Robert A Toigo Foundation

TO INSPIRE CHANGE AND ADVANCE MORE INCLUSIVE LEADERSHIP IN FINANCE AND BEYOND.

EDUCATION: DESPITE AN UNDERCURRENT OF UNCERTAINTY AROUND THE QUALITY AND VALUE OF REMOTE LEARNING, APPLICANTS TO BUSINESS SCHOOL, IN PARTICULAR, APPLICATION FOR THE MBA FELLOWSHIP REMAINED ROBUST FOR 2021 THE FOUNDATION WELCOMED NEARLY 400 NEXT GENERATION LEADERS TO PRESENT THEIR QUALIFICATIONS FOR SELECTION AS A TOIGO FELLOW. THE FOUNDATION'S FINANCIAL INVESTMENT IN ONLINE APPLICATION TOOLS, WEBINARS AND RECORDED INTERVIEWS ALLOWED FOR THE CLOSEST EXPERIENCE TO THE IN-PERSON INTERVIEW PROCESS AND LED TO THE SELECTION OF 100 STUDENTS FOR THE PROGRAM. THE GROWING INTERESTS AND NEEDS OF TODAY'S MBAS PARTICULARLY GIVEN THE CONVERSION OF IN-PERSON SESSIONS TO VIRTUAL PLATFORMS ALLOWED THE FOUNDATION TO REACH AN INCREASING NUMBER OF STUDENTS BY WAY OF OUR INDUSTRY EDUCATION ONLINE SESSIONS, TECHNICAL SKILL TRAINING AND WORKSHOPS. ONLINE PLATFORMS WERE CUSTOMIZED AND EASILY ADMINISTERED PROVIDING A SETTING FOR SEAMLESS PROGRAMMING AND AN EFFECTIVE WAY TO ENGAGE CORPORATE DONORS IN LEADING SESSIONS, MEETING STUDENTS TOWARD RECRUITMENT GOALS AND PROVIDING CAREER MANAGEMENT SUPPORT. UNANTICIPATED WERE THE MORE THAN 100 STUDENTS WHO WERE FINALISTS FOR THE PROGRAM SEEKING ACCESS TO TOIGO'S ADDITIONAL SKILL-BUILDING SUPPORT. THE FOUNDATION OPENED ITS PLATFORMS FOR ACCESS BY THESE STUDENTS INCREASING THE TOTAL NUMBER SERVED TO NEARLY 300 STUDENTS ACROSS MORE THAN 22 ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS. NEW TRENDS IN CAREERS PRESENTED OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE FOUNDATION TO ENGAGE WITH ADDITIONAL RESOURCE PROVIDERS AND SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS TO EXPAND OUR TECHNICAL SKILLS PLATFORM - QUANT CAMP. ASYNCHRONOUS LEARNING MODULES AND SELECT CERTIFICATION PROGRAMS WERE INTRODUCED; BALANCING ELEVATED CAREER MANAGEMENT SERVICES WITH EXPERIENCED CAREER COACHING AND LEADERSHIP PROFESSIONALS. COMBINING THESE TOOLS AND RESOURCES ADVANCED STUDENT PROFILES IN THE INTERVIEW PROCESS LEADING TO A VERY SUCCESS EMPLOYMENT TREND FOR SUMMER AND FULL-TIME POSITIONS - SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED BY 12/31/21.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES: THE NATIONAL DIALOGUE AND ACTIONS AROUND RACE AND EQUITY; WORKPLACE OPPORTUNITY AND FAIRNESS FUELED THE ATTENTION THAT STARTED IN 2020 TO CONTINUE AT AN ACCELERATED MOMENTUM IN 2021 WITH RESPECT TO FIRMS SEEKING TO IMPROVE INCLUSION WITHIN THEIR ORGANIZATIONS BY TAPPING INTO MORE DIVERSE APPLICANT TALENT POOLS AN EXPONENTIAL INCREASE IN RECRUITING STRATEGIES FOCUSED ON UNDERREPRESENTED TALENT AT THE MBA LEVEL TO MORE ELEVATED SERVICES, SUPPORT AND COUNSEL TO ADVANCE INDUSTRY'S ATTENTION ON WORKPLACE D&I, LED TO CONSIDERABLE ENGAGEMENT WITH PRACTITIONERS AND ORGANIZATIONS AND AN INCREASED DEMAND FOR THE FOUNDATION'S PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. SUPPORT TO BRIDGE THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN FIRM EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND ENTRY LEVEL TALENT SEEKING SUMMER INTERNSHIPS AND/OR FULLTIME ROLES UPON GRADUATION WAS UNPRECEDENTED. ORGANIZATIONS LATE IN THE RECRUITING PROCESS LEARNED QUICKLY THAT TALENT HAD ALREADY BEEN SWEPT UP BY MORE PROACTIVE RECRUITING STRATEGIES BY EMPLOYERS. THE FOUNDATION PROVIDED COUNSEL AND ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES THROUGHOUT THE YEAR ON WAYS TO CULTIVATE PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYEES; PROVIDE INDUSTRY EDUCATION AND TO MAINTAIN RELATIONSHIPS THROUGH THE DYNAMICS OF RECRUITING SEASON TO ACHIEVE DESIRED RESULTS. INVESTMENT IN ONLINE PLATFORMS FOR JOB POSTINGS AND RESUME REVIEW WAS INTRODUCED FOR THE MBA LEVEL. EVEN MORE ROBUST WAS THE KEEN EYE ON EXPERIENCED TALENT. THE FOUNDATION BENEFITED FROM ITS LONG-STANDING PRACTICE OF DIRECT, HIGH TOUCH ENGAGEMENT WITH FIRMS AND PROSPECTIVE CANDIDATES TO ENSURE THAT MID TO SENIOR LEVEL PARTICIPANTS IN THE PROGRAM WOULD BE SERVED ACTIVELY AND PROFESSIONALLY. COMPANIES THAT EXPERIENCED THE EFFECTS OF THE "GREAT MIGRATION", DEMAND FOR MORE REMOTE WORK SETTINGS OR, MORE POSITIVELY, THE POTENTIAL FOR HEADCOUNT EXPANSION INTENTIONALLY IMPLEMENTED STEPS TO PARTNER WITH ORGANIZATIONS TO REACH THE HIGHLY SELECTIVE TALENT POOL OF PROFESSIONALS WITH 10+ YEARS EXPERIENCE AS A WAY TO DEMONSTRATE THEIR COMMITMENT TO D&I ACROSS THE RANKS OF THEIR ORGANIZATIONS. THE FOUNDATION ACTIVELY SUPPORTED THIS PROCESS PRESENTING CANDIDATES AND FACILITATING CLOSURE ON JOB SEARCH PLACEMENT WITHIN KEY ROLES WITHIN THE FINANCE INDUSTRY. REVENUE WAS ROBUST FOR THESE SERVICES BASED ON THE FOUNDATION'S SUCCESS AT CANDIDATE SOURCING, PRESENTATION AND SUCCESSFUL PLACEMENT. EXPENSES WERE ALIGNED TO THIS SERVICE REFLECTING THE TIME INVOLVED ACROSS MORE THAN 300 POSTINGS IN 2021. UNDERSTANDING THE CRITICAL WORK TO ASSIST INDUSTRY IN ADVANCING THEIR EDUCATION AND AWARENESS AROUND THE MERIT OF BUILDING MORE INCLUSIVE WORK ENVIRONMENTS, THE FOUNDATION'S INCLUSION STRATEGY SERVICES LAUNCHED IN 2020 REMAINED ACTIVE THROUGHOUT 2021. FROM PROJECT-BASED SERVICES TO SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS TO THOUGHT LEADERSHIP, THE FOUNDATION PRESENTED A FULL-SCALE PLATFORM FOR FOSTERING ONGOING DIALOGUE, IMPROVEMENTS TO POLICIES AND PRACTICES, AMPLIFYING THE VOICE OF DIVERSE PROFESSIONALS THROUGH SURVEYS AND REPORTS AND FEATURE ARTICLES DRIVING TOPICS ACROSS EMPLOYMENT, ENTREPRENEURSHIP, GOVERNANCE AND LEADERSHIP. THESE ACTIVITIES RESULTED IN THE VALUE PLACED ON THE FOUNDATION AS A LEADER IN THE DIALOGUE AROUND DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION.

TOIGO INSTITUTE PROGRAMMING: TOIGO INSTITUTE PROGRAMMING FOCUSED ON POST GRADUATE CONTINUOUS LEARNING REMAINED A DYNAMIC PART OF THE FOUNDATION'S OFFERINGS IN 2021. INVESTMENTS IN SPECIALIZED PROGRAMS AND SERVICES REPRESENT OUR ONGOING COMMITMENT TO THE LEADERSHIP GOALS OF THE POST-GRADUATE POPULATION WE SERVE AND MEANINGFUL WAYS TO INCREASE AWARENESS AROUND WORKPLACE DIVERSITY, ACCESS TO TALENT AND MECHANISMS FOR RETENTION. THE FOUNDATION CONTINUED DEVELOPMENT OF ITS LEARNING PLATFORM FEATURING PODCASTS, INVESTMENT SECTOR WEBINARS AND MORE. ADDITIONALLY, THE CRM "TOIGO MARKETPLACE" GREW IN PARTICIPATION ACROSS THE NETWORK OF FELLOWSHIP PARTICIPANTS, SHARING INDUSTRY EVENTS AND A SPIRIT OF COMMUNITY BUILDING. THOUGHT LEADERSHIP IN 2021 ADVANCED WITH THE RELEASE OF INDUSTRY RECOGNIZED REPORTS AND ARTICLES BRINGING INTO FOCUS D&I WITHIN THE ACADEMIC ENVIRONMENT TO THE PERSPECTIVES OF MID-CAREER DIVERSE PROFESSIONALS ON THE PERCEIVED CHANGE IN WORKPLACE DIVERSITY OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS IN LIGHT OF NATIONAL EVENTS OF TRAGEDY AND DISCOURSE AROUND RACE AND EQUITY. AN ARTICLE AMPLIFYING THE VOICES OF PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS ON CAREERS AND THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR CONTINUOUS CHANGE WAS PUBLISHED WITHIN A GLOBAL PUBLICATION; FURTHERING THE BRAND OF THE ORGANIZATION AND FUELING NEW CONNECTIONS. THE HALLMARK OF THESE PIECES IS THE FOUNDATION'S RESPONSIBILITY TO CONTRIBUTE TO CONVERSATIONS BY BRINGING "REAL TRUTH" FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF INDIVIDUALS FOR WHOM THESE PROGRAMS ARE DESIGNED. TOIGO'S WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP SUMMIT, GROUNDBREAKERS WAS HELD VIRTUALLY IN 2021 HOSTING MORE THAN 350 REGISTRANTS. MORE THAN 25 FIRMS SUPPORTED THE EVENT AS SPONSORS AND SPEAKERS. WITH CORPORATE SPONSORSHIP, FIRMS WERE ABLE TO REGISTER LARGE NUMBERS OF EMPLOYEES TO ENJOY THE PROGRAM VIRTUALLY THEREBY EXPANDING THE AUDIENCE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE RICH CONTENT OF THE PROGRAM BUT ALSO MINIMIZING THE NUMBER OF INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATIONS PREVIOUSLY EXPERIENCED AT THIS EVENT. THIS CHANGE IS VIEWED AS A POSITIVE WITH RESPECT TO THE FOUNDATION'S REACH AND IMPACT ON THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF WOMEN. THE HIGH-PROFILE LINEUP OF SPEAKERS FROM ACADEMIA, PHILANTHROPY, BUSINESS AND GOVERNMENT CONTINUES TO CREATE A "MUST ATTEND" EVENT ON AN ANNUAL BASIS.