GTCR has been recognized as a M&A Leader in DEI for a second year in a row. As part of its ongoing DEI efforts, the Chicago-based firm recently established a women’s leadership group. It brings together women at GTCR to mentor, build a community of support, share ideas and openly discuss topics that impact women, especially as they traverse through their careers. Read more below.
Chief financial officer and managing director Anna May Trala, who leads a variety of DEI initiatives, was named by Mergers & Acquisitions as one of the the 2022 Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A.
How does your firm assess the benefits of DEI?
GTCR fundamentally believes that diversity of experience, culture, race, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation can create a more inclusive culture and working environment, and drive more attractive outcomes for its investors and management partners. DEI is a key area of impact that GTCR looks at with investment opportunities, believing perspectives gained from diversity within a board can help better shape an organization and drive enhanced results. In order to assess the benefits of DEI progress, GTCR:
• Established a DEI council, an employee council that provides insights, actions and feedback from varying viewpoints regarding corporate diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The council is composed of GTCR employees across teams, levels and tenure.
• Is developing a DEI learning journey to upskill the DEI council and leadership team on DEI topics.
• Is rolling out employee surveys and an “ask me anything” series to increase engagement on DEI topics.
What steps are you taking to improve DEI at your portfolio companies?
GTCR has taken a holistic approach to improve board diversity. The firm has started by engaging with existing boards and management teams to better understand the current makeup of their teams and where they see gaps in perspective and underrepresented voices.
At the firm level, GTCR has been partnering with organizations to expand their networks to increase the firm’s visibility among female and minority executives who might be the right candidates for board positions.
What results have you achieved?
Results have included the appointment of 30-plus racially or gender diverse board directors, achieving 79 percent of GTCR’s 34 portfolio companies (as of March 31, 2022), having at least one diverse board member and 47 percent with two or more. Sixty-eight percent of portfolio companies have at least one female board member.
