Earlier this month I, along with other members of the VantageScore team and extended family, had the privilege of attending American Banker’s Most Powerful Women in Banking Awards Dinner.
I want to extend my congratulations to all of the women honored. We are extremely proud to once again sponsor the event, which we have done for six of the 17 years of its existence.
The incredible women honored have achieved success through their intelligence, their skills and experience, their ambition and their pursuit of excellence.
Unfortunately, that often hasn’t been enough and the playing field is not always even.
That’s why this year American Banker also recognized those who have served as allies: the people—both women and men—who have supported them along the way.
A good articulation of this was provided by American Banker in an article about the awards dinner:
Keynote speakers at Thursday night’s gala called out mentors who had helped them along their path and urged others in the audience to be allies to the next generation of women.
“We’re all here tonight because at some point a man or a woman played a critical role in giving advice or giving us an opportunity or coaching us in a time of need or just encouraging us,” said Barbara Desoer, the former chief executive officer of Citibank, N.A. who accepted an award for lifetime achievement. “It’s incumbent upon all of us to continue that.”
Cathy Bessant, who was recognized as the Most Powerful Woman in Banking, mentioned Desoer by name in her own remarks. Sometimes being a good mentor means giving someone tough advice, Bessant said.
“Barbara had the courage and the grace to tell me things I did not want to hear,” Bessant said.
To all those who served as allies, especially those within the VantageScore orbit, thank you and keep up the important work.
Moreover, to the women on the VantageScore team, thank you for the leadership, innovation, dedication and important contributions.
Speaking of team work and major contributions, our data analytics and marketing team here at VantageScore have worked side-by-side with the Wall Street Journal to develop an interactive game called the “Credit-Score Game”, which allows users to test their knowledge of how everyday consumer credit behavior can impact a credit score and by how much.
We are proud of this collaborative effort, not only because it raises our brand’s awareness amongst readers of the WSJ, but it also reinforces VantageScore’s credibility in the industry. We hope you take a moment to play the game and see if you really know your stuff!
Regards,
Barrett Burns