Editors’ Note

Lilian Vanvieldt is a 30-year insurance industry veteran who serves as Alliant’s Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer. As the head of Alliant’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) initiative, Vanvieldt leads a company-wide effort focused on promoting DE&I within Alliant and throughout the broader insurance industry through awareness, training, mentoring, and career development. In addition to her role, Vanvieldt is one of the nation’s leading brokers in the education space. She currently leads the Alliant Kindergarten to Community College (K-14) Public Entity program and plays an influential role in setting the program’s national business strategy. A proud survivor of stage III breast cancer, Vanvieldt currently serves as Director of the Susan G. Komen Leadership Foundation in San Diego and was the organization’s Honorary Breast Cancer Survivor of the Year in 2018. She holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and history from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Company Brief

Alliant Insurance Services (alliant.com) is one of the nation’s leading distributors of diversified insurance products and services. Operating through a national network of offices, Alliant offers a comprehensive portfolio of services to clients.

Will you highlight the vision for creating the Alliant Insurance Foundation and how you define its mission?

The Alliant Insurance Foundation was founded on the belief that diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) is critical to our success in our business, our industry, and the world around us. Our mission is twofold: To broaden access to career opportunities in the risk management and insurance industries, and to provide equitable support and resources to underrepresented students interested in pursuing careers in these industries.

What areas does the Alliant Insurance Foundation focus on supporting with its work?

The Alliant Insurance Foundation focuses on making a meaningful impact on the representation in the insurance industry by leveraging a broad range of partnerships, resources, and support systems at Alliant and in our communities. Our key programs and initiatives will focus on sponsoring scholarships or grants, funding or operating outreach and educational programs, community investment, and coordinating efforts with nonprofit organizations with similar or related goals or missions, among other efforts.

How do you plan to engage Alliant’s workforce in the work of the Alliant Insurance Foundation?

Our employees will play an essential role in the success of the Foundation through direct participation in our many initiatives, including internship programs, community initiatives, and fundraising efforts. The Foundation is a partnership between Alliant and our employees and there will be significant collaboration as we seek to increase our impact. We believe that the strength and success of our organization is defined by the underrepresented people who work here. Our employees have a broad array of backgrounds and life experiences and bring unique perspectives on both our business strategy and our overall corporate culture.

How critical are metrics to track the impact of Alliant Insurance Foundation’s efforts?

Our DE&I team is using a trove of data and findings compiled in 2021 to further develop and operationalize its people-centric and metrics-driven six pillar DE&I strategy. This strategy focuses on promoting DE&I at every level of our organization by focusing on the core areas of accountability, culture, representation, clients, brand development, and community investment. We believe that what gets measured, gets done. By setting realistic internal and external goals to advance our mission and establishing systems and processes to track our progress, we hold ourselves accountable to creating meaningful change.

How valuable is it to have such deep engagement and commitment from Alliant’s leadership team for the work of the Alliant Insurance Foundation?

The commitment from senior management is essential to the success of the Foundation. Alliant’s executive leadership has taken an active role in establishing and growing the Foundation and will partner with us moving forward, both as an advisor and participant in our efforts. Additionally, our Chairman and CEO, Tom Corbett, has pledged both his support and that of Alliant to CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion™ (CEOAction.com). This pledge is the largest CEO-driven business commitment to advance DE&I within the workplace across several industries.

The Foundation was founded on a long-term commitment to increasing the representation of women, racial/ethnic minority, LGBTQ+, veteran and other underrepresented professionals at Alliant and in the greater insurance industry and this commitment begins with Alliant’s executive leaders.

What are your priorities for the Alliant Insurance Foundation as you look to the future?

Our top priority is increasing the number of underrepresented professionals within the insurance industry. The Foundation is already engaged in multiple initiatives focused on developing a strong pipeline of students that will pave the way for more underrepresented professionals to join the insurance industry. Among them is a strategic partnership with Southern University and A&M College and the Louisiana Department of Insurance. The initiative, which launched in late 2021, includes a diversity-focused scholarship fund, a first-of-its-kind degree program, and a robust, paid fellowship program.