they're different. This is the Charlie Sharper administration, and
it is different. And uh, and Charlie is the first
to acknowledge that the last team screwed up, and he's
the first to own their screw up. What else do
you want from somebody? Uh, there was a crisis recently
about mortgages and the mortgage declines and oh, you guys
(14:52):
are declining all these black people more than anybody else. Well,
actually I called I called Darlene, and uh, what's up?
You know why you you're doing? Are people? And she said,
calm yourself down, Sit down, John, sit down, talk my mother,
sit down. And no, seriously, She's like, well, it's technically true.
(15:13):
But but it's just technically true. Like most banks don't
record everybody who is seeking finance for mortgages. They realize
that you don't qualify, they don't take the application. Well,
it's far agoing trying to be transparent, recorded everything, including
anybody who was remotely interested. So when you when your
(15:34):
when your credit was pulled, we talked about credit scores
this moment and you didn't pass it much. That showed
as they decline. They actually funded more mortgages than almost
anybody else, actually for black people. Actually, in the decade
from we helped fund more black homeowners than the next
(15:56):
three largest bank mortgage lenders. Come on, now, talk to me.
Say that again. Repeat that again for anybody in the
back of the room. For the decade from one, we
helped fund more black homeowners in this country than the
next three largest bank mortgage lenders combined. That's extraordinary and
(16:19):
you should be commended for that. And these were sustainable mortgages,
not that homeboy shopping network explode in your face prime mortgage.
We're talking about some We're talking about people who became
homeowners and and had every shot because it was a good,
well priced interest rate right prime prime finance. So so
sometimes when you become a bit of a target to
(16:41):
begin a bit of a punching bag for folks, and
I have to give you credit because when you reached
out to me and I said, sit down, John, but
you also said is there any truth to this? Right you?
You didn't immediately jump to judgment, which I appreciate in
you as a partner. You said, let me hear you out.
(17:05):
And I'm guessing that there's not truth to this, but
let me hear it from you. And if there's not
truth to this, let me help you help, you know,
make this better. So I really appreciate that from me
my pleasure. Look, I I just think that that there
is no perfect, and we don't let the perfect become
the death of the good. You know, if somebody's trying
to do good, help them be better, help them get
(17:27):
to that next level. Um. And I just think that
you guys are a credible institution and you've kept every
word to me that and anybody that I'm aware of.
I bank with you, guys, um and you were my
first mainstream well as an adult, my first adult bank account.
I told you. It's a Pico Boulevard branch in West
Los Angeles, across from the mall. And uh, I remember
(17:49):
the branch manager. I remember that they treated me with
respecting dignity, right and I my first mortgagees with with
you guys. I paid them off. UM, I have, I
have accounts with you to this day. I was in
Europe and the Bahamas in the last ten days and
I ran that I swiped my probably swapped my car.
Works all around the world. UM. And I do business
(18:11):
with other institutions as well, but my my personal, my
personal go to account is and has been since I
was eighteen with Wells Fargo. I'm proud to say that.
I mean, I think and your your good partner with
the Operation Hope and a hundred Black Men of America
and h B c U S and we look, no
institution can solve all of our problems. But I think
America is a very unique place to have corporations like
(18:33):
yours that significantly gives back. This is not this doesn't
happen in Europe. This conversation of I'm making I'm a corporation,
I'm gonna make a crapload of money, and I'm gonna
then donate some of that to a foundation back to
the community or through public affairs or Community Investment Act
is a uniquely American innovation. This conversation here about social
(18:54):
justice through an economic lens looking at a person like
you and a senior post at a a major bank
in Europe or Asia, forget about it. The only reason
it happens in Africa's we're all black, right. But the
banks are much smaller than what we're talking about talking
about here. I mean, a billion dollar bank in Africa
(19:17):
is about a ninety million dollar bank in the US
because it's thirteen one dollar to ran, so it sounds big.
But this is big. This is two trillion dollars of
the biggest economy on the planet. I can't underscore how much,
how big of a deal it is of what Darling
is doing it with a complete authority uh to move
(19:39):
balance sheets uh and change lives. Uh. And so I
just want to understand. I don't want you to understand
that the last movement was, in my opinion, was about
civil rights. This one's about silver rights. And we we
have we we've got to not to stop just being
complacent with with having somebody in a room. That's that's
(20:00):
about complaints. Oh, I saw some racism, I saw abuse.
All the police beat me up. Those are legitimate things.
But we can't have everybody. And since since seats of
power in the complaint Box. We we need to. It
can't be about what I'm exclusively at what I'm against Box.
I mean, you know, my friends a CP A worn out.
(20:21):
They can't they can't do everything we needed. What I'm
four box too, from civil rights to include silver rights too.
We need some folks in some green rooms, right. And
I don't mean green rooms as in prep rooms to
go on stage for a concert. I mean I mean
some economic rooms. I mean we need somebody in the
business suites who looked like us, who represent our interests.
(20:41):
Whoever us happens to be Latino, African American women, Native American, Indian,
and Asian, whoever underserved group we're happy to talk about
poor whites. Who says I relate to you, I understand
your plight. Uh, all things being equal, if you're deserved
a shot, gonna make sure you get one. What else
do we want within that? I mean a James Brown
(21:04):
version of affirmative action. Open the door. I'll get it myself.
And and and so I think that you're sitting in
a moment in history. Actually, I think that what you're
doing is going into twenty years from now be part
of the history books of the third reconstruction, which is opportunity.
The first one was freedom after this after the Civil War,
second one with civil rights access and bass Randel Young
(21:26):
just just uh called a moment ago the guy who's
Dr King's right arm in the civil rights movement, where
I so lucky that in the land and have all
these icons all around this right. And the third one's opportunity.
So talk a little bit. We cleared the deck on
some of the drama. Maybe there's another drama I didn't
know about, But talk a little bit about where the
(21:49):
bank is, what the bank's doing, What are you frustrated about,
What are you most excited about? Well, I will say,
and I know my mouth's going to get me in trouble,
but don't I got you covered, I said to Charlie,
don't worry. But um, I will say it is it
(22:09):
is like a new presidential administration. Right, it's a new
set of leaders. And I know my first four to
five years at the Bank, I felt like I was
banging my head against the wall trying to get things done.
And when I had this opportunity to help launch and
develop the Banking Inclusion Initiative last year, I took it right.
(22:31):
And so getting hope inside in there was a big
part of that. Getting UM greater financial education at HBC
US was a part of that, right, so UM really
trying to move forward a lot of the things where
I had been told no, no, no no no. If
I get that opportunity, I'm gonna take it. Building the
(22:53):
good Life is brought to you by Prudential Financial. For
overt five years, millions of people have counter on Prudential
to help solves for life's most important financial needs. Because
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Prudentials Who's Your Rock campaign is also about helping people
(23:14):
reach new heights and providing a platform for people to
reach their financial goals. Let's get into let's get underneath.
So you can't really see see this. Those listening to
this on the radio, you can't see what I just witnessed.
But she was like editing, like, how how much of
a sistant am I gonna be? Right now? Right? But
(23:35):
but but the pause? Everybody heard the pause. Everybody you
didn't see it, but you heard the pause, and then
you and then she said when she really believes she
just said it eloquently and because she's an educated woman. Um,
what what you heard was strength. You heard strength of purpose.
You heard I'm not playing games up in there. If
you want me, you gotta have all of me, and
and and if you want my if you want me,
(23:56):
you gotta take my strength too. And I don't mind
taking a no, and I don't disappointment and disappointment, but
you're gonna hear my voice and until until you either
show me the door or show me an opportunity. They
showed you an opportunity that never give up. That resiliency,
that self esteem that I see in your eyes every
(24:16):
time that I see you, are here, in your voice,
very time I talk to you, which is different from confidence.
By the way, confidence confidence comes from competence. So if
you're competent in a job, you'll have confidence, that's what
we're used to. But that you can have confidence and
still have low self esteem. When I look at you,
(24:36):
I see esteem, I see self love. I see a
mother or father or uncle or grandmother or grand somebody
poured into Darly and said, girl, you can do anything
you want to do. Who was that? Probably my dad? Okay,
tell me a little bit about that. You grew up where? How? What? Yeah,
so I grew up mainly in southern California. Um, but
(24:57):
went to rich No, not at all. I grew up
in south central Yes, I'm a preacher's kid, so we
lived in you know, church parsonages growing up. Really. Yes, Um,
my dad was. He moved to l A in the
(25:17):
late sixties and very active, helped form some initiatives like
Save Our Sons in l A to help address the
mass incarceration of black men. What's your dad's name, Robert Smith?
That's the tea. What's really deep Disney Robert Smith. My
grandfather was RB Smith. But we're not related, don't worry. Uh,
(25:41):
but you do like a long long sister, so maybe,
but I remember that organization. Yeah, yeah, So, um grew
up in different parts of southern California. My dad United
Methodist minister. Um. We moved to San Diego to a
predominantly white neighborhood at the towards the early elementary school years.
(26:05):
My dad was the first black minister that had been
appointed the district superintendent for the San Diego district. So
he had about seventy churches that rolled up to him,
and so we went to different churches every Sunday. I
got to experience a lot of different cultures, races, um,
seeing differences that you're comfortable around different people, very adaptable. Um.
(26:31):
And then after a short time in Long Beach, he
was appointed to a predominantly white church, which was unheard
of back in the early eighties. Um, first black minister there. Um.
And then he was called by a bishop in Harlem
or in New York to come out and revitalize a
great church in Harlem. And so he felt called to
(26:53):
do that, and we packed up and we went across
country from a predominantly white gated community and Long Beach
to Harlem in the mid eighties. So yeah, yes where Um.
We actually we lived in a very nice brown stone
on Striver's Road, but the apartment buildings behind us were
(27:17):
burnt out, you know, on the rise. Yeah, it was
not the Harlem of today. It doesn't even look like
the Harlem that I know when I go back there. Um.
But I think seeing all of that service to others
really made an impression on me. So in some ways, uh,
you are continuing that sense of service, just doing it
(27:38):
through the most relevant factor of today, which is finance
and economics. I mean we you one could argue that
religion is how we originally got free. That was that
first of all, that first reconstruction, we could only sing
religious songs. The first corporation was through a black church.
The first black, first hospital for black folks was to
(27:59):
uh the church. First black business was through the black church.
First school was through the black church. It was the
only thing that we could do to organize ourselves during slavery,
and that kept us from being from completely broken as people.
Also and then doing a civil rights movement that morphed
into community service, which your father also did UM and
(28:22):
of course we know that executed through political office. What
we did not do is to go from UM cashing
checks to writing them. We didn't become stakeholders. We didn't
become capitalists and owners, which is what you're doing today.
You're you're facilitating that for a whole generation. So I
see you continuing that work of your of your dad.
(28:45):
So I'm trying to So he told you he loved you.
He did, and he told you can do anything you
wanted to do. He did. He told you I take
no mess either, the girl. You can do bad all
by yourself. You don't need no help. Yeah, he's hands
And what's your credit score? You got a job, you
(29:06):
have a career. I can do bad by myself now,
Counthy Johns want to tell me. I think worse than
being alone is wishing that you were so so so
He clearly poured your parents, clearly poured that self esteem
and so loved loving you. And it's so evident, um,
and you know you you remind me that phrase. You
don't even when you got the power, you don't need
(29:26):
to use it. You don't beat your chest, you don't.
You don't patch yourself on the on the on the back.
You don't scream, you know, Hollier, you talk very gently,
very calmly, very firmly. I do. So you bring all
that into the corporate suite? How was that received? For
the for the women listening to this nowase, women who
are from underserved communities, sisters who are trying to get
(29:50):
thinking about trying to get into the corporate environment. What's
your what's your? This This show is building building your spirituality,
building your self esteem, building your confidence, building your business,
building your household, building your marriage. It's all about building
what what what? Some young girls out there are mature women,
(30:11):
young girls trying to figure out their path, trying to
figure out who they are because self love is the
greatest love. Uh. And there are women who are matured,
maybe trying to reset their lives. How how can how can?
What advice do you have for them about trying to
make a move into corporate America. I think you have
(30:31):
to be your authentic self and not be afraid to
use your voice for change. Um. I know early on
in my career I did kind of hold my tongue,
but I don't do that anymore. And it's just like
take it or leave it. This is Darlene um. And
you may not like what I have to say, but
I'm gonna say it. But that's your value proposition. Also,
(30:54):
I mean, I don't I don't really understand why you
would if you're a black female go into a corporation
and then act like a white male, You're destroyed. First
of all, you're gonna be a copy of somebody else.
But second of all, and we don't have the privileges
of white men. Hello. But on top of that, you
(31:17):
have no You're adding nothing. You're an echo chamber of
something that already exists, versus adding that unique element that
comes from your culture and your background, and your perspective
and the way you see the world, which adds to
the richness of the Brew, which goes back to being
yourself right. And when you see injustice, to call it out.
(31:41):
Don't sit silently on the sideline. So how do you
do that without getting fired? How does one do that? Thoughtfully?
I just always tell people whenever you make an emotional decision,
it will be a bad one. There's difference between you
react and responding. And I've seen you. I've never seen
(32:03):
you uncool under pressure. You're always cool. I mean I
was delayed for our session today late. Uh she should
have she should have told me off. She didn't. She's
as cool as a cute now she you know, the
next time we'll get a lecture. But she was. She
was cool as a cucumber. On a serious note, though, like,
how do you do it? How do you do that?
(32:24):
So you step over messing not in it. I rely
on a lot of data and facts, Yes, you do
to uh provide evidence for the reasons why we need
to take certain decisions or why we might need to
examine things in a more deep way than maybe we
have in the past. Um, and you know, people can't
(32:48):
argue with facts. That was sexy. What she just said
was sexy. That was sexy. She's like, I dropped the mic.
I use facts. They were no, they were no we
no fancy words. I use facts and data to make
my case. And as that's actually how we met. Yes,
I got on the phone with her and I was
unhappy with whomever it came before her. It was far ago,
(33:12):
and I let her know. He tried to take it
out on me. I let her know. And the only
reason I survived that is I had facts in data.
Because she she she don't play. She would have said,
this has been a nice meeting, goodbye. But she I
asked you a lot of hard question and I was
able to answer, and so we we went. So I
(33:35):
think it's fair to say you correct me if I'm
wrong here. She respected me and learned to like me,
and I'd rather you respect me and learn to like me,
then like me and never respect me. Um. I wasn't disrespectful.
I wasn't, but I was clearly not a happy camper
and I wanted and I didn't want to act like
I was. That's not who I am. I'm authentic, like you.
(33:55):
But clearly I had the data and the figures which
I thought should aren't a different value proposition, and Darling
was interested in facts data, the figure that's that let
the facts that you free. And then she took that
data and went and made a case for it. And
we just opened up our two hundredth Hope Inside location
(34:17):
with Wells Fargo today Boom. And because of Darlene or
Darlene's leadership, we went from a discussion of a few
of these locations to fifteen of these locations, and now
we're talking about over a hundred hope Inside locations and
a unique structure that that we're still working the details
out on, but basically going to be in markets all
(34:38):
around this country with this model. And now we have
the CEO singing as praises and head of banking Mary
who's fantastic, and Bill Daily, who's on my board, your
vice chairman. So you become sort of a gateway to
wire organizations like ours Operation Hope we're talking about into
the fabric that the the infrastructure of this two trade
(35:02):
in dollar bank. Yes, is that your mission to wire
organizations into wire diversity and inclusion into the fabric of
this bank. Yes, I spent I spent the first five
years six years at Wells Fargo. I guess five years
um on the philanthropy side. And philanthropy is important, but
(35:25):
getting it integrated into the business, I think is more powerful.
Talk about having an influence on the products and services
that we offer the communities, where we redesign our branches
or put hope inside centers, that's going to drive even
greater impact than philanthropy can. So I think you need both.
(35:49):
But that was one of the reasons why I decided
to move over and actually lead the banking Inclusion initiative
after we launched it and I met you on the
fielding the philanthropic side, this is a really important conversation.
I'm not sure people listening to this can get the
nuance here. She was giving away money before, and now
we're talking about how to make money responsibly. And the
(36:10):
bucket for making money is much bigger, marketing, business development, etcetera.
Is much bigger than the philanthropic bucket, the public affairs bucket.
And that's also progress because that wasn't a conversation that
corporations even allowed us to have years ago, certainly not
(36:31):
forty years ago. Or maybe even five years ago. The
world has changed. I think it's changed changed permanently. And
this is these topics we're talking about, I think are
now part of the ether of these companies, the biggest
companies in the world. What are you most hopeful about?
As we sit here in a very troubling time, we're
(36:52):
dealing with them Listening, we're looking at it with girls
in Iran, you know, losing their life because they want
to wear their heir, he job, you know, looser on
their head. I mean, for God's sakes, we're talking about
you know, folks in Ukraine just trying to go about
their their life and having some idiot drop bombs on
(37:12):
them and their families. We're talking about, you know, people
disappearing in parts of Asia just because you differ with
the opinion of your leader. We don't think, we think
we sort of realize how good we've got it. But
even here we've got all kinds of problems. Uh. Politicians
who are who have decided to help us hate each
other and uh throw rocks at each other and pick
(37:36):
at each other as a as a hard to find
good news. Sometimes in the midst of all this troubling news,
right So in the midst of all that, how do
you find hope? How do you build in the midst
of that? What do something? What do some thoughts you have? Well,
you know, I have a fifteen year old teenager and
(37:58):
I think about his future, right, so I have to
do whatever I can to drive change so that he
inherits a world that gives him opportunity. So getting emotional,
John's not good when I talk about my baby, who's
not really my baby anymore. But he will, he will. Um.
(38:24):
So I just try to do whatever I can to
make a difference, whether that's serving on a nonprofit board,
or serving on the Moran County Priority Setting Committee that's
distributing federal grant money to local nonprofits, or leading the
banking inclusion initiative at Wells Fargo. Um, I just try
(38:45):
to do what I can to drive change. You were
influenced by your parents, your dad in particular, and your
son's being influenced by you. Yes. And it's been said
that if you want to find a good woe and
find one who has had a great relationship with her dad,
you want to find a good man. Find a good
man's great leagtion with his mom. So you gotta got
a good thing going and and I think your son
(39:07):
is very lucky to have you as as a mom.
Tell us as I don't want to run out of
time before we get into I want to end in
this with you given some recommendations, some very specific recommendations
for women, uh and girls and how to come up.
So I want you to think about that. But before
we get to that, uh, because time runs goes real
quick on these on these podcasts when when it's interesting,
(39:28):
and I don't like do boring, so all I'm more interesting. UM.
Talk a little bit about uh for those listeners who
don't know about Wells Fargo two and seventy thousand employees.
I think the last time I checked, is it more
than that. I think it's a little less less okay,
been firing some people two seventy thousand employees. Uh. Charlie
(39:49):
a playing you Gotta go, you Gotta go, Chop chop um. UH.
Talk talk about some of the important initiatives that arnin
Ger would be of interest to the public that they
may not know about, and talking about specifically what the
Banking Inclusion Initiative is doing now are going to be doing, uh,
and that you can talk about it is I can't.
I'm just I'm just chomping at the bid to talk
(40:10):
about a friend of mine who I won't mention they
will give it away, who's gonna be doing something real
big with you coming up. And I'm so excited about that,
UM rooting for him and because it's gonna help, because
it's gonna help so many people. UM. But but talk
about generally the bank and this specifically our initiatives. Specifically,
what do people need to know about what you're doing
(40:32):
and how do they reach you? How do they reach you, know,
reach you or the initiative. So what I'm really excited
about is we're really taking a new approach to providing
flexibility to consumers and how they manage their accounts. So
UM earlier this year we announced uh number of initiatives
(40:54):
that we were launching, things like extra day grace on
overdrafts that give you if you overdraft and you know,
you get an alert, you have an extra twenty four
hours to pay that back so that you don't have
an overdraft fee. UM. We have early Payday so you
can get access to your direct deposit paycheck two days early.
(41:15):
So we are really modernizing um, how we think about overdrafts.
We do have some accounts that don't have any overdraft
that are low cost bank on certified accounts like clear
Access banking. Okay, English people, for those watching, listen to this.
That means y'all spending money you didn't have overdraft. It means,
you know, you have twenty bucks, you spend forty and
(41:36):
they cleared the check or whatever, and they hit you
with a fee and you complained about it. Why y'all
charged to meet this money? Because you're spending money you
don't have. Okay, So they're trying they're trying to not
charge you penalize you for not having the best budget
on the planet, because we understand that people who've got
too much month at the end of their money. So
they're doing two things and not hit, not hit hitting
over By the way, there were some unscrupulous banks who
(41:58):
made a lot of money on just overdraft fee. So
joking around about it, but it's really become a thing
of praying on some people. Well Stroger shows and not
to do that obviously, And then you have the other
side of the coin where people really need access to
their money a little earlier, which is and so you
because you have predictable employers, like my guess is county
governments and state governments, and you know major corporations, and
(42:18):
you already pretty much know this person has been working
there for ten years. Pretty pretty good chance that the
next paychecks coming, they're gonna let you have access to
their money faster. Is that it works? That's a that's
a cool thing. Are you charging a fee for that?
Or really, I got some I got a cousin booboo
need that, pooking them, pooking them, and my family need
(42:40):
access that like immediately. They may change baits, they may
change bases to get access to their money earlier. And
one of the other things that we're gonna be launching
soon is a new flex loan, So when you have
a banking relationship with us UM, eligible account holders will
(43:05):
have access to a four hundred dollar is it four
or five um? So, she said, She said, eligible account holders.
Oh y'all, y'all, oh y'all mismanaging your stuff, trying to
blame it on the bank that y'all don't qualify. If
(43:26):
you were in four closed here last month, if the
toe truck was following your car last week, you probably
don't qualify, but this particular product, you can come to
Operation Hope. We'll help you out, and then we'll get
you a point wherein you can be an account holder
in good standing as Saint as the center that got up.
(43:46):
We understand, I've been there before. By the way, my
credit s grow was three hundred. I get it, okay.
So back to eligible account holders. You can have access
to a loan of either two fifty dollars or five
ers that you just repay in four easy installment payments.
There's like a twenty dollar fee for the five loan
(44:09):
and it just helps people with their cash flows, right.
You might you know, my refrigerator went out and I
had to get it fixed, right, and so I just
need a little bit extra to get me through this hump.
I can take advantage of that flex loan. That's so
important because for uh Mary Arisims in the studio, who's
(44:30):
president of Partnerships for Operation Hope, and she would tell me, uh,
right now, I didn't remember it. Of all, Americans don't
have four dollars for an unplanned event. So you're giving
a flex loan of two five hundred dollars just might
be the difference between them having heating or or refrigerator
or the car fixed or not. Um, it's a big deal,
(44:52):
and you're also indirectly putting pay aalenders out of business.
I'm saying that you're not. It's a beautiful thing as
we pivot uh here at this wonderful, rich time we
spend together. I just love being with you. Think you
an extraordinary human being. But you know you didn't give
me a chance to talk about the banking inclusion. She's
trying to earn her check. I'm trying to get to
(45:14):
I'm trying to get to the goods about how to
inspire these women. She's like, oh, no, no, no, no,
I get paid. I get paid by Wells Fargo and
we're gonna finish this. But now I'm with you. Let's
do it. Let's let's get into it. I'm just excited
about some of the things that we have going and
the director no, talk about that. Please. Now you can
talk about it as much as you want. Feel free,
(45:40):
but you know, hope inside is one of those things
that I'm really excited about because we're putting financial coaches
with lived experience in our branches to help community members
get their money right right and UM, so we're going
to be in twenty markets by the end of next year.
Mm hmm. We're going to be able to serve up
(46:02):
to a hundred and fifty branches. That's beautiful. You don't
have to be a Wells Fargo customer to take advantage
of the services. So we want to help people get
to those seven hundred credit score so that they can
get that low interest rate on the auto loan, get
that mortgage, get that small business started, and and we're
also talking about UH helping specifically with black business creation.
(46:25):
We'll talk about more of that later on. You gots
a member of Financial Literacy for All, which is the
leadership initiative from Corporate America to make financial literacy a
civil rights issue in this country and baking into the
business plan of major companies is like what healthcare was
forty years ago. That is awesothing we're very excited about. UM.
You guys have been financially supportive of the one million
(46:45):
Black Business Initiative UM, and we're talking about going deeper there. UM.
What else are you doing at the inclusion initiative that
people need to know about? Scenes you call me on it.
So we're working with a number of different UM collaboration partners.
(47:06):
UM we did some marketing pilots earlier this year. We
recognize that we've got to do better in terms of
our value proposition to consumers. So when we talked with
unbanked consumers, we found that, you know, they're really focused
on their financial stability and having a cash based system
(47:27):
helps them know exactly how much money they have to spend,
how much money they have to pay their rent, their bills, etcetera.
And it's it's just more comfortable from them for them. UM.
So we need to work on our value proposition and
help them understand the value that we can bring to
the table and help get them on a path to
achieving their aspirational goals. So translation for the layman out there,
(47:52):
you want to make sure the bank's relatable to everybody,
not just rich people. You want to make sure that
people know that you don't have to be just doing
very very well or even moderately well to come to
a bank. You can come to a bank and whatever
put place you are in your life, and will you'll
help them to go to that next step? Yeah, that's
as brilliant. Can I pivot? Now? Got uh? You know,
(48:15):
this is my favorite part of the session, because you're
gonna you're you're going to leave. You're gonna change somebody's life. Um,
there's some There's some little girl in the car with
her mother. There's some mother who's frustrated that she doesn't
have all the solutions for her family. There's some grandmother
who feels that she's led her children down because she
(48:36):
doesn't have generational wealth. There's some abused woman who's staying
around with some knucklehead because she's got children and he's
been beating on her. But she thinks she's staying around
for money. There's somebody listening to this who self esteem
it is not exactly where it needs to be. If
I don't like me, i'm not gonna like you. But
I don't feel good about me, I'm not gonna feel
good about you. I don't respect me. You don't expect
(48:57):
me to respect you. If I don't love me, I
don't have a clue out of you. Love starts at
home inside of you. So there's somebody listening to this
who just needs a little bit of a boost. You've
done it. You've made it executive vice president. Just for context,
When I was coming up. You know you had a
(49:17):
vice president of a bank branch and uh, that person
really had power. I mean they ran that bank branch,
but they can make credit decisions all that kind of stuff.
But vice president doesn't mean what it used to mean. Uh.
They people got some companies throughout comedy. The vice president title,
not the corporate vice but which is vice president? Like
it's candy, doesn't mean much other than a pay position. Um,
(49:40):
corporate vice president, You're starting to get serious. Uh, senior
vice president, that's really serious, particularly if it's a national
versus a regional senior vice president. Just for people listening
to this, an executive vice president is high cotton. You
can you can translate research high cotton. That means the
Southern phrase means that she's a big, big baller. She's serious.
(50:02):
That's a very very unique role. Executive vice president and director. Um,
you should be very proud of yourself. But what do
you have to give in the context of council advice? Direction?
Inspiration for those trying to come up. I tell women,
(50:24):
you're more than ready, be willing to take a risk,
take the next job. Say yes. Um. There's an African
proverb that UM says when women rule, streams run uphill
m M. Whoa. And I think about that, when women
rule streams run up hill. That's deep. I mean, that's
(50:47):
that's deep and what and and it's got me thinking
about self esteem and use you use your essentially saying
you're enough, but your you're enough already, You're enough, and
you can make the impossible possib Yes, if you just believe,
if you believe, yeah so so. Self love is the
first love. Absolutely believe in yourself. This is the master class,
(51:18):
uh with Darlene goings with John Hopebrien, And this is building.
Darlene is living her truth. She can be a bad
sister without bragging about it. And you have the power,
you don't need to use it. She steps over mess
and not in it. She says, you will respect me,
or you won't deal with me. She says, measure me
(51:38):
by my performance and my work, about my personality or
my looks. You will respect me because the only way
I'm coming is authentic. Or I will leave because I
know I can find a job someplace else. She knows
she's not perfect, but she knows she's enough. She is
her father's daughter, but she's also her son's mother. She's
also a friend. She's also someone who gives back. She's
(52:00):
one who lives through service, and the service she gives
is a legacy she leaves. She's articulate, but she's not snooty.
She's loving and confident, but she's also courageously disciplined, and
she will hold you accountable, which is why she loves
the data. She's as much of a silver rights leader
in the sweets as the civil rights leaders were in
(52:21):
the streets. She's trying to set out people free at scale. Ladies,
you're enough all by yourself. Stand up, step in, believing
yourself in demand a seat at the table. Expand the
table and at a seat. Darling Goings is coming. Building
(52:44):
the Good Life with John Hope Bryant is brought to
you by Prevential Financial
Building The Good Life with John Hope Bryant is brought
to you by Prudential Financial. My dad was the first
black minister that had been appointed the district superintendent for
the San Diego District. After a short time in Long Beach,
he was appointed to a predominantly white church, which was
unheard of back in the early eighties. And then he
was called by a bishop in Harlem to come out
(00:20):
and revitalize a great church in Harlem. And so he
felt called to do that, and we packed up and
we went across country to Harlem in the mid eighties.
Seeing all of that service to others really made an
impression on me. Hey, Hey, this is John Hope Bryant,
and this is building we are here in a special
(00:41):
podcast with a dear friend of mine, I say, this
lady doesn't walk on the water, but she knows where
the stones are. She's able to tap dance in a
corporate board room and on a dance floor and be
authentic in both places. She happens to be African American,
which she's just really a great leader who happens to
be black. As we say in my neighborhood, she's a
bad sister. That's s I s t A. Okay. On
(01:01):
a serious note, this is now the formal introduction. That
was my friendly introduction. Her name is Darlene Goings. She
is the executive vice president in charge of and head
of the Banking Inclusion Initiatives. I'll tell you what that
means in a moment, but it's a big deal at
Wells Fargo. Wells Fargo is one of the three well
they call it in the government sort of constitutionally relevant institutions.
(01:23):
It's a it's a systemically important institution, which means that
basically the government in the country can't live without it.
It's it's systemically important for the health and safety and
in the lifeblood of the largest economy on the planet,
the United States of America. Wells Fargo has been around
since eighteen fifty two, created by some dudes with some
stage coaches. They're really in the originally in the mail
(01:44):
delivery business. In part they deliver. The mail they're delivering
was gold bars, but anyway, it was they were delivering stuff.
It was faster in the US Postal Service, and they
also helped to create American suppress. This is their history
going back to the eighteen hundreds. Is from California during
the Gold Rush. Uh and it's fair to say it
was an institution that was made up of a dent
of people who didn't look like me. The world has changed,
(02:05):
and so as wells Fargo, and I'm proud to say
that Rose Fargo has changed with the world, in fact,
do a little bit better. I was with the CEO,
Charlie Sharf this morning at the opening of our two
hundred Hope Inside location in uh Georgia here in Greater
Atlanta under the Cab County, and I was noting the
diversity and inclusion numbers. They've doubled them. They've hit their
(02:26):
mark and doubled the diversity and inclusion numbers as minorities
and women. That's just since George Floyd uh so, in
the middle of this storm, they've created a rainbow. And
one of those rainbows and sitting in front of me,
her name is Darlene Goins. Hey, Darlene, Hey, what's up.
See when you when you got a title like this,
executive vice president, Head of Banking Inclusion, you just be
(02:49):
like you can just be relaxed. All my friends stressed out,
they broke. My broke friends stressed out. They they got
stressed in their voice, Darlene is easy's dressed out. I'm
just not broke, Okay, okay, and see and see. Darling
is super smart. Like this is one thing I love
about her. One of the many things she has integrity,
(03:10):
She's authentic. Uh, she she's she doesn't suffer fools, but
she's very gracious about it. But she you don't have
to make an excuse for. And this is my sort
of my new hopeful formula for black folks and minorities
and uh in America, in the world. She's not a
black leader. She's a great leader who happens to be black.
She's just strong and Charlie and the team were smart
(03:34):
to recognize that strength. Um. And that's what I want
to illustrate. The day that we've been making dumb sexy
for too long. We've done down and celebrated it, and
it's time to make smart sexy again. Um, Darling, you've
got a big job. Um. And I jokingly call it.
(03:55):
I called it a head of Black Folk Empowerment, or
you can call it head of Latino empowerment, or head
of women empowerment, or head of Native American Indian empowerment,
or head of poor struggling white rule empowerment because it's
really it's about inclusion. But in all, in all seriousness,
it came in the backdrop, in the environmentally, in the
backdrop of the George Floyd murder um, and so it
(04:19):
does come out in that context and in that regard.
I think the things that I've seen you guys do,
which I want you to talk about, have been extraordinarily
important and extraordinarily relevant to today's time. Tell us a
little bit about your job as you see it. I
want to get into some of the drama, the challenges
(04:40):
that the bank has dealt with as a systemically important institution.
People pick on you, uh, some rightly. So sometimes it's
just picking on you because you're big and you're there,
and as a black person sitting as a black woman
sitting at the in the corporate suite, it can't be
easy to be on both sides of this conversation. But
you do it with grace and style. So tell us
(05:01):
a little bit about your job and then we'll get
we'll go a little deeper. Sure, So, a little over
a year ago, probably about fifteen months ago, we took
a look at the uneven impact of the pandemic on
communities of color um on all levels economically, from a
healthcare perspective, housing, and we felt like as one of
(05:24):
the largest consumer banks in the country, we needed to
do more. And so, you know, I've always had a
passion around financial health and financial empowerment, and so when
I was asked to think about how we could help
bring more people into the mainstream banking system, how we
could increase access to affordable banking products, I came to
(05:49):
the table with a lot of ideas and helped launch
what is now the Banking Inclusion Initiative. So it is
Wells Fargo's tenure commitment to help more people who are
unbanked get access to affordable banking products and also to
get access to financial guidance and advice, yes exactly, amongst others. Yes.
(06:15):
And we also formed a national Unbanked task Force of
leading advocacy organizations where we have the leaders of those organizations.
We have Derrek Johnson from Janet Marghia from unido's US,
Mark Moreal from National Urban League, and they have just
been just true partners along this journey with us. And
(06:38):
so at the end of the day, I mean there
are more than seven million households in the US that
are unbanked, meaning they don't have a bank account with
a bank or a credit union. You guys hear that.
That's amazing number. And the largest economy, most developed economy
in the entire world. Seven many people have no banking
relationship whatsoever. We have another almost forty million they're underbanked. Yes,
(06:59):
and more than off of those unbanked households are black
or African American, Hispanic or Native American. Yeah, as we
were talking about and by the way, for the audience
listening to this, just so you know, the number one
group of for the largest group of poor people in
this country or poor whites, uh, and the number one
group dying in this country or white high school educated
(07:21):
men dying of opioid addiction. But that is triggered by depression,
really a lack of aspiration, a lack of opportunity. And
when we talked about this morning at the opening of
the Hope and Side location um into Cab, we were
talking about how half of African Americans you have forty
main afric Americans, but half of us have a credit
(07:41):
score below six. You think about that. Yes, racism is
real and bias and all the rest of these things
are real. We obsessed about those things. But it just
might be you weren't getting ACTRA as the credit because
your credit stunk. Um. Now, it's not your It wasn't
your creation. That problem was your creation. Because in many ways,
I think this banking inclusion initiative is a continuation of
(08:02):
the Freeman's Banks legacy, just as we're continuing that legacy
from five a bank created by Lincoln teach free slaves
about money, formally enslaved people about about money. Uh. Lincoln
was killed the next month, as as Dr King was
assassinated a hundred years later trying to pursue the Poor
People's Campaign, which was about all races of people, including
(08:23):
poor whites. But it's with African Americans. Is what we
don't know that we don't know. We're not dumb and
we're not stupid. We're brilliant. And when the rules are
published and the Plane told us level i e. Professional sports,
i e. The arts, where we're here here at I
hard right now, whether it's public policy, politicians, rules are published,
plane to this level, we kill it. We succeed. But
(08:44):
banking and capitalism and free enterprise and entrepreneurship. Dude, we
didn't get that real book. So our credit, amongst other things,
is one of the things that suffered because we didn't
understand this game, and it's half of us. It stinks.
And as a result of that, you can't get a
decent auto loan. As I said earlier today Mercedes means
(09:05):
mercies payments. In that environment, you can't get a decent mortgage.
You can't get a small business loan at all. So
you have a brilliant idea, you can't execute on it
now with a small business loan because you need a
seven herd of credit score for that. So sometimes you
can't even went an apartment or get a job, or
get a job. Half of employers require a credit check.
(09:25):
That's why I think financial literacy is a civil rights
issue of his generation. But just to real underscore what
I what I was making about the poor white population.
Whether you go to a five credit score black urban,
black and brown urban neighborhood or a poor white rule neighborhood,
what you see is a check casher next to a
paid a loan lender, next to a rent to own store,
(09:47):
next to a title lender, next to a liquor store
next to a pawn shop, a church down the street,
for sure. Trying to make you feel a little bit
better once a week. Little hooping and hollering gets it
all out of your system if you're black. Um, But
the reality is we're depressed. We're depressed, and we're being
preyed upon. And what I love what you're trying to
do is you cannot have success in any mainstream economy
(10:11):
or any economy without banking the power of banking. We
don't understand banking. I'm glad you're there. Um. People don't
realize that Wells fargoes at two trillion dollar institution. That's
trillion with a T. It is a forty first Fortune
(10:32):
five company in size, so fortunate, biggest companies in the world.
It's the forty one largest. It is, like I said,
one of three systemic banks in this country. And there
are six thousand banks in this country, six thousand banks,
seventy five thousand bank branches. I mean, it's unbelievable. These
numbers are unbelievable. And you know, I think I think
(10:53):
there's like fourteen trillion dollars in all banking assets. If
I got my number right, and there to trion of it.
So in this lady sitting in front of me walking
around humbly chilling, is is in charge of the banking
inclusion initiatives. A week excited about rappers and professional athletes
and people need to be come passing like, oh, Darling,
give me your autograph. Can you know they do that? John? Okay,
(11:19):
I got our home number of office on number. I
got a cell phone number. I got so scary number.
I'm all over life. She showed up the Christmas she
could open the door. I was right there and look
at me under the Christmas Street. I'm all over Darlene
like a cheap suit. I ain't playing Darlene. There's there's
other black women who are excelling. By the way, it
was Fargo, Gigi, uh yeah, a great lady. And Maryland
(11:41):
I just met. We got to know a little bit
more Maryland. And there's there's a number of people even
in the executive uh I call it the executive council.
It's not called that. But in the management team that
Charlie has the CEO, there are African Americans there as well.
There are Aftermarers on the boarder directors. I think there's
three blacks on your board of directors. As I recall, Uh,
(12:05):
so they've they've really have walked the talk from the
top to the bottom. And uh, now let's talk a
little bit about Um, I'm gonna come back to your story,
but I want let's let's talk about the obvious, because
somebody out there is rolling their eyes because we all
want something to to hay, to talk about or whatever.
And as I keep saying, as Saint is a center
(12:25):
that got up, an angel has dirty faces. We're all
angels with dirty faces. There is no perfect. I offered
a friend of mine a plane ticket. They were complaining
about America, how crap it screwed up America. Was okay,
I agree with you. Here's a plane ticket. Take care,
(12:46):
we're in anywhere you like, of finance it. We'll send
your stuff. They're still here. So so so, well's frog
is not perfect, Darlene, did you hear that? You guys
are not perfect? Really? Really? Uh, nobody's perfect? All right,
(13:06):
So intention matters. Um. I was there in uh little
committee in l A when the first crisis hit. Well,
it's far ago about these accounts. What year was at
that's when the news came out? Yeah, and I think
it's been brewing a little bit before that. And and
I did run into local arrogance. I did run into
(13:26):
people who who just wouldn't listen. They weren't they weren't thieves,
they weren't fraudulent. They were trying to get a bonus.
The people that they were trying to incentivize, people who
worked at Wells Fargo to get a bigger bonus because
you could open accounts. It wasn't like a malicious thing.
It was like the way that we're going to measure successes.
You if you're in the branch level, you open more accounts.
So that somebody came up with the unbright idea to
(13:48):
just open get people to open accounts, whether there was
anything in it or not, which gave him more money. Well,
those were dumb people. And those dumb people have been fired.
They're gone. And by the way, that was another bank,
because that was a merger ago. People don't realize that
even though the name of the bank stays the same,
oftentimes you have either a merger changes the texture of
the bank and that team comes in it's a whole new,
(14:09):
different team. I think that was a Northwest team. If
I recall and you also have leadership that changes. It's
like to suggest that that that the bank's not different
is to suggest that that the Biden administration is the
same as the Bush administration is the same as the
Obama administration is the same as I'm not gonna name
that dudes name administration. It's his presidency. But the administration's change,
(14:30):
and they're different. This is the Charlie Sharper administration, and
it is different. And uh, and Charlie is the first
to acknowledge that the last team screwed up, and he's
the first to own their screw up. What else do
you want from somebody? Uh, there was a crisis recently
about mortgages and the mortgage declines and oh, you guys
(14:52):
are declining all these black people more than anybody else. Well,
actually I called I called Darlene, and uh, what's up?
You know why you you're doing? Are people? And she said,
calm yourself down, Sit down, John, sit down, talk my mother,
sit down. And no, seriously, She's like, well, it's technically true.
(15:13):
But but it's just technically true. Like most banks don't
record everybody who is seeking finance for mortgages. They realize
that you don't qualify, they don't take the application. Well,
it's far agoing trying to be transparent, recorded everything, including
anybody who was remotely interested. So when you when your
(15:34):
when your credit was pulled, we talked about credit scores
this moment and you didn't pass it much. That showed
as they decline. They actually funded more mortgages than almost
anybody else, actually for black people. Actually, in the decade
from we helped fund more black homeowners than the next
(15:56):
three largest bank mortgage lenders. Come on, now, talk to me.
Say that again. Repeat that again for anybody in the
back of the room. For the decade from one, we
helped fund more black homeowners in this country than the
next three largest bank mortgage lenders combined. That's extraordinary and
(16:19):
you should be commended for that. And these were sustainable mortgages,
not that homeboy shopping network explode in your face prime mortgage.
We're talking about some We're talking about people who became
homeowners and and had every shot because it was a good,
well priced interest rate right prime prime finance. So so
sometimes when you become a bit of a target to
(16:41):
begin a bit of a punching bag for folks, and
I have to give you credit because when you reached
out to me and I said, sit down, John, but
you also said is there any truth to this? Right you?
You didn't immediately jump to judgment, which I appreciate in
you as a partner. You said, let me hear you out.
(17:05):
And I'm guessing that there's not truth to this, but
let me hear it from you. And if there's not
truth to this, let me help you help, you know,
make this better. So I really appreciate that from me
my pleasure. Look, I I just think that that there
is no perfect, and we don't let the perfect become
the death of the good. You know, if somebody's trying
to do good, help them be better, help them get
(17:27):
to that next level. Um. And I just think that
you guys are a credible institution and you've kept every
word to me that and anybody that I'm aware of.
I bank with you, guys, um and you were my
first mainstream well as an adult, my first adult bank account.
I told you. It's a Pico Boulevard branch in West
Los Angeles, across from the mall. And uh, I remember
(17:49):
the branch manager. I remember that they treated me with
respecting dignity, right and I my first mortgagees with with
you guys. I paid them off. UM, I have, I
have accounts with you to this day. I was in
Europe and the Bahamas in the last ten days and
I ran that I swiped my probably swapped my car.
Works all around the world. UM. And I do business
(18:11):
with other institutions as well, but my my personal, my
personal go to account is and has been since I
was eighteen with Wells Fargo. I'm proud to say that.
I mean, I think and your your good partner with
the Operation Hope and a hundred Black Men of America
and h B c U S and we look, no
institution can solve all of our problems. But I think
America is a very unique place to have corporations like
(18:33):
yours that significantly gives back. This is not this doesn't
happen in Europe. This conversation of I'm making I'm a corporation,
I'm gonna make a crapload of money, and I'm gonna
then donate some of that to a foundation back to
the community or through public affairs or Community Investment Act
is a uniquely American innovation. This conversation here about social
(18:54):
justice through an economic lens looking at a person like
you and a senior post at a a major bank
in Europe or Asia, forget about it. The only reason
it happens in Africa's we're all black, right. But the
banks are much smaller than what we're talking about talking
about here. I mean, a billion dollar bank in Africa
(19:17):
is about a ninety million dollar bank in the US
because it's thirteen one dollar to ran, so it sounds big.
But this is big. This is two trillion dollars of
the biggest economy on the planet. I can't underscore how much,
how big of a deal it is of what Darling
is doing it with a complete authority uh to move
(19:39):
balance sheets uh and change lives. Uh. And so I
just want to understand. I don't want you to understand
that the last movement was, in my opinion, was about
civil rights. This one's about silver rights. And we we
have we we've got to not to stop just being
complacent with with having somebody in a room. That's that's
(20:00):
about complaints. Oh, I saw some racism, I saw abuse.
All the police beat me up. Those are legitimate things.
But we can't have everybody. And since since seats of
power in the complaint Box. We we need to. It
can't be about what I'm exclusively at what I'm against Box.
I mean, you know, my friends a CP A worn out.
(20:21):
They can't they can't do everything we needed. What I'm
four box too, from civil rights to include silver rights too.
We need some folks in some green rooms, right. And
I don't mean green rooms as in prep rooms to
go on stage for a concert. I mean I mean
some economic rooms. I mean we need somebody in the
business suites who looked like us, who represent our interests.
(20:41):
Whoever us happens to be Latino, African American women, Native American, Indian,
and Asian, whoever underserved group we're happy to talk about
poor whites. Who says I relate to you, I understand
your plight. Uh, all things being equal, if you're deserved
a shot, gonna make sure you get one. What else
do we want within that? I mean a James Brown
(21:04):
version of affirmative action. Open the door. I'll get it myself.
And and and so I think that you're sitting in
a moment in history. Actually, I think that what you're
doing is going into twenty years from now be part
of the history books of the third reconstruction, which is opportunity.
The first one was freedom after this after the Civil War,
second one with civil rights access and bass Randel Young
(21:26):
just just uh called a moment ago the guy who's
Dr King's right arm in the civil rights movement, where
I so lucky that in the land and have all
these icons all around this right. And the third one's opportunity.
So talk a little bit. We cleared the deck on
some of the drama. Maybe there's another drama I didn't
know about, But talk a little bit about where the
(21:49):
bank is, what the bank's doing, What are you frustrated about,
What are you most excited about? Well, I will say,
and I know my mouth's going to get me in trouble,
but don't I got you covered, I said to Charlie,
don't worry. But um, I will say it is it
(22:09):
is like a new presidential administration. Right, it's a new
set of leaders. And I know my first four to
five years at the Bank, I felt like I was
banging my head against the wall trying to get things done.
And when I had this opportunity to help launch and
develop the Banking Inclusion Initiative last year, I took it right.
(22:31):
And so getting hope inside in there was a big
part of that. Getting UM greater financial education at HBC
US was a part of that, right, so UM really
trying to move forward a lot of the things where
I had been told no, no, no no no. If
I get that opportunity, I'm gonna take it. Building the
(22:53):
good Life is brought to you by Prudential Financial. For
overt five years, millions of people have counter on Prudential
to help solves for life's most important financial needs. Because
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(23:14):
reach new heights and providing a platform for people to
reach their financial goals. Let's get into let's get underneath.
So you can't really see see this. Those listening to
this on the radio, you can't see what I just witnessed.
But she was like editing, like, how how much of
a sistant am I gonna be? Right now? Right? But
(23:35):
but but the pause? Everybody heard the pause. Everybody you
didn't see it, but you heard the pause, and then
you and then she said when she really believes she
just said it eloquently and because she's an educated woman. Um,
what what you heard was strength. You heard strength of purpose.
You heard I'm not playing games up in there. If
you want me, you gotta have all of me, and
and and if you want my if you want me,
(23:56):
you gotta take my strength too. And I don't mind
taking a no, and I don't disappointment and disappointment, but
you're gonna hear my voice and until until you either
show me the door or show me an opportunity. They
showed you an opportunity that never give up. That resiliency,
that self esteem that I see in your eyes every
(24:16):
time that I see you, are here, in your voice,
very time I talk to you, which is different from confidence.
By the way, confidence confidence comes from competence. So if
you're competent in a job, you'll have confidence, that's what
we're used to. But that you can have confidence and
still have low self esteem. When I look at you,
(24:36):
I see esteem, I see self love. I see a
mother or father or uncle or grandmother or grand somebody
poured into Darly and said, girl, you can do anything
you want to do. Who was that? Probably my dad? Okay,
tell me a little bit about that. You grew up where? How? What? Yeah,
so I grew up mainly in southern California. Um, but
(24:57):
went to rich No, not at all. I grew up
in south central Yes, I'm a preacher's kid, so we
lived in you know, church parsonages growing up. Really. Yes, Um,
my dad was. He moved to l A in the
(25:17):
late sixties and very active, helped form some initiatives like
Save Our Sons in l A to help address the
mass incarceration of black men. What's your dad's name, Robert Smith?
That's the tea. What's really deep Disney Robert Smith. My
grandfather was RB Smith. But we're not related, don't worry. Uh,
(25:41):
but you do like a long long sister, so maybe,
but I remember that organization. Yeah, yeah, So, um grew
up in different parts of southern California. My dad United
Methodist minister. Um. We moved to San Diego to a
predominantly white neighborhood at the towards the early elementary school years.
(26:05):
My dad was the first black minister that had been
appointed the district superintendent for the San Diego district. So
he had about seventy churches that rolled up to him,
and so we went to different churches every Sunday. I
got to experience a lot of different cultures, races, um,
seeing differences that you're comfortable around different people, very adaptable. Um.
(26:31):
And then after a short time in Long Beach, he
was appointed to a predominantly white church, which was unheard
of back in the early eighties. Um, first black minister there. Um.
And then he was called by a bishop in Harlem
or in New York to come out and revitalize a
great church in Harlem. And so he felt called to
(26:53):
do that, and we packed up and we went across
country from a predominantly white gated community and Long Beach
to Harlem in the mid eighties. So yeah, yes where Um.
We actually we lived in a very nice brown stone
on Striver's Road, but the apartment buildings behind us were
(27:17):
burnt out, you know, on the rise. Yeah, it was
not the Harlem of today. It doesn't even look like
the Harlem that I know when I go back there. Um.
But I think seeing all of that service to others
really made an impression on me. So in some ways, uh,
you are continuing that sense of service, just doing it
(27:38):
through the most relevant factor of today, which is finance
and economics. I mean we you one could argue that
religion is how we originally got free. That was that
first of all, that first reconstruction, we could only sing
religious songs. The first corporation was through a black church.
The first black, first hospital for black folks was to
(27:59):
uh the church. First black business was through the black church.
First school was through the black church. It was the
only thing that we could do to organize ourselves during slavery,
and that kept us from being from completely broken as people.
Also and then doing a civil rights movement that morphed
into community service, which your father also did UM and
(28:22):
of course we know that executed through political office. What
we did not do is to go from UM cashing
checks to writing them. We didn't become stakeholders. We didn't
become capitalists and owners, which is what you're doing today.
You're you're facilitating that for a whole generation. So I
see you continuing that work of your of your dad.
(28:45):
So I'm trying to So he told you he loved you.
He did, and he told you can do anything you
wanted to do. He did. He told you I take
no mess either, the girl. You can do bad all
by yourself. You don't need no help. Yeah, he's hands
And what's your credit score? You got a job, you
(29:06):
have a career. I can do bad by myself now,
Counthy Johns want to tell me. I think worse than
being alone is wishing that you were so so so
He clearly poured your parents, clearly poured that self esteem
and so loved loving you. And it's so evident, um,
and you know you you remind me that phrase. You
don't even when you got the power, you don't need
(29:26):
to use it. You don't beat your chest, you don't.
You don't patch yourself on the on the on the back.
You don't scream, you know, Hollier, you talk very gently,
very calmly, very firmly. I do. So you bring all
that into the corporate suite? How was that received? For
the for the women listening to this nowase, women who
are from underserved communities, sisters who are trying to get
(29:50):
thinking about trying to get into the corporate environment. What's
your what's your? This This show is building building your spirituality,
building your self esteem, building your confidence, building your business,
building your household, building your marriage. It's all about building
what what what? Some young girls out there are mature women,
(30:11):
young girls trying to figure out their path, trying to
figure out who they are because self love is the
greatest love. Uh. And there are women who are matured,
maybe trying to reset their lives. How how can how can?
What advice do you have for them about trying to
make a move into corporate America. I think you have
(30:31):
to be your authentic self and not be afraid to
use your voice for change. Um. I know early on
in my career I did kind of hold my tongue,
but I don't do that anymore. And it's just like
take it or leave it. This is Darlene um. And
you may not like what I have to say, but
I'm gonna say it. But that's your value proposition. Also,
(30:54):
I mean, I don't I don't really understand why you
would if you're a black female go into a corporation
and then act like a white male, You're destroyed. First
of all, you're gonna be a copy of somebody else.
But second of all, and we don't have the privileges
of white men. Hello. But on top of that, you
(31:17):
have no You're adding nothing. You're an echo chamber of
something that already exists, versus adding that unique element that
comes from your culture and your background, and your perspective
and the way you see the world, which adds to
the richness of the Brew, which goes back to being
yourself right. And when you see injustice, to call it out.
(31:41):
Don't sit silently on the sideline. So how do you
do that without getting fired? How does one do that? Thoughtfully?
I just always tell people whenever you make an emotional decision,
it will be a bad one. There's difference between you
react and responding. And I've seen you. I've never seen
(32:03):
you uncool under pressure. You're always cool. I mean I
was delayed for our session today late. Uh she should
have she should have told me off. She didn't. She's
as cool as a cute now she you know, the
next time we'll get a lecture. But she was. She
was cool as a cucumber. On a serious note, though, like,
how do you do it? How do you do that?
(32:24):
So you step over messing not in it. I rely
on a lot of data and facts, Yes, you do
to uh provide evidence for the reasons why we need
to take certain decisions or why we might need to
examine things in a more deep way than maybe we
have in the past. Um, and you know, people can't
(32:48):
argue with facts. That was sexy. What she just said
was sexy. That was sexy. She's like, I dropped the mic.
I use facts. They were no, they were no we
no fancy words. I use facts and data to make
my case. And as that's actually how we met. Yes,
I got on the phone with her and I was
unhappy with whomever it came before her. It was far ago,
(33:12):
and I let her know. He tried to take it
out on me. I let her know. And the only
reason I survived that is I had facts in data.
Because she she she don't play. She would have said,
this has been a nice meeting, goodbye. But she I
asked you a lot of hard question and I was
able to answer, and so we we went. So I
(33:35):
think it's fair to say you correct me if I'm
wrong here. She respected me and learned to like me,
and I'd rather you respect me and learn to like me,
then like me and never respect me. Um. I wasn't disrespectful.
I wasn't, but I was clearly not a happy camper
and I wanted and I didn't want to act like
I was. That's not who I am. I'm authentic, like you.
(33:55):
But clearly I had the data and the figures which
I thought should aren't a different value proposition, and Darling
was interested in facts data, the figure that's that let
the facts that you free. And then she took that
data and went and made a case for it. And
we just opened up our two hundredth Hope Inside location
(34:17):
with Wells Fargo today Boom. And because of Darlene or
Darlene's leadership, we went from a discussion of a few
of these locations to fifteen of these locations, and now
we're talking about over a hundred hope Inside locations and
a unique structure that that we're still working the details
out on, but basically going to be in markets all
(34:38):
around this country with this model. And now we have
the CEO singing as praises and head of banking Mary
who's fantastic, and Bill Daily, who's on my board, your
vice chairman. So you become sort of a gateway to
wire organizations like ours Operation Hope we're talking about into
the fabric that the the infrastructure of this two trade
(35:02):
in dollar bank. Yes, is that your mission to wire
organizations into wire diversity and inclusion into the fabric of
this bank. Yes, I spent I spent the first five
years six years at Wells Fargo. I guess five years
um on the philanthropy side. And philanthropy is important, but
(35:25):
getting it integrated into the business, I think is more powerful.
Talk about having an influence on the products and services
that we offer the communities, where we redesign our branches
or put hope inside centers, that's going to drive even
greater impact than philanthropy can. So I think you need both.
(35:49):
But that was one of the reasons why I decided
to move over and actually lead the banking Inclusion initiative
after we launched it and I met you on the
fielding the philanthropic side, this is a really important conversation.
I'm not sure people listening to this can get the
nuance here. She was giving away money before, and now
we're talking about how to make money responsibly. And the
(36:10):
bucket for making money is much bigger, marketing, business development, etcetera.
Is much bigger than the philanthropic bucket, the public affairs bucket.
And that's also progress because that wasn't a conversation that
corporations even allowed us to have years ago, certainly not
(36:31):
forty years ago. Or maybe even five years ago. The
world has changed. I think it's changed changed permanently. And
this is these topics we're talking about, I think are
now part of the ether of these companies, the biggest
companies in the world. What are you most hopeful about?
As we sit here in a very troubling time, we're
(36:52):
dealing with them Listening, we're looking at it with girls
in Iran, you know, losing their life because they want
to wear their heir, he job, you know, looser on
their head. I mean, for God's sakes, we're talking about
you know, folks in Ukraine just trying to go about
their their life and having some idiot drop bombs on
(37:12):
them and their families. We're talking about, you know, people
disappearing in parts of Asia just because you differ with
the opinion of your leader. We don't think, we think
we sort of realize how good we've got it. But
even here we've got all kinds of problems. Uh. Politicians
who are who have decided to help us hate each
other and uh throw rocks at each other and pick
(37:36):
at each other as a as a hard to find
good news. Sometimes in the midst of all this troubling news,
right So in the midst of all that, how do
you find hope? How do you build in the midst
of that? What do something? What do some thoughts you have? Well,
you know, I have a fifteen year old teenager and
(37:58):
I think about his future, right, so I have to
do whatever I can to drive change so that he
inherits a world that gives him opportunity. So getting emotional,
John's not good when I talk about my baby, who's
not really my baby anymore. But he will, he will. Um.
(38:24):
So I just try to do whatever I can to
make a difference, whether that's serving on a nonprofit board,
or serving on the Moran County Priority Setting Committee that's
distributing federal grant money to local nonprofits, or leading the
banking inclusion initiative at Wells Fargo. Um, I just try
(38:45):
to do what I can to drive change. You were
influenced by your parents, your dad in particular, and your
son's being influenced by you. Yes. And it's been said
that if you want to find a good woe and
find one who has had a great relationship with her dad,
you want to find a good man. Find a good
man's great leagtion with his mom. So you gotta got
a good thing going and and I think your son
(39:07):
is very lucky to have you as as a mom.
Tell us as I don't want to run out of
time before we get into I want to end in
this with you given some recommendations, some very specific recommendations
for women, uh and girls and how to come up.
So I want you to think about that. But before
we get to that, uh, because time runs goes real
quick on these on these podcasts when when it's interesting,
(39:28):
and I don't like do boring, so all I'm more interesting. UM.
Talk a little bit about uh for those listeners who
don't know about Wells Fargo two and seventy thousand employees.
I think the last time I checked, is it more
than that. I think it's a little less less okay,
been firing some people two seventy thousand employees. Uh. Charlie
(39:49):
a playing you Gotta go, you Gotta go, Chop chop um. UH.
Talk talk about some of the important initiatives that arnin
Ger would be of interest to the public that they
may not know about, and talking about specifically what the
Banking Inclusion Initiative is doing now are going to be doing, uh,
and that you can talk about it is I can't.
I'm just I'm just chomping at the bid to talk
(40:10):
about a friend of mine who I won't mention they
will give it away, who's gonna be doing something real
big with you coming up. And I'm so excited about that,
UM rooting for him and because it's gonna help, because
it's gonna help so many people. UM. But but talk
about generally the bank and this specifically our initiatives. Specifically,
what do people need to know about what you're doing
(40:32):
and how do they reach you? How do they reach you, know,
reach you or the initiative. So what I'm really excited
about is we're really taking a new approach to providing
flexibility to consumers and how they manage their accounts. So
UM earlier this year we announced uh number of initiatives
(40:54):
that we were launching, things like extra day grace on
overdrafts that give you if you overdraft and you know,
you get an alert, you have an extra twenty four
hours to pay that back so that you don't have
an overdraft fee. UM. We have early Payday so you
can get access to your direct deposit paycheck two days early.
(41:15):
So we are really modernizing um, how we think about overdrafts.
We do have some accounts that don't have any overdraft
that are low cost bank on certified accounts like clear
Access banking. Okay, English people, for those watching, listen to this.
That means y'all spending money you didn't have overdraft. It means,
you know, you have twenty bucks, you spend forty and
(41:36):
they cleared the check or whatever, and they hit you
with a fee and you complained about it. Why y'all
charged to meet this money? Because you're spending money you
don't have. Okay, So they're trying they're trying to not
charge you penalize you for not having the best budget
on the planet, because we understand that people who've got
too much month at the end of their money. So
they're doing two things and not hit, not hit hitting
over By the way, there were some unscrupulous banks who
(41:58):
made a lot of money on just overdraft fee. So
joking around about it, but it's really become a thing
of praying on some people. Well Stroger shows and not
to do that obviously, And then you have the other
side of the coin where people really need access to
their money a little earlier, which is and so you
because you have predictable employers, like my guess is county
governments and state governments, and you know major corporations, and
(42:18):
you already pretty much know this person has been working
there for ten years. Pretty pretty good chance that the
next paychecks coming, they're gonna let you have access to
their money faster. Is that it works? That's a that's
a cool thing. Are you charging a fee for that?
Or really, I got some I got a cousin booboo
need that, pooking them, pooking them, and my family need
(42:40):
access that like immediately. They may change baits, they may
change bases to get access to their money earlier. And
one of the other things that we're gonna be launching
soon is a new flex loan, So when you have
a banking relationship with us UM, eligible account holders will
(43:05):
have access to a four hundred dollar is it four
or five um? So, she said, She said, eligible account holders.
Oh y'all, y'all, oh y'all mismanaging your stuff, trying to
blame it on the bank that y'all don't qualify. If
(43:26):
you were in four closed here last month, if the
toe truck was following your car last week, you probably
don't qualify, but this particular product, you can come to
Operation Hope. We'll help you out, and then we'll get
you a point wherein you can be an account holder
in good standing as Saint as the center that got up.
(43:46):
We understand, I've been there before. By the way, my
credit s grow was three hundred. I get it, okay.
So back to eligible account holders. You can have access
to a loan of either two fifty dollars or five
ers that you just repay in four easy installment payments.
There's like a twenty dollar fee for the five loan
(44:09):
and it just helps people with their cash flows, right.
You might you know, my refrigerator went out and I
had to get it fixed, right, and so I just
need a little bit extra to get me through this hump.
I can take advantage of that flex loan. That's so
important because for uh Mary Arisims in the studio, who's
(44:30):
president of Partnerships for Operation Hope, and she would tell me, uh,
right now, I didn't remember it. Of all, Americans don't
have four dollars for an unplanned event. So you're giving
a flex loan of two five hundred dollars just might
be the difference between them having heating or or refrigerator
or the car fixed or not. Um, it's a big deal,
(44:52):
and you're also indirectly putting pay aalenders out of business.
I'm saying that you're not. It's a beautiful thing as
we pivot uh here at this wonderful, rich time we
spend together. I just love being with you. Think you
an extraordinary human being. But you know you didn't give
me a chance to talk about the banking inclusion. She's
trying to earn her check. I'm trying to get to
(45:14):
I'm trying to get to the goods about how to
inspire these women. She's like, oh, no, no, no, no,
I get paid. I get paid by Wells Fargo and
we're gonna finish this. But now I'm with you. Let's
do it. Let's let's get into it. I'm just excited
about some of the things that we have going and
the director no, talk about that. Please. Now you can
talk about it as much as you want. Feel free,
(45:40):
but you know, hope inside is one of those things
that I'm really excited about because we're putting financial coaches
with lived experience in our branches to help community members
get their money right right and UM, so we're going
to be in twenty markets by the end of next year.
Mm hmm. We're going to be able to serve up
(46:02):
to a hundred and fifty branches. That's beautiful. You don't
have to be a Wells Fargo customer to take advantage
of the services. So we want to help people get
to those seven hundred credit score so that they can
get that low interest rate on the auto loan, get
that mortgage, get that small business started, and and we're
also talking about UH helping specifically with black business creation.
(46:25):
We'll talk about more of that later on. You gots
a member of Financial Literacy for All, which is the
leadership initiative from Corporate America to make financial literacy a
civil rights issue in this country and baking into the
business plan of major companies is like what healthcare was
forty years ago. That is awesothing we're very excited about. UM.
You guys have been financially supportive of the one million
(46:45):
Black Business Initiative UM, and we're talking about going deeper there. UM.
What else are you doing at the inclusion initiative that
people need to know about? Scenes you call me on it.
So we're working with a number of different UM collaboration partners.
(47:06):
UM we did some marketing pilots earlier this year. We
recognize that we've got to do better in terms of
our value proposition to consumers. So when we talked with
unbanked consumers, we found that, you know, they're really focused
on their financial stability and having a cash based system
(47:27):
helps them know exactly how much money they have to spend,
how much money they have to pay their rent, their bills, etcetera.
And it's it's just more comfortable from them for them. UM.
So we need to work on our value proposition and
help them understand the value that we can bring to
the table and help get them on a path to
achieving their aspirational goals. So translation for the layman out there,
(47:52):
you want to make sure the bank's relatable to everybody,
not just rich people. You want to make sure that
people know that you don't have to be just doing
very very well or even moderately well to come to
a bank. You can come to a bank and whatever
put place you are in your life, and will you'll
help them to go to that next step? Yeah, that's
as brilliant. Can I pivot? Now? Got uh? You know,
(48:15):
this is my favorite part of the session, because you're
gonna you're you're going to leave. You're gonna change somebody's life. Um,
there's some There's some little girl in the car with
her mother. There's some mother who's frustrated that she doesn't
have all the solutions for her family. There's some grandmother
who feels that she's led her children down because she
(48:36):
doesn't have generational wealth. There's some abused woman who's staying
around with some knucklehead because she's got children and he's
been beating on her. But she thinks she's staying around
for money. There's somebody listening to this who self esteem
it is not exactly where it needs to be. If
I don't like me, i'm not gonna like you. But
I don't feel good about me, I'm not gonna feel
good about you. I don't respect me. You don't expect
(48:57):
me to respect you. If I don't love me, I
don't have a clue out of you. Love starts at
home inside of you. So there's somebody listening to this
who just needs a little bit of a boost. You've
done it. You've made it executive vice president. Just for context,
When I was coming up. You know you had a
(49:17):
vice president of a bank branch and uh, that person
really had power. I mean they ran that bank branch,
but they can make credit decisions all that kind of stuff.
But vice president doesn't mean what it used to mean. Uh.
They people got some companies throughout comedy. The vice president title,
not the corporate vice but which is vice president? Like
it's candy, doesn't mean much other than a pay position. Um,
(49:40):
corporate vice president, You're starting to get serious. Uh, senior
vice president, that's really serious, particularly if it's a national
versus a regional senior vice president. Just for people listening
to this, an executive vice president is high cotton. You
can you can translate research high cotton. That means the
Southern phrase means that she's a big, big baller. She's serious.
(50:02):
That's a very very unique role. Executive vice president and director. Um,
you should be very proud of yourself. But what do
you have to give in the context of council advice? Direction?
Inspiration for those trying to come up. I tell women,
(50:24):
you're more than ready, be willing to take a risk,
take the next job. Say yes. Um. There's an African
proverb that UM says when women rule, streams run uphill
m M. Whoa. And I think about that, when women
rule streams run up hill. That's deep. I mean, that's
(50:47):
that's deep and what and and it's got me thinking
about self esteem and use you use your essentially saying
you're enough, but your you're enough already, You're enough, and
you can make the impossible possib Yes, if you just believe,
if you believe, yeah so so. Self love is the
first love. Absolutely believe in yourself. This is the master class,
(51:18):
uh with Darlene goings with John Hopebrien, And this is building.
Darlene is living her truth. She can be a bad
sister without bragging about it. And you have the power,
you don't need to use it. She steps over mess
and not in it. She says, you will respect me,
or you won't deal with me. She says, measure me
(51:38):
by my performance and my work, about my personality or
my looks. You will respect me because the only way
I'm coming is authentic. Or I will leave because I
know I can find a job someplace else. She knows
she's not perfect, but she knows she's enough. She is
her father's daughter, but she's also her son's mother. She's
also a friend. She's also someone who gives back. She's
(52:00):
one who lives through service, and the service she gives
is a legacy she leaves. She's articulate, but she's not snooty.
She's loving and confident, but she's also courageously disciplined, and
she will hold you accountable, which is why she loves
the data. She's as much of a silver rights leader
in the sweets as the civil rights leaders were in
(52:21):
the streets. She's trying to set out people free at scale. Ladies,
you're enough all by yourself. Stand up, step in, believing
yourself in demand a seat at the table. Expand the
table and at a seat. Darling Goings is coming. Building
(52:44):
the Good Life with John Hope Bryant is brought to
you by Prevential Financial
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