The Association of African American Financial Advisors recently appointed Alex David as its permanent board chairman, a role he had been holding on an interim basis following Christian Nwasike’s departure in June.
In September, AAAA appointed Sheena Gray as its first full-time CEO, and David, in a recent interview with ThinkAdvisor, said he was honored and humbled to be entrusted to help lead the organization as it heads into its 24th year of engagement and advocacy.
Since its founding in 2001 by LeCount Davis, AAAA has been committed to the professional growth of Black financial advisors, planners and affiliated professionals. The mission is an important one to improve fairness and inclusivity, David said, but it is also about helping the wealth management industry itself.
“You may know that I got my doctorate in economics and marketing through a dissertation that studied the positive impact of Black women business owners on their industries and communities,” David said. “Economists have shown that improved diversity results in improved outcomes, and that's something I've seen personally in my career. It’s an important perspective to bring to this role.”
Wealth management firms need to further diversify their workforces, leadership teams and client bases to thrive in the 21st century, David argued, and he is proud to be addressing that alongside Gray and other AAAA board members.
David’s formalized role at AAAA follows his appointment in February as the director of the Northeast division of Raymond James. He said that the roles fit nicely together, with the leadership team at Raymond James offering its full backing of his work with AAAA.
“We’re seeing a real groundswell of momentum from our corporate partners and from our members,” David said. “Paid membership is up more than 30% over the past year, and we’ve grown to more than 8,000 members. At the same time, the number of corporate partnerships has grown from 21 to 28.”
An Economist’s Perspective
David said he looks forward to applying his skills as an industry executive and as an academic economist to advancing AAAA’s mission.
“I believe we are at a point in the wealth management industry where there is clearly a lot of passion about addressing inequality,” David said. “But I can also tell you that, if you don’t have the data and if you aren’t doing the research, it becomes very hard to assess whether we are really making any sustainable progress.”
For example, it’s not enough to merely consider hiring statistics to understand the representation of people of color in the rank and file or at the leadership level. Retention statistics and promotion activity also need to be analyzed.
