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US Bank, Bayer Use Discriminatory Training Program

Last Week, O'Keefe Media Group Revealed Best Buy Was Using The Same Training Program


U.S. Bank and Bayer are reportedly using a training program which bans white people from participating.

The financial institution and pharmaceutical company have employed McKinsey & Company’s Management Training Program, “Connected Leaders Academy,” according to the Daily Wire.

“Connected Leadership Academy” is delivered through “identity-based communities,” according to McKinsey & Company. The program explicitly offers “Black Leadership Acadamy, Hispanic and Latino Leadership Acadamy, and Asian Leadership Acadamy.

“We offer employees affinity-based development programs,” reads U.S. Bank’s 2022 Environmental Social Governance (ESG) report.

Bayer Talent Management Lead Allison Smith touted McKinsey & Company’s training program in a video showcasing the program.

“Connected Leaders Academy helps us to really develop our employees for their next opportunity,” Smith says.

“The program has us continue to think on how we can equitably and fairly manage our talent pipeline,” U.S. Bank’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion Strategy Manager Astrit Bendetto says, adding the program helps “bubble up those high-impact talent.”

Fellow U.S. Bank Head of Wealth Management, Trust Administrative Services Liesl Kistow similarly praised the program saying her experience was “joy to see that you’re not the only one out here as a leader.”

“This program helps me as a leader to understand different frameworks, different approaches, different ways that I can engage with other Latin American colleagues, not only in my company, but across industries,” says Bayer VP of Strategy Nicolas Bahamon.

U.S. Bank also offers diversity training programs from Menttium, Linkage, Hispanic Leader Enrichment and Advancement Development Program (L.E.A.D.), Asian Leadership Development Program, and RISE, according to the company’s report.

O’Keefe Media Group’s James O’Keefe recently revealed electronics retailer Best Buy was hosting McKinsey & Company’s training program last week.

The electronics retailer specifically advertised the program for employees who “identify as Black, Latino, Hispanic, Asian, or Pacific Islander.”

Shortly after O’Keefe’s report, consumers suggested they may engage in a boycott of the electronics company similar to adult beverage company Bud Light.

Libs of TikTok noted insurance company Liberty Mutual similarly employs McKinsey & Company’s training programs.

The insurance company specified their criteria for candidates as employees who are “Asian, Black or Hispanic/Latinx,” may apply. Liberty Mutual also noted the program seeks to “diversify talent pipelines” and “accelerate careers.”

America First Legal group has expressed interest in speaking to Best Buy employees excluded from McKinsey & Company’s training programs offered through the company.

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