My name is Bevon Joseph, and I’m the executive director and co-founder of the non-profit, Greenwood Project. Our mission is to provide career pathways in the financial services industry for Black and Latinx students and to partner with companies to find equitable and inclusive solutions for recruitment, retention, and advancement.
I grew up in Trinidad & Tobago then moved to the United States after high school. I took an untraditional pathway to my undergraduate degree, entering later than most first-year students. But my degree from DePaul allowed me to further my career and build my resume with companies like JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, Chicago Trading Company, Achievement Asset Management and several others.
I did not always want to be an entrepreneur, but I saw a huge gap in opportunity for students who looked like me. Many of the companies I worked for had internship programs, but very few students of color were a part of them. My wife, Elois, noticed the same thing in her financial services career. So, we decided to try and help just a few students from our community secure internships back in 2015. It was successful, so we formally launched the Greenwood Project in 2016.
Removing barriers to success for Black and Latinx students
Black and Latinx students have few visible success stories in the financial services industry to look up to. Many of the students we meet know little about the industry, especially the wide variety of opportunities available to them. Companies have also historically put up many barriers to entry that disproportionately affect Black and Latinx talent. Often, getting an internship is more about who you know than what you can do.
We help students by providing exposure to the industry, networking opportunities, specific skills-training and wrap-around services many of our students require like housing, transportation and professional attire. Our theory of change proposes that introducing Black and Latinx students to this field will provide pathways towards wealth, not just for students themselves, but for their current and future families as well. A major focus of our work is teaching students about the concept of generational wealth and helping them create that for themselves and their families.
Building our business and shaping our vision
The biggest challenge in starting our organization is also what has made it so successful. We push companies to follow a model that we have seen work, but few are willing to make significant, structural changes to see long-term improvement in their company’s diversity. So, this element of trust has been critical. A few key partners believed in our mission and offered that trust early on, funding the organization based on my background, experience and proposed model for structural change. Developing that trust, especially with larger more complex companies, remains the biggest challenge in cultivating partnerships and raising more funds year over year.
Social media and word-of-mouth were huge for the organization’s growth. I had to learn the ins-and-outs of networking via social media, but the connections I made there often turned into significant donations or opportunities for students. We also relied heavily on word-of-mouth to grow our student population. Students had great experiences with us, then went back to their colleges and told their friends. We invested very little early on in recruitment, as our alumni did most of the recruitment for us.
As we have grown, our priorities have shifted to serving an even younger audience. We have found that, to make an even larger impact, our work must start at least at the junior year of high school. At that age, we can provide robust financial literacy and expose students to the wide variety of opportunities in finance so that they can capitalize on this, if they wish, during their college careers. We have plans to extend this reach even further in the future by offering financial literacy programs as early as elementary school.
For entrepreneurs, especially social entrepreneurs who are just getting started, I recommend surrounding yourself with experienced leaders in the space. In the non-profit world, successful leaders are eager to share their knowledge and experience with others to contribute to the greater good. I knew very little about non-profit leadership when I launched this organization, but with the help of other eager leaders who shared my passion for this mission, I was able to create a team of advisors, staff and a board that help me execute this vision every day.
Contributor bio
Originally from Trinidad & Tobago, Bevon moved to the United States after high school to further his education. He is a graduate of DePaul University. Bevon’s career has been exclusively in the trading industry, specifically in technology. He’s worked at financial institutions such as JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Chicago Trading Company, PEAK6 Investments, and Achievement Asset Management. Bevon also worked on the trading floors of the NYSE, NYMEX, and AMEX. Mr. Joseph firmly believes that kids can’t be what they can’t see. There is no lack of talent, only a lack of opportunity. In his free time, Bevon likes to play cricket and hang out with his kids Jevon, Chelsea, Pilar, and Piers.