At GDE and across our Hubs, our most engaged employees at all levels—from our hourly associates to our executive leadership team and board of directors—come together as thought leaders and active listeners to widen our networks, expand our knowledge, exchange ideas, passionately discuss and even debate our varying perspectives, and grow in our awareness of and unshakeable resolute for driving EDIC. Our people walk away from GDE with a deeper desire for MORE—more growth, more well-being, more learning, more caring, more respect, more understanding.

It’s not just a meeting; it’s a celebration of diversity and our tangible investment in keeping it at the forefront of our business.

Just like the previous year, we continued to offer virtual access to mainstage segments for all employees globally and an in-person experience for nominated employees. New in 2023, we expanded our reach by offering local GDE experiences in all Synchrony Hubs globally. Additionally, we hosted GDE in a new city—Chicago, which has a large Synchrony employee population, intentionally creating space for our Chicago-based employees to participate in select segments of the agenda. Our evolution is making MORE space for our employees to be part of GDE.

• In-Person Chicago Experience. More than 400 employees from various global locations gathered in Chicago to participate in three days of programming, including workshops, community service, networking activities and more.
• The GDE Hub Experience. We activated several in-person Hubs for employees to gather in community. Hub attendees could stream mainstage segments together and take part in localized GDE events. More than 1,900 employees participated in this way across India, the Philippines and the U.S. Hub programming closely aligned with the live GDE experience at the local level.
• The GDE Virtual Experience. All employees, no matter where they were located, had the opportunity to live stream mainstage events and engage virtually. Close to 3,000 employees engaged in this way. Additionally, recordings of mainstage events were made available for all—further increasing accessibility.

In 2023, our storytellers were a mix of Synchrony and external leaders, with Michael Matthews, Synchrony Chief Diversity & Corporate Responsibility Officer, and Brian Doubles, Synchrony President and CEO, kicking things off and setting the tone with a conversation about what the theme MORE means to Synchrony. Employees were encouraged to think boldly. We wanted them to emerge from GDE as champions who set bigger goals for themselves. This work is everyone’s responsibility, and that ownership and accountability are what enable us to achieve strong progress and impactful outcomes.

We proudly added more leaders of our Diversity Networks+ to that esteemed mix of storytellers.

In prior GDEs, we selected a representative from three of our eight Diversity Networks+ to co-host the event and share their unique stories. Reflecting on the power storytelling has to create empathy and improve understanding, we recognized the opportunity to have more representation in storytelling in 2023. We did not need to look far to accomplish this—we leaned into our own internal organization, inviting leaders from all eight of our Diversity Networks+ to use their powerful voices to share their lived experiences and how EDIC is integrated into their own. Participants valued these rich conversations, describing them as authentic, insightful and engaging. We will continue to amplify diverse voices and create spaces at Synchrony where different points of view can be shared and respected.

Our external storytellers represented some of the best thought leaders in the world.

In a dialogue with DJ Casto, Synchrony EVP & Chief Human Resources Officer, Arianna shared ways in which employees can thrive and integrate micro-steps to achieve greater overall wellness. She discussed some of the stress challenges employees often face, specifically those of working women. Arianna offered anecdotes from her own lived experiences as well as wellness solutions from her team’s research to help provide perspective and relief.

Doing MORE to Help Employees Thrive

Mental health challenges are on the rise and the impact is greater among diverse populations, who statistically are less likely to seek care. Synchrony is committed to codesigning benefits that meet the unique needs of our workforce. We have partnered with Thrive Global, a behavioral change platform founded by Arianna Huffington to improve total well-being.

Our partnership was announced at the Global Diversity Experience, where we began to share the Thrive experience with our employees. So far, nearly 7,000 employees have access to the Thrive MS Teams platform and over 450 hourly workers have access to Thrive Reset between customer calls. Long-term, our intent is to offer the opportunity for a Thrive experience for all employees and embed wellness into an employee’s workflow to drive positive impact.

In a conversation with Synchrony Chief Diversity & Corporate Responsibility Officer Michael Matthews, Michelle discussed the importance of “knowing your why” when it comes to dismantling systemic oppression. It was a candid dialogue where Michelle challenged us to see MORE—look in the mirror and acknowledge the ways in which we may have become complacent in the fight for justice.

Her talk also addressed cancel culture and its impact on individuals speaking out against injustices, the importance of nonmarginalized groups contributing to actionable progress that deepens inclusion, and the criticality of ensuring work is strategic. Michelle did not shy away from tough topics, and her assessment of current issues and ideas for how to address those issues resonated with employees. “I truly believe that systemic oppression is a tightly woven tapestry,” said Michelle. “So, if we start to pull at the thread that’s right in front of us and start to unravel this tapestry, we’ll realize all of us are connected in our struggles.”

Francisco and Javier joined together for a powerful conversation. Javier provided a real-life testimonial of what led to his family to take the risk of him crossing the border, which was a hope for a better life for him. “Most immigration stories are about love,” Javier said. Francisco and Javier inspired us to feel MORE as they talked about the facts and emotions surrounding immigration and infused humanity into it the discussion (from various points of view).

Their exchange honed in on the importance of having awareness of different individual stories and backgrounds and demonstrating empathy and solidarity even when personal opinions and preferences don’t align—a sentiment that applies to more than immigration but Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Citizenship overall.

That’s why we model this at GDE in our “Be the Difference Live” segment. Our take on a daytime talk show, “Be the Difference Live” invites Synchrony leaders with diverse backgrounds and points of view to have an unscripted conversation about tough, often controversial topics.

The reason this works is because the conversation is grounded in trust and mutual respect. We are living the example we want to see in today’s political and social discourse where those who may not have the same views on important topics, like LGBTQ+ rights, abortion, book bans and gun control, can communicate respectfully with one another. We are not striving for perfection but choose to be brave so that our employees have the courage to do the same. We want all employees to feel welcome in the EDIC community and empowered to share their unique perspectives.

In-person attendees were able to take part in wellness activities like Bollygroove, yoga, Tai Chi, Zumba and a mindfulness-inspired Zen Lounge. In addition, nearly 500 Synchrony employees volunteered in a hands-on community service initiative. Together, they assembled 5,000 summer kits and 5,000 college kits for students in the Chicago area.

Workshops were as diverse as the storytelling. Participants were able to participate in learning activities and deep conversations about unconscious bias, code switching, the veteran experience (immersive simulation) and more.

Cooking Demonstration:
Modern Indigenous with Chef Brave Heart

High accolades were shared about the indigenous cooking demonstration with Oglala Lakota Chef Kim Tilsen-Brave Heart, founder of Et-i-quette. She shared the significance of indigenous ingredients and modernizing the indigenous culinary experience.

Attendees sampled wild rice bison meatballs with blackberry wojapi dressing over a berry salad and an organic Lakota tea that was homegrown and prepared by the Chef. Through a unifying connection to food, attendees were able to immerse themselves into Indigenous culture in a distinctive way.

Exploring the Intersection of Identity & Culture

Filmmaker David Siev participated in a discussion about the award-winning documentary, Bad Axe. The film captures a closely-knit Cambodian Mexican American family living in rural Michigan during the pandemic as they fight to keep their local restaurant and American dream alive. With rising racial tensions, the family uses their voice and must unite as they reckon with backlash from a divided community and intergenerational trauma.

Storytelling has a way of helping us learn from others while simultaneously increasing understanding and building empathy; the stories shared at the 2023 GDE did not disappoint. Whether through listening to conversations on the mainstage or being part of more intimate discussions and immersive activities, we wanted GDE participants to leave feeling challenged to see, feel and do MORE to further their Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Citizenship journey. While feedback from attendees shows that our mission was accomplished, our work continues.

During GDE, our teams in India were excited to deepen their EDIC engagement through the GDE Hub Experience in Hyderabad. In addition to offering virtual access to the mainstage speakers at the Chicago live event, the SYF Hyderabad Hub created a connected yet unique experience of its own with stories from internal leaders in India, a dynamic in-person keynote speaker and a volunteer activity to help nearly 750 underserved children help develop motor and language skills.

Our colleagues in India leaned into more conversations about emerging, significant topics usually not broadly discussed in the country, especially at work. Specifically, they wanted to bring MORE attention to workplace inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community, given the state of LGBTQ+ rights and policies in India. (Homosexuality was only decriminalized in India in 2018, and shortly after the GDE, in October 2018, the Supreme Court of India ruled against legalizing same sex marriage.) Parmesh Shahani, advocate for LGBTQ+ inclusion in the workplace and widely regarded for sparking conversations about the changing face of contemporary India, was the perfect keynote speaker to help lead this conversation.

During the Hyderabad, India Hub Experience, Shahani emphasized the significance of leadership immersion in equity, diversity and inclusion progress and discussed how, as active allies, we can all contribute to creating more inclusive environments. “Allies can play an important role in creating safe and welcoming spaces in which everyone feels supported and respected,” said Shahani. He encouraged employees to embrace their differences to further innovation and creativity, and help cultivate more supportive settings, promote equal opportunities and further an accepting workplace culture for all.

In their enthusiastic willingness to deepen empathy and understanding, our teams in India demonstrated the kind of fearlessness we strive toward in our EDIC quest and heightened our commitment to continuously finding ways to do MORE to strengthen inclusion.