This year marks the fifth anniversary of Face2Face Africa’s Annual Pan-African Weekend, celebrating the accomplishments of the best and brightest in the Pan-African community. Since 2011, a select group of the African Diaspora’s most influential and innovative leaders and trailblazers have been honored with the Fascinating Africans Committed to Excellence (F.A.C.E.) List Awards in New York City.
The F.A.C.E. List Awards commemorate the work of leaders, entrepreneurs, entertainers, artists, and trendsetters who have helped reshape the global community’s image of what people of African descent are capable of creating, producing, and accomplishing.
2016 is particularly special because of Face2Face Africa’s partnership with Prudential Financial, Inc. For 140 years, Prudential Financial has been committed to helping individuals and customers grow and protect their wealth. The company is recognized as a trusted brand and one of the world’s most admired corporations.
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Face2Face Africa recently spoke with Dorinda Walker, Vice President of Consumer Strategy and Key Initiatives for Multicultural Marketing for Prudential’s U.S. business. Ms. Walker works with U.S.-based businesses to develop and execute strategies to engage women and multicultural communities with Prudential’s financial products and services. She has been instrumental in forging the partnership between Prudential and Face2Face Africa.
The partnership with Face2Face Africa is important to Prudential because it provides us with access to an important demographic in the Black community. There are 3.8 million people who were born in Africa living in the U.S. today. It is projected that number will reach over 12 million by 2060. This core audience includes college-educated African and Caribbean professionals and entrepreneurs. Prudential wants to be the financial partner of choice for this community.
Prudential’s mission is to help our customers achieve prosperity and peace of mind. I’m really proud of Prudential because we are making efforts to reach communities that are traditionally underserved by the financial sector. It’s so important that we provide access to financial services and solutions to this community. We want to be top of mind when people think about financial services and solutions.
In addition to promoting the company’s mission to help customers achieve financial confidence, Prudential wants to connect with the African community in an authentic way.
“We aren’t really trying to just talk about financial services, but we want to talk to people about their priorities. We want the attendees to leave the Pan-African Weekend with Prudential top of mind, knowing that we are ready, willing, and able to work with them.”
Prudential, the event’s principal sponsor, will certainly be on everyone’s minds.
The weekend’s activities start with an exclusive VIP reception at Marcus Samuelsson’s famed Red Rooster Harlem restaurant. Mr. Samuelsson is receiving the F.A.C.E. List Global Ambassador Award in acknowledgment of his entrepreneurship and dedication to both the local and international community.
When asked why Prudential selected the Red Rooster to host the opening reception, Ms. Walker noted: “I was personally in awe of his story and how he was able to build his restaurants and mentor other young people who are interested in the food industry. I think he is a trailblazer and a role model for anyone who wants to be an entrepreneur and do it successfully.”
Prudential hopes that its partnership with Face2Face Africa will help members of the Black community become better versed in financial planning and wealth management. When asked about Prudential’s commitment to the Pan-African community and organizations like Face2Face Africa, Ms. Walker offered:
Working on grassroots events like our sponsorship of Face2Face Africa, [Prudential is] able to connect members of the community with financial professionals. [We are] laser-focused on this targeted approach to drive deeper engagement with the Pan-African community.
To learn more about the Prudential-Face2Face Africa partnership, purchase tickets to the 2016 Pan-African Weekend. Click here to sign up to speak with a Prudential financial consultant.
