Category: Corporate Boards

DeForest B. Soaries, Jr., Independent Director, Ocwen Financial Corporationand Independence Realty Trust  In December 1992 I was honored to be invited to serve on the board of directors of New Era Bank, a small, community bank in New Jersey that was three blocks away from the church that I had was serving as Pastor. This […]

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I never realized that serving on the boards of not-for-profit corporations prepared me to become a director at for-profit companies. As a community activist and local leader, I had opportunities to serve on boards of various organizations that were formed to advance causes that I believed were important. Affordable housing development, voter registration, and foster […]

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A young friend of mine was very excited to be admitted into a labor union recently. Someone I know had taken him under his wing and successfully helped him complete one of the union’s training programs.  The excitement he exuded when he visited my home was warranted. The union he had joined was the International […]

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I have the good fortune of serving on corporate boards with white directors who understand the value of having diversity, equity and inclusion embedded in our board culture and operations. When we discuss new board members, all of my boards have members whose genuine interest is obvious and who realize that our organizations benefit from […]

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A very talented attorney stopped me at an event a few days ago and asked if I thought someone “on his level” could really have a chance to sit on a corporate board. I did not have to answer him with a theoretical hypothesis, nor would I stoop to the level of giving him a […]

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