Choir Certification for Financial Industry Conferences Requires Meeting Rigorous Standards for Amplifying the Voices of Women, Non-Binary People & People of Color

BERWYN, Pa., July 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Envestnet announces that its Envestnet Summit 2023 – Elevate – a preeminent annual industry conference – has received the Choir Certification™ for conferences meeting standards for diversity, equity, and inclusion among speakers as well as panel moderators and participants. Envestnet Elevate became one of the first conferences in the financial industry to obtain the Choir Certification in 2021, making this the third consecutive year Envestnet's premiere event has received the honor.

"At Envestnet, we are very proud to support this work and believe that while change can start small, providing a platform for diverse voices at conferences is a meaningful way to improve their representation in our industry," said Bill Crager, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Envestnet. "Through Envestnet Elevate, we are working side-by-side with Choir to amplify the voices of women, people of color, and other groups who have traditionally been underrepresented in finance—and we hope more organizations will join us in this effort."

Choir (https://hellochoir.com) was established to help increase visibility for people of color, women, and non-binary professionals in sectors that have historically been primarily represented by white men, beginning with finance. Envestnet was among the first companies to commit itself to the Choir Pledge™ for its conferences, which encompasses the following criteria:

• At least 1 of every 3 keynote speakers is a woman or person of color.
• Every panel with 4 or more people includes at least 1 woman or person of color as a non-moderator expert.
• Women of color are represented throughout the agenda in expert sessions—not only sessions about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
• There is an enforced policy against harassment of all kinds.

Choir also developed the Choir Score, a proprietary and objective 100-point assessment to quantify how well women, non-binary people, and people of color are represented on conference stages in proportion to their numbers in the U.S. population. Conferences with a Choir Score of at least 60 out of 100, much higher than both the Choir Pledge baseline and the industry average, are eligible for Choir Certification.

In addition to meeting all pledge requirements, Envestnet Elevate 2023 surpassed a score of 60 and met the criteria of the Choir Pledge. Choir noted in its report that Envestnet Elevate 2023's score was influenced by the inclusion of women, especially two women of color, in keynote speaking roles, as well as several women who presented solo in breakout and spotlight sessions.

"Envestnet was one of the early believers in Choir, and we've been honored to work with them since our first round of evaluated conferences," said Sonya Dreizler, Co-Founder of Choir. "The Envestnet team members have continued to be valued partners as our conference services have grown, so it brings me great joy to congratulate Envestnet Elevate on becoming the first 'three-peat' Choir-Certified conference."  

Held at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, CO from April 26-27, 2023, this year's Envestnet Elevate featured 168 speaking spots across more than 90 conference sessions. The annual event provides attendees with insights from thought leaders from Envestnet and across the wealth management industry, which, along with the latest innovations within the Envestnet ecosystem, can help them optimize their businesses and enable clients to experience the Intelligent Financial Life™.

For more information about Envestnet Elevate, please visit https://www.envestnet.com/event/elevate.

About Envestnet
Envestnet is transforming the way financial advice is delivered through an ecosystem of technology, solutions and intelligence. By establishing the connections between people's daily financial decisions and long-term financial goals, Envestnet empowers them to make better sense of their finances and live an Intelligent Financial Life™. With more than $5T in platform assets – more than 106,000 advisors, 16 of the 20 largest U.S. banks, 47 of the 50 largest wealth management and brokerage firms, more than 500 of the largest RIAs, and thousands of companies, depend on Envestnet technology and services to help drive better outcomes for their businesses and for their clients.

Envestnet refers to the family of operating subsidiaries of the public holding company, Envestnet, Inc. (NYSE: ENV). For more information, please visit www.envestnet.com, and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter (@ENVintel).

SOURCE Envestnet