With the tight job market, employers are faced with finding unique ways to attract and retain top talent. Lincoln Financial’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion created a breakthrough initiative, Pitch U, to provide the organization greater exposure to diverse, top talent while offering employees development opportunities in a unique way.

Designed exclusively for members of Lincoln Financial’s seven Business Resource Groups (BRGs), Pitch U was a multi-part program that offered employees the chance to develop, package and pitch themselves for new career opportunities within the company.

PitchU launched with a four-part professional development series called Package Your Pitch.  Participants learned the fundamentals to elevate their personal brand value and share their stories. Upon completion of the developmental series, participants developed a pitch based on what they learned and shared the pitch with their peers for an opportunity to be selected as one of 21 Pitch Your Value finalists. These finalists included three people from each of the seven BRGs, and selected finalists were provided with personal coaching to enhance their pitch and create a pitch video that was shared with leaders and employees across the company to help participants gain exposure for future opportunities.

More than 300 members participated in the developmental series and out of the 21 finalists, three found new positions with increased responsibility and corporate visibility, and one was invited to Lincoln’s Officer Readiness Program, a training program for future leaders. All participants were added to the internal recruiting systems for consideration for upcoming internal opportunities.  Pitch U helped provide development opportunities and senior leadership exposure for Lincoln’s BRG members and helped fill open positions as well as the company’s talent pool with diverse, engaged and talented employees.

Erika Whyte