SEC Issues New Strategic Plan for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has unveiled its new Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) Strategic Plan for fiscal years 2023-2026. This strategic plan represents a significant step forward in the SEC's commitment to fostering diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility within the organization and across the broader financial industry.

SEC Chair Gary Gensler emphasized the agency's dedication to protecting investors, facilitating capital formation, and promoting fairness across all American communities. He stated, "With respect to the middle part of our mission—to maintain fair, orderly, and efficient markets—fairness is literally embedded in our mission."

The SEC's DEIA Strategic Plan outlines a comprehensive approach that aligns with the agency's broader strategic goals. Specifically, it supports the third goal of the SEC Strategic Plan, which focuses on developing a skilled workforce characterized by diversity, equity, and inclusivity, fully equipped to advance the agency's objectives.

The DEIA Strategic Plan centers around three primary pillars:

1. People: This pillar emphasizes the importance of building the SEC's future by nurturing and harnessing the potential of its workforce. It acknowledges that fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion among employees is essential to achieving the agency's goals.

2. Culture: The plan aims to cultivate a culture within the SEC characterized by inclusivity, connectedness, and a sense of belonging. A positive organizational culture is seen as instrumental in creating an environment where all employees can thrive.

3. Mission: The DEIA Strategic Plan recognizes the power of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in enhancing the agency's effectiveness in fulfilling its mission. It seeks to leverage DEIA to drive progress and success across all aspects of the SEC's work.

The plan underscores the notion that meaningful and sustained progress in the DEIA realm is both an individual and collective responsibility. It emphasizes the importance of accountability in catalyzing action and driving positive change.

This strategic plan builds upon the SEC's previous successes in advancing DEIA goals and reflects the agency's commitment to addressing the challenges and opportunities presented by diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. It also signifies the SEC's dedication to ensuring that the financial industry as a whole becomes more diverse, equitable, and inclusive.

The SEC's DEIA Strategic Plan for fiscal years 2023-2026 demonstrates the agency's proactive approach to embracing diversity, promoting equity, fostering inclusion, and enhancing accessibility within its operations, culture, and mission. By embedding DEIA principles across its activities, the SEC aims to strengthen its ability to protect investors and uphold fair, orderly, and efficient markets for all Americans.