Gina Coleman \u201991 does not recall many family conversations about higher education when she was growing up in Paterson, New Jersey. \u201cI am the sixth of seven children,\u201d she explains. \u201cEveryone was busy working hard to get by.\u201d<\/p>\n
When a high school guidance counselor asked Coleman about submitting college applications, she realized she hadn\u2019t even given it a thought. \u201cI went home and asked my mom about continuing my education,\u201d she recalls. \u201cShe said I could either live on a college campus or get a car and commute to classes. We couldn\u2019t afford both. I chose to live on campus and Blanton Hall was my home away from home!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI applied to Montclair State University because it was close to home and became the first in my family to attend college,\u201d she says, noting that her younger sister followed her lead, both becoming the first professionals in their family.<\/p>\n
Coleman wanted to be practical about choosing a major, but she also wanted a little excitement in her future career. \u201cThe Recreation and Leisure Studies program taught me the business side of hotel and restaurant management, as well as events and sports,\u201d she says. \u201cIt touched on the fun side of business, and I felt I could relate to what I was learning in class.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although she wasn\u2019t completely sure where the major would take her, Coleman was learning that she enjoyed being around athletics. \u201cI was working part-time at an area Boys\u2019 Club and I just loved the sense of engagement and impact on youth,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Coleman launched her career as a sales representative for the New Jersey Nets, quickly working her way up to account executive for sponsorship services and finally director of community relations. \u201cMontclair helped me into that first New Jersey Nets role through a pivotal internship,\u201d she says. \u201cIt was a great start, and I was able to springboard from there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Coleman next tried her hand as an entrepreneur in the service industry, first with a unisex hair salon in Hackensack and then with a full-service salon and spa in Southeast Michigan. \u201cOpening Green Room Salon & Spa followed a relocation to Detroit,\u201d she says, adding that it was her salon business that opened the door to banking.<\/p>\n
\u201cI met a PNC executive while fundraising for a local nonprofit,\u201d she recalls. \u201cI had pivoted my spa business under a self-supported model, and had been thinking about what I wanted next, career-wise. The executive suggested banking, which was not even on my radar, but he invited me to talk more.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only thing I knew about banking was my experience as a consumer and from a client perspective as a small business owner, but the executive thought I had the right skills for business development,\u201d Coleman continues. \u201cHe assured me that I could learn the banking part.\u201d<\/p>\n
After eight years at PNC and rising to the role of senior vice president and client and community relations director, Coleman decided to pivot, again.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a little scary,\u201d she says of her decision to join MassMutual Great Lakes as the chief sales officer, while also serving as a strategic partner to The Collective Financial Group, the firm\u2019s female-only group practice. \u201cI had significant career growth at PNC, in a relatively short period of time, but as I turned 50, I felt I was at a crossroads. The move helped me to be less fearful of trying something new.\u201d<\/p>\n
Throughout her time with MassMutual Great Lakes, Coleman kept in touch with her PNC colleagues, as many had become friends. When the chief diversity role opened, she was already on the short list of candidates. After all, during her prior tenure at PNC, Coleman\u2019s accomplishments included forming the company\u2019s first employee resource group for women in their Detroit market, and she had helped lead efforts around diversity and inclusion locally.<\/p>\n
\u201cDiversity and inclusion \u2013 D&I \u2013 was just starting to gain ground at that time,\u201d Coleman says. \u201cI understood D&I as it relates to employee engagement, creating opportunities for development, networking and career mobility. I saw the value of pulling more diverse talent into leadership roles at the company. I leaned into it. As a result, I was tapped for a variety of initiatives and leadership development programs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Coleman is excited about infusing her approach to embracing diversity and cultivating an inclusive environment throughout PNC. \u201cThe upward career opportunities are not always accessible to people who come from underserved communities, both urban and rural,\u201d she says. \u201cThis company, and every company or organization, can have much more positive impact when diverse talents and perspectives are included to build a culture of belonging, drive innovation and grow high-performing teams. I plan to maximize that impact at PNC.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is a philosophy that has its roots in her time at Montclair. \u201cI don\u2019t know if I would be on such a successful track if it weren\u2019t for the affordable, accessible college opportunity I found at Montclair,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Although living in Detroit doesn\u2019t allow frequent visits to New Jersey, Coleman is hoping to join her college friends at Homecoming 2022. \u201cSome of my favorite Montclair memories involve attending Red Hawk sports games with my friends, and we are all still close today,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Coleman does, however, follow University events through the alumni newsletter, and she is excited to be sharing her story with students and alumni. It aligns with her mission to inspire others, which includes serving as board chair for Junior Achievement of Southeastern Michigan and board member of Beyond Basics, a literacy program in Southfield, Michigan. Coleman\u2019s generosity and achievements have been recognized with the Michigan Chronicle<\/em>\u2019s 2014 Women of Excellence Award and with the 2018 PNC Performance Award, the highest employee recognition offered by the company.<\/p>\n She is also happy to have the opportunity to share her success story with today\u2019s students. \u201cLean into those seats at the table where decisions are being made at Montclair,\u201d she advises. \u201cJoin student organizations and get involved in where the University is going. And share your own story with others. Reach out to high schoolers who are thinking about what\u2019s next and let them know what the University is doing for you.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" PNC Chief Diversity Officer is Ready to Maximize Her Impact<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":293,"featured_media":210746,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-210745","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-76_alumni-news-and-events","category-77_alumni-spotlight"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/210745","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/293"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=210745"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/210745\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":210756,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/210745\/revisions\/210756"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/210746"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=210745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=210745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=210745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}